A Study in Scarlet

Part 1: Chapters 1-Part 2: Chapter 7

1. Have you ever read this book or any other Sherlock Holmes novels before? Have you ever seen any of the film or TV adaptations? I own most of the books in this series (this is ironically the only one I didn't own, haha) but this will be my first time reading one! (Though. I did read an abridged board books version when I was a kid; it was just a few of the stories but I remember exactly nothing about it.) But I really love Holmes from the adaptations I've seen! I absolutely love the BBC show and the Robert Downey Jr films. I've also seen a few episodes of that really old tv series which are also super fun!! But my absolute, all time favorite adaptation is Young Sherlock Holmes. I was OBSESSED with it when I was younger and used to watch it all the time!! .... And now I want to rewatch it, haha.

2. How does Dr. Watson come to meet and live with Sherlock Holmes? Watson runs into an old friend who asks what he's doing and Watson says that he's looking for lodgings. The friend says it's the strangest thing but Watson is the second person who has said that to him that day. So Stamford, the friend, introduces Watson to the first, Holmes. Holmes has already found the lodgings, he's just looking for a roommate and after a brief interview, Watson takes him up on the offer.

3. What did Sherlock discover about the woman who came to claim the lost ring when he followed her? So this ~woman comes to pick up the ring. She says that the ring belongs to her daughter and she came to pick it up for her. Well, Holmes followed her when she left. She hailed a cab and Holmes hailed one as well and followed her. Except when they reached the destination, her cab was empty???? The destination house belonged to none of the names she had given. So Holmes comes to the conclusion that that wasn't an old woman but a young man in a very impressive disguise.

4. What is Gregson convinced happened in the case after talking to Drebbers landlady? Drebber and his secretary were renting rooms from Mrs. Charpentier. But Drebber was less than the ideal tenant. He drank a lot and one night he tried to convince (and force) Charpentier's daughter Alice to run away with him. Well, Charpentier's son, Arthur, came to her rescue. Okay so both Drebbers and Arthur left. But only Arthur returned. So Gregson is convinced that Arthur followed Drebbers and another altercation happened between them, this time resulting in Drebbers death. He then believes Arthur dragged the body of Drebbers into the empty house. And all the other "clues" were just there to send the police on the wrong trail.

5. Who is Thomas Ferrier and how do he and Lucy get themselves into trouble with the Mormon church? So Thomas Ferrier was with this group of people who were traveling and they ended up, like, lost in the desert??? And they ran out of water and everyone but Thomas and Lucy died of thirst. So Thomas carried Lucy off in search of water. They fell asleep and were found by a group of Mormon travelers. Lucy's mom had died with the others and she wasn't related to Thomas but he basically adopted her and raised her. Well, the Mormon's saved them and took them back to their compound and gave them a home. Except. When Lucy comes of age, she's expected to marry one of the men on the compound. But she falls in love with a non-Mormon. Well, the Mormon's basically start threatening the Ferriers and trying to scare them into marrying her off to one of them. (Who already have multiple wives??? She's supposed to be an additional wife, as a reward for one of the better of men.) Well Ferriers and Lucy's non-Mormon fiance try to take her and escape the compound. And they think they've made it away and are safe. Except the Mormons end up killing Ferrier. And Jefferson, Lucy's non-Mormon fiance, learns she was married to Drebber, one of the Mormons fighting to obtain her hand. Cool.

6. How and why were Drebber and his secretary murdered? So. Lucy ended up dying within a month of her marriage, either from a broken heart from losing her father or from entering into a terrible marriage. And her once fiance, Jefferson Hope, vowed to get his revenge on the two men who had caused her death and fought to marry her: Debber and Stangerson. He followed them and tried for many years to kill them but they always evaded him. The two men eventually parted ways with the Mormon church and began to travel, with Stangerson eventually becoming Drebber's secretary. Hope following them to Europe and just as he was closing in to kill them, he lost them again. England is where he finally managed to track them down and finish the job. He got a job as a cabbie and began to follow them both, hoping to catch them alone. But they went everywhere together. Until one night, Drebber said he had some business to attend to and went off alone. Hope followed him until finally Drebber hailed his cab. Then he took him to the empty house, asked if he remembered him and when Drebber did, Hope made him choose one of the poisoned capsules and watched Drebber die. Stangerson was a little trickier since he was cautious after the death of Drebber. Hope waited outside his hotel but he never emerged so Hope climbed up to his window and woke him early one morning, telling him exactly how Drebber had died and then gave him the same choice of one of the poisoned pills. But Stangerson tried to attack Hope and, in self defense, he stabbed him in the heart. And so with that, Drebber and Stangerson had met their ends and Hope's mission of revenge is at its end. And now Hope can die too since he has a heart condition that has been threatening to kill him for years.

7. How did Sherlock figure it out? Holmes did what Gregson had neglected to do: he looked into the past of Drebber and telegraphed the Cleveland police to inquire into the circumstances connected with the marriage of Drebber. The answer told him that Drebber had applied for protection of the law from Jefferson Hope. He then also learned that Hope had also been present in Europe and had followed Drebber.

8. What did you think of this book? So. I thought this book was okay. I really did like meeting Holmes in print for the first time and I thought that was all really fascinating. But I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style?? This book was really dry and I ended up struggling with it. There were times when I would literally get lost in what I was reading and have to go back and reread. Holmes isn't your quirky detective like Poirot. He's very methodical and, well, dry. So reading his super long descriptions of deductions was honestly kind of a chore?

  Reading Journal

So I read this book in the month we were supposed to read it. (April.....? I want to say....? How does time work again????) And I’m just now getting around to actually posting this. Whoops. So since it’s been a hot minute since I read it, hopefully all the answers are actually correct. I did flip through and try to find the answers but sometimes also struggled a little because details. (And I just have a lot going on right now so BRAIN FOG EXTREME, haha.)

Well, anyway. Overall, I did enjoy this. I liked meeting Holmes and Watson in the books for the first time and this was a really fun case. But I also think I do prefer the screen adaptations more than the books, at this point. The writing style in these is rather dry and I struggled a little with staying focused.

Plus. WHAT IS THAT GIANT LONG TANGENT ABOUT MORMONS?!? I literally thought I was reading the wrong book for a second. I don’t think that entire section was necessary at all? It felt like all of that couldn’t been shortened to, like, a page??? Not, like, 30??? That honestly felt like a Hugo tangent. And it definitely diminished my enjoyment of this book.

So. Overall it was a ~fairly enjoyable reading experience? I’ll definitely be reading more of the books. But I just feel like this story wasn’t exactly what I was expecting? That wasn’t necessarily bad. I just wish that tangent hadn’t been there....? Because other than that, the case was good and interesting!

Anyway. This was a lot of fun! I can’t wait to read the next book on our list!

Gods of Jade and Shadow Section Three

Chapters 23-35

1. What does Vucub-Kamé surmise from the sighs in the shells? He surmises from Casiopea's sigh that she does not wish for treasure chests and pageants of power but, instead, she's infatuated with Hun-Kamé. He is the prize she desires and that's the weak point Vucub-Kamé can play upon. As for Hun-Kamé, he also desires Casiopea, but in a different way. Vucub-Kamé sees that immortality weighs on his brother and he struggles against it. He wishes for a simpler life, like Casiopea. Vucub-Kamé sees that the mortal side of Hun-Kamé is half a fool, his voice young and his eye almost clear of shadows. He yearns and in that yearning is the weakness Vucub-Kamé can exploit.

2. When Martín catches Casiopea coming out of the clothing store, how does he attempt to get her to side with Vucub-Kamé this time? First he tells her that he has a telegram from her mother. He says that her mother thinks that Casiopea ran off with a man and that Grandfather sent Martín to find her. But when this tactic doesn't work, Martín tells her that a contest will be proposed that evening and they (Casiopea and Martín) will be challenged to walk the Black Road. Martín tries to convince her to just give up and see Vucub-Kamé before the contest. He says he's afraid to take part in it. Then, when that doesn't work, he tries apologizing to her for his past behaviors. And, finally, apparently fed up with this conversation, Vucub-Kamé uses Martín as a vessel to try to reason with Casiopea himself. Literally none of these things work and Casiopea leaves Martín standing on the street, contemplating his impending victory (he hopes).

3. What does Zavala propose? As Martín predicted, Zavala proposes the following competition: whoever walks the Black Road and reaches the World Tree in the heart of Xibalba first wins. It sounds simple but Xibalba, the underworld, is not a simple, safe place. The rules, Zavala says, are these: Hun-Kamé's magic cannot protect Casiopea while she is there, just as Vucub-Kamé's cannot protect Martín. They will be vulnerable to the elements as well as knifes (they will each carry an obsidian knife). If Casiopea wins, Vucub-Kamé will kneel before his brother and allow him to lop off his head, just as he did to Hun-Kamé. But if Casiopea loses, Hun-Kamé's head will roll and Casiopea will be shackled inside the Razor House. However, Zavala says that they don't have to accept this competition straightaway. Vucub-Kamé wishes to meet with Casiopea first to propose a better option.

4. What is Vucub-Kamé's proposition? Vucub-Kamé proposes that both Casiopea and Hun-Kamé kill themselves and offer themselves to Vucub-Kamé in sacrifice as they die. He says that those who pledge themselves to the Lord of Xibalba are invited to dwell in the shadow of the World Tree. When Hun-Kamé dies and enters Xibalba, he will be a mortal. Vucub-Kamé has the power to restore mortals who worship him so he will restore the two of them to live in Middleworld and they can be together. They can be mortal and alive together.

5. Which offer does Casiopea wish to take? Which does Hun-Kamé? Which option do they decide to take and what advice does Hun-Kamé offer? Hun-Kamé wants to take his brother's offer. For one, it is the only way to save Casiopea. But he also genuinely wants to be with her. He says he doesn't care about being immortal and regaining his throne. As long as he can be with Casiopea, they can start over and they can be happy. But Casiopea thinks they've come too far to give up now and she also doesn't want to let the wicked triumph and the innocent to be slaughtered by his brother. She doesn't want to let Vucub-Kamé win. So Casiopea will walk the Black Road. Hun-Kamé says that the road follows the commands of the person who walks it and it will listen to Casiopea because she is also a part of Hun-Kamé. He says to command it as you would a dog and look carefully. There are shadows where it becomes dimmer and she can jump through the shadows. He says not to fear it because fear will make it more difficult. And, most importantly, he tells her to never step off the road. He tells her to focus and if she's steady, she can picture his palace and she will arrive at its doors. When she points out that she's never seen his palace, he says that she's glimpsed it in his gaze and she is able to describe it to him. She's ready. And they've made their decision. Casiopea will walk the Black Road, come what may.

6. How does the competition go? After a slow start and a few obstacles, Casiopea figures out how to travel the Road and starts making good time. Martín does, initially, have the advantage. But eventually the road pulls them both together. Just before this, though, Vucub-Kamé tells Martín to kill Casiopea. So. He tries. But eventually decides he cannot. He spares her life. But then the road divides them? And Casiopea ends up off of the road while Martín keeps going.

7. What final choice does Casiopea make? What does this mean for Hun-Kamé? Casiopea sacrifices herself. Sensing that Martín is going to win, Casiopea decides to take Vucub-Kamé up on his offer and sacrifices herself... to Hun-Kamé. She slits her neck and walks into a body of water. Well, with this action, she actually calls on the Great Caiman, a creature of the depths who rarely makes appearances. So the caiman pulls her body out of the water and delivers her to the tree. Casiopea is the first to arrive and she wins the competition. So Hun-Kamé regains his throne (and his eye) and revives Casiopea. He says he'll give her anything she desires but she doesn't want anything. She wanted him but now that he is back to being immortal and she is a living thing, it cannot be. So Hun-Kamé gives her a couple of abilities and sends her back to Middleworld.

8. How does this book end? What did you think of the novel? Casiopea does not wish to return home though she doesn't know exactly what she wants to do. So she's leaving the hotel and asks for a car to take her. When a car shows up, Loray is the driver. It seems Hun-Kamé kept his promise to the demon and he's no longer trapped. So he's off to see the world. He says he wants to go somewhere where they speak French. He asks Casiopea if she'd prefer New Orleans or Quebec. She says she doesn't know but she wants him to teach her how to drive. So she sets off to explore with her new friend and ~see the world. And I LOVED this book!!! It was such a wonderful read! I am so glad we picked this one!

  Section Three Reading Journal

This book was SO GOOD!! I can’t even express how much I enjoyed it!!! I loved the characters, the setting, the writing, they mythology. All of it!! And this was such an entertaining, engaging read. I am so glad we picked this one!! I definitely had a fun time with it!

And I 100% cried when Casiopea and Hun-Kamé couldn’t be together. I definitely shipped them and I hoped they’d be able to find a way. But I did really like the ending of the novel so I guess it worked out. But part of me also wished they would’ve taken Vucub-Kamé up on his offer and just lived out their lives as mortals together. But I definitely understand Casiopea’s reasons for not wanting to go that path. But still!! It definitely hurt my shipper heart.

So. Overall, I absolutely loved this book!!! It was yet another goodread! Now I can’t wait to be on to the next!! <33

Gods of Jade and Shadow Section Two

Chapters 12-22

1. Why does Hun-Kamé cut Casiopea's hair? What happens during the ritual? Hun-Kamé says that he needs to summon ghosts but because he is not fully restored, he needs an ~offering from a human. He says that he can either use hair, bone or teeth. So he says he must cut Casiopea's hair to just below her chin. She objects but ultimately has no choice. So he cuts her hair and then starts the summoning. He takes her hand and tells her not to let go and not to look into their eyes. Well, she does both. It turns out the ghosts don't like the ~meager offering and just want all of Casiopea to devour. She ends up looking straight into the eyes of one of the ghosts and also losing Hun-Kamé's hand. He eventually finds her and ~leads her back from the darkness. And the ghosts make due with the offering and tell them to head to Xtabay's abode and they will find what they seek.

2. What does Martín offer Casiopea? What is her answer? If Casiopea will agree to talk to Vucub-Kamé, Martín says that upon her return home, she will have her rightful place in Uukumil, as it should've been from the beginning. So basically he won't treat her like trash anymore, if she'll help him. Which, thankfully, she does not agree to. She says that Hun-Kamé needs her help and no amount of threatening will help Martín now. Serves. Him. Right.

3. How does the meeting with Xtabay go? What detail does she notice about Hun-Kamé that he does not? Well, it almost goes super not well. Xtabay is supposed to have a ~power over mortal men. And since Hun-Kamé isn't a god right now, he technically falls under that veil. So he's falling under Xtabay's spell when this plant starts wrapping itself around Casiopea. She tries to fight it off and every time she does, it injures Xtabay so evidently it's ~part of her. Well finally she manages to get free just long enough to yell "Hun-Kamé! Don't listen to her!" And that breaks the spell. Hun-Kamé finishes freeing Casiopea and demands Xtabay returns his property. She gives him back his missing finger and he reattaches it. Hun-Kamé then asks where to find the next piece of the puzzle and although she at first denies knowing, she eventually advises them to visit a uay in El Paso, the Uay Chivo. And as they're leaving, Xtabay advises Hun-Kamé to give up this fight. He says that gods cannot die but he should look at his reflection in a mirror. What she noticed that he had not is that his eyes, normally super dark and reflecting nothing, had now changed. His eye now caught reflections. And. Hun-Kamé's vision is now clouded by Casiopea. Xtabay's spell had failed because when Casiopea had spoken and Hun-Kamé had turned his head, his pupil had reflected her and washed away the rest of the room...

4. What does Vucub-Kamé ask of Martín? He tells Martín to go to Baja California to meet with his disciple, Aníbal Zavala and learn to walk the shadow roads of his kingdom. This way Martín will have the advantage if Casiopea does not change her mind about Vucub-Kamé. He means to make Martín his champion, just as Casiopea seems to be Hun-Kamé's champion. And Vucub-Kamé doesn't really give Martín much of a choice. He says if the latter does not emerge victorious against his cousin in the coming contest, he will grind his bones into dust. So. That's great. Vucub-Kamé then sends Martín off to Tierra Blanca to learn the shadow roads before Casiopea and Hun-Kamé arrive.

5. What does Vucub-Kamé see in the parrot's blood? The last time he looked into the future, he could see Hun-Kamé's arrival in Tierra Blanca but now this is missing. There are now a hundred branching futures before him but, when he pushes through the chaos, this time he glimpses Casiopea and then his brother, throne regained and crowned anew. But then, through the branching paths, he also glimpses Hun-Kamé on the obsidian throne (so dead, presumably???) but this does little to assuage him.

6. What does Hun-Kamé dream? What does this mean? He dreamed that Casiopea walked the Black Road to Xibalba. He said he didn't like this because it's a dangerous path and he was glad when she woke him because he wishes her no harm. And it's not ~necessarily the dream that means something but his ability to dream. Gods are not supposed to be able to sleep and the fact that he was able to sleep AND dream means that he's becoming more and more human and their time is running out.

7. What happens at the flower shop? So the witch that they visit to ask for the location of Uay Chivo requires ~payment. And, as always, Casiopea is the one who has to do it. This time it is seven drops of blood which apparently also takes seven hours of her life??? So she pricks her finger and releases seven drops of blood for the witch. The witch then gives her a flower and then Casiopea falls asleep in a chair in the shop. She then awakes seven hours later back in their quarters with Hun-Kamé beside her. But she also dreamed of Xibalba. She dreamed of Vucub-Kamé on the obsidian throne, upon a pile of bones as tall as a mountain. And Casiopea thinks it might be a premonition. But. Anyway. While she was asleep, Hun-Kamé did get what he needed and now they can find the next piece of the puzzle.

8. How does the meeting with Uay Chivo go? Weird. Very, very weird... So first they end up trapped in a ring of fire. But Hun-Kamé gets them out of that. He turns himself into a shadow and Casiopea says he's escaped to ~lure the guard over. Then he uses the guard to put out the fire. Then they use pretty much the same technique on the next guard. With both of those taken care of, they go into Uay Chivo's bed chamber. But. He has these goat statues which start attacking them. They take care of those. But Uay Chivo is also a goat??? So Hun-Kamé kills him which turns him back to a human and then he takes the necklace. A shadow appears though and it's Uay Chivo saying he'll soon have his form back (so he's not really dead then???) but they still have what they came for. And now Hun-Kamé's missing eye is the only piece left!

  Section Two Reading Journal

I am continuing to really love this book! This story is so fun and interesting. And I honestly really like a lot of the characters. Especially Casiopea and Hun-Kamé! The setting is also amazing and I’m really loving following their travels and ~experiences getting back Hun-Kamé‘s missing pieces.

Overall, this is a great read so far and I cannot wait to finish it up and see how things turn out!

Gods of Jade and Shadow Section One

Chapters 1-11

1. What happens when Casiopea opens her grandfather’s chest? So. She thinks she’s going to find treasure in the chest but when she opens it, it’s just a bunch of bones??? She digs around to see if there’s anything underneath but no, only bones. But. A shard of one of the bones lodges in her thumb and then the skeleton puts itself together and suddenly a naked man is standing in front of her. He explains that he is Hun-Kamé, Lord of Shadows and rightful ruler of Xibalba. He tells her that his brother and her grandfather plotted to kill him and took his left eye, ear, index finger and jade necklace. He orders her to fetch him clothes at once so they can go to the White City and retrieve those things. He also explains that the shard of bone lodged in her thumb is what brought him to life and if he doesn’t remove it, it will drain her dry. But he can only remove it once he is ~fully restored with the parts he’s missing. So looks like Casiopea is stuck with him until further notice...

2. What is Casiopea and Hun-Kamé’s first stop? What do they learn? They visit the demon Loray who trades in secrets and Hun-Kamé learns, in exchange for Loray being allowed to freely walk Xibalba when Hun-Kamé regains his throne, that his missing ear is in the possession of the youngest weather god. Loray guesses that he is currently in Veracruz for Carnival though it’s hard to pin down weather gods. But Loray offers to get them passage on a ship the next day and allows them to stay, as his guests, overnight.

3. What does Loray advise Casiopea to do if Hun-Kamé is not successful? He tells her to cut off her hand. The bone shard buried there is what is keeping Hun-Kamé ~alive until his missing pieces are restored. Cutting off her hand would weaken him and stop his life force. But only Casiopea could do it. If anyone else cut off her hand, it would not affect Hun-Kamé. So Loray tells Casiopea not to do it too soon, rather as a last resort, because there’s still a chance that Hun-Kamé might successfully regain his throne.

4. What has Vucub-Kamé built and how does he plan to use it? So it was actually prophesied that Hun-Kamé would find a way to return which is why his brother prepared for that eventuality. He had spread his brother’s stolen organs across the land but he’d also built a tomb fit for a god. Gods cannot normally be killed but Vacub-Kamé has found a way and he plans to store his brother in the tomb after he kills him.

5. How did Cirilo end up working with Vucub-Kamé? When he was younger, a woman came up to him and told him he’s been born on the appropriate day, of the appropriate month. It turns out he fit the ~prophecy for a spell to trap a god. He didn’t immediately believe her but then he met Vucub-Kamé and his sorcerer associates, the Zavala brothers. Cirilo merely served as bait but was also tasked with keeping the chest. It had to remain above ground because it couldn’t be buried. So Cirilo hung on to it to guard it. (Good job.) 6. How does the meeting with Juan go? So Casiopea is the bait and she manages to tie Juan’s hands so he can’t get them free. And then Hun-Kamé appears. At first, Juan doesn’t want to help them but Hun-Kamé ~reasons with him (or threatens him; one of those) and Juan pulls a box from his pocket (he just keeps that on him???) which contains Hun-Kamé’s missing ear. The latter then holds it to his head and it reattaches. And then they’re off to find the next!

7. What are the three answers Hun-Kamé gets from the smoke? The smoke just tells him three places: The impossible city, Tenochtitlán, deep in the wastelands, El Paso, and Baja California, by the sea, find Tierra Blanca. Of these, we know that the tomb is in Baja so the other three must be where to find Hun-Kamé's missing eye and finger? He does ask where those who have what belongs to him reside and the smoke just says that he must ask the ghosts, or sorcerers, or someone who can aid him but he has given his three answers as well as a warning that Vucub-Kamé is more cunning and powerful than ever imagined. So Hun-Kamé takes these answers and he tells Casiopea that tomorrow they will depart for Mexico City.

8. What does Vucub-Kamé read in the blood? He can't read the blood properly because Hun-Kamé's fate is tied to Casiopea's. The future branches off from meeting in Tierra Blanca but these paths are hidden to Vucub-Kamé. Because Casiopea is human and her human blood is tainting Hun-Kamé's immortal blood, Vucub-Kamé can't separate the two. So this worries Vucub-Kamé because maybe the future isn't sealed after all.

  Section One Reading Journal

Mmm. So I am honestly LOVING this book! It’s such a fun and interesting story. I don’t know a ton about Mexican or Aztec culture so experiencing their mythology is really fun!

Plus this book is just really funny! It’s wonderfully written and has a really compelling ~voice. I definitely found myself laughing a lot and wanting to read on and find out more.

So I’m loving this book a lot and can’t wait to continue!

Girl in the Blue Coat Section Two

Chapter 15-34

1. While Hanneke is cleaning out the papers in her closet, what clue does she find that makes her change her mind about what she thinks might have happened to Mirjam? She finds a copy of Het Parool. And then she bikes over to Mrs. Janssen’s and confirms it’s the same one Mirjam had been reading on the day she disappears. In the classifieds, Hanneke found a notice saying: “Elizabeth misses her Margaret, but is glad to be vacationing in Kijkduin.” Elizabeth and Margaret are the code names Mirjam and her best friend Amalia used to use to send notes to each other. And Hanneke hasn’t really though about Mirjam disappearing right after reading Het Parool. But now she thinks Mirjam went to find Amalia and boarded a train to Kijkduin after reading the notice.

2. What bad news does Ollie bring Hanneke? He says he went to the theater to talk to Judith's uncle but discovered that Mirjam has been brought to the Hollandsche Schouwburg. They were out looking for people whose names were on their list and when they couldn't fill their quotas, they just started rounding up anyone who had Jewish papers. And one of the names on the list is M. Roodveldt. She's scheduled to be transported in two days.

3. Where does Hanneke find Mina? She's staying with Mrs. de Vries. Which Hanneke thinks can't be right, when Ollie gives her the address, because Mrs. de Vries is hella mean and both Hanneke and her boss hate doing deliveries there. But, it seems, Mrs. de Vries also hides Jews because when Hanneke goes to visit Mina, she's also hiding her neighbors who "disappeared". And she also lives right across from the theater, which is why Ollie sent Hanneke there in the first place. Mina saw Mirjam's group brought into the theater and photographed it.

4. What plan do Ollie and Hanneke make to get Mina’s camera back and save Mirjam? Does the operation go as planned? So. Hanneke says that she can get a Gestapo uniform that they can use for the operation. She sneaks into Elsbeth's house and takes her friend's uniform and Ollie wears it to impersonate a guard. He then presents fake orders and tells them he has to search the baby carriages. He does and he successfully retrieves the camera. But then there's Hanneke's part. So she walked the stretch with Willem where the group will be lead from the theater to the train station and they decided that Hanneke will have to grab Mirjam before the bridge. So while Ollie is distracting the guards to get the camera, Hanneke is meant to get Mirjam. Except she finds Mirjam and she's trying to lead her to safety but Mirjam WON'T GO. And then Ollie is done and they're moving again and time is running out and when Hanneke grabs Mirjam to go, Mirjam runs IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION and Ollie grabs Hanneke and drags her to safety. But the guards chase after Mirjam... and shoot her. And then leave her body in the street for the rest of the group to walk around. It. Is. HORRIBLE.

5. What private/top secret information did Ollie reveal about himself to Hanneke in Chapter 25? So Ollie shows Hanneke his letter from Bas and in it, Bas says to tell Hanneke that he loves her and that she should move on. And there's a ~moment and Hanneke tries to kiss Ollie. But he backs off and says that he's in love with someone else. Hanneke guesses Judith but Ollie reveals that it's Willem. Which puts him in a whole different kind of danger because homosexuals were also rounded up during this time too. So she asks if he's in danger and he says he isn't as long as she doesn't tell anyone since no one else knows.

6. Why does Hanneke start to question if Mirjam had a birth mark on her chin and/or scars on her knees? Hanneke, Ollie and Willem go on a bike ride to do something "normal" but Hanneke is going too fast and ends up hitting a patch of ice and falling. She ends up scrapping up her knees pretty badly and then she remembers that the reason Mirjam got the blue coat in the first place was because she tore her other one and scrapped up her knees, leaving a permanent scar. But the girl she dressed at the funeral home didn't have a scar on her knees. And she also had a birth mark on her chin. So she has Ollie ask Judith about the birth mark and, as suspected, Mirjam didn't have one. The girl they just buried wasn't Mirjam.

7. What does Hanneke learn from Cristoffel about Mirjam? She learns that he knew it was Amalia hiding, not Mirjam. He had gone to school with both girls and they were in love with him. But he loved Mirjam and Amalia said she loved him more. One day when Mrs. Janssen was out of the room, Amalia came out and talked to him. She was the one who asked him to help her escape. The furniture that Cristoffel picked up while Mrs. Janssen asked Hanneke to help her find "Mirjam" actually contained Amalia so Cristoffel snuck her out and hid her at his house. But. She told him that she had inadvertently caused the death of Mirjam's family and he kicked her out... right into the hands of the Gestapo. So that's how she was captured and, later, killed. Mirjam, it turns out, has been safe all along. Realizing what she had done, Amalia rushed off to warn Mirjam and her family but she was too late and the family was already dead. So she switched coats and papers with Mirjam and sent Mirjam off to live with her aunt, reasoning that it would be easier for her to find her way out of the city and they would be reunited once more.

8. Describe the friendship between Hanneke and Elsbeth that is told brief snippets throughout the book. They were best friends, almost like sisters, and along with Bas, they were an inseparable group. But then Bas died. And Elsbeth fell in love with a German. And Hanneke didn't approve of the pairing or, rather, she didn't approve of Elsbeth having someone when she was alone. So Hanneke pushed Elsbeth away. And Elsbeth married her German. And even though Hanneke missed her best friend every day, they destroyed their relationship with words and now it's too late to fix their relationship. Even though Elsbeth kind of tried? She asked Hanneke to her wedding but it was because her mother told her to and she didn't think Hanneke would come. And Hanneke said she wouldn't. And that's where their friendship ended. The war divided a lot of things and their friendship was just another casualty.

  Section Two Reading Journal

Okay, so let me start off by saying that I LOVED this book! It was a wonderful story full of compelling stories and a lot of history and it was overall just a well written, engaging read. But the last 50 pages or so also made me cry my eyes out.

I mean. I get that this is a book about the Holocaust. BUT STILL. Amalia’s death was especially heart wrenching. And finding out everything that actually lead to it and her accidental betrayal. And then the afterword and even the last paragraph of the acknowledgements. I shed a lot of tears at the end of this book.

I love that this was a very different perspective of the war. It wasn’t your usual story of the horrors of concentration camps. It was about the horrors that were created outside of them. One teenager made a stupid mistake that had such dire consequences, all because of a stupid war. And I think that is a very powerful story.

I also loved all of the historical things that were peppered in this book such as Mina’s photography and the children who were saved and given to other families. I’m glad those things were based on real events. (Though I hate how tragically some of those stories really ended.) I also loved a line at the end of the historical accuracy afterward talking about how this is a story about a war but also about how we’re all heroes and villians.

This was such an incredibly powerful book and I know it’s definitely one that will stick with me. What an incredible read! I’m so glad we picked this book! <3

Girl in the Blue Coat Section One

Chapters 1-14

1. What task does Mrs. Janssen ask Hanneke to help her with, and how did Mrs. Janssen end up in the predicament? She had been hiding a Jewish girl in a small space behind her pantry but the girl vanished. She wants Hanneke to help find her. There’s not reason the girl would’ve left and she had nowhere else to go. Plus Mrs. Janssen would’ve seen her if she left but she was just gone when Mrs. Janssen went to check on her. So it’s really quite the mystery? Where did she go, how and why? Did someone take her? These are all things Mrs. Janssen wants Henneke to help answer.

2. How did Hanneke end up in the black market business? So her “official” job is as the receptionist for an undertaker. Well, the undertaker started taking the ration coupons from the dead to stock supplies and then resell them at higher prices. And that’s where Hanneke comes in. One day he came to her with a stack of cards and asked her to do some shopping. She says that she was scared at first but after a while, she got good at it. And now she likes fighting the Nazi system. So the undertaker takes the ration coupons and Hanneke goes shopping and makes the delivers. It’s technically illegal but it makes good money for both Hanneke and the undertaker and they are both able to eat better than most.

3. Why is Ollie at the Bakker’s apartment when Hanneke arrives home from work? The receptionist who stopped Hanneke at the school that she visited is a friend of Ollie’s and she came to him, terrified, because she didn’t know who Hanneke was and why she was looking for Bas. She thought Hanneke might be NSB. So he came to investigate and find out more about Hanneke’s ~black market activities. Hanneke doesn’t tell him, but she does want to meet his friend for real because the school was her only lead to finding the missing girl.

4. What kind of meeting does Ollie drag Hanneke to without her consent? He tells her he’s found a way for her to speak with Judith but tells her the meeting is a supper club. It turns out he’s a member of the resistance or, at least, the student version that helps out the real resistance. They’re currently working on a ration card bottleneck by obtaining ration cards to pass on to the resistance. Ollie invited Hanneke because he, too, thinks she has a few more resources than she actually does and they’re looking for more ~connections.

5. What does Hanneke learn about the Schouwburg Theater? It’s now used as a Jewish deportation center. Jews are rounded up around the city and brought to the theater, kept for several days and then transported to concentration camps. Hanneke realizes that this is where Mirjam might have been taken, especially if she was just found out wandering around. Ollie confirms that it is definitely a possibility.

6. What kind of delivery does Mina take Hanneke on? So she delivers a BABY. Mina says she’s taking the baby for a walk but then suddenly she says “we’re here” and then a woman appears and Mina hands off the baby. It turns out they’ve been talking with the families and if they okay it, they hand off the babies to a nice surrogate family who will take care of the baby. Then, after the war is over, if the family has survived, they might be able to find their baby and be reunited. Mina says she’s handed off hundreds of these babies. And they also have someone altering the records so it appears these babies never came through the deportation center. And, when they’re stopped by an officer who wants to see the baby, Mina opens the baby bag to reveal that it’s full of firewood. She just claims that she’s out gathering scraps and the officers pay no mind. It’s honestly a pretty genius plan, especially to save a lot of children who definitely would’ve died!

7. Why does Hanneke blame herself for Bas’ death? Bas joined the Navy because of Hanneke. She kept saying that the Nazis needed to be stopped and they couldn’t just do anything. So she accompanied Bas to the navy office for him to enlist. The draft didn’t start until eighteen and Bas was seventeen so the enlistment officer kept asking if Bas was sure and saying that he should go home and wait a year. But it was Hanneke who said that he didn’t want to wait to be brave and he wouldn’t wait. He only joined to make Hanneke happy. That’s why she thinks his death is her fault.

8. What realization does Hanneke have about the garden stake after helping Mrs. Janssen retrieve her glasses? Why wouldn’t it surprise Hanneke if Mirjam did do that with the garden stake? So Hanneke realizes that the stake could’ve been used to latch the back door from the outside. She tests this theory by going outside and using the stake to reach through the latch and pop it back into place. So now they have the way Mirjam got out. And they’ve figured out the reason too: she wrote her initial and that of the boy she loves into the dust of some jars she was cleaning. She snuck out and vanished to go find Tobias.

  Section One Reading Journal

Okay so I am LOVING this book! I love that it’s a bit of a different take on talking about the Holocaust. It definitely still has a ton of history but telling it from the pov of the mystery is completely fascinating. Also. The baby thing really happened, didn’t it?? That is AMAZING. And I’ll bet it saved a lot of Jewish children who would’ve died.

So. Things like that I’m finding fascinating. But I also just really love the way this book is written. It’s very readable and I have been flying through it! I cannot wait to continue and see how this story ends!

Goldfinger Section Two

Chapters 12-23

1. As Bond is trailing Goldfinger, he notices a Triumph also trailing Goldfinger. What happens with Bond and the Triumph, who is the driver and what does Bond agree to do? The driver is a woman who gives her name as Tilly Soames, though Bond suspects this might not be her real name. Bond decides it is time to lose her and so he backs into her car. It's not capable of going anywhere so a mechanic takes it. But she is utterly distraught, saying she has an appointment to keep in Geneva and asks if he'll take her the rest of the way. He eventually agrees and she moves her luggage to his car, including a bag of golf clubs. When Bond asks what she's doing in Geneva, she says she's playing in a woman's golf tournament and will then probably explore some of the other courses. This sounds plausible but Bond still wonders if that's what she's really doing.

2. When Bond goes to spy on Goldfinger, what does he find under the tree? What does he learn? So he finds a body under the tree. And it moves. He eventually discerns that it's Tilly and she has a rifle and is waiting for Goldfinger. Which would end very badly for her so Bond grabs her but she tries to fight him so he ends up whispering in her ear that it's Bond and he means her no harm. So then he starts talking to her and asks if she's after Goldfinger. She says that she's there to kill him because he murdered her sister: Jill Masterton. Bond asks what happened and Jill explains that once a month Goldfinger has a girl painted gold. Because he loves gold so much???? So he paints all of them except for their spine because he has to leave some part uncovered or it would kill them. They can't be completely covered in gold or it would fill all of their pores. So once he's done, he has them rinsed off (and saves the gold, I think?????), pays them and then sends them away. Well, Jill called Tilly from the hospital and Tilly rushed over there. Goldfinger had painted her but he painted all of her. He was punishing her for going with Bond. Tilly says she died that night and now she's come to avenge her sister's death.

3. Where does Goldfinger take Bond and what does he want Bond to do for him? Goldfinger drugs Bond and Tilly and takes them to America as "patients" going to see a doctor. When Bond finally wakes and talks to Goldfinger, he learns that Goldfinger has decided to leave Bond and Tilly alive because he wants their help with something. He has been stealing gold for a number of years through different schemes. This time, he wants Bond's help with the last scheme and the biggest. He plans to steal fifteen billion dollars' worth of gold bullion, half the supply of mined gold in the world, from Fort Knox. Yeah, okay. That's going to work.

4. Who is Pussy Galore? Goldfinger invites a bunch of crime families to help with his break in to Fort Knox. Pussy Galore is the only woman who runs a gang in America. She runs a gang of women. She was a trapeze artist and had a team called Pussy Galore and her Abrocats. But the team was unsuccessful so she trained them as cat burglars. It's a Lesbian organization that now calls itself The Cement Mixers and is apparently well respected by the other big American gangs. (How many offensive things can you fit in one paragraph???? Ian Fleming: Hold my beer.)

5. What is Goldfinger's plan? So since it is hot and people are drinking a lot of water, he plans to lace the water supply and drug the entire time. Then, when everyone is asleep, they will infiltrate the town as medics (that's literally why he asked Pussy Galore to join them???? He wants her to provide "nurses"???) and then a team will sneak over to the armory where the gold is kept. To get into there, Goldfinger has purchased a bomb which he will set off after they've moved the sleeping guards out of the way. Then they'll be free to take the gold out of the building, load it into each of their trucks and everyone be on their merry little way.

6. What does Bond leave on the plane? Bond types up details of all of the plans to break into Fort Knox. Then he rolls them up and writes that anyone who delivers the message, unopened, to an address he names will receive a $5000 reward on delivery. Then he seals this up again and writes $5000 reward clearly on the outside. Then he hides it on his person. So while on the plane, he goes to the bathroom and hides the roll in the bathroom, hoping it will be found by a member of the cleaning crew and be delivered for the reward.

7. What happens with Goldfinger and company reach the armory? All of the soldier "bodies" get up and start shooting at them. It seems Bond's message did make it to the right hands and reinforcements showed up to stop Goldfinger. Bond realizes what's happening right on time and grabs Tilly and starts running with her but she wants to stay with Pussy, thinking Pussy will keep her safe. So she tries to break away and Oddjob, chasing them, throws his hat and kills her. He's closing in on Bond when Goldfinger starts his getaway and instead of pursuing Bond, he leaves with Goldfinger. Goldfinger and company escape but the authorities are confident they will catch them.

8. How does the book end? What did you think of this story?Bond is at the airport to head home when his name is called over the intercom. Apparently he needs a shot before he can board the plane??? So he gets the shot and passes out. He wakes up on the plane. It has been hijacked by Goldfinger and company to head to Russia. Well, Bond talks his way out of his restraints and depressurizes the cabin. He wakes up again, this time with Goldfinger holding a gun on him. They fight and Bond ends up killing Goldfinger. The plane stops before Russia and ends up crash landing. Pussy, who was also on board, and Bond were at the back of the plane and were thrown out and then rescued. The book ends with them both in safety and, of course, having sex. (Because James Bond novel. *eye roll*)

Section Two Reading Journal

So. I liked this section better than the first. This section, at least, was all relevant storyline. No twenty page chapters about golf, thank goodness. But I also didn’t really find a lot of this section interesting??? It was definitely a chore to read and I kept going purely because I was getting close to the end and I really wanted to be done.

I definitely thought the most interesting part was Goldfinger’s plan to rob Fort Knox. But that also felt like such a small part of the story? I wish more of the book had been about that and the other crime bosses would’ve been fleshed out more. That’s more the story I wanted to read. That seemed like it had more action.

But, honestly, overall, this book didn’t have a lot of action? It was mostly contained to the last twenty pages and even then it just wasn’t very well written??? I’m really interested in watching this movie now that I’m done with the book. I’m definitely interested in seeing what the movie does differently. It was, after all, the first movie in the Bond franchise so it had to do something right to keep the films going for 50 years? I’ll definitely write a comparison for the movie after I watch it.

For the book? I’m just glad to be done. I had to force myself to keep going with this book and I’m just glad I can finally move on to other things. What a relief!

Goldfinger Section One

Chapters 1-11

1. Who is Junius Du Pont? Where has he met Bond before and what does he want from him now? Du Pont is an extremely wealthy American. He says that he first met Bond at Royale les Eaux, the Casino where Bond broke Le Chiffre. Du Pont and his wife were the players to Bond’s left. Well. Du Pont just happens to see Bond at the airport when both of their flights are delayed. He asks Bond to come with him instead of taking the accomodations provided by the airline. He treats Bond to dinner and tells him that he has lost twenty-five thousand dollars in the last four days playing two-handed Canasta. And he’s a good player. So he thinks his opponent has been cheating but he can’t figure out how or why. (His opponent, Goldfinger, is already wealthy.) Du Pont’s proposition for Bond: he’ll pay him ten thousand dollars to figure out how Goldfinger is beating him at cards. And Bond accepts though he says he has to be on a plane to New York the following night, whether he has solved Du Pont’s problem or not. Both men agree to these terms.

2. After their first meeting, what is Bond’s impression of Goldfinger? Bond says that Goldfinger is one of the most relaxed men he's ever met. This shows in the economy of his movement, his speech and his expressions. He says that Goldfinger wasted no effort but yet there was something coiled and compossed in his immobility. Bond says that when Goldfinger stood up, he was struck by how out of proportion Goldfinger is. He's not more than five feet tall and on top of a thick body with blunt, pleasant legs. He also has a huge, exactly round head that's set directly into his shoulders. No part of him seemed to belong together. Bond thinks that all of these ugly factors are why Goldfinger is so intent to stay sunburned. The red skin distracts you from the other features. His face, Bond thinks, is less ugly than the rest of him and Bond believes it's the face of a thinker who is ruthless, sensual, stoical and tough. Which, Bond thinks, is an odd combination.

3. Why does Bond find in Goldfinger's room? What does he learn about Goldfinger? And what happens to Goldfinger? He finds a girl (Goldfinger's "companion") who is watching the entire game with binoculars and reading Du Pont's cards to Goldfinger. So Bond sneaks up behind her with a camera and takes a picture of the whole setup. He then talks to the girl while they leave Goldfinger hanging. He asks why Goldfinger does this since he doesn't need the money and she says she doesn't know. But then Bond says it's lucky he's the one who found out and not the police or FBI and she says that Goldfinger can buy anyone off. He always travels with a large amount of gold and his suitcases are also made out of 24 karat gold. So then after they chat for a bit, Bond says it's time to pull the rug out from under Goldfinger and picks up the microphone. He tells him to play his hand and then get out his checkbook and write a check to Mr. Du Pont for everything he's taken from Du Pont plus his fee plus a little extra (I think it was 50 thousand?). Then he tells Goldfinger to book him passage on a train to New York that evening and make sure he has the best caviar and champagne. And he'll also be taking along a hostage: Goldfinger's companion.

4. Why is M taking Bond off of night duty? Why is Bond even on night duty is what I want to know. It seems ridiculous that 00 agents need to do desk duty? They’re spies??? That’s not their job. But. Anyway. M has a new assignment for Bond. There’s a big gold leak and they’ve been approached by the bank to investigate Auric Goldfinger as he’s believed to be the one behind it.

5. What is Goldfinger's backstory? He came to England as a refugee from Riga, a country that was soon taken over by the Russians. He was twenty at the time and a jeweler and goldsmith by trade. He had little money but did have one of those gold belts, probably stolen from his father. After he'd been naturalized, he started buying pawnbrokers all over the country and opening them as those "we buy gold" shops. He did really well with this business as he always chose good locations on the edge of the wealthy and the lower-middle. He lived in London and would do a tour of his shops each month, picking up the old gold. He kept under the radar during the war and managed to keep his shops open. Then when the war ended, he bought a large, pretentious house and set up a little factory called "Thanet Alloy Research" and staffed it with a bunch of foreigners he'd picked up during the war, including a German pow who didn't want to go back to Germany. For the next ten years all that was known about him was that every year he'd make one trip to India and a few trips to Switzerland. He set up a subsidiary of his company in Geneva and kept his shops going. So he kept under the radar until, finally, his ship crashed on the way home from India and he sold the wreckage. Well when the salvage company who bought it started tearing it apart, they discovered a brown powder in the wood. They had it tested and discovered it was gold. They went back and looked at his old paperwork which said that the cargoes contained a mineral dust base for crop fertilizers. So Goldfinger had been refining his old gold, mixing it into this brown powder and shipping it to India as fertilizer. Well, this couldn't be pinned on him. But then when they started digging into Goldfinger because of this, they discovered that not only is Goldfinger the richest man in England, but he had been building himself a little nest egg. In four major cities he has twenty million pounds worth of gold bars in safe deposit. And they're all bars he has melted himself so they can't be traced back to anywhere. The only markings they have is a small Z where he's signed them. This gold, the Bank says, belongs to England and that's what they want Bond to get back for them.

6. Who wins the golf game? How? Bond ends up winning -- after Goldfinger cheats him twice. Bond's caddy tells him about both times and Bond can feel his lead slipping away when he has an idea. Goldfinger had lost his ball in the rough and they'd searched for it only to find it on a plateau where it would've been impossible for the ball to land. Goldfinger's caddy had dropped a new ball there and said he'd found the original. But while they were searching, Bond found a ball that looked like Goldfinger's but was the wrong number. So Bond gives the ball to his caddy and instructs him to switch it with Goldfinger's ball when he hands it back at the end of the current hole. So Goldfinger plays the last whole with the wrong ball. He wins and when Bone goes to give his ball back, "notices" the error and points it out. Since Goldfinger had insisted they play by the rules, playing with the wrong ball means he forfeits the whole and, because it was the final, the entire game. Goldfinger realizes what has happened and tries to accuse Bond of cheating but Bond merely says that his caddy must've found the wrong ball in the rough. Which Goldfinger can't prove is false because he can't say "but I had him plant a new one" so Bond wins through a little cheating of his own.

7. What happens that leaves Bond alone in Goldfinger's house? What does he discover? So after their golf game, Goldfinger invites Bond over for dinner. When Bond arrives, Goldfinger says that he employs Koreans and one of them ended up in a spot of trouble so he needs to go bail him out. So he says he'll have to leave Bond to his own devices for the moment. Well Bond decides to explore the house and finds nothing of interest. But then, as he's exploring Goldfinger's bedroom, he hears a noise and opens a cupboard to discover a camera with film coming out of it. Bond knew there was something fishy about it but explored anyway. And it turns out Goldfinger has been recording every move. So Bond decides to expose all the film. And a cat wanders into the room so his, really flimsy, excuse for how the film was exposed is supposed to be the cat? But he takes out all the film and holds it in the light to damage it even further. Then he puts the cat in the cupboard and closes the door (almost all the way), hoping the cat will just stay in there and fall asleep to further help with Bond's "cover".

8. Who is Oddjob? Oddjob is Goldfinger's chauffeur and bodyguard. Goldfinger goes upstairs and presumably sees that Bond has damaged his film because he comes back with the cat. He summons Oddjob and introduces him to Bond and then asks him to "demonstrate his skills" which are that he's extremely strong and well versed in karate. So basically Goldfinger is showing Bond that he could kill him if he wants to but he's sparing him this time. Bond also asks about Oddjob's hat and Oddjob throws it, demonstrating that it could also be used to kill a man. So. Cool. (Also holy bananas, all of this is so racist.)

Section One Reading Journal

I-- I don’t understand how these books spawned such a wonderful and successful action film franchise. I have never been so bored by a book in my life. This book doesn’t have any action??? And even when it does it’s also boring??? The writing in this book has put me to sleep multiple times. And also I don’t like or speak golf. So that was a lot of information I didn’t want (or really even follow????) about golf???

So. I’m super not enjoying this book so far. There have only been, like, two parts that I actually liked? Bond busting Goldfinger’s operation with Du Pont was great. And-- wait that’s it. One part. That’s literally been the only thing I’ve liked in this book.

I just can’t get past how much I hate the writing??? From page one when Bond’s “inner monologue” is talking about his ~license to kill I was like “okay but haven’t you ever heard of show, don’t tell????” I guess I just hate the way everything is overly described??? It doesn’t make Bond seem like a badass. It makes him boring. AND THE GOLF.

Also. Racism. Sexism. I think that was something we talked about in Casino Royale??? But holy bananas is it ever present here. I haven’t seen this movie yet (I’ll definitely be watching it after I finally finish this book) but it already looks better than the book? And it literally started the film franchise so, idk, did filmmakers just get rid of all the boring bits and make an action movie and that’s how this got better???? Because if this book were made as is I don’t think the Bond franchise would be so popular.

And for a book that’s less than 200 pages, IT SEEMS SO LONG. Okay. So. I’m going to go suffer through the other half of this book. Can’t wait to hear what you all think of it!

The Danish Girl Film Comparison

Alrighty. So I have been wanting to see this movie since it came out (because hot damn, that cast!) as well as read the book. So now I’m so glad I’ve done both!! And both were very good but in their own ways.

This movie had a completely different tone than the novel. It almost felt like a different story. Because the book starts and ends with Lili. She’s always there. She is created in the first few pages and she is lost at the end. But she is always a presence in the story.

The movie wasn’t like that. It took a long time for Lili to really appear and even longer for her to truly stay. And in the book, Greta is the one who helped create her and nourish her. In the movie, it seemed more like a game to them until Einar said it was real and Gerda told them to stop.

The book felt more like it was the story of two different women and how their lives moved apart. But the movie focused solely on Lili and all of Greta’s past was pretty much eliminated. In a way, I feel like the movie might have been closer to the true events while the book was definitely a fictionalized account based around a lot of facts.

But still. What drew me so much to the book was how we went on Lili’s journey with her and felt what she felt. And how we witnessed Greta’s reaction to losing her husband and reconciling with the changes in Einar. And how this was more a story about marriage than anything else. And none of that really translated into the film.

I also felt like this film had kind of a wonky timeline. It stretched out the beginning a lot where it really didn’t need to (it established a lot more of Greta and Einar’s relationship before Lili was created) and then it just spend through the ending. The ending as a whole felt really rushed to me. I think we needed to spend more time at the clinic and with Lili’s surgeries and recoveries.

It also annoyed the hell out of me that she only had two surgeries in the movie and the one that killed her was the vaginal creation. Um. No? What really killed Lili Elbe (and which is portrayed super accurately in the book), was a uterine transplant. A surgery that just sounds like it isn’t going to work and doesn’t. And I hate that that was changed.

So I don’t know. I liked the movie but I don’t think it did the book justice. I think it needed more of the book in the film. But anyway.

Though. The casting was fantastic (though what was with all the random name changes??? Gerda made sense since Ebershoff changed her name to Greta in the book. But Ulla??? Anna was really her name. In IRL and in the book. So okay) and the cinematography was FANTASTIC.

So this was a very appealing movie in so many ways (definitely DEFINITELY visually!) but I guess I just wanted more from the story. I wanted the movie to do well in the ways that the book did well. So. Their good in different ways but, overall, I think I prefer the book.

★★★

The Danish Girl Section Two

Chapters 17-29

1. What subject matter does Einar begin reading about that makes him question if it is the same situation that he is going through? He begins reading about hermaphrodites, so people born with both male and female sex organs, and thinks this might be his case. Their feelings of both male and female are exactly what he’s feeling. So he thinks that he might have a uterus tucked somewhere up behind his balls which is creating Lili and also causing the random bleeding: because the female part of him wants to get out.

2. Einar sees a slew of doctors to try to help him find out what is “wrong” with him. What does Dr. Mai say is wrong with Einar? And what does Dr. Buson suggest as a medical procedure for him? What is Professor Bolk’s take on the situation? Dr. Mai barely talked to him for five minutes and then disappeared to talk to Carlisle. He believes Einar has schizophrenia and wanted Carlisle to sign the papers to admit him to the hospital. Carlisle refused but said it was something to think about????? Einar says he definitely doesn’t have schizophrenia and they look for a different doctor. And Dr. Buson suggests a brand new procedure which is sure to cure him: a lobotomy! (If you need me, I’ll be over here horrified.) Dr. Buson says that Einar won’t be the same after the procedure and he’ll have to make preparations beforehand but he’ll be cured. And Professor Bolk wants to do what he couldn’t do for the other man twenty years ago: he wants to reassign Einar. He has three operations in mind to physically transition Einar from male to female.

3. What happens to Teddy’s health toward the end of Greta and his relationship? What was his last request to her? So Teddy ends up with tuberculosis. At first he doesn’t think he’s sick even though he’s coughing things up, usually blood. And every time Greta tries to call the doctor, he won’t let her. One time she calls the doctor when Teddy is gone and when the doctor comes, he won’t allow him to examine him. So this goes on for a while and eventually Teddy ends up getting much worse and is moved to a sanitarium. Well. He steadily declines and gets weaker by the day. Greta thinks his doctor is the problem but Teddy won’t let Greta’s family doctor examine him. Well, eventually Teddy knows that he’s going to die. And he tells Greta this and that he’s sorry for leaving her. Greta insists that she’ll have Dr. Richardson come in the morning and maybe he’ll be able to help after all. But Teddy begs her to pick up the rubber pillow from his bed and put him out of his misery. Only she can’t because she doesn’t want his last smell to be rubber. So she throws the pillow out the window and instead presses her hand over his mouth. And that’s how Teddy dies.

4. Who is Ursula, and why is she at the Municipal Women’s Clinic? So while Lili is working on gaining some weight and resting for her surgery, she meets Ursula, who is another patient at the clinic. Ursula says she’s there because she fell in love. She used to work at a chocolate shop and she met one of the boys who worked in the back and fell in love with him. Now she’s at the clinic because she’s pregnant.

5. What does Professor Bolk reveal he has found during the first surgery? What will be his next course of action? He discovered that part of Einar was female after all. During the first operation, Lili was hemorrhaging more than she should’ve been and it made Bolk think there was something wrong with one of her abdominal organs. So he opened her up to check and make sure there wasn’t a tear in the intestine or anything like that. And in her abdominal cavity, he found a pair of underdeveloped ovaries. Which explains the random monthly bleeding and why Lili would have to lie down for three days when it happened. (I definitely thought it sounded like a period!) So what Bolk wants to do for Lili’s next surgery is graft healthy ovarian tissue over Lili’s ovaries to see if they’ll develop more. And he already has a patient in mind for the healthy tissue. He says there’s a girl at the clinic who they thought was pregnant but who actually has a massive tumor. (Ursula????)

6. What is the final operation Professor Bolk would like to perform on Lili in order to fully transform her once and for all from man into woman? How does Greta feel about it? What about Carlisle? Professor Bolk tells Lili that the ovarian graft was successful and that her ovaries are now fully functioning. The last operation he wishes to perform is a uterin transplant. And Lili wants this too because she wants to have children, especially after she agrees to marry Henrik. Greta thinks it is impossible. She said so when Lili first came home from Dresden and a year later, she still feels the same. Lili asks Greta to go with her and help her recover from the operation and she refuses. She says that Lili is making a mistake and she won’t help her do it. Carlisle, on the other hand, agrees to go with Lili in Greta’s stead. He doesn’t say he agrees with her choice to have the operation but he will support her where his sister will not.

7. How does the story end for Greta? How does it end for Lili? When Lili goes back to Dresden for her last operation, Greta goes with Hans back to Bluetooth to visit Einar's childhood home and the bog that appeared in many of his paintings. After that, she agrees to marry Hans and accompany him to America. They plan to marry in the garden at the home of her parents when they make it to Pasadena. Lili has her final surgery and it is not a success. The operation took longer than expected and the recovery, too, will take longer than expected. However, while Lili is lost in the world of morphine, she hears Carlisle talking to Anna and he explains that Professor Bolk has finally admitted that Lili's infection should've healed long ago and he doesn't know why it hasn't. He will have to remove the uterus as her body has rejected it. The novel ends with Anna and Carlisle taking Lili for a walk. They leave her, in a wheelchair, at the Balcony of Europe as they go to get something to eat. And she watches the world from the plateau. The novel doesn't outright say this but we are left to infer: Lili never recovers from the final operation and died shortly after.

8. Should Greta have done more to stop Lili’s final operation? Why or why not? I honestly don't think there's anything Greta could have done. She expressed from the beginning that she didn't think it was possible and didn't think Lili should have the operation. But Lili was a grown woman and she wanted to have children with her husband. Professor Bolk thought it possible and he hadn't failed her yet so she believed him capable of giving her what she wanted. With that belief, I don't think anyone could have talked her out of the operation, even Greta. I do, however, think Greta should've gone with her, even though she didn't agree with Lili's decision. Because I think Greta would definitely have regretted not being there when Lili died. And Carlisle and Anna are great but I think Lili definitely would've benefited from having Greta by her side as the final operation failed her.

  Section Two Reading Journal

Okay. Wow. That was A RIDE. (And I definitely sobbed for the last twenty pages.) So when I started reading this, I looked up Lili Elbe just so I’d have a little ~background information about where this was going. And reading that Lili undergoes reassignment surgery and actually experiencing it with her are two very different things.

If she hadn’t had that last surgery, she would’ve lived and had a life with Henrik! That is so frustrating to me!! Yes, I get that she wanted to have children and that would’ve made her feel more complete. But wouldn’t it have been better to just have a life with Henrik at all? Even if they couldn’t have their own children?

But, anyway. Can’t change history. I know that much of this account was fictionalized and I’m definitely interested in reading more about Lili Elbe. This was such a moving book. I am absolutely fascinated by this story and also completely and totally heartbroken.

Though, in a way, this was almost more Greta’s story than Lili’s. It was more about Greta’s life that led her to Einar and about reconciling herself with losing him and learning to live a different life after he was gone. And that was also a fascinating aspect of this story. Her husband was technically still alive but he definitely wasn’t her husband anymore. And Greta not only had to learn how to be okay with that but she also encouraged it because she loved Einar and wanted him to be truly happy.

So. There were just a lot of emotions attached to this book. I’m honestly so glad to have finally read it. (Probably should’ve read it when I bought it years ago -- whoops -- but better late than never!) Now I’ll have to dig up a copy of the movie and, finally, watch that as well!! Definitely love the casting! And I can already tell Alicia Vikander definitely deserved her Oscar. Just can’t wait to see the actual film though!!

Anyway. What another amazing read!! (Still crying about that ending though. It’s fine.)

The Danish Girl Section One

Chapters 1-16

1. What situation brought Lili about? Greta was painting a portrait and her subject couldn't come to the sitting but Greta needed a pair of legs so she asked Einar to step in. He refused but finally she convinced him and had him put on the stockings and shoes. Well, he kept insisting he felt silly but then Greta noticed he was eyeing the dress that went with the whole outfit so she asked if he'd put that on as well because she needed to paint the hem. Eventually he agreed and he was standing for the portrait when Anna, the subject arrived. She and Greta were both laughing and Einar was on the verge of asking them to step out so he could change when Greta suggested "why don't we call you Lili?"

2. Where did Greta grow up, and why did she move to Denmark? She grew up in California but her family moved to Denmark when her dad took a post at the embassy. But then, just before Greta turned eighteen, her father decided that Europe was no longer safe (because the war was starting) and he moved his family back to California. However, Greta had already met Einar by this time and she later returned because she was stifled in California and felt Denmark was really her home.

3. In what way does Greta “force” Einar into hanging out with her? So Greta's mother was badgering Greta about getting a date for her eighteenth birthday party. Since her mother didn't think Greta knew anyone suitable, she offered to find someone for her but then suggested that Greta just go with her brother since it's his birthday too. Greta didn't want her brother as her date so she said she'd find one. Well, she was taking one of Einar's classes and already liked him. So she corned him after class one day and asked him to accompany her to her birthday dinner. Well Einar is hella awkward about that proposition and even suggests that Greta should probably drop his class and pick up something else. And, well, Greta ends up kind of tricking him into accepting her invitation. But the family ends up moving back to California before the dinner ever happens.

4. What happened with Hans the summer before Einar’s father died? So Hans was Einar’s childhood friend and years ago, Hans and Einar were at Einar's house playing when Hans asked what was for dinner. Einar realized they were the only ones home and went to find something for them to eat. Well while they're looking around, Hans finds Einar's grandmother's apron and starts trying to put it on Einar. He ends up with his hands around Einar's waist, whispering in his ear when Einar's father comes home and finds them and basically flips his lid.

5. Who does Greta end up taking to the artist’s ball, and what occurs with a man named Henrik? Greta ends up taking Lili and they just introduce her as Einar's cousin and say that Einar couldn't come so Greta brought Lili along since she's visiting. That goes off well enough and Lili is having a lovely time. She also ends up meeting Henrik who takes a fancy to her and who she ends up seeing quite a lot of after the ball.

6. How does the first appointment with Dr. Hexler go? What realization does Greta come to by the end of it? Um, it goes horribly. So Hexler was a "radium cure-all doctor" who decides that they can just use xrays to "burn the desires right out of Einar" which, you know, will totally work. He basically suggests that Greta not encourage Lili and lock up all of her dresses so Einar can't use them. And while he is saying this, Einar is being subjected to an xray (which is basically just exposing him to extreme radiation) and Einar is having some really adverse affects to it. The doctor doesn't seem at all interested in getting to the root of Einar's random nose bleeds. In fact, when the results of the xray come back, he says that Einar is medically fine so he doesn't even care enough to look into the random bleeding. Instead his primary concern is getting rid of Lili, which he blames Greta's encouragement for creating in the first place. And by the end of the appointment, Greta realizes she's made a terrible mistake and doesn't want Hexler to have any kind of control over Lili or Einar.

7. What does Greta start doing to help get Einar to get back into painting? Almost all of Greta’s paintings are now of Lili. And they are actually selling really well. But Greta is also taking other commissions and does have her hands quite full with her career. Well, Einar pretty much entirely gave up painting (and he'd been the really popular one???) but Greta can tell that he misses it. So she finishes Lili in a painting and asks Einar if he'll finish the landscape behind her. He eventually agrees and it goes quite well. Landscapes were always Einar's specialty anyway. But as for the Lili portion of the painting, Einar looked her like he'd never seen her before??? And then he eventually realized it must be Lili. So. Still. He agreed to help and got back to his own love of painting.

8. Who does Professor Bolk tell Greta about in chapter 16? In what way does this man’s story end? So Bolk is the second doctor Greta approaches about Einar and he is way better than Hexler. He tells her that he has seen a case like this before. This man had appeared at a woman's clinic, begging to be admitted but they tried to turn him away. Bolk was the only one who would agree to examine him. When he did, he discovered that he was both man and woman. Well, he told the man that there might be a way for him to choose which one he wanted to be. The man said he wanted to be a woman. So Bolk ended up doing a lot of research to see if he could perform a reassignment surgery. The man was all set to have the surgery when he just disappeared.

  Section One Reading Journal

Wow okay. I didn’t mean for it to take forever and a day to read this section. I started reading this shortly after it was posted but idk what was wrong with me last month. I started a bunch of things that I would get, like, 10 or 50 pages into and then would set aside for something else. It wasn’t the books, I was just a horrible mood reader last month.

Well, anyway, I am finally making it back to this book and I am enjoying it quite a lot! This is a really interesting story. I am honestly fascinated by this story. There are just so many things to unpack.

So. Lili almost seems like a second personality? The way Einar doesn’t seem to remember the things that happen when he’s Lili and vice versa is so strange. It’s almost like he is really two people. Especially in the way he’ll “summon up” Lili and the way the change between them is described. That is absolutely fascinating.

I am also endlessly fascinated by Greta’s entire life. Especially her life with Teddy. Though I will say, I’m not a huge fan of the way the timeline is portrayed in this story. I wish everything would just be explained together instead of in bits and pieces. It makes it a little confusing to follow in some places.

Well, anyway, overall I’m quite enjoying this book! I definitely can’t wait to read more! Oh, and when I first started reading this book, I posted on insta that I was starting it and my book club was reading it and the author left a comment saying “say hi to your book club”. So hi from the author! (Totally thought that was cool!!)

Anyway, can’t wait to finish this book and see how this story ends! I am just so curious!!

It Section Ten

Chapters 22 - Epilogue

1. What happens when Bill faces It in 1958? He starts reciting the lines that help with his stutter and It is taunting him all the while. Then he meets the Turtle, who is the creator of the universe, and realizes the existence of the Other who is the next step up from the Turtle. So there are those two and It, who is the destroyer of worlds. (So is this supposed to be a religious allegory? It is the Devil, the Other is God and the Turtle is Jesus? Something like that?) Anyway, then Bill eventually ends up "latching onto It's tongue with his mind" and hangs on long enough that he injures It quite a lot. And eventually he does yell his stutter lines without stuttering and It finally sends Bill back to his body. Back in the world, the spider is quite injured and his web starts falling down and Bill says they need to be sure that It is dead but they don't and everyone says they can feel It dying. But, well, It is only injured and they leave It to fight another day.

2. What happens when Bill faces It in 1985? So things start as before and Bill ends up in the mind space with It but he somehow misses the tongue so Richie starts yelling at the spider with his Irish cop voice and he ~locks in like Bill did before so he doesn't miss the tongue. So Bill and Richie are both ~locked in with It this time, hurting it. But then It is smarter this time and won't allow what happened last time to happen this time. So he somehow shakes Richie off and Richie starts loosing his hold on the tongue.

3. What happens to Eddie when he hears Richie's distress call? When Richie loses the tongue, he calls for someone to help. Eddie hears this and pulls out his inhaler. He believes in the same "magic" from when he was a child and he shoots the inhaler straight into the spider's eye. This works and hurts the spider and then Eddie ends up with his arm in the spider's mouth so shoots the inhaler straight down Its throat. Well, the spider ends up just biting off Eddie's whole arm. The inhaler works in hurting It but It also kills Eddie =/

4. What happens when Bill and Richie follow It to Its layer? They finally manage to kill It. They both reach into the flesh of It and are hurting it but Bill crushes Its heart and It, finally, dies. Richie, however, ends up unconscious and Bill has to carry him out of the layer back to Ben, who killed all of Its spider eggs. But It is finally dead and that's when all of Derry begins to crash down around It.

5. What happens when the Losers come out of the sewer in 1958?Stan finds a broken bottle and cuts the hands of each of the seven. So they do a ~blood brothers kind of thing. And they each swear to come back and finish It off if It isn't really dead. And Bill realizes that never again are all seven of them together. Four of them are often together, sometimes five. A few times six and sometimes groups of two or three. But never again are all seven of them together.

6. What happens to each of the Losers, this time including Mike, as soon as they each return to their lives after Derry?They start forgetting again, this time including Mike. Mike calls Richie and at first, Richie lets it go to the machine because he doesn't know who Mike is. Then Mike asks him Stan's last name and Richie can't remember and Mike only does because he looks it up in his address book. Even Bill starts forgetting and can't remember Eddie's last name. And, eventually, the names even fade from Mike's address book. They have really killed It this time and there's no need for any of them to ever come back to Derry. And there's no need for them to remember each other or what happened there. So they all forget.

7. How does Bill revive Audra? Bill and Audra were staying at Mike's house until he was discharged from the hospital and Audra had been catatonic since they pulled her out of It's layer. Bill had been watching her for days but with absolutely no change. There was nothing physically wrong with her, her mind just wasn't present. So Bill has a crazy idea but it's the last thing he can think to do. So when Mike says he's going to be discharged from the hospital, Bill takes Silver and sticks Audra on the bike behind him. He's just about to pull her hands around his waist when she puts them there herself. It's the first voluntary movement she's done in days. So Bill rides and Audra wakes up and comes back to him.

8. What did you think of this novel? So *cue no one's surprise* I hated this book. I think it was a good idea and, at the base of it, was a good story. But it was just waaaay too long and repetitive. I spent most of the timing having to force myself to read it because I just dreaded it so. I just really did not enjoy this experience at all. I have always been really hit or miss with Stephen King and this was a huge miss for me. I probably should've just stuck with the movies and not even tried the book since I really prefer the movies? At least, the mini series from the 90s since I've yet to see the new ones. (I will definitely be doing that now but they already look better than this book.) I guess, I just like that filmmakers cut out all the unnecessary crap and actually make this a good story. Because it is a good story. I just think SK executed it rather horribly. *sigh*

  Section Ten Reading Journal

Okay. So I don’t really have much more to say about this book except that I’m so glad it’s finally done. Part of me is sorry for picking this book, and putting all of you through this, but I also know this is the only way I would’ve ever read it. So I guess I’m glad I’ve finally read it and I’m not left wondering? But, wow, was it hard to get through.

I really did not enjoy this last section. It felt too long and drawn out (but what part of this book didn’t?) and it felt like there was a lot of unnecessary cleanup work at the end. I honesty don’t care what happened to Derry during the fall of It. I found those sections boring and I was already so fed up with this book that reading them was just another instance of “will you get on with it already????”

I didn’t like that the timeline moved back and forth between the past and present so confusingly. I kind of hate that this book wasn’t written with a linear timeline, particularly because of this section. And being lost in the mind with It and “biting his tongue” just seemed so stupid to me???? This was probably the least frightening horror novel I have ever read. You had a spider and instead you made the death take place inside some other world. That-- that is so stupid.

And I don’t even want to talk about (or think about ever again) the child orgy. Why is that even in this book in the first place? That was completely unnecessary. Most of this book was unnecessary.

Okay I’m going to quit ranting now because if I don’t, I will never stop. I hated so many things about this book. I wish it would’ve just stuck with Pennywise haunting them as children and as adults and cut all the unnecessary crap. Because this was a tough book to get through. And I just honestly can’t believe I’m FINALLY done reading it because it felt like it would never end. And I kind of can’t believe that I never have to read this again and I can finally read literally anything else. What a blissful, glorious day.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Film Comparison

Okay so. I’ve been wanting to see this movie basically since Lizzy picked the book and I found out this movie even existed. (I have literally never seen this movie listed on Netflix??? Netflix never recommended it to me and I had to type so much of the title for it to even give it to me? Apparently this is a world away from the standup I usually watch and Netflix didn’t think I would be interested. RUDE.)

Anyway. I absolutely loved the casting for this!!! Everyone was just as I imagined them (probably because I saw gifs) and seeing all of these lovely characters come to life was just amazing!

However, I did like the book better. I get that the book was written in letters and the movie had to find some way around that. But I feel like the book setup the story better and just had more background.

In the movie, Mark proposed to Juliet literally ten minutes into the movie (and she said yes....?) and Juliet pretty much iMMEDIATELY went to Guernsey. Even though the setup was half of the book, I liked that Juliet had a background with each of the characters and when she finally did go to Guernsey, she was going to see her friends and she knew all of them and their stories.

I kind of didn’t like how everyone treated Juliet when she arrived, purely because they didn’t have that background together. Amelia didn’t want Juliet to write about them???? And they treated her like an outsider (which I get, she was but she shouldn’t have been). Plus I was sad that they eliminated Remy’s character (and Sidney’s sister, whose name I can’t remember) purely because the end with Isola thinking that Dawsey was in love with her and wondering why Dawsey had so much of Juliet’s stuff and nothing of Remy’s was soooo funny!!

So most of my favorite parts didn’t make the movie. I still really liked the movie (mostly because of the fantastic casting), but I ultimately prefer the book. I don’t think the movie should’ve jumped to Guernsey quite so soon. I think it should’ve established Juliet’s character a little more (the book tour should’ve been in the movie) and had her form a relationship with the Society before she actually went to Guernsey.

But, as it stands, I do like the movie. I guess I just wanted a tiny bit more. (I wanted the book. That’s all I ever want, haha.) Glad I finally gave this a watch though! What a sweet story filled with so much history!! I am so glad this book/movie exists.

★★★

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Section Two

Part Two

1. How did Henry Toussant use whistling to unman the enemy during the Occupation? So he would go and wait outside the brothel for German officers to leave and as they'd walk home, he'd follow them in the shadows. They would start whistling and he would start whistling the same tune. Then they'd stop but he would keep going. Then they'd think that maybe they weren't hearing an echo after all but another man. So they'd look around but Henry would be hiding in a doorway, in the shadows and they wouldn't see him. So then they'd start walking again and he would start following and whistling again, his boots thumping behind them. So then they'd run off toward home, scared, and he'd go back to the brothel to wait for another officer. He said he'd believes he'd unnerved many a man this way and caused them to call in sick for their duty the next day.

2. What happened to Elizabeth? She was executed in the Ravensbrück concentration camp in March of 1945. Women in concentration camps would sometimes stop having their periods but some would still have them and the camp provided no sanitary means for those who still had their periods. They would just have to let the blood run down their legs, which would give overseers an excuse to scream. So this woman named Binta was an overseer and she began to scream at a bleeding girl and then she started beating her with a rod. Well, Elizabeth broke out of line, grabbed the rob from Binta and started beating Binta instead. That's when the guards came and threw Elizabeth into a truck and took her to the punishment bunker. The next morning, the solders took Elizabeth from her cell to a grove of popular trees outside the camp. Elizabeth knelt in the trees and they shot her in the back of the head.

3. What does Amelia propose to Remy about her future? What is her response to this? Remy doesn't have any family to go back to and when she was in the concentration camp, Elizabeth used to talk about the two of them going back to Guernsey and living in Elizabeth's cottage with Kit after they got out. And that vision helped Remy a lot. So Amelia asks Remy to come back to Guernsey with them and stay with her. But Remy ends up declining. She says that the French government has offered a stipend to all of those who were kept in concentration camps during the war. They offered extra to any who want to go back and complete their education. And they will also pay for her lodging. So she has decided she wants to stay there all allow the French government to take care of her. Amelia accepts this but Dawsey isn't so sure. They believe that helping Remy is the last thing they can do for Elizabeth and they won't truly be ~honoring her memory unless Remy comes back to Guernsey.

4. What does Sidney suggest to Juliet should be the focus of her book? Sidney says that, as it stands, Juliet's book feels like a random collection of facts, not really a story. He suggests that she needs a heart or a focus for her book. He says that it might also be closer than she thinks though. He suggests that she make Elizabeth the center of her story since every interview seems to come back around to her. He says he's sending back all of Juliet's notes, pages and letters and suggests she look through them to see how often Elizabeth is mentioned. He also points out a lot of interesting facts about Elizabeth's life and says that having a story about her mother would be good for Kit as well. Then he asks her to at least think about it. Juliet writes back and says she doesn't need time to think about it. Elizabeth would be a great focus for her book!

5. What happens between Mark and Juliet when he comes to visit? So he just appears out of nowhere, and right when Juliet thinks something is about to happen with Dawsey, and goes back to the cottage with her. She insists he goes to the hotel, which he does, but only to return at seven the next morning. Well, Juliet went about her life as usual and made Kit her breakfast. She says that Mark was all in a rage about Kit's presence. Apparently he was used to nannies whisking children away before they could annoy the parents. And when Juliet continued to take care of Kit, it just annoyed him more. So as soon as Kit went out to play, Mark said that in only two months, they'd already managed to saddle Juliet with their responsibilities. He tells her she needs to refused to take care of Kit, before Kit thinks she's going to live with Juliet forever. Juliet is so upset by this, she can barely speak (and almost throws oatmeal at him). So she tells him to get out and she never wants to see him again. She tells him that she will never marry anyone who doesn't love Kit or Guernsey or Charles Lamb. So that started a fight. And two hours later Mark was on his way to the airfield, (hopefully) never to return. So he's FINALLY gotten the message that Juliet will not marry him. And Juliet, unheartbroken, was eating raspberry pie at Amelia's and planning to spend the day at the beach with Kit, not missing Mark at all. Woot!

6. What were in the letters written by Isola’s grandmother and why is Juliet so excited to tell Sidney about them? So Isola is in possession of eight letters written to her Granny Pheen (short for Josephine). When Granny Pheen was a child, her father drowned her cat Muffin (GREAT PARENTING WOW) and Granny Pheen was sitting in the road, crying about it when she was almost hit by a carriage. The passenger in the carriage got down and talked to her and she told him what happened. Well, he said that he had a special gift and sometimes cats liked to talk to him. He said that cats have eight lives and he knows that Muffin was only on her third. So he says that he can feel her being reborn in a castle in France. This time, she's been named Solange. The man said he would call on Solange every once in a while to see how she's doing and asked Granny Pheen if he could write to her with updates. So he took down her address in a little notebook and then went on his way. And he did end up writing her eight long letters, over a year, about Solange, who was something of a feline Musketeer. Okay so Isola read these letters at a meeting of the Society and, at the end, Juliet asked if she could see them. Isola lets her and Juliet notices the signature: O.F.O'F.W.W. And Juliet wonders. Could these letters have been written by Oscar Wilde? (Full name, hilariously: Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde. Well, Sidney sends out a graphologist with some borrowed letters of Oscar Wilde to compare and he confirms that the letters to Granny Pheen were, indeed, written by Oscar Wilde!!!! I SHRIEKED!!! HOW COOL.

7. What mistake did Isola make in her book of Facts? She observed Dawsey and realized he's lonely. And she believes that he's always been lonely but hasn't been aware of it until now. So she wonders what could've made him aware. Then, she observes him with Remy and, after learning that Remy is to go back to France, thinks that he's in love with Remy and he's sad that she's leaving. So she decides to clean his house so she can look around, like Miss Marple, and discover any evidence of his love for Remy before convincing him to propose to Remy so she won't leave Guernsey. Okay so she finds his box of keepsakes and doesn't find anything pertaining to Remy in it. So she goes to see Juliet all in a flutter and ends up telling her that everything in his box of keepsakes was Juliet's! He had all of letters, tied up in a blue ribbon she thought she'd lost, photos of her and of her and Kit and even one of her handkerchiefs. So Juliet goes off to see him at the Big House and asks if he'd like to marry her since she's in love with him. And, well, he jumps on that, haha. <333

8. What did you think of this book? I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! It was so beautiful and fun and had such an amazing voice!! I absolutely loved the story it told, both about the life of Juliet and about Guernsey itself. I had never heard of Guernsey before picking up this book but now I feel so much for the people who lived there during the occupation. What a horrifying time! I learned so much from this book but I also laughed a lot. And I definitely cried a ton!! WHAT A GOOD READ THIS WAS. Ahhhh. Why did it have to end????

  Section Two Reading Journal

Okay. So I absolutely ADORED this book!! This was such an absolutely amazing read!!! I love that it was filled with so much history but also with so many amazing and lovely characters who brought that history to life and made it real! I absolutely did not want this book to end (but literally flew through it anyway, oops).

I really, really loved the letter format. It can be hard for a narrative to get everything secondhand but it seemed to actually enhance this book??? And it also made this a really quick and easy read. I flew through it because of the format and because the story is so fascinating.

I also absolutely loved the ending!! It is definitely up there with one of the most iconic romance endings ever!! I will also be watching the movie because I can’t wait to see how all of this plays out on screen but also how it’s adapted from the letters format. I’ll definitely write a comparison post whenever I watch the movie!

Oh and I read the afterword at the end and if you need me, I’ll be over here sobbing forever that Mary Ann Shaffer isn’t alive to write more wonderful books and how her niece, Annie Barrows, helped finish this book so the world could have this wonderful story. I think the story of how this book came to be is as fascinating as the book itself.

So overall, this was a FANTASTIC read!!! (Thanks, Lizzy, for picking it!!!) And I can’t wait to be on to our last read of the year!! But I’ll probably also be having a book hangover from how much I loved this one. Ugh. Why wasn’t this longer??? I wanted more!!!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Section One

Part One

1. Have you ever read this book before or seen the film? If not, what do you know of the story? I have not done either. I randomly ended up owning this book and I think I picked it because the title is interesting?? Or I'd seen it around somewhere? I don't even remember. I found it in a box of free books at a senior living apartment building and I don't remember why I picked it, haha. But I honestly don't know anything about this story??? So I'm super interested in reading it! It looks like it's going to be such a fun time!

2. Why did Juliet throw a teapot at Gilly Gilbert? So Gilly Gilbert is a reporter who wanted to interview Juliet and they were returning from one of her luncheons when he flagged them down and begged for an interview. Susan says that it was going alright but then Gilly says that Juliet was ~almost a war widow since she was set to marry Rob Dartry but then she called the wedding off. He says that the pair had applied for a marriage license, made an appointment to be married and booked a table for lunch at the Ritz but never showed up for any of it. Gilly speculates that Juliet jilted Dartry at the altar, sent him off alone and humiliated, to sail his ship to Burma where he was killed three months later. Juliet says that she didn't jilt him at the altar, they broke it off the day before the wedding and he wasn't humiliated, he was relieved. She says she told him she didn't want to be married after all and he was delighted to be rid of her and went out that night and danced with another woman. Gilly then asked what caused the split? Was it drink, another woman or a touch of the Oscar Wilde. And that's when Juliet threw the teapot. She says that Rob was a nice man and she didn't like his name dragged through the mud like that.

3. What caused Juliet to end her engagement to Rob? After the wedding, he would be moving in with her so she cleared out space in her flat for him: half her closet, half her drawers, etc. Well the day before the wedding, he comes over to move in all of his stuff and she goes out. When she comes back, she finds him just sealing up the last box (he'd packed eight in all) of her books to be moved down to the basement. He then shows her that he'd, instead, used the shelves for all of his sports trophies. And Juliet pretty much fliiiiiipped out. (I mean. As she should.) And that's when the fight started and it ended up with them calling off their engagement and wondering what they'd even talked about for the last four (!!!????) months. And, honestly, totally agree that she shouldn't have married him!!!!! Um. Especially since he moved her books. Don't???? Books are sacred. But also Juliet's flat was bombed shortly after that and when Sidney told her, she laughed and she tells him that it was because of the irony of the situation. If she'd let Rob move her books to the basement, she would still have all of them now. Still. I would've been mad at him for moving them too???

4. How did the Guernsey Literary Society come into being? So. Guernsey was occupied during the war and Dawsey lived on a far where he used to raise pigs. But all of his pigs were commandeered for the soldiers and, instead, he was told to grow turnips and potatoes. So he did. He tried to keep pigs hidden for a while and continue raising them but they were found and commandeered and Dawsey was left with his potatoes and turnips. So he spent most of his time fantasizing about having a real meal, since everything went to the soldiers and they basically left nothing for all people who actually lived there (awesome). Well, then one night Dawsey was invited to a dinner party and told to bring a butcher knife. Someone else had managed to keep a pig hidden and they'd invited him (as well as a few others) to come share it. So they had a fabulous dinner that night but lost track of the time until the clock rang nine: an hour after the imposed curfew. What to do? Go home and risk being caught out after curfew? They decided to risk it and all set out together. But one of the men was super drunk and forgot himself and started singing. Dawsey quieted him but it was too late. They were already caught. That's when one of the women stepped up and explained that they had been at a meeting of the Guernsey Literary Society and had lost track of the time. So she basically talked them out of being shot and the real Guernsey Literary Society was born!

5. How did the potato peel pie become part of it? After the group didn't get shot by the Germans, they were all required to report to headquarters the next morning. Well, before she reported, Elizabeth went back to Amelia's house and told her what happened. She said that they needed to make Amelia's house look more literary so their story would be believed. So she suggested that after she report to headquarters, they go and buy up all the books at the local book seller. So they did then they went around to the houses of all the others and gave them a book to read then met again, secretly, before their first "official meeting," which they were sure would be attended by German officers (it wasn't but other meetings were). So after that, they started meeting and each reading different books and talking about them in hopes of garnering interest so someone else would read the book. Once at least two people had read the book then the real fun began because they could discuss and argue. Well, after these meetings had been going on for a while, one of the men, Will, decided that the meetings needed refreshments. So that was added to their meetings but a lot of items were scarce on the island because of the Occupation. So he created the potato peel pie. It's made with mashed potatoes for filling, strained beets for sweetness and potato peels as the crust. And that dish was such a hit with the group, it was added to their name.

6. What does Adelaide Addison say in her letter to Juliet about Elizabeth and why she was arrested by the Germans? So Adelaide sounds... delightful *massive eye roll* She writes to tell Juliet that she absolutely cannot write about the Society in the Times because they're just way too classless. About Elizabeth, especially, she seems to have a vendetta. So she writes to inform Juliet that Elizabeth had a baby out of wedlock and the father is a German officer, no less, who left before the child was even born. Members of the Society helped deliver the baby in Elizabeth's cottage (she was especially upset that Dawsey helped since he's also unmarried; the nerve!). But then Elizabeth was arrested for harboring and feeding an escaped prisoner of the German Army and was sent off to prison. Elizabeth's daughter, Kit, was then taken in by Amelia. And now, according to Adelaide, Kit is passed around between the society members like a library book and since she can now walk, she always seen in the company of one of the Society members. The members have taken her in and the group is raising her. All of which Adelaide sees as the most abominable of sins. But I think is actually super awesome!

7. How did John Booker come to impersonate Lord Tobias Penn-Piers during the occupation? John Booker was valet to Lord Tobias Penn-Piers. Well, Lord Tobias decided he wanted to sit out the war so he bought a large estate at Guernsey. When they came over from England, his butler locked himself in the pantry and refused to come along so Booker came to help oversee things. Well, he was unloading the last bottle into the wine cellar when the Germans bombed Guernsey and Lord Tobias ordered them all back on the boat. Booker was the last to board and he realized then that he still had the key to the wine cellar and he suddenly saw a life without Lord Tobias but with all of his wine. So he didn't get on the boat and just lived in Lord Tobias's house. Well, when the Germans moved in, they started taking over all the grand houses and that's when Elizabeth and Amelia visited. Lord Tobias already knew Elizabeth a little but he didn't know Amelia at all. They came to tell him that the Germans were requiring all Jews to register and they knew that Booker was Jewish on his mother's side. They told him he absolutely should not register and, instead, Elizabeth had decided that Booker should impersonate Lord Tobias. She said that he could always say that his documents had been left in his vault back in England and she and Mr. Dilwyn would then vouch that he's really Lord Tobias. So that's what they did. And then Elizabeth also painted a portrait of his "ancestor" (which looked a lot like him; I wonder why) to hand in the house to back up that he's really Lord Tobias. So that way, when the Germans eventually did come knocking and move him into the gatekeeper's cottage for the rest of the war, they'd believe he was really Lord Tobias. And they did. And he impersonated Lord Tobias until the end of the war.

8. What does Mark ask Juliet during their dinner at Suzette’s? What’s her answer and what reasons does she give for it? He asks her to marry him and she doesn't say yes. Well, she says she wants to think about it which he takes to mean no and is absolutely furious about it. But she says that they haven't known each other long enough. It's only been two months and she almost made the mistake before of marrying someone she did not really know and she doesn't plan to go down that path again. Then she lists a bunch of things about him that she doesn't know. She just says that she still wants to think about it because it's  big decision. Plus, she also wants to visit Guernsey and that's another point of contention since Mark is jealous of all of Juliet's new friends. But she does assure him that his biggest fear-- that Juliet is actually in love with Sidney and will marry him --is unfounded. She says they have never had feelings for one another, nor will they ever marry.

  Section One Reading Journal

Um, okay. Where has this book been all my life because I am absolutely loving it!! It is just so completely and totally enthralling and all of the characters are wonderful. I just absolutely have not been able to stop reading! (Plus with the letters it’s kind of hard to find a stopping place, haha.)

So I didn’t know Guernsey was a place. Or that it was occupied during the war. And I am honestly learning so much from this book??? I am learning so much from this. So I love that it’s fiction but it’s also very historical and really gives a lot of information about the occupation. All of it is so sad though??? I can’t even imagine starving for five years while the Germans took over. That sounds absolutely awful!!!

Overall, I’m just really loving the ~style of this book. I really love the letter format and I LOVE that this book is basically a love letter to books and reading. There are so many wonderfully poetic quotes in this book about reading. It makes me so happy!! Plus so much of it is just so hilarious. It reminds me a lot of one of my favorite books ever, 84 Charing Cross Road, and that makes me so happy. I cannot wait to keep reading!! This book is absolutely wonderful!

It Section Nine

Chapters 20-21

1. What happens when Audra wakes up in the middle of the night? Who does she meet? She had a nightmare and usually when that happens, Bill is there to comfort her. But she remembers he's in Derry, which is actually what she was dreaming about, so she tries to call him at the hotel. But he doesn't pick up and so when the call goes back to the front desk, the agent tells her that Bill just had a call from another room in the hotel, which he did answer, so he probably went to that room. Well Audra immediately thinks it's a woman and Bill went to her room and is having an affair. So she decides she needs to get to Derry immediately. And that's when she gets a visit from Pennywise and the bathroom door opens and she hears "we all float down here, Audra." She immediately flees from the room and out to the parking lot. And while she's trying to find the keys to the rental car, that's when she meets Tom Rogan...

2. Who answers when Bev calls the library? What do they tell her? The police chief answers and tells Bev that Mike has been taken to the hospital because he's been severely assaulted. He is immediately suspicious of her because she's calling the library at three thirty am. She won't give her name, though, even though he asks for it a couple of times. And he tells her that Mike was so badly injured that he might not live through the night. She asks if this is just a tactic to scare her or if he's really that badly injured. And, well, the chief isn't lying.

3. What does Richie learn when he calls the hospital? Richie learns that Mike is in critical condition from his assault and he's lost about as much blood as a body can lose and still stay alive. The hospital tells him that Mike managed to tourniquet his injury, otherwise he probably would've been dead when the police arrived. For now, he's still alive but he's definitely not doing well.

4. What do the Losers find at the pumping station? First, they find the lid has been removed. They think that it possibly could've been off since they were there last but the pumping station also hadn't been working then so wouldn't someone have come to fix it and replaced the cover? Then Ben realizes that the lid was removed after the last rain. So then they're throwing matches down in there to see when Bill notices something. They fish it out and it's a purse. But Bill recognizes the purse and he opens it and dumps the contents just to be sure. It's Audra's purse.

5. What happens to those who see It in its true form? Basically they go mad. It says that all of the masks and glamours that It usually wears are just mirrors, throwing back at the terrified viewer the worst thing in his or her own mind. But seeing It without any of those masks basically destroys the person's mind. Once they see It in its true form, their mind belongs to It. That's when the person enters the deadlights. That or the person just drops dead of shock. (Shout out to Tom Rogan, who is wEAK.)

6. While the Losers are down in the sewers, what is happening in the town? Basically a lot of weird stuff is going on in town. The bell at the Grace Baptist Church, which had chimed faithfully every hour and half since its installation in 1898, didn't chime at five am, just as the Losers were making their way into the sewers. And even though people didn't consciously ~notice that the clock hadn't chimed, they were unsettled for some reason they couldn't pinpoint. The forecast for the day had also been clear but it started absolutely POURING. It's almost like It is fighting back against the Losers in the sewer by flooding them with drainage. And the sewers also started randomly backing up and killing women with flying toilet bits. So. That's a fun time.

7. What happens when Mike wakes up? How does this concern the Losers? It had planned to kill Mike using an orderly. Well, Mike wakes up, remembers everything and he's about to call for someone when an orderly shows up. it's the brother of a kid who was killed by It when the Losers were children. So he appears looking kind of dazed and he has a syringe. Well Bill, all the way down in the sewers, ~feels this. So he tells the others to gather hands with him and they send their energy to Mike. It ends up helping though because Mike picks up a glass and smashing it on the guy who then comes out of his ~trance or whatever and doesn't kill Mike.

8. What is the final shape of It? What did Stan realize about It when they were kids? It's not necessarily the ~final shape since Bill believes that it's the closest their minds can come to what It really is since they can't actually process the final shape. He can kind of see the deadlights though and it just looks like pure, endless, blinding orange light. But, anyway, when they find It, It is a giant spider. It's fifteen feet high with legs as thick as a body builder and giant ruby eyes. It also has a stinger long enough to impale a man. And It is also pregnant. That's what Stan realized back then and why he knew they would have to face It again. Because It is female and It is pregnant. Cool.

  Section Nine Reading Journal

I am so glad there’s only one section left in this book because I am so sick of reading it. I literally have to force myself to pick this book up and make it through another hundred pages. I’m honestly sorry I picked it. Well, I am and I’m not. Because this is the only way I ever would’ve read it. So I’m glad to get it ~out of the way. But I’m also sick of reading it and I’m so sorry I put all of you through this as well!

So this was yET ANOTHER section that was entirely filler???? Do they finally face off against Pennywise? No. Of course they don’t. It isn’t even in this section until THE LAST PAGE. It baffles me that people say Stephen King writes the scariest books of all time. His villain isn’t even in most of this book. Out of 1000 pages, I wouldn’t even guess that It appears in 500 of them. How is that supposed to scare anyone????

I am just so beyond frustrated with this book. Because I really love the idea of this book. And looking at all the gifs, it looks like the movies clean up the problems. I found a TON of Pennywise gifs meaning the movie probably actually has a lot of Pennywise. Which is WHAT YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO DO WITH HORROR. And it also looks like there’s a lot of stuff in the movies that isn’t in the book. So they probably took all of the repetitive nonsense out and replaced it with actual content. Which would’ve been great for this book.

So I guess this is it. This is what I’ve been looking for. This is the book that’s the turning point when I stopped actually being able to tolerate Stephen King’s books. Because the ones I’ve read that he wrote before this one were alright. I definitely had some problems with some of them but nothing like this. And they all weren’t unnecessarily long (though I’ve only read the shorter ones). And then this one was hailed as a masterpiece and he discovered he could write shit and get away with it???? Is that what happened.

Okay I’m going to stop ranting now. I’ll just say that the last section better be absolutely ACTION PACKED to make up for suffering through the rest of this book. Though, at this point, I’m almost ready for him to pull a Dracula and just kill off It already. That’s how much I’m sick of all this buildup. Just do it already and stop talking about it. God.

Big Little Lies Series Comparison

Okay. So. I originally read this book when this series was announced with the intention of watching the series and comparing it to the book. But I only ended up watching a few episodes of the show before stopping (HBO worked TERRIBLY in the apartment; it was a pain to get to load so I would typically only watch John Oliver, haha). But then later I convinced Dalton to watched it and we ended up watching both seasons and loved it!!!

So. In comparison to the book, I honestly think the first series does a pretty fantastic job adapting this book. There are honestly on a few minor differences between the two. Mostly it’s missing characters (both Madeline and Renata’s boys were eliminated) but Madeline’s affair was also added. I honestly wasn’t a fan of that???? I feel like Madeline is enough of a mess as it is that she didn’t need another thing. And I honestly don’t really think she would’ve done that to Ed. Because she knows what it was like to be hurt by someone you trust. But apparently Moriarty gave her blessing for that addition so what do I know?

The only other huge difference was the ending. And that’s honestly what I didn’t like??? I really, really like the book ending. Because Perry’s death was super necessary but it was also an accident. I honestly hated the staging in the show. I liked that everyone (including the husbands) were out there together and it wasn’t just the women confronting him (because I really think you do need the guys reacting to Perry slapping Celeste). And I liked that it was raining. That he slipped. That, yes, Bonnie pushed him but it was the rain that did the most damage. Because taking that away changed the entire feeling of that scene. And I just didn’t really like how it played out in the show??? I prefer the book’s description of that scene.

But, also, because of the setting changes, it seemed less like an accident in the show. And because everyone chose to cover for Bonnie, it made the second season possible. Because, honestly, the second season doesn’t fit with this book at all. For one, both Celeste and Renata move away at the end of the book. And Bonnie confesses and gets community service. All of those things wouldn’t have made the second season possible. I’m not saying I wish there wouldn’t have been a second season (because I really did enjoy it!) but I also really like this book and the ending was a big thing to change.

Also. Perry’s mother is absolutely NOTHING like the brief description of her in the book. And I almost wish they would’ve kept her more like the book? I’m not saying that Meryl didn’t do an absolutely FANTASTIC job. But I just wish they hadn’t made her so much of a snake. I wish she would’ve been more quiet like she is in the book. Because I think that would speak more about Perry. He is, actually, a psychopath. And sometimes psychopaths don’t come from bad homes. Sometimes they just happen. There’s a lot of psychological studies about how psychopaths are created and I think it would’ve been fascinating to explore that. But, instead, we got Mary Louise and you can kind of see how Perry was created. Oh well.

Okay so. Overall, I honestly really did love this show. It’s definitely one that I enjoyed watching!! And when I was rereading this book, I honestly could’ve answered a lot of the questions without even reading the section just because it was covered so well in the show. So I’m really loving how HBO adapts things and I hope they do more. They seem to do a pretty great job turning books into a limited series. I was honestly so pleased with how this turned out, except for my minor problem with the ending.

★★★★