Title: The Princess Bride, S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure
Author: William Goldman
Why I Read This: For book club
Short Summary: Since I have the movie version of this book practically memorized word for word, I wasn’t sure I would enjoy the book. After reading the (very long) introduction I was intrigued. I had no idea this book was abridged from an actual satirical history by S. Morgenstern about a real country called Florin. I always thought it was just a silly spoof of mid-evil times. Buttercup and Wesley actually existed! Who knew?

This abridged version of Morgenstern’s epic tale contains more details than the movie version I love. We learn more about Indigo and Fezzik’s background and friendship, Prince Humperdink’s obsession with hunting and how Wesley became the “farm boy”. It is full of adventure, true love, whit and satire. I couldn’t put it down.

I give it 5 out of 5 stars.

Thought I would start my blog off with a review on an interesting book I recently finished reading. I’m going to follow the review format of my good friend Andy because I like her format and she’s been reviewing books for awhile now. I will mostly be reviewing whimsical and uplifting books here, since the Wimzie Prints mission is to “gladden hearts and inspire smiles”…

Title: My Family and Other Animals
Author: Gerald Durrell
Why I Read This: I found it in a box of old books at my mom’s house and I loved the whimsical cover art and witty title.
Short Summary: A nostalgic account of Gerry’s youthful hobby of zoology, his crazy family and the interesting characters he meets on the Greek island of Corfu.

Since this book is a narrative about an actual zoologists’ childhood it didn’t have much of a captivating plot. It was kind of a slow read. The author filled many pages with very descriptive paragraphs about Corfu, which really made me want to go there (although I wonder if it is still as quaint and charming, since he spent his childhood there in the early 1900’s) but didn’t make for a very exciting read.

The British author’s character development is wonderful and his dialogue even more delightful. The characters in the book are all very interesting (artists, poets, scientists, from all over the world) and I often found myself laughing out loud at their conversations and adventures.

I also found the little tidbits Gerald shares about the animal life he studies very interesting. For example, did you know scorpions carry their little babies around by the dozens on their backs and male turtles battle it out for the attention of the lady turtles?

This is a good wholesome book and very educational.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars.