Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

Rebecca was a recommendation from my mom and was I so glad I listened to her. (Ahh.. the advantages of no longer being a teenager!)

I am not going to give a synopsis for this one at all. I went in knowing almost nothing, and as a result, I loved every minute. I will just say that there is definitely a Gothic air to this one, so if that sounds up your aisle, then give it a go.

The atmosphere created in this book was brilliantly done. It was dark and ominous. Du Maurier manipulated my feelings with her skilled use of imagery. Also, the way the novel was constructed helped too. The plot structure is cyclical, so we get the end at the beginning which just drops enough hints to make the reader know/assume that 'something bad' is going to happen. But it does not suggest how bad nor what happened. That was great - except for my nails. I chewed quite a few off while reading this. Not that is was scary. This isn't a horror story. But suspenseful! Definitely!

The characters were all conundrums, with the exception of the unnamed narrator. But even she was interesting because she would visualise what she thought was happening, or what people were saying, so I was constantly aware that she was a bit unreliable. As to all the others - who knows what was going on with them! Rebecca is a character I can't ignore here either. Although you never meet her in the book, her presence is overwhelming and unforgettable. That in itself was an impressive feat.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. I was expecting something above average or OK - especially with the hideous cover that promised a complicated, snooze-fest of a read. (No really, just look at it. How did that sell at all?)  I gave it 5 stars on Goodreads. Fans of Gothic fiction, fans of suspense and fans of really good writing and a well-thought out plot and structure will appreciate Rebecca.

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

AWOL Again! Anyone would swear that I don't always have time to blog! It's not like I have a job or anything. OK. So that was sarcasm. Work has been hectic - again. Apologies. But unfortunately blogging doesn't feed the family. I am going to be a bit on and off until the end of the month (hopefully some 'on') as the mad rush to finalise the term hits, and the prep for the insanity for next term begins.

I found Atlas Shrugged at Jimmy's Second Hand bookshop. It was in good condition, and I was curious. I knew I had heard about it before (although what I had heard was anyone's guess) and I kept seeing it on List Challenges (a fun place to procrastinate). This book is also partially responsible for my hiatus. There is so much to say, and some brain power is required. (Whether my brain is actually working by the time I put this together is not guaranteed though. I really need to get past this book.)

Once again, I had no idea as to what to expect going into this book. If I were honest, I would admit that I would probably have not read this had I known what it was about - but I will get to that below. Atlas Shrugged read like a horror story. Not the supernatural-type - why have ghosts and demons when mankind can be so much more dangerous. Coming from Africa, this terrified me.

A bit on the synopsis: Imagine a world where the rich are punished for having a monopoly. Imagine if these rich folks were required to support others, those who don't have work. Imagine a world where businesses have been strangled so much that many are being forced to close. Not too different from the one we live in, right?

Atlas Shrugged took some time to process. It was a good read and it gave me tons to think about. While I do not agree with every premise in this book, the fact that I had multiple debates with my mom about things that cropped up while reading, was a good sign. I love that this made me question and re-evaluate my beliefs. However, Ayn Rand's philosophy, while put across convincingly, has many flaws and oversights. Her premise would work better in a world where, and dare I quote Orwell here, "Everyone is born equal", which, unfortunately is not the case. Children born into underprivileged families are going to struggle a lot more to make anything of their lives than those who are born to wealthy families who have funds for the best schooling, who can afford resources, who have access to parents who are more educated. It isn't fair, but it is a mean reality. This alone is not something considered in Rand's book, beyond her disapproval of those who are 'disadvantaged'. I suppose I am also biased against her philosophy; I teach kids with barriers to learning. Chances are that they are not going to be in a position to be huge money makers. If anything, they are going to end up like me: someone who is overworked and chronically underpaid. But that should not detract from our value of members of society. Yes, I know. Ayn Rand does not have issues against folks who work - more against those who don't, and the leaders who want to distribute wealth. I don't think one could find a book that goes more against communist principles if one tried. What this book does well, though, is illustrate how much we need the people who are in business. It pinpointed the importance of the relationship between all sorts of industry. You might have miners, but without transport, where would one be? Where would transport systems be without the metal industry? Where would the metal industry be without fuel? One upset in that 'ecosystem' would result in destruction of all. From the position of someone living in Africa, this was probably the scariest part of this book. How many forms of industry are in the process of being nationalised - and with our track record, that does not bode well. This is just the start of the debate that Atlas Shrugged started in my head. As I said, while I can't say that I agree with her philosophies, I appreciated that she got me to question my own and then reestablish a stronger foundation for what I believed.

“If you saw Atlas, the giant who holds the world on his shoulders, if you saw that he stood, blood running down his chest, his knees buckling, his arms trembling but still trying to hold the world aloft with the last of his strength, and the greater his effort the heavier the world bore down upon his shoulders - What would you tell him?"

I…don't know. What…could he do? What would you tell him?"

To shrug.”

― Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged

This book is not for everyone though. While the plot itself is definitely grabbing, there are moments where I wished Rand would get off her soapbox and challenge her own beliefs a bit. Surely an opinion is only worth considering if it can truly withstand an attack from 'the opposition'. Plus, some of those speeches were tedious to read. No, really. One was about 50 pages long. Philosophy flying at one for that length of time with no interruption was mental murder. The other area of concern had my feminist buzzer ringing. But I need to give this part more thought, as this book was published in 1957, and I think that for that time, it was rather progressive in thought. But I will confess that the total number of professional women mentioned were 3 (I think), and only ONE was actually a mastermind in business. (The other was an actress and the third was something not worth remembering - apparently). The other two were completely unmentionable characters and had no part in the story. The other thing that had me questioning my feminist stand point were Dagny's relationships. Besides the fact that both guys were pretty much of the same mould in the sack, I must confess to finding it hard to swallow that such a strong woman would like to be treated as such. I expected a bit more ... self-respect? But then, who am I to sit here and question what strong women would like in the sack.

I did give this book 5 stars. Although I did find some parts horribly tedious and although I definitely disagreed with her philosophy, I appreciated the mental hoops it made me jump through. I would recommend this to folks who are interested in economic philosophies,, folks who don't shy away from MASSIVE tomes, and those who can read looooooong philosophical ramblings very quickly.