Thursday 23 February 2012

How Persuasion won me over

I am, as I have probably said before, not a fan of old books. By this I don't mean wonderfully musty books you've had for ages, or those passed down in generations, I simply mean literature that is anything less than modern. I don't really like the language and although the idea of 'classics' is appealing, the few I've struggled through I've found are just too boring.

Anyway, I do dislike the thought of missing out on all these books so many people admire. So I tried Persuasion. The fact that a major reason in me choosing this book was that it was a character from a film I like's favourite book is neither here nor there.

It was better than I expected, which was a nice surprise. I still don't like the style of writing, with sentences that go on forever with a minimum of ten clauses. It's difficult and unecessary and puts people, me included, off.

But after a slow start of trying to get into it, I found the characters interesting and the whole system of norms and pleasantries and politeness of good society made for a good story. Would I read it again? Probably not. But I may be more inclined to read something else by Jane Austen if it ever comes across my path readily. Perhaps it is an acquired taste that takes more than one experience to cement.

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