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After reading several glowing opinions of The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux, I became skeptical. Then intrigued. When I found an unabridged copy for two dollars, it seemed like a pretty good bargain. We bought it and I began reading a few weeks later. [Edited to add: I had this entire review written, then I mistakenly threw it away before typing it out in its entirety. Consequently, this is a rewrite and may not be as well written as my first review, when the book was fresher in my mind.]

The Author:
Gaston Leroux, a Frenchmen, born in Paris in 1868, grew up on the coast of Normandy. His education came from boarding schools, than as a young adult, he earned a degree in the law. After his father died, Mr. Leroux switched from the law to journalism. In 1917, he married Jeanne Cayette. His first book, The Double Life was published in 1904. He wrote several other novels, including, The Mystery of the Yellow Room and The Floating Prison. Gaston Leroux died in 1927, at the young age of 59.

Technical Details:
The Phantom of the Opera was first published in 1910 by Pierre Lafitte and Cie. My copy was published by Dalmatian Press in 2011. It was published using a manuscript translated into English by Alexander Teixeira de Mattos. The book is 26 chapters long, also including a short Prologue and Epilogue. The whole book is 276 pages.

The Story:
This musical tale opens in the Paris Opera House, set in the second half of the nineteenth century. Beautiful Christine Daae’s magnificent voice has caused a stir amongst the singers of the opera, as well as the audience. She has never been known to sing so beautifully before and yet, she refuses to tell anyone the secret to her newfound voice. Not even Raoul de Chagny, her childhood friend and would-be fiancé, can get her to talk. While rumors and fears circulate the opera house regarding the mysterious Phantom who periodically appears in odd places, causing singers and managers alike to take precautions, Raoul becomes determined to find out Christine’s secret. He can see that the young woman has changed, and he’s even heard her to speaking to or listening to a man at various times – a man he can’t find. He seems invisible most of the time! Yet, the farther he goes into his investigation, the farther he seems to push Christine… and the more he seems to learn about the mysterious Phantom of the Opera. When Christine completely disappears, Raoul finds himself going into the depths of the Opera House – depths that he didn’t even know existed a short time before – fighting desperately for his life and Christine’s freedom.

The Writing Style:
The writing style of this book decidedly reflects Mr. Leroux’s journalist past. The story is written factually, with constant “references” to a biography written by one of the characters. While still fiction, this lends an air of believability to the tale.

The narration was engaging, though serious. A good blend, considering the mysterious aspect of the story. Unfortunately, I found the story lacking when Mr. Leroux failed to explain a few things, such as the reason for Eric’s extreme ugliness. I found this a little dissatisfying.

The Characters:
The characters were well written and colorfully portrayed. I did find them a little on the dramatic side sometimes, but it wasn’t enough to really hurt the story.

My favorite character was probably Raoul de Chagny. Despite his occasional tendency to be slightly over-dramatic, I liked his perseverance of character, as well as how truly he showed his love for Christine. (Most of the time at least.) I also rather liked Raoul’s elder brother. Steady and quiet. Though I might have liked to have seen a little more of him in the story.

A Few More Thoughts:
I did have a few concerns while reading this story. For instance, one of the characters is a cold-blooded murderer. Yet, for reasons that I did not understand, (pity, perhaps or fear?), the murderer was never brought to justice. No one even tried. Our LORD made it very clear that murder is a sin, and that a murderer should be brought to justice. There were a few other things: superstitious omens and one character is shown praying for the dead. Most of these weren’t a huge part of the story, but they are worth mentioning.

Cautions:
I can’t actually remember if there was any foul language in this book. If there was, it was not used often.

There are a few descriptions of tortuous murders, that may well disturb a sensitive reader.

While the setting makes it realistic, some may like to be forewarned that that there is a steady dose of Catholicism throughout the story.

Conclusion:
Overall, The Phantom of the Opera was engaging, well written, and a good mystery. The book presented a good study for me as an aspiring author. I’m not sure, however, if it will be a book I reread. I may recommend the book to a discerning, mature reader, but it is certainly not for children.

To the KING be all the glory!

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So then, it seems like it’s taking me forever to get this post up… Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is my first Robert Louis Stevenson book. I knew a little about this book, just enough to make me curious, so recently, I took a day and read it. (Yes, it only took me one day. I thought it would be longer than that!)

The Author:
Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Scotland in 1850. First studying law, by 1880, Mr. Stevenson had forsaken law school and was entrenched in his career in writing. Beginning with essays and pieces of non-fiction published in magazines, he didn’t publish his first novel until 1883. In 1880 Robert Louis Stevenson married an American named Fanny Osborne. He wrote a small handful of novels in his lifetime, including Kidnapped and the well-known Treasure Island. He died in 1894, at the very young age of 44.

Technical Details:
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was originally published in 1886. Dalmatian Press published the book I read in 2004. It is a mere 116 pages, divided into 10 chapters.

The Story:
Mr. Utterson, an elderly lawyer, is a quiet and well-liked man. Several months before, Dr. Jekyll, his friend of many years, put a Will into his care that bothered him. In the event of the doctor’s demise or disappearance, all of his worldly goods were to pass to a certain Mr. Edward Hyde. The trouble is, little is known of Edward Hyde, and what is known, is despicable. When murder enters the equation, Mr. Utterson fears for his friend’s safety, but when Dr. Jekyll seems to disappear…

The Writing Style:
The writing style of the book is excellent! Mr. Stevenson had a way with words, which made even long narration, a delight to read.

The tone was serious, yet not dark. Mysterious, yet not depressing.

I will confess that I was not expecting science fiction, but Mr. Stevenson delivered a good blend of mystery and science fiction, that I found fascinating to read.

The Characters:
Mr. Utterson was a well-done character. He was well rounded, though perhaps a bit nosy. He really doesn’t seem to have much to go on in the beginning, but he keeps pushing it. Of course, it turns out that he has a reason to be concerned, but he didn’t know that. I didn’t find his character particularly enduring, but he was likable, which is good.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, respectively, were interesting, and well written. Dr. Jekyll’s narration in a couple of chapters, give a good insight into his character and personality, which would have been lacking otherwise.

The minor characters were few. In fact, this book contained very few characters at all, yet the story didn’t seem lacking as a result. Each character introduced, was done so for a good reason. There were no extraneous characters anywhere. In hindsight, I think I did picture the streets of London rather empty as a result, but it wasn’t something that I thought of at the time.

Cautions:
I would suggest caution in giving this book to younger children. A few of the elements discussed are dark, there is more than one description of unprovoked violence (nothing explicit, just not recommended for children) and some minor language.

Conclusion:
I enjoyed reading this book, and I think it is an especially good study for a writer. Then too, for a discerning reader, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde could well serve as an illustration of the folly and consequences when yielding to temptation. I can’t help but reminded of these verses in James chapter one:

“But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.”

 

To the KING be all the glory!

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Last November, I went out of town for nearly a week. I was traveling with a few ladies, two of which had little ones, and I was along to help watch the cuties. The mothers were going to a conference. Knowing that I would have some time when I probably wouldn’t want to write, I decided to take along a book to read during nap time or bed times. (The babies would be going to bed before me, and the conference ran late.) The first night, I was really tired from several hours riding in a car – too tired to do much writing, so I pulled out my book. It was The Curate’s Awakening by George MacDonald. It was my first time reading anything by this author and I’ll just say, it wasn’t the “easy reading” I was for some reason, expecting. I liked what I read – but that was less than a chapter because I… fell asleep!! (I never fall asleep when reading!!) When I got home, life became too busy for reading much for a few months (holidays, moving, etc…) and I actually didn’t get back to this book until about three weeks ago. This time, I nearly finished it in a day…

The Author:
George MacDonald was born in the end of 1824 in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Born to a farmer, George MacDonald grew to be a minister, as well as an author and a poet. In 1851, he married Louisa Powell and together they had eleven children. Mrs. MacDonald died in 1902, after a marriage of 51 years. The author of several works, both of fantasy and regular fiction, George MacDonald was a prolific writer. A few titles include, Sir Gibbie, Far Above Rubies and The Lady’s Confession. He died in September of 1905 at 80 years of age.

Technical Details:
The Curate’s Awakening was originally published in the year 1876 by Hurst and Blackett Publishers, London, under the title: Thomas Wingfold, Curate. The book I read was republished in 1985 by Bethany House Publishers and edited by Michael R. Phillips. While I don’t usually read edited versions of books, (I would usually rather avoid them altogether), Mr. Phillips mostly, from what I understand, edited the dialect of the writing and not the actual content. A friend of mine even suggested that I read the edited versions, as opposed to the originals, since they are so difficult to read. (It helped that I don’t have any originals on hand either! ;) The book was 38 chapters in length, but only 224 pages, so that some of the chapters were quite short. I confess that I did not read Michael Phillips introduction. After the first paragraph or two, I didn’t care for what he had to say, so I skipped it. Otherwise, I read the book in its entirety.

The Story:
Thomas Wingfold, curate of the parish in Glaston, England, never really shares any of his own thoughts with his congregation. In fact, Thomas doesn’t even write his own sermons! Preaching to the sleepy congregation from the selection of sermons his Uncle left him in his will, Thomas doesn’t even have to make a decision on the topic. Each sermon is set for a specific Sunday of the year, and the curate just reads them in order. One night, while dining at the house of the former curate’s widow, George Bascombe, a nephew of that lady and a strong atheist, rebukes Thomas for preaching what no one believes. Thomas counters his argument, but George inquires whether the man himself really believes what he preaches. The curate is stunned to realize that he doesn’t have an honest answer. He took holy orders as a career, not for any reason of conviction. The story follows Thomas’ journey as he tries to discover who this LORD, whom he professes to preach, really is and if he, Thomas Wingfold, really believes in him or follows in His ways.

Helen Lingard, a member of the curate’s congregation, finds her quiet, dull way of living thrown into chaos when her beloved younger brother runs to her, professing to be a murderer. Desperate to help him, yet with no real hope or relationship with the LORD, Helen doesn’t know what to do to help the disparaging young man. Tormented by what he has done, Leopold Lingard hardly knows what to do with himself and longs for comfort. At last, Helen brings the curate to him, but can she accept the consequences for Leopold’s guilt, even when he is content? Will she ever find rest and peace in the LORD or will she follow her cousin’s atheistic philosophies, continuing to “live without hope and without God in the world”?

The Writing Style:
The writing style is old fashioned, but clear. While not easy reading, it’s not very difficult either. Some of the phrases seem a bit odd, every now and again, but they may simply be an old fashioned way of phrasing something, or an editing oddity from Michael Phillips.

Descriptions of places and things are well done, though not vivid. At times, they may be even a little bit dull, but they aren’t redundant and certainly not overused. As to the people, their descriptions are given in the beginning of their introduction, and with enough skill to give a very clear picture of character described.

The style is not dark, but neither is it light and cheerful. Bordering on the melancholy at times, Mr. MacDonald kept a serious tone throughout most of the book, which matches well with the story.

The Characters:
Besides, Thomas and Helen, this books is sprinkled liberally with characters of different backgrounds and religious beliefs. The deformed man whose faith and trust in the LORD is evident in every action of his life, the draper whose sleepy Christianity is prodded into wakefulness by the curate’s confession and awakening, the self centered woman, so stuck in her ways, that she sees nothing but fanaticism when anyone tries to hold up the Bible as completely true and authoritative. These are just a few of the well-written and strongly portrayed characters that fill up the cast for this book.

Leopold’s story-line is written more emotionally than the others, and the reader can almost feel his pain as he’s tormented with the sin of his crime. I personally think that Leopold was the best written character in the book, but Thomas with his constant struggles for belief and Helen, her heart torn with sorrow over her brother and constant jumping from the beliefs of the curate or her cousin, are well written as well.

My favorite character was either Mr. Polwarth, the man whose deformity, certainly didn’t hurt his faith, or Thomas Wingfold, the curate. Mr. Polwarth was inspiring and encouraging. Every trial that came his way, he counted joy, and praised the Lord.

A Few More Thoughts:
As much as I enjoyed The Curate’s Awakening, there were a few things that I disagreed with. For example, when Thomas realizes that he is preaching a doctrine that he doesn’t believe in, his first thought is to vacate the pulpit and leave his curacy. Mr. Polwarth encourages him to keep it as he searches for the LORD, and then to decide. He helps him to find material to preach on for a month or two, so that he is teaching the people Biblically sound sermons while he’s searching. This truly bothered me since First Timothy 3 makes it clear that an overseer of the church should not be a new convert, “so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil.” Even if Mr. Wingfold becomes a true follower of the LORD (and I won’t tell you if he does), it seems that he should still be giving up his curacy following that verse. There were one or two minor things beside this, but I won’t go into detail about them right now.

Cautions:
I would suggest caution in giving this book to a young reader. Some of the themes discussed are not for children. There is mild language, the use of drugs (though condemned, it plays a vital part of the story) as well as the fact that a stricken and dying man mentions seeing the image of a dead woman, more than once. Whether it was his imagination, or was supposed to be a ghost, the author never makes perfectly clear.

Conclusion:
Despite it’s flaws, I really liked this book. In fact, I might get myself a copy for my own collection. The discussions by the characters are thought provoking in a good way. They sent me to my Bible to confirm or refine my own beliefs. I would recommend this book to a young adult and older.

To the KING be all the glory!

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This was *supposed* to go up last week… Hmm… Methinks that I need to start trying to be a wee bit ahead of schedule more often. Anyhow… My sisters and I listened to Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll on Saturday a week ago, while we cleaned up a rather messy house. This is my first review of an audio book, so hopefully I can manage fairly well without a hard copy to reference.

The Author:
Lewis Carroll was an Englishman born in 1832, in Cheshire, England. Born to Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, he was the fourth of twelve children given to Rev. Dodgson and his wife. A clergyman, as well as an author, he is best known for Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, though he was also the author of several other works, including those of a mathematical nature. As far as I can ascertain, he never married and died in 1898 at the age of 65.

Technical Details:
Macmillan Publishers, originally published Alice’s Adventures Under Ground, in 1865. Illustrated by John Tenniel, Appleton also published the book in New York the same year. At some point, before the author died, the title was changed to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, commonly shortened to Alice in Wonderland. The entire story is 12 chapters long. The audio that we listened to was read by Loraine Montgomery for Lit2Go and can be found here. The reader enunciated well, kept her tone clear and consistent, and had a pleasant voice, not to mention the fun voices she did for some of the characters.

The Story:
Alice, a young girl living in Victorian England, is spending the afternoon with her older sister outdoors. Sleepy from the heat, Alice is thinking rather lazily about daisy chains, when she is startled from her drowsiness by a white rabbit in a waistcoat walking right in front of her, audibly worrying that he is running late. Thoroughly curious, Alice, without much consideration, runs after the rabbit, following him down a deep hole and into a tunnel. From then on follow a series of contradictions and nonsensical occurrences that often leave Alice bewildered and confused. Babies turning to pigs, a river of tears and an insane game of croquet contribute to the adventures, all while Alice changes height from mere inches to several miles – and everything in between! At last, the young girl begins to wonder if she’ll ever make sense of anything and, worse, will she ever be able to get where she wants to go?

The Writing Style:
The writing style is light and cheerful. Fairly easy reading and certainly simple enough for a child to understand, yet written at a level that an adult can enjoy the language as well. The chapters are well written and well arranged.

In some ways, the pure nonsense in portions of this story is simply disturbing. Nothing happens for any obvious reasons. My research, however, seems to reveal, that what appears to be nonsense at the outset, really has a hidden reason. That or, what is written, is a parody on some truth. In short, in order to really understand this story, you need to understand the mathematics and logic of the author’s day. Then you can recognize the reasons behind much of the story.

The poetry and songs scattered liberally throughout this book are very well done. The rhythm and rhyme are exceptional, though the content usually seems lacking in any sense. Most are parodies of popular rhymes of the author’s day.

The Characters:
From the ugly Duchess, to the touchy Mouse, the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts and the Mock Turtle, the characters of Alice in Wonderland are certainly colorful and varied. Names are usually the species or kind of the creature, such as the White Rabbit, the Dormouse, the Cheshire Cat, etc… The Mad Hatter is an example of an exception. As far as I am aware, there is no such animal as a “hatter”.

Alice, as the main character, is also given the most brains in the entire story, with the exception perhaps of the Cheshire Cat. She looks for reasons in everything and usually fails to discover any. She is, however, at times, very rude to what could be considered her elders (even if they aren’t all human) on more than one occasion. Knowing that she has more sense than all of the animals, people and cards put together, she becomes quite haughty with everyone, especially in the end, an aspect I found rather sad. She should be appealing to them, rather than telling them off. (First Timothy 5:1)

As to my favorite character, that would probably be the Cheshire Cat. Though strange, I found his character interesting and amusing.

Conclusion:
Overall, I enjoyed Alice in Wonderland well enough, though it isn’t likely to be a favorite. A good book to give some light study to for an author especially, but I probably won’t be buying it. If I were to recommend this book to anyone, I would do so with the caution that it basically makes no sense, unless you are a mathematician and/or a logician like Lewis Carroll. (Or, like me, you research the background and the logic behind the story!) :)
 
To the KING be all the glory!