The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde - UPDATED REVIEW

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde  Genre : Classics Blurb (on back of book) : Oscar Wilde’s only novel is the dreamlike story of a young man who sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty. In this celebrated work Wilde forged a devastating portrait of the effects of evil and debauchery on a young aesthete in late-19th-century England. Combining elements of the Gothic horror novel and decadent French fiction, the book centers on a striking premise: As Dorian Gray sinks into a life of crime and gross sensuality, his body retains perfect youth and vigor while his recently painted portrait grows day by day into a hideous record of evil, which he must keep hidden from the world. For over a century, this mesmerizing tale of horror and suspense has enjoyed wide popularity. It ranks as one of Wilde's most important creations and among the classic achievements of its kind. UPDATED REVIEW MY OPINION : ****** I would like to start out this review by stating that this is undoubtedly m...
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Atonement - Ian McEwan

Atonement by Ian McEwan
Genre: Historical Fiction

Image result for atonement bookBlurb (on back of book): Ian McEwan’s symphonic novel of love and war, childhood and class, guilt and forgiveness provides all the satisfaction of a brilliant narrative and the provocation we have come to expect from this master of English prose.
On a hot summer day in 1935, thirteen-year-old Briony Tallis witnesses the flirtation between her older sister, Cecilia, and Robbie Turner, the son of a servant. But Briony’s incomplete grasp of adult motives and her precocious imagination bring about a crime that will change all their lives, a crime whose repercussions Atonement follows through the chaos and carnage of World War II and into the close of the twentieth century.

MY OPINION: **

So I did not finish this book.

I stopped at around page 200. I'm still counting it as a book of this month because I did get fairly far into it and I have good reasons for stopping.

1. I don't have the time.
Okay, so this book is fairly lengthy and on top of that, it doesn't interest me. I am a high-schooler and I'm taking really hard classes this year. I have been spending hours and hours studying and doing homework, while also trying to balance a social life and getting enough sleep. It's been hard for me to get any outside pleasure reading done, and although that's really making me sad, it's something I'm going to have to deal with at this point in my life.

2. I will try this again when I'm older.
The book is geared towards adults and while it wasn't too hard to understand or anything, I think it would be better if I read it when I'm older because maybe it will interest me more than it did this time around.

3. I didn't like the plot line.
To me, the plot line was interesting from the blurb but the book itself didn't do a good job of intriguing me personally into finding the motivation to finish this book. It felt very bland and blasé and I didn't have it in me to force myself to read the book when it was boring me that much.

4. I stopped reading in the middle, tried to pick it up again, and ultimately gave up.
At some point, I quit reading because other books interested me more, but then I decided I should at least attempt to finish it. I did try, but ultimately, I couldn't finish it and decided to give up at about halfway.

5. I've already seen the movie.
Having seen the film version of this book, I feel like I'm not missing out on TOO much, and although I do know that book and movies obviously are different, I didn't feel like reading the book since I already knew the basic gist of what was to happen.

Overall, I would recommend this book to an older audience, with a lot of time on their hands.

Main Character: Briony
Sidekick(s): Family, etc
Villain(s): War, death, misunderstandings, innocence, etc
Historical Fiction Elements: This book is based around a historical time period.

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