Looking Up

Hah. After much agonising searching (nearly half the morning, actually) I've managed to fix the blog layout and the Amazing Disappearing Sidebar. It looks like it was something in the posts themselves, possibly helped along by the fact that I'd copied and pasted the Manor on the Moor stuff straight from Word. In the end I was forced to delete the posts and code them all myself. Luckily I've only got a few posts to my name!

I watched the second half of Wuthering Heights last night and was pretty happy with how it turned out. From what I can remember of the book...

(and admittedly I did read it quite a while ago) it seemed to stick to the plot pretty well, so no complaints there.

But now to more important business. Namely, my reading of Jane Eyre, which has progressed so rapidly that I'm starting to get depressed at the lack of pages. Can I just say that Mr Rochester is probably coming dangerously close to overtaking Mr Darcy as my favourite hero in literature? Yes, apparently I just can't get enough of the dark and brooding types. Worrying? Possibly.

Be that as it may, It's hard not to like this sardonic but romantic character, and it's helped by the fact that although I was wary of Jane Eyre as a character, she too is likeable and does not make me want to reach into the book and slap her every time she opens her mouth. Unless something really drastic happens in the next 100 or so pages, I think I've got another Favourite Book For Life. Pride and Prejudice (in fact, all the Austen books) has been up there for as long as I can remember, but Jane Eyre looks very promising.

The best part, however, came when Jane, at one point, had to make A Very Difficult Decision, which I will not spoil by writing about it exactly, though it appears in Chapter 20, I believe. She stands up for herself and shows strong self-respect and determination, and for the first time in the long time I actually spoke when reading a book; I said something along the lines of, "Jane Eyre, you are amazing." And that, dear friends, is the story of how Jane Eyre became one of my favourite books of all time.

I can't wait to finish reading, now, because I'm eager to see the TV versions. That's another joy, although just looking at the girl I've got a small fear that the woman playing Jane Eyre is one of those actresses who I have an incredibly hard time liking. Mr Rochester, too, doesn't look like I pictured him at all; but I suppose that's inevitable. Anyway, mustn't judge by appearances, right?

Also there appears to be another production in the works with, of all people, Ellen Page as Jane. This strikes me as a little... stupid. Page is a good actress but she's good at playing a very specific character. I've never seen her in anything so far which convinces me she's the right person to play one of the most famous heroines of English literature. Apart from all else... she's American. I can't imagine anything worse than a Jane Eyre with an American accent, as these sorts of scenarios often end up... and that's the best-case scenario, too.

Ok. Perhaps a touch melodramatic, but I still have my reservations.

But who cares? Jane's just left Mr Rochester's to go... God knows where. But I'm about to find out!