I was reading an issue of Library Journal today which included an editorial by John Berry confessing that he hates reading and would rather see the movie. This editorial was in the context of an article that dealt with libraries and new media (podcasting, social networking, etc.) I went to a chorus concert last night and on the way there my daughter & I were talking about movies. I asked her if she had ever read A Little Princess (Juv. PZ7 .B934 Lg 1991) . She replied, “Mother, you know I don’t read books.” That’s too bad. To me if you don’t read the book you miss a lot. I was rereading A Little Princess because I was intrigued by Miss Minchin’s fixation on Sara Crew’s locket in the Alfonso Cuaron film. By the way, the locket is not in the book, but believe it or not the Miss Minchin of the book is much meaner.
After the concert I overheard two students talking about the Stephenie Meyer series, Twilight and how many times they had seen the movie ( boasting about how many times you have seen the movie seems to be a fad.) One of the girls excitingly revealed that a close male friend was now reading the books after having seen the movie, but did not want his friends to know about it (too girly.) This seems to be one case of seeing the movie that gets people to read the books. They can’t seem to get enough. My middle child, Melissa, read the first two Twilight books in record time and now wants me to get the other two at the library.
Do you read the book first, then see the movie or the other way around? Do you go back and reread the book after you see the movie?
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Mustn’t Grumble
I found a wonderful book yesterday, The Anglo Files LN 5 DA589.4 .L93 2008 by American journalist Sarah Lyall about her experience with British culture and language. She married a man from Great Britain and her take on British culture is hilarious and very entertaining. Part of learning about British culture is learning about the differences between British English and American English. One example of the differences between the British and Americans is the common British phrase “mustn’t grumble”. Agatha Raisin, the main character in the detective series by M.E. Beaton, often mentions her frustration at the British tendency to accept whatever comes. The Longman Dictionary lists “mustn’t grumble” as a typical British response to ‘how are you’, meaning it could be worse (American equivalent is “not bad”) and you should keep your chin up.The other phrase “keep a stiff upper lip” is actually American though it originated in England. Do the British not complain? I know Americans do. We seem to protest about every thing. After all, we rebelled and set up our own country. Lyall says that in Great Britain this event is “the War for American Independence”, not the American Revolution.