At first, I wasn't sure I could think of very many fictional couples but it turns out as my mind wheels get moving this morning, I can! So, today's topic from Top Ten Tuesday at The Broke and the Bookish is Favorite Fictional Couples in Books. Here's my list:
1. Marianne Dashwood and Colonel Brandon from Sense and Sensibility - This is one couple that I root for right from the beginning as Colonel Brandon is introduced and I hope for Marianne to "see" him. There are a lot of ultimate couples(many will be naming one from P&P which I agree with too) in Jane Austen's works and that is such a credit to the way she can write about love, relationships and all of its natural complexities.
2. Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter Series - I loved the enchanting progression of this naturally unfolding relationship in the HP series.
3. Chris Nielsen and Annie from What Dreams May Come by Richard Matheson - This whole relationship is so complex and intricate which is hard to explain.
4. Mick Webber and Cara Jones from Pickup Games by Marcia Mickelson - This is a fun modern-day romance that might be unfolding at an office near you. So true to our day.
5. Sir Percy and Lady Blakeney from The Scarlet Pimpernel - A classic example of how much do we really know about the one we love?
6. Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler from Gone With the Wind - One of my favorite, although confusing, relationships that made me feel deeply to tear me up emotionally.
7. Fred and Holly from Breakfast at Tiffany's by Truman Capote - I love the way the narrator (dubbed "Fred") slowly realizes how much he cares for Holly but her reaction to his affection may deny her what she had been looking for all along.
8. Forrest and Jenny from Forrest Gump by Winston Groom - I love the ideals that Forrest romanticizes about Jenny from the beginning but their relationship path was anything but an easy path. An example of how individual choices can affect love life.
9. Irene and Young Jolyon from The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy - After so much tragedy on both accounts, it's wonderful to finally have a unique and happy love relationship here.
10. Aragorn and Arwen in The Lord of the Rings - I love the whole triangle of Aragorn, Arwen and Eowyn actually. I liked all characters and felt I could feel what they each hoped for in love. 
Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Fictional Couples in Books
Top Ten Tuesdays: Favorite Book Quotes
Ilustration by John Howe
How could I pass this one up?! I can't because I really love quotes especially from books! Head on over to The Broke and the Bookish to look at even more great quotes!
Here are some of mine and I'm sure that I have even more tucked away but 10 will be fine for today:
1. Marguerite suffered intensely. Though she laughed and chatted, though she was more admired, more surrounded, more f^eted than any woman there, she felt like one condemned to death, living her last day upon this earth. The Scarlett Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy
2. "We sit in the middle of the cafeteria, a fish bowl crowded with minnows,
guppies, tetras, mollies, and angelfish. Sharks circle their prey.
Lesser spiny eels bump their noses against the glass, looking for the
exit. Bits of fish flakes and strings of poop dangle in the air.
Lime-green algae slicks the floor." pg. 105, Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
3. Pg. 21: He laughs again. Why does he do that? He is more curious than I am. "You're a tough critic, Jenna Fox. I create art because I need to. It's just something in me. Like breathing."
How can a pine serpent be in him? Especially one that will not last. "This will be gone by tomorrow." ~The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson
4. Algernon: I really don't see anything romantic in proposing. It ... is very romantic to be in love. But there is nothing romantic about a definite proposal. Why, one may be accepted. One usually is, I believe. Then the excitement is all over. The very essence of romance is uncertainty. The Importance of Being Ernest by Oscar Wilde
5. “You think I have no feelings, and that I can do without one bit of love or kindness; but I cannot live so: and you have no pity.” Jane Eyre
By Charlotte Brontë
6. “Well, for instance, when I left her today, she put her arms around me and felt my shoulder blades, to see if my wings were strong, she(Mademoiselle Reisz) said. ‘The bird that would soar above the level of plain tradition and prejudice must have strong wings. It is a sad spectacle to see the weaklings bruised, exhausted and fluttering back to earth.’” ~The Awakening by Kate Chopin
7. There's a kind of tenderness that's only possible in the predawn hours, a blue-gray, lonely tenderness that comes from dim lights and sleepiness and immense quiet. A kind of tenderness and a kind of hope. I've always found it hard to feel angry in the half-hour before the sun comes up, ....(pg. 187) ~Love Walked In by Maria de los Santos
8. ...the thing is you can get used to anything you think you can't, you
want to die but you don't, you can't, you just are Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
9. It is not only the white man who breaks the sixth commandment…. Evil and ugly things have been committed against the will of God on both sides. The Light in the Forest by Conrad Richter
10. The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien
*What type of quotation is your favorite? I love ones that are thought-provoking and give me a reason to commit them to my memory.
Thanks so much for reading my Top 10 today!
Top Ten Tuesday: Top 10 Books I'm Dying to Read!
Keep in mind that naturally I have a very loooooong TBR(to be read) list and it's a challenge to choose only 10 from so many choices. Plus, as a bonified bibliophile I'm always on the lookout for more! So, I'll put my Top 10 choices down of ones that have been on my mind recently.Remember, if you'd like to read more Top Ten choices or participate in making a list of your own, check out The Broke and the Bookish for yourself.
1. Evermore by Alyson Noel - At times, all it takes is a little background information from the author herself to get you excited about reading a book! The only secret I keep/is immortality. ~Emily Dickinson
2. Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, Book 1) by Cassandra Clare - I absolutely love the cover of this book! Plus, it is set in Victorian London and I love that era. Magic is dangerous--but love is more dangerous still.
3. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - I'm sure I'm cheating a bit here because I've read about the first 5 pages already but I haven't had time to immerse myself in this book yet. I'm dying to see how things will end and I have to admit I'm a bit afraid of how it will turn out too. Whereas Katniss kills with finesse, Collins writes with raw power. -Time Magazine
4. Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo and Alyson McGhee - I enjoy reading her books and so do my children. This fun new book is a collaborative effort and should come out later this month but it may take some time to get my hands on one. Funny, ebullient ... two friends, three adventures.
5. Murder at Mansfield Park by Lynn Shepherd - I've been hearing all sorts of great things about this book! As you know, I love Jane Austenish stuff so this is right up my alley. This is a superb retelling of the Jane Austen novel in which the house at Mansfield Park becomes the scene of one murder after another.
6. The Seventeen Second Miracle by Jason F. Wright - After I heard Jason F. Wright speak once at Time Out for Women, I've been a fan of his books. I look forward to this one! To the teachers who believed.
7. Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1) by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl - I know very little about this book but I like the premise and the fact they collaborated to write it. So cool! In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.
8. Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey - I'm always so excited to start a new year of reading in a local Classics Book Group I attend. This is the first book choice of 2011. I happen to like Westerns once in a while and this seems like pure classic. Perhaps more than any other novel, contributed to the concept of the American West.
9. Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World by Liaquat Ahamed - This book w
ill most likely take me a long time to read but I hope that it will be very interesting. With penetrating insights for today, this history of the world economic collapse of the late 1920s presents unforgettable portraits of the four men whose personal and professional actions as heads of their respective central banks changed the course of the twentieth century.10. Sophie Scholl and the White Rose by Annette Dumbach, Jud Newborn - Ever since I read The Silenced by James DeVita I have been interested about Sophie Scholl. I haven't found the time to read this version of her story yet and I'd like to. "We will not be silent! We are your bad conscience!" they exhorted the German people to stand up and fight for freedom.
Let me know what books have been on your mind and what you've been dying to read in your comment! Too bad, making and finding time to read all I want can be a complex project of itself but I'm content to keep trying! Eventually, I'll make progress, read and learn something in the process which makes all the difference. Reading is so worthwhile.
Also, if you're interested in book blogs like I am be sure to check out Book Blogger Appreciation Week going on this week! You'll find lots to read from these amazing book bloggers and enjoy reading their blogs in the process. Be warned: reading book blogs can become addictive! ;)
Top Ten Tuesday: Words I Love
Since I love words and quotes so much I thought I would combine the two today for The Broke and the Bookish Top Ten Tues.: Favorite Words. Here’s my choices which may be subject to change on any given day but for today these are the words that came immediately to my mind that I love, especially the way they sound!
1. Ability ~ " 'I never cheat at cards.' It was true, if one ignored his uncanny ability to keep track of every card in a deck. Some people didn't."
p 10 "A Hellion in Her Bed" by Sabrina Jeffries (ARC) Found in Teaser Tues. at In the Hammock blog.
2. Ludicrous ~ “I could feel his muscle tissues collapse under my force. It's ludicrous these mortals even attempt to enter my realm.”
-Mike Tyson
3. Intensity ~“Personally, I experience the greatest degree of pleasure in having contact with works of art. They furnish me with happy feelings of an intensity such as I cannot derive from other realms.”
Albert Einstein
4. Lovely~I think that I shall never see
A billboard lovely as a tree.
Perhaps, unless the billboards fall,
I'll never see a tree at all.
~Ogden Nash, "Song of the Open Road," 1933
5. Influence~The way you think, the way you behave, the way you eat, can influence your life by 30 to 50 years. Most people believe that aging is universal but there are biological organisms that never age.
Deepak Chopra
6. Fantastic~“Until we're educating every kid in a fantastic way, until every inner city is cleaned up, there is no shortage of things to do.”
Bill Gates
7. Truth~"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
- Chapter 1, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
8. Imagination~"A lady's imagination is very rapid; it jumps from admiration to love, from love to matrimony, in a moment."
- Chapter 6, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
9. Persuasion~“Character may almost be called the most effective means of persuasion.”
-Aristotle
10. Deceive~"It is very often nothing but our own vanity that deceives us."
- Chapter 24, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
Now, it's your turn - think about your favorite words and share them with me!
Top Ten Tuesday: Most Dislikable Characters
Today's top ten over at The Broke and the Bookish is very interesting because it is about the most dislikeable characters you find in books. You remember, the ones we love to hate, maybe even give us nightmares, or make us feel strong feelings like anger, madness or frustration over. Don't worry, I didn't have time to expound on each character too much about why I didn't like them so you'll need to discover that for yourself by reading about them either in my reviews or in the book itself.
1. Ray from Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott
2. Meursault from The Stranger
3. Angel Clare in Tess of the D'Urbervilles
4. Uriah Heep and Murdstones from David Copperfield
5. John Willoughby in Sense and Sensibility by J.A.
6. Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights
7. He Who Must Not Be Named (L.V.) in the Harry PotterSeries.
From Non-fiction:
1. Roland Molineux from The Devil's Gentleman: Privelege, Poison, and the Trial That Ushered in the Twentieth Century by Harold Schechter
2. Ted Bundy from The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule
3. H.H. Holmes from The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson
~Random mentions from others that came to my mind as I wrote this up, since I haven't necessarily read these books yet they're not in my top ten, but because I've heard about them before:
Rosamund from Middlemarch
Ellsworth Toohey of The Fountainhead
Emma Bovary of Madame Bovary
Sue Brideshead in Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure
Do you remember any of these from my list? If so, what did you think about them - maybe you even liked them? Otherwise, be sure to tell me what villianous or disagreeable character first comes to your mind in the comments. I can't wait to hear who you pick!
Top Ten Tuesday - Favorite Book Characters
I love these thought-provoking top ten list questions from The Broke and the Bookish! Today's question is:
What are your top ten Favourite Book Characters?
1. Charlotte from Charlotte's Web - She is the first character that I remember thinking I wanted to emulate her characteristics when I was young. I loved her spider web messages filled with kind thoughts, her love and acceptance of Wilbur, her wisdom and courage to be a good friend to someone completely different from herself that she didn't have to invest in but she did anyway.
2. Emma Woodhouse from one of Jane Austen's masterpieces is so unforgettable. I love how clever, happy and even oblivious she is yet she lives without abandon and her intentions are so enchantingly dear. She is so fun to read about and see portrayed in movies but you can't really capture her magnificent persona along with how misunderstood I imagine she truly is .
3. Jacob from Twilight: kind, gentle, a good listener, romantic, yet not perfection just a great attitude that is progressing as best he can through his suprising twist of fate in his life. Being a bit spontaneous is helpful too.
4. Joe Mack from Last of the Breed by Louis L'Amour. I loved his MacGyver type mind, willingness to never give up even in the midst of hindering self-doubts. I just haven't forgotten his journey he faced in this icy frontier.
5. Pablo from Reasonable Doubt by Marcia Mickelson. Confident, charming, helpful, sophisticated and very interesting. I enjoyed this portrayal of a modern gentleman.
6. Professor Severus Snape from Harry Potter. I love the many depths of his character and the way he kept surprising me all the time. Simple, profound and so unique. I felt so much for the many qualities of this character - good and bad. In fact, every time I see a crow now I think of him. I'm not sure why I just do.
7. Lily Bart from The House of Mirth. I enjoyed reading about her and all of her faults, difficulties and hardships. She amazed me with her brutal honesty yet surprised me with her frustrating sensiblities at times. I wanted to see how she would react to the situations unfolding all around her.
8. Eowyn from The Lord of the Rings. She is so courageous, brave and spirited. She didn't worry of what others thought or what she was supposed to do. She took action in spite of warnings not to react. Her loyalty is fiercely not to be forgotten.
9. Beth March from Little Women. She changed the world from her bedside with her broken dreams and dashed hopes but this didn't stop her from loving and caring the people who meant the most to her. She shared all she could with what she was given. She wasn't afraid to say any way she could what was most important. She is a truly beautiful character.
10. Percy from The Scarlett Pimpernel. He's a legend! He speaks fluidly, flowery and is basically very fun to be around because, let's face it, he knows how to work a crowd. He is one extravagant thing yet quite another altogether. A master of disguise and not your run of the mill hero.
Thanks for reading! I'm a bit late in posting but my scheduling of this post had issues today. Sorry. These are the first memorable names that popped into my head from all the different books I've read. I know there are more but I'm glad to have been introduced to and to have read these characters in books. I love to think of them from time to time. Plus, these books are perfect re-reads just to live within the boundaries of these characters lives again.
Top Ten Tuesday(1): Favorite Books
What are your top ten all-time favorite books?
1) The Light in the Forest by Conrad Richter - This is the first classic literature that stands out in my mind. My mom suggested I read it when I was young and complaining of boredom which that adds to the meaning that comes behind reading it for me. Isolated, human fragility, and perceptive are just some of the words that describe it and give you a sense of this book. Simplistic yet well done.
2) The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton - I was completely captivated and really enjoyed the main character, Lily. There are many quotes that I love in this book.
3) The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien - I like all of these books but I really do love a beginning of a story and this is one of those rare perfect beginnings.
4)Uglies by Scott Westerfeld - another one that I love the series as well but this is another awesome beginning to entertaining characters and a dystopia novel that will have you questioning everything you know in the world he created and the one you're in now.
5)Charlotte's Web by E.B. White - This really was one of the very first books that I ever loved. I still have my very worn and tattered old copy of this book. I love to talk about this book because I think there is so much to it.
6)The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath - This book is one of the saddest books but I loved the imagery and amazing language within its pages. Plath is poetic and I like her style!
7)Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling - Honestly, I love the whole series but I'm choosing this one since it is the one I've re-read a few more times than the others. I just love Dobie!
8)The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy - I love the legend of this book! It is silly to some but has depth and layers of meaning to me.
9)The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens - This is a "must-read" each Christmas or at least most of them and if I don't get to read it I make sure to see a film adaptation of this book.
10)The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson - This book is fresh in my mind and I just can't forget about it so I'll add it here. It's one of those that changes in your mind after you read it and already, I feel I'm due for a re-read.
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