Grr... Arrgh...

[dxmachina]

Watched the Buffy finale with the Somervillains last night. Almost didn't go, because I had a headache, and I was feeling really pissy when I left work. So glad I went anyway. Had huge piles of fun, drank lots of beverages, ate tasty treats, and talked about all sorts of interesting stuff. Had almost the full contingent in attendence, and got to meet snacky for the first time. Also, it turns out that vwbug is way more evil than anyone could have possibly predicted, because she managed to keep the fact that msbelle would be attending a secret from everyone. Thus each and every one of us got to have a moment of surprised recognition and delight when we realized who was amongst us. (Victor and I looked out the window when we heard a car door slam, and we saw vw walking up to the door with someone in tow we didn't immediately recognize. She sort of looked familiar, and then I noticed she was dressed all in pink and I knew...)

I don't think I liked the finale as much as others did, but I certainly didn't hate it. I'd always thought that Spike would wind up redeeming himself by saving the world in a grand sacrifice at the end. I just thought it would happen in S5. Was very sad for Anya, especially her being left behind. Spoilery for next season's Angel: Was also sad for Spike until I was told afterwards that's he's signed for Angel next year. Loved Vi, especially, kicking ass. Not so sure about all the little slayers all over the world. I suspect that the government will hunt them down, which is not the empowering, noble ending that Joss was intending, I think. Need to rewatch tonight, because I did miss some of the lines.

In other news, I've only read eighteen of the books on that BBC list, and if you take off Rowling and Tolkein, it's down to twelve. Also, it's entirely possible that I didn't actually read Crime and Punishment or The Great Gatsby, but rather read the Monarch Notes versions. It's been a while...

The lucky eighteen...

1984 - George Orwell
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
Animal Farm - George Orwell
Black Beauty - Anna Sewell
Catch 22 - Joseph L Heller
A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
Crime and Punishment - Fyoder Dostoyevsky
Dune - Frank Herbert
The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - JK Rowling
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - JK Rowling
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - JK Rowling
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - JK Rowling
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson

Comments

[helvirago]

Fair enough. There are at least three books which I'm not sure if I read or just saw the movie versions of. Others which I'm not sure if I ever did either but have heard them talked about so often that I've convinced myself I have.

But apparently I've read Swallows and Amazons, because even though I remember not a single thing about it, it rang this "dusty English preteen type book, inspiring fierce allegiance because they just seem so much more like me than bright shiny American preteen books do" bell. But does it really count if you retain nothing about the book?

[dxmachina.livejournal.com]

  There are at least three books which I'm not sure if I read or just saw the movie versions of. Others which I'm not sure if I ever did either but have heard them talked about so often that I've convinced myself I have.

Yes, this. I was supposed to read A Tale of Two Cities in high school, but I never did. However, because of class discussion and the wide-spread references to it in our culture, I have far more familiarity with that book than I do with Black Beauty, which I read when I was a child and barely remember. (About a black horse, and I think Beauty got sold at one point.)

Can one be "well-read" despite not having actually read a lot of stuff?

[vwbug.livejournal.com]

I'm evil! Yay!

I feel like Tootie in Meet Me in St. Louis, after she threw flour on Mr. Braukoff's face then chanted, "I'm the most horrible. I'm the most horrible."