What I Read in February

This was NOT a good reading month.

Re-reads
The Elusive Pimpernel. Okay, well Marguerite is one of the most obnoxious, stereotyped, selfish, stupid, and one-dimensional characters in literature. I was really struggling with most of this book; I almost put it down. I’m glad finished, all the good happens at the end even though we still get too large a dose of Marguerite. The best writing involves the Chauvlin and Percy scenes. The prose and plot in these books are SO tedious, but glimmers of decent writing appear in the aforementioned best scenes. I think the author could have been a decent writer if she valued quality over quantity (she has so many Pimpernel books) and left out romance which she clearly cannot do well.

The Ordinary Princess. I adore this book, you can read more about my thoughts here.

New Reads
Old Town in the Green Groves: Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Lost Little House Years. This I read for the Laura Ingalls Wilder Reading Challenge. It was okay, I haven’t read the originals (just the draft Pioneer Girl) in ages, so I don’t know if I’m right, but this didn’t feel as charming as the originals.

The Problim Children. I didn’t like this near as well as Lloyd’s other books although I do want to read the rest of the series. I feel that less effort went into this, certainly less charm. And the scatological humor, people, please!

Farewell to the Island and Return to the Island. I HATE love triangles. This is so clearly a ploy to add drama and spin out the series. Wow, the main character really turns into a shallow, self-serving brat in these.

Leave it to Psmith. This is funny although a bit more subtle than the Jeeves and Wooster stories. I thought that it dragged a bit, but I also was in suspense and cannot bear that, so that is probably why I felt that way.