New Thing to Do: Summer Reading List

     I feel like I'm falling off my game as a reviewer. While I have a schedule written up for my show (new episodes of Bookwyrm's Lair, coming in September, Scout's Honor), I'm wondering if it would help boost my critical skills if I read and review more. That being said, I've cooked up a reading list for the summer, since it's too hot and I have too long of a work day to do a video review. I'm going to try and put together two a month.

Jane and the Stillroom Maid by Stephanie Barron
Jane and the Prisoner of Wool House by Stephanie Barron
A Free Man of Color by Barbara Hambly
Wicked Weaves by Joyce and Jim Lavene
Longarm and the Druid Sisters by Tabor Evans
Death of a Gossip by M.C. Beaton

I'll be putting in the order for these from Amazon, fairly soon, and I'll try to get the first review out in June.

Blast from the Past: Lolita Lit 101--Anne of Green Gables

(Reposted from "Southern Fried Lolita")

Shrub Monkeys #76, Used with the artist/author's permission.
Okay, kids, time to get academic! Have a No. 2 pencil and paper ready... Ah, who am I kidding? I'm not going to quiz on this! But, I do think it's time to get into another post series I have planned for you all--Lolita Literature 101 (Sans Nabokov Edition)! Every month, I plan to go over some book that I feel every lifestyle lolita should at least try. Not love, I won't put that pressure on people, but at least attempt to read for some sort of cultural or, indeed, subcultural merit.

This month being Country-Loli Month here at SFL, I'd like to discuss one of the classics, popular here in North America and over in the birthplace of Lolita, Japan: Anne of Green Gables. Written by Lucy Maud Montgomery and published in June of 1908, this novel introduced us to the daydreaming, orphaned, Canadian redhead, Anne Shirley, and kicked off an eight book series (which is better than the Potter kid can boast! Just kidding! I'm a Hufflepuff at heart). Montgomery said she was inspired by a scrap of writing she found from her school days, in which she described a couple that had sent away for an orphan boy and had accidentally gotten a girl, instead.

The tale begins at Green Gables, a farm in the little village of Avonlea, Prince Edward Island. The owners are brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, who decide to adopt an orphan boy from an orphanage in Nova Scotia to help around the farm. However, there's a mix-up, and the orphan delivered is the eponymous, 11-year-old girl. She's clever, freckled, and detests her name, wishing she'd been a Cordelia. If you must call her "Anne", she insists it must be with an "E", because it's more distinguished. She proves herself to be a chatterbox and extremely imaginative, much to Marilla's constant aggravation and Matthew's constant delight.

She soon meets and makes friends with Diana Barry, Jane Andrews, and Ruby Gillis, and becomes a rival of Gilbert Blythe (see the first two frames of the above comic, and you'll see why). Throughout the book, she manages to get into numerous scrapes, including dying her hair green in her quest to be a brunette, getting Diana drunk by accident, and nearly drowning in an attempt to reenact the funeral of Elaine, the wife of Lancelot. Her intelligence and courage more than make up for her foibles, though, and she endears herself to many along the way. Despite her awkward beginning, Anne comes to consider the pastoral Avonlea and its environs as home, no matter where she goes on her path to adulthood.

As a child, I was a precocious reader. Anne of Green Gables was one of the few books my mother didn't feel the need to put on a higher shelf. It was also around this time that I wound up watching the 1985 miniseries on PBS, and it seems she's had an impact on my life. I've tried to change my name often in my life. Teachers could never say it or spell it right on the first try and I rued the fact that my father had been so adamant about my name (Mom's first choice was Brianne). I gave up in the 8th grade, resigning myself to the fact that it was my name and there was no changing it. Just as Anne wished for dark hair, I've wished to be a blond, then a redhead, after it was gently pointed out that blond hair would look ghastly on me. I've dried my hair to a crisp in search of glorious, "Anne-ish" auburn hair. So far, no luck, but I'm a bit more determined in that respect, I think. And, even before I discovered lolita, I wished for a more elegant and romantic life, often daydreaming, just like she did:

"...Now I'm going to imagine things into this room so that they'll always stay imagined. The floor is covered with a white velvet carpet with pink roses all over it and there are pink silk curtains at the windows. The walls are hung with gold and silver brocade tapestry. The furniture is mahogany. I never saw any mahogany, but it does sound SO luxurious. This is a couch all heaped with gorgeous silken cushions, pink and blue and crimson and gold, and I am reclining gracefully on it. I can see my reflection in that splendid big mirror hanging on the wall. I am tall and regal, clad in a gown of trailing white lace, with a pearl cross on my breast and pearls in my hair. My hair is of midnight darkness and my skin is a clear ivory pallor. My name is the Lady Cordelia Fitzgerald. No, it isn't—I can't make THAT seem real."

She danced up to the little looking-glass and peered into it. Her pointed freckled face and solemn gray eyes peered back at her.

"You're only Anne of Green Gables," she said earnestly, "and I see you, just as you are looking now, whenever I try to imagine I'm the Lady Cordelia. But it's a million times nicer to be Anne of Green Gables than Anne of nowhere in particular, isn't it?"

It seems that Japan is quite taken with her, having two animated series based on the books made. Some of the earliest Lolita designs from the 70's (when the first Anne anime debuted) even resemble her long calico frocks and pinafores, though those silhouettes seem to have fallen out of favor.

Culturally, Anne might very well be one of the earliest fictional foremothers of Lolita style. She struggled to make her life a little more beautiful and cheerful, no matter how dark and dreary things got, and her charm and wit made her friends no matter where she went. I highly recommend it to anyone who has ever dreamed high and still managed to keep their feet on the ground.

Blast from the Past: My Top Ten Gifts for Austen Fan Lolitas

(Reprinted from my old Blog, Southern Fried Lolita)

Originally, there was no theme to this list, but the more I worked at compiling it, the more I found things I know I'd personally love that had something to do with Jane Austen Fandom. So, the theme of my first list of good gifts for Lolis is the Grande Dame of Romance herself! As with any list, this is purely subjective. Not all Lolis or, indeed, any one, can handle scented candles, has pierced ears, reads tarot or likes history books, but this might at least give ideas for gift giving.

I'll be honest, I don't read romances usually. Jane Austen is one of the few authors who wrote books that I could stand to read. Pride and Prejudice is a favorite of mine and I'm currently rereading it before I start ...and Zombies like a good little lemming *wink*.

So, what do you give the Lolita who's just mad about Miss Jane?

10. Jane Austen's Guide to Good Manners

• Most modern readers of Jane Austen have probably read these books and wondered, "why? Why do you need a husband to go with you to visit a young, rich bachelor? Why do you need rules for refusing to marry someone? And what's with all the to-do about social class?" This book explains all that, and points out that even young girls of the day had a hard time with it. When Miss Jane's niece Anna, sent her a novel she'd written for critique, her aunt wrote back that it was wonderful, except that it ignored proper etiquette of the time! The book shines a light on what made these books truly timeless, no matter how long the attitudes have been out of style.

9. Pride and Prejudice, Marvel Classics Edition

• Comics aren't just for kids, anymore (People who took their kids to see Watchmen, I'm looking at you)! I love comic book versions of classic literature. They get kids to read and they bring new life to old favorites. This version is very stylish looking with a cover like a fashion magazine (even if Lizzie on the cover looks like she's wearing a modern prom dress, rather than a Regency frock). This is a great addition to anyone's collection and gives the novel a brilliant makeover.

8. The Jane Austen Handbook - A Sensible, yet Elegant Guide to Her World

• Okay, I'm a Second Generation re-enactor and I started in Regency Era recreation when I was still a tiny tot. I was still twenty before I could tell you what it meant for a woman to be "accomplished" in that time period (or that it meant precisely zilch after marriage). This book explains all of that, everything from Courtship Rules, to Housekeeping, to Hospitality. It has a habit of being a shade snobby and sarcastic, but its still a sublime reference for those of us who were just born too damn late.

7. Pride and Prejudice (Restored Edition DVD)

• By far, the most faithful film/TV adaptation of Jane Austen's classic. Made in 1996, it made Colin Firth a household name, with the infamous "wet shirt" scene... Um, give me a minute, readers, I need an ice water shower. *fans cheeks* The dialogue is faithful to a blinding degree, save where it needed updating to be comprehensible to modern viewers. The costuming is so faithful, I almost expect to see the reed boning in the corsets, and the settings are luscious enough to give one cavities. As wonderfully snide and gorgeous as Colin Firth's Mr. Darcy is, Jennifer Ehle's Lizzie Bennet is his match, with a lip curl that can wither cacti at 50 paces. Every collection of period drama and historical fandom needs a copy of this, perhaps two, because heaven forbid you loan it out and never see it again!

6. Regency House Party

• It breaks my heart that I missed this when it ran on PBS, but, lucky for me, it's on DVD. I usually hate romance reality shows, but this one had a charm that the others lack. House Parties were more than munchies and dancing, back then. It was a summer-long vacation, combined with a singles retreat, expressly for the purpose of matchmaking. While that might have been all fine and dandy for people of the day, the modern singletons (and chaperones) are lost in the face of Regency morals and manners. One can't help but feel that, even in comparison to the time, this is a bit TOO faithful (you can't tell me young people going a-courting didn't break a few rules every so often). Still, it's a delightfully fluffy, at times, schadenfreudian look at finding a mate in a lost era. What a shame it only ran for one season!

5. The Jane Austen Cookbook

• Foodies and Regency aficionados alike will love this one. Two authors, a food historian and an Austenian scholar, have banded together to not only reproduce the food of the day, but to put it all in context. Freshness was key, and where and how you lived determined much of your menu. This book breaks it all down and gives a cook everything they need to serve up a meal Emma, Lizzie and the Dashwoods would know and relish!

4. Jane Austen Tank Top

• For the casual Loli who wants to beat the heat, or for an Austen nut who wants to proclaim her love to the world! The neckline is high and the straps are wide, keeping the correct modesty for the look and goes up to a 2X, with a silhouette of what is presumably Jane Austen herself, overlaid with the famous opening line of Pride and Prejudice (“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife"). It's a CafePress tank, so the level of quality may need watching, but like any Lolita garment, a gentle wash cycle or hand washing should help it last. Throw a cardigan over it and pair it with a nice skirt and pearls and it could go from the office (on a casual Friday) to the theater!

3. The Tarot of Jane Austen

• Designed with traditional tarot in mind, this deck uses the age-old Tarot symbols, skewed to her most famous works. The suits are changed to Coins (Coins/Pentacles), Teacups (Cups), Candlesticks (Wands/Staves) and Quills (Swords), with cards depicting scenes from the books. It's gotten good reviews and the reports I have on it are wonderful. If you have a Lolita friend or family member who reads the cards, or any hopeless romantic with an interest in divination, they might like this deck and its companion book, if nothing else as a charming conversation piece!

2. Jane Austen Wax Candle from Paddywax

• Perhaps not ideal for the Loli with scent allergies, but charming nonetheless. This candle is scented with the feminine and classic combination of gardenia, tuberose and jasmine, and is labeled with a quote from the author ("There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort") in a nine ounce glass jar and comes packed in a box with a label that almost looks like an old-fashioned aromatherapy prescription. It makes a great housewarming gift and gives that romantic feel to any room.

1. Jane Austen Silver and Pearl Earrings

• A good piece of jewelry can fill out any wardrobe. These delicate little earrings work with jeans, jumperskirts and wedding gowns. I could see these making a perfect gift for librarians, brides and bridal parties in a Romance Novel/Regency themed wedding, or even just for a bookish or literarily-inclined individual with an eye for style. The simple leverback earrings display a black and white woodcut of Jane herself, with a freshwater pearl each dangling from the ends. Simple, modest, yet ultimately elegant. I know I want a pair!

What would you give to to the Lolita bookworms in your life? Any favorite authors you'd want to share with your friends?