@celialowenthal // Carson McCullers, The Member of the Wedding

Carson McCullers, from The Member of the Wedding

Last week I visited Carson McCullers’ (author of The Heart is a Lonely Hunter) childhood home. I wrote about it here. 

Books I really want to own / read in order :0 (And the ones I already own)

Lovely War by Julie Berry -

The Iliad by Homer

The Odyssey by Homer - - -

A Veil of Gods and Kings: Apollo Ascending Book 1 by Nicole Bailey

Galatea by Madeline Miller - - - - -

The Member Of The Wedding by Carson McCullers

The Sun and the Star by Rick Riordan

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axies Oh

The Edge of in Between by Lorelei Savaryn

Medusa by Rosie Hewlett - - - - - - - - - -

Sea of Scars by Adriana Mara

The Dark Wife by Sarah Diemer

Circe by Madeline Miller

I Fell in Love With Hope by Lancali

Ariadne by Jennifer Saint - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Lore Olympus: Volume 1 by Rachael Smythe

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (Read already)

Lore by Alexandra Bracken (Read already)

The Member of the Wedding (1952) dir. Fred Zinnemann.

Not Your Classics Challenge

days 7 & 8: The Catcher in the Rye and A Single Man

Slightly cheating, maybe, because I already intended to use this book for The Catcher in the Rye (a book I have read) and then looked up the plot to A Single Man (a book I haven't read) and decided this fits for both. All books (I think) about finding a place, figuring out who to be, and grief.

" Until this afternoon I didn't have a "we".

But now after seeing Janice and Jarvis, I suddenly realize that the bride and my brother...are the "we of me".

So I'm going with them. I'm going with them and joining with the wedding!

This coming Sunday when the bride and my brother I'm going with them to Winter Hill.

And after that, to what place they will ever go...

I love the two of them so much. We belong to be together...

I love the two of them so much.

Because they are the "we of me"..."

<3

I've never actually gotten to use it in-game but the best d&d ritual spell is still Ceremony

*Gale and illithid Tav, holding hands and standing in front of Gale’s mother, Morena, as Gale finishes introducing them as his betrothed*

Gale: …in conclusion, mother, I know you will be as delighted as I am to welcome my darling Tav into the family (affectionately kisses Tav on the forehead)

Morena (visibly stunned, speechless):…

Tav (telepathically, tentacles quivering nervously): It’s an honor to finally meet you, Mrs. Dekarios.

Gale: My love, there’s no need for such formality! (laughing gently) You may address my mother as ‘Morena’ from here on out, and—

Morena: GALE DEKARIOS, have you absolutely lost your mind?? (shaking with anger) I’ve heard barely a peep from you for over a year, you show up here with no prior warning, you bring your illithid betrothed to meet me, and you dare to state that they may casually address me as ‘Morena’?? What in all the hells can you possibly be thinking?!

Gale (shocked, confused):…mother, I—I thought you would be delighted—Tav is the love of my life, and—

Morena: Not another WORD (turns to Tav)

Tav:…

Morena (throwing both arms around them, pulling them into a warm hug): Oh my dear, I DO apologize for my son’s absolutely dreadful manners! Telling you to call me ‘Morena’—what absolute NONSENSE, you must address me as ‘Mother’ from this moment on, I will accept nothing less, you’re a part of the family now!! (grabs Tav’s clawed hand, starts pulling them into the house eagerly, leaving Gale standing there blinking) I INSIST you tell me everything about how you two met, I want to hear it all! TARA!! (shouting down the hallway) Tara, do come out and meet Gale’s stunning betrothed! Our little Gale is finally getting married!!

4 x 14 "Tongue's Out"

Fans at the beginning: I wonder if it's BL

Meanwhile the main character: *fantasizes his wedding with a tall muscular vampire that if he bites him they'll be together forever*

Meanwhile the antagonist: mall goth bitch

Robin to Nami: "So, I think I'm maybe starting to like Franky?"

Franky to Usopp: "FOR SUUUUPER WEDDING #3, MY AMAZING LOVE ROBIN AND I WILL..."

thoughts on Ginny and Harry as a couple?

There are a lot of people who find their romance in HBP forced. I don't think it's forced so much as underwritten, and the books don't get the chemistry quite right (though the movies certainly don't, either). There's potential, but they just don't get enough actual scenes of substance (besides Harry thinking she's pretty or feeling jealous of Dean) for a lot of readers to buy that they're not only in love, but deeply enough in love to break up, get back together, and wind up married.

That's not to say I don't see the appeal. There's a very cool scene in Book 5 where Harry's doing a woe-is-me-Chosen-One act, and Ginny effortlessly puts him in his place about it by reminding him that she was possessed by Voldemort at eleven, which is a rare glimpse into her character and also a great synecdoche for their relationship — Ginny is a grounding presence who, like Ron and Hermione, isn't going to be awed by his past adventures because she knew him before they happened. In that respect, Ginny's probably one of the few women Harry could feasibly wind up with, because he only ever seems comfortable around people (let alone girls) who can see past the Chosen-One schtick and treat him like a normo (see: Ron, Hermione, the Weasleys, Luna, Hagrid). True to type, he doesn't get interested in Ginny at all until she's ditched her celebrity crush and ceased to view him as an idol, because in his heart of hearts, Harry wants to be a normal boy, and it's stressed over and over that part of what he likes about his relationship with Ginny is how normal it feels. He kind of has a horribly supercharged version the celebrity dating problem: after the Battle of Hogwarts, anyone he meets is going to know him first as Harry Potter, Chosen One, Boy Who Lived, and Actually Fucking Resurrected Messiah of the Wizarding World, which is... I mean, it's possible that there are witches out there who could get over that, but Harry's not an extroverted guy, and I'm not sure how he'd go about finding them. Ginny's the one who's been there since the beginning, doesn't need anything about him or his past explained to her, and actually likes him for who he is.

When you look at it that way, it's not surprising he married his high school girlfriend. She's one of the few people still alive who doesn't see him as a demigod.