Eureka!

(without involving bathwater and a towel)

I am finally done with Byatt's Possession!

Been reading it since October last year, kay. That's a real record, because books I don't complete within a month (or less than that), I'll chuck 'em aside first until I get back to them later.

Right, right, been reading it on and off. Determinedly going through all the letters, and poems, and flowery descriptions (but McEwan still takes the cake - and the icing and candles and soda - for the most flowery passages describing everyday objects...meh, the one main thing I'll complain about Atonement is the descriptive passages, especially that damn vase) and weird sentence structures.

So. The blurb, from Wiki, as always -

The novel concerns the relationship between two fictional Victorian poets, Randolph Henry Ash and Christabel LaMotte, as revealed to present day academics Roland Michell and Maud Bailey. Following a trail of clues from various letters and journals, they attempt to uncover the truth about Ash and LaMotte's past before it is discovered by rival colleagues.

And is it good?

I dunno. Seriously, I don't know.

On the one hand, I liked how it all fell into place bit by bit - the letters by Ash and LaMotte, similar lines in both their poems, clues in other accounts of meeting with either one - and how all the little bits and pieces came to a tidy conclusion. And then there's the story between Roland and Maud in their efforts to trace the events that happened between those two poets, and how their story begins to parallel the story they're fitting together, towards the end. So it's like a story within a story, both unfolding at the same time.

But on the other hand, I didn't like the long-winded passages, and the slow pacing. And I didn't like how Byatt resolved Ellen Ash's fate...okay, I was indignant at how she ended the story between Ash and his wife. I mean, the dude has an affair one summer with LaMotte, LaMotte gets pregnant, they never meet again, and Ash keeps it all a secret from his wife. And when Ash broke the news to her, it turns out that Ellen knew all along, but she never said anything, or even showed that she was angry.

But she was, oh yes she was. And there was this bit where Ellen realized that Ash was dying -

My life, she thought, has been built round a lie, a house to hold a lie.

And it made me go all emo after that. Because at this point, Ellen realized that not only had she lied to others about her marriage to Randolph, but she had also lied to herself by not facing the truth...

I'm not going to watch the movie though. They made Roland an American, and Christabel LaMotte is portrayed by Jennifer Ehle in dark hair. Padahal Christabel in the book had very fair hair, and I thought of the colour itself as part of her character. Right. Some movies should never be made from books. Ever.

Anyway, went driving today! Enjin tak mati kat slope :) hopefully nothing untoward happens during the test. Going to take it soon, you see. And if I survive the curse of the slope (or parking, or the three-point turn), I'm going to be driiiiiiiiiiiiiiiving!

Went to SS15 first before my lesson, since my instructor had to fetch three other students to their undang test. I was seated between these two girls, who started jabbering away in Mandarin when the instructor left us for a while in the car. They're from Seafield, just finished Form 5, going to Taylors (either for SAM or A-Levels) and taking Business stream, methinks, because they were talking about buying Accounts and Economics textbooks from the seniors. Wheeee. And I can't even speak Mandarin.

That was so mengada of me. Whatever. 808080808080

Oh yeah, Sweeney Todd. It's not released yet, eh? Though the date given in The Star was 3rd January, I've been checking TGV's site every few days or so, and nope, not yet. Saw a billboard promoting the movie on my way to PJ today (driving samore, hur hur) and the date was 24th January. Am so looking forward to it! Rated R in the US for "graphic bloody violence". Ooo, IMDB says that Singapore will only be getting it on 7th February. Nyeh nyeh.

Right. Youtube again. Unscripted interview here with Dan Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. (Thanks to Miss Yeo :)

Unscripted interview with James McAvoy and Keira Knightley on Atonement. McAvoy's very, very cute in here. And that accent!!

And lastly...trailer for the movie Rory O'Shea Was Here. Showed on Astro before, watched about three quarters of it. Meh, should have stuck to the end. First met McAvoy here ;) and man, thought he was really cute. He is! Go watch it if you have the chance!

Clips from Atonement are up on Youtube. These people move pretty fast.