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Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish to satisfy our list-making impulse.  Each week we get a new literary topic on which to devise our own lists.  It's quite fun; check it out!

This week's list is the top ten favorite minor characters in literature.  Here are mine in no particular order.

1.  Mervyn Bunter from Dorothy L. Sayers' Lord Peter Wimsey novels.  Unflappable and correct, Bunter is like a less smug Jeeves.

2.  Ariadne Oliver from a few Agatha Christie novels.  Supposedly, Oliver is Christie's send up of herself--a large (tall) female writer with a penchant for crunching apples and a lovely ability to laugh at her own foibles.


3.  Vardaman Bundren from William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying.  This poor kid is just confused and no one ever takes the time to explain the basics to him, hence his most famous musing:  "My mother is a fish."

4.  John Watson from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories.  I know Watson is theoretically a major character, but he plays the amazed sidekick so well.


5.  Aloysius from Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited.  Yup, the teddy bear, if nothing else for the magnificent quotation:  "If only it could be like this always, always alone, always summer...the fruit always ripe, and Aloysius always in a good temper."


6.  Jacob Marley from Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol  Yeah, he was a snake in life, but by the time we meet him, he's regretful and he's trying to save his business partner from the same fate.


7.  Pipkin from Richard Adams' Watership Down.  I had a debate with one of my profs about little Pipkin.  He annoys her because he's of no use to the colony.  I disagree.  He serves the function of those people who will always be with us and must always be taken care of; those we should not forget.  He also serves as a galvanizing point for the members of the warren who might otherwise fall into dissent.

8.  Dr. Prunesquallor from Melvin Peake's Gormenghast trilogy.  I admit that this probably has more to do with John Sessions' portrayal of him in the film version, but he cracks me up.


9.  Dobby from J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series.  I wanted to throttle him at first when his "helpful" behavior got Harry into so much trouble, but I was sobbing by the end.

10.  Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond novels by Ian Fleming and in her re-creation by Kate Westbrook.  You know Miss Moneypenny could kick some tail if she wanted to, and I suspect she was the woman James *really* loved.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted over at the Broke and the Bookish.  This week we are asked about the top ten books that came to us as "highly recommended" by friends, family, or contemporaries.

1.  The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro.  This book now has a place in my top ten favorite novels, so I guess I think all the lists are right.  I chose this book in particular when I was participating in Rose City Reader's Battle of the Prizes--British Edition.  Thanks!

2.  French Women Don't Get Fat.  This one was given to me by my friend Diana.  I was resistant to it at first, but I really appreciate the simpler eating and joyful living philosophy of the text.  In fact, it's time to read it again.

3.  Woman by Natalie Angier was given me for my birthday one year by a friend in Washington, DC.  The book was fascinating, and I read it straight through like a novel.  I've since had to buy 2 more copies because mine keep disappearing into friends' libraries.

4.  The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark was recommended by a friend on LiveJournal.  She's pretty well obsessed with the book, and with Maggie Smith.  And, hey, who can argue?  This book suited me perfectly because of my love for boarding school fiction.

5.  Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (well all Garcia Marquez actually) was recommended to me by one of my favorite high school instructors, Mr. Kelly.  This was my first encounter with magical realism and Garcia Marquez became one of my most-loved authors.

6.  As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner was another book recommended by Mr. Kelly.  Other than "The Bear" (which I wasn't too fond of), this was my first Faulkner book.  I enjoyed it immensely, though I didn't fully understand it's brilliance.  It started me off reading several other Faulkner novels, and now I teach it to my students.  Thanks, Mr. Kelly--you've made a difference!

7.  While I Was Gone by Sue Miller.  This one was pointed out to me by the manager of a bookstore I worked for several years ago.  She said I *had* to read it for the twist.  And she was right.  I finished it one lazy afternoon on my sofa, and when I got to the twist, I called the store manager right then and there.

8.  Agatha Christie.  My mum read Agatha Christie when I was younger, and I picked them up as the most readily available books in junior high.  I've been committed to Christie ever since.

9.  John Donne's Poetry.  This one is really thanks to my undergrad mentor and thesis director.  She took me to my first real academic conference, and she helped me every step along the way.  She gave me Donne, helped me understand his poetry and encouraged me to pursue it.

10.  The various wonderful scholarly books recommended to my by my undergraduate director, my dissertation director and all my professors along the way.

****Edit****  I've just been reminded of 84 Charing Cross Road which recommendation I picked up from another book--maybe Jane Brockett?  and which was supplied to me by my secret bookblogger Santa last year!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish.  Each week we get a new idea for our "top ten" literary lists.  This week, the assignment is to choose a top ten list that we missed.  Fun, no?

I've chosen "Top Ten Books I Can't Believe I've Never Read"

1.  The Bible--*ducks flying fruit and veg*  I know, I know!  But I was raised Catholic; we didn't read the Bible, we had it read to us.  And I've read bits and bobs in connection with various research assignments.  I'm also able to outdo most of my students on parables, etc.  Still, I've never made it past the "begats" in Genesis.

2.  The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner--for a woman who grew up 3 hours from the town where Faulkner lived for much of his life, it's a shameful gap in my literary knowledge.  I really must get going on this one, especially since I loved As I Lay Dying and Absalom, Absalom!.

3.  The Odyssey by Homer--Yup, another one of those where I basically know the story since it's referenced *everywhere* but I've never read the text.  I can't help feeling that's a handicap despite the fact that I don't study Greek and Roman stuff.  In my defence, I have read the Iliad twice. 

4.  Ulysses by James Joyce--This one is linked to the Odyssey, obviously.  It's one that I've been meaning to read since undergrad.  At first I was too intimidated, and then I was too busy trying to cram in a lot of Renaissance poetry and Victorian novels.  Then I decided I would never understand this one until the Odyssey was firmly fixed in my mind.  So, one summer I'm just going to have to tackle them together.

5.  Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare--There really is no excuse for me not having read this one.  I've read the 'big' Shakespeare plays and several of the less well-known ones (Henry VIII anyone?), but this one has just escaped.  I'm committed to the Shakespeare challenge this year, but I'm focusing on refreshing my knowledge of the histories.  Maybe Merchant of Venice can be a bonus read.

6.  Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad--This one I more or less have an excuse for; it sounds like a book I would simply loathe.  When I was a freshman in college, I discovered I was one of only about 5 people in my Colloquium class who had not read this book in high school.  To be quite frank, I'm dreading it, but I know I need to read it, just for cultural literacy's sake.

7.  Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro--This one is on my shelf, patiently waiting for me.  I've been meaning to read it for over a year now.  Yeah, I really have no excuses for this one, especially since I adored The Remains of the Day.

8.  Great Expectations by Charles Dickens--I actually like Dickens, though I must say he's quite a commitment.  My "hall of shame" choice was between Great Expectations and Bleak House as I've never read either.  In the end, I went with Great Expectations because it seems to be the one that everyone on the planet except me has read.

9.  Ivanhoe or any of the Waverly novels by Walter Scott--another one I haven't an excuse for.  I mean, he's basically the guy who constructed a retroactive identity for Scotland.  Plus they sound like rather fun historical fiction.

10.  Double Indemnity by James M. Cain--I'm a big fan of noir film, and the Barbara Stanwyck/Fred Macmurray Double Indemnity is in some ways the most noir film ever made.  I love that film, and I can't believe I've never read the book behind it.

So, there you have my "hall of shame"

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Broke and Bookish.  Each week we get another list topic.  This week's list is books you'd like to see made into movies.  I've only got 9, and they are in no order:

1.  The Making of a Marchioness by Frances Burnett
2.  The Moneypenny Diaries by Kate Westbrook
3.  This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart
4.  What Maisie Knew by Henry James
5.  Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan Howard
6.  Mrs. Miniver by Jan Struther
7.  The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
8.  Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
9.  A Charmed Life:  Growing Up in Macbeth's Castle by Liza Campbell

I'm afraid I've had to change this Top Ten Tuesday edition.  See, I read a lot of books in old hardback copies or from the library, so I try not to get too worried about their aesthetics.  There are, however, some books that have just drawn me in because of the covers.  So my version of this Top Ten Tuesday is book covers I covet.

Perfume by Patrick Suskind.

The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket.  Not even gonna lie, I so bought this one on basis of the artwork alone.  But I really enjoyed the series, so no harm, no foul.

I really do love Brett Helquist's style.  I have been sorely tempted by Chasing Vermeer that he illustrated as well.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling


The Victoria Vanishes by Christopher Fowler...does anything else scream 'British' quite this loudly?


Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan Howard


The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart


Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.  Definitely this cover, NOT the one that looks like a bodice ripper.


Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel.  What can I say, I'm a sucker for the Tudor Rose.  It's going to be my next tattoo.


The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova.


A Gentle Madness:  Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books by Nicholas Basbanes

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish, as am I.  Let's share our lists with other bookish folks!

1.  Gabriel Garcia Marquez--He wrote more than One Hundred Years of Solitude.  How about a little love for his other books?

2.  Bret Easton Ellis--His pre-American Psycho stuff is really great in a gritty way.  It reflects some interesting and important cultural difficulties in America.  However, American Psycho just goes too far, so I'd skip it if I were you.  Glamorama is good, though.


3.  Muriel Spark--She writes books with sharp, sly humour, but they also engage important issues and have excellent characterization.


4.  Marjorie Hillis--She's got a wonderful chatty style and command of the language and her information.  She wrote several non-fiction books on keeping your spirits up in adversity.  She's not nearly as didactic or high handed as that sounds.  Some of her titles are Live Alone and Like It, Orchids on Your Budget, and Corned Beef and Caviar.  She writes primarily for the single woman.


5.  Mary Stewart--She didn't just write the Merlin series; actually, I much prefer her thriller/romances.  There's a sense of real danger, but they are still "cozy" mysteries.


6.  Margery Allingham--the Campion mysteries are really quite good; interesting and fun, but the stakes are believable.


7.  Lorna Landvik--Sheerly on the strength of Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons every woman should read some of her works.


8.  Koren Zailckas--a young writer and author of Smasked: The Story of a Drunken Girlhood and Fury: A Memoir.  Incredibly beautiful and engaging writing.


9.  Kazuo Ishiguro--I know he's been "Recognized" through several awards, but he needs more popular recognition.  Perhaps the film for Never Let Me Go will help some of that.


10.  Clifford Chase--Winkie was brilliant and deserves more credit...how can you not love a sentient teddy bear who is accused (falsely) of terrorism?

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted over at the Broke and the Bookish. Each week we get a different topic on which to make a bookish list. There are lots of participants and it's lots of fun. Check it out.


This week's theme is bookish pet peeves. I have chosen to interpret this as irritations over the physical objects of books rather than plot or character irritations. My list is in reverse order, and for the first time, I didn't make it to a full ten items.


8. Turned down corners--it just weakens the paper and if you've ever had a second hand book with high-acid paper, you know that the corners which have been turned down simply fall off


7. Foxed paper--I readily admit that this is just a purely aesthetic concern, but browned pages are icky.


6. Paperbacks that are not properly bound--This includes books that are not strongly glued to the spine or books whose first 15 pages are more or less stuck to the front cover.


5. High acid content paper--You just can't do anything with it after a few years. It spots and crumbles.


4. Teeny tiny print--I enjoy reading, but not if I get an eyestrain headache from it.


3. Text that is not straight on the page--pretty self explanatory.


2. No margins--I'm one of those people who write all over my books. I hold conversations with them; more so the scholarly books, but I can't stand it when there is not place to write notes.


1. When unscrupulous merchants and book dealers unbind valuable old manuscripts and early print books so that they can sell the pages separately. In my world, this is nearly a capital offense.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish.  Each week, we get a theme to construct a top ten list around.  It's great for us list-lovers in the world, and it's especially fun to see what everyone else is thinking.  Check it out!

This week's theme is literature's dynamic duos.  Mine, in no particular order, are as follows:
1.  Nick and Nora Charles from The Thin Man
2.  Lord Peter Wimsey and Bunter from the Lord Peter Mysteries
3.  Hercule Poirot and Captain Arthur Hastings from the Agatha Christie mysteries
4.  Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson from the Sherlock Holmes stories
5.  Will and Charles Halloway from Something Wicked This Way Comes
6.  Ford Prefect and Arthur Dent from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
7.  Stevens and Miss Kenton from The Remains of the Day
8.  Frankenstein and his Creature from Frankenstein or The Modern Prometheus
9.  Beatrice and Benedick from Much Ado About Nothing
10.  Jeeves and Bertie from P.G. Wodehouse's novels and short stories.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted over at The Broke and The Bookish.  Each week we get a new theme to test our reading and list-making skills.  This week the theme is "Top Ten books you HAD to buy, but still haven't read."  Ouch.  Yeah, I have plenty of those.  So here we go, in no particular order.

1.  Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke--I bought it the week it debuted, and have read about 150 pages of it.  Essentially I think it's just so darn uncomfortable to read, being such a huge tome and not having one of those "all action all the time" plots.  But I still plan on finishing it--THIS year!

2.  The Nature of Monsters by Clare Clark--I waited patiently until this one came out in paperback, snapped it up.....and haven't even read the opening paragraph.

Top Ten Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish.  Each week we get a new theme to engage our list-making OCD.  This week the theme is top ten book to movie adaptations.  You should check it out!


1.  The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark




2.  Cracks by Sheila Kohler.  I really like what they did with the Miss G character.  They gave her much more motivation and personality.




3.  Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson



4.  The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams




5.  American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis.  This one was much more bearable than the foul descriptions in the book, but they still kept the idea of the essential interchangeability of these men (and the victims).




6.  Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden




7.  Princess Bride by William Goldman.  Actually better than the book.




8.  The Thin Man by Dashiel Hammett




9.  Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee.  No one does drunk and destructive as well as Taylor and Burton.




10. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

Top Ten Tuesdays is a weekly meme hosted by the Broke and the Bookish.  Each week we get a new theme to engage our list-making OCD.  This week the theme is greatest love stories in literature.  You should check it out!

I realized while trying to make this list that I don't read a great number of books with love/romance plots, and those I do read tend to focus on dysfunctional love.  Meh.  To shamelessly distort a Tolstoy quotation "Every happy marriage is the same; but each unhappy marriage is unhappy in its own way."  Consequently, I have some non-traditional choices mixed in with my list.

1.  Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester--probably the most traditionally romantic couple that I love.  I love Jane's spirit and Rochester's burning desire to re-gain the happiness he thought he'd lost forever.  Um, I also love that they have a psychic connection that calls Jane back to him.


2.  Nick and Nora Charles from The Thin Man.--in my eyes Nick and Nora are the ultimate manifestation of married love.  How great is it that for all the teasing and the hard times they give one another, they are so obviously in love that they function as equals more or less?


3.  Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane--because any romance conducted largely through quotation and allusion is an automatic WIN in my books.

original art created by queensjoy on LJ

4.  Annabelle and Humbert Humbert from Lolita--yes, their romance is dysfunctional, yes it ruins his life, yes it leads to child abuse, but a passion that could manifest itself for so long after the event changes a person's very core and adds a layer of tragedy to love.



5.  George and Martha from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?--ok, so they are loud drunken disrespectful adulterous academics, so they destroy everyone and everything around them.  They still have a shared bond so powerful that they were able to maintain an intensive fictionalized existence for more than 16 years.  Plus, it takes an incredible amount of passion to fight like that.


6.  Charlie Brown and the Little Red-Headed Girl--my first introduction to the pain and beauty of unrequited love.

totally snagged from Charles Schultz

7.  Christine Daae and the Phantom--another great unrequited love.  And the Phantom is so much more interesting, and in a way alluring, than Raoul.  Every single time I see the performance or the films, I always hope against hope that Christine will go back to the Phantom.


8.  Stevens and Miss Kenton from The Remains of the Day--this book is one of my all time favorites.  The quiet tragedy of their lives appeals to somewhere deep in my core.  Another unrequited love, but this time because it was unrealized.


9.  The narrator of "The Raven" and Lenore--I'm just going to leave that riiiiiiight here without explanation.

illustration by Gustav Dore--he really is quite a useful fellow

10.  Sherlock Holmes and John Watson--Oh, come on!  It's practically canon.  The only time Holmes ever shows any emotion is when Watson gets shot in "The Three Garridebs".  To take a line from the Top Gear fandom "Man love rules, ok?"

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.  Each week we get a new theme for a list.  This week's theme is top ten literary characters you'd name your children after.

1.  Medea--because it says no mother would ever name her daughter Medea.  How can you not take that challenge?

2.  Brett Ashley--from The Sun Also Rises.  She may be a bitch, but she's pretty irresistible.  And it's a beautiful name.

3. Pippilotta Delicatessa Windowshade Mackrelmint Ephraim's Daughter Longstocking--Just because.

4. Reginald Jeeves--who doesn't want a little Jeeves running around?

5. Sebastian Flyte from Brideshead Revisited

6.  Nick and Nora [Charles]--in case of twins.  From Dashiell Hammett's The Thin Man

7.  Stevens from The Remains of the Day.  He does not have the sort of life I'd like my child to have, but I do love him.

8.  Lyra--from Pullman's His Dark Materials series.  Lovely name.

9.  Violet and Klaus [Baudelaire]  from Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

10.  Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights

This is the stripped down version of Top Ten Tuesday hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.  It's stripped down because I'm on a school computer, but hey, I'm participating, right?  And you should too.  This week's list is top ten debut novels from any time period.