Monday, October 25, 2010

Colleen McCullough - The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet



Comment: I've finished this book.

After an awful beginning, where I suddenly saw myself in a world totally opposite the one we find in the original Pride and Prejudice and where I couldn't see any traces of the characters I've loved - I love - then, now I must confess it isn't such an horrible book after all.

The trick is to not think of it as a sequel or as a true follow-up of the original. This an adaptation, freely thought by the author, where she imagined what might have happened, but in an independent way, because the way she portrayed the characters isn't true to what Miss Jane Austen has done in the past.

The story beginns when Mrs Bennet dies, and Mary, the third sister, is now free to live her life, at age 38. Mary has been reading some letters in a newspaper by a certain Argus, and she is compelled to see for herself the poor conditions of the people without privelegies. Obvioulsy, this against Darcy's orders and without any help she ends up kidnapped.

I won't tell any spoilers, but to be honest the story was more about feelings lost and feelings gained, than about Mary.

I hate what mrs McCullough has done to "my" characters's personality. These characters aren't the ones I love and enjoyed seeing in Pride and Prejudice.

I think that what cost me the more, was to see them changed to something like this. I'll be reading the original as a therapeutic read now.

However, as a single book, this one isn't that bad, just inventive.

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