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This Week's Question
Do you enjoy reading retellings of,
or 'sequels' to, classic novels?
Why or why not?
(Submitted by Maria @
My Answer
Actually, I haven't read many of these, but if I were to read more, it would totally depend on how well they were written, and how skillfully the modern authors had incorporated the classic authors' story and characters into their own books, while creating something original at the same time.
In September of 2015, I purchased and decided to read a 'prequel' to Jane Eyre. This 'prequel' is very well-known, and is considered to be a masterpiece, although the Goodreads reviews are far from being overwhelmingly favorable. I'm referring to Wide Sargasso Sea, by Jean Rhys.
I bought an edition with a very beautiful cover (see below), and settled in to read, only to begin feeling.....well, 'very distressed' would be an adequate description. This novel tells the story of 'the madwoman in the attic', a very important character in Charlotte Brontë's famous novel. Rhys's intent was to vindicate this character, as well as to explore the ways in which women in the 19th century were oppressed by the patriarchy. She also brought in colonialist criticism. In order to achieve these ends, however, she totally revamped the character of Edward Rochester, the male protagonist of the Brontë novel. The extent to which she did so makes him totally unrecognizable. Thus, I gave up reading Rhys's novel in disgust. In her hands, Rochester had actually become a caricature of the character originally -- and masterfully -- created by Brontë .
I strongly feel that, if a modern-day author is going to use characters previously created by another author, and especially a classic one, then they should do their utmost to remain faithful to the original characterizations.
It's interesting to note one thing: all of these 'retellings' and 'sequels' (or 'prequels') actually fall under the category of fan fiction. This makes me wonder whether the authors of the original books, were they alive today, would be upset that their creative masterpieces are being 'recycled' by contemporary authors. I would guess that they would, indeed, be upset, although perhaps in varying degrees, according to how their original works were being used. I think that the acclaimed author of Jane Eyre would have a thing or two to say to Rhys about Wide Sargasso Sea, since the latter has so drastically distorted the original version of Rochester!
There's a YA novel I want to read, titled My Plain Jane, and written by three authors, which I feel might do more justice to the original. It's supposed to be a humorous take on Jane Eyre, and is set to be published on June 26th of the present year. However, if I'm at all disappointed by the authors' handling of the original material, I will not hesitate to state it in a review. I'm crossing my fingers that this won't happen, though!
One particular type of retelling, or 'sequel', really does annoy and anger me, as I find it to be a total travesty of the original, and thus, very disrespectful to the original author. This is the type of novel in which the original book's text is actually interspersed with outrageous material that's totally extraneous to the original work. I think this type of book is just not worth reading at all! I'm thinking of such 'gems' as Jane Slayre and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (UGH, UGH, UGH). For a list of Jane Eyre retellings and 'sequels', click on this Goodreads list. I think I would probably enjoy other books on this list.
There have been several retellings, etc. of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, who happens to be my favorite detective of all time! I have only read one, a YA novel titled A Study in Charlotte, by Brittany Cavallaro. This was a brilliant spinoff of the original adventures, and I enjoyed it immensely! In it, the detective is Charlotte, a descendant of the legendary Holmes, while her assistant is Jamie, a descendant of the famous Dr. Watson.
There have probably been many more retellings or adaptations of classic novels that I'm not aware of; the ones shown above are the ones I've heard of. It seems to me, though, that Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice are the two classics that have been 'retold' the most. That's probably because these two novels are the ones most loved by generations of female readers, and the authors of these retellings are all women.
I would be more than willing to read any of these which, again, are skillfully done, and in some way remain faithful to the originals, while also remaining respectful of them. I am definitely not interested in reading any such books which totally disrespect, destroy, or make fun of the original classics, unless, of course, the humor is meant as an affectionate take on the original work.
In September of 2015, I purchased and decided to read a 'prequel' to Jane Eyre. This 'prequel' is very well-known, and is considered to be a masterpiece, although the Goodreads reviews are far from being overwhelmingly favorable. I'm referring to Wide Sargasso Sea, by Jean Rhys.
I bought an edition with a very beautiful cover (see below), and settled in to read, only to begin feeling.....well, 'very distressed' would be an adequate description. This novel tells the story of 'the madwoman in the attic', a very important character in Charlotte Brontë's famous novel. Rhys's intent was to vindicate this character, as well as to explore the ways in which women in the 19th century were oppressed by the patriarchy. She also brought in colonialist criticism. In order to achieve these ends, however, she totally revamped the character of Edward Rochester, the male protagonist of the Brontë novel. The extent to which she did so makes him totally unrecognizable. Thus, I gave up reading Rhys's novel in disgust. In her hands, Rochester had actually become a caricature of the character originally -- and masterfully -- created by Brontë .
Click on this cover for the Goodreads page.
I strongly feel that, if a modern-day author is going to use characters previously created by another author, and especially a classic one, then they should do their utmost to remain faithful to the original characterizations.
It's interesting to note one thing: all of these 'retellings' and 'sequels' (or 'prequels') actually fall under the category of fan fiction. This makes me wonder whether the authors of the original books, were they alive today, would be upset that their creative masterpieces are being 'recycled' by contemporary authors. I would guess that they would, indeed, be upset, although perhaps in varying degrees, according to how their original works were being used. I think that the acclaimed author of Jane Eyre would have a thing or two to say to Rhys about Wide Sargasso Sea, since the latter has so drastically distorted the original version of Rochester!
There's a YA novel I want to read, titled My Plain Jane, and written by three authors, which I feel might do more justice to the original. It's supposed to be a humorous take on Jane Eyre, and is set to be published on June 26th of the present year. However, if I'm at all disappointed by the authors' handling of the original material, I will not hesitate to state it in a review. I'm crossing my fingers that this won't happen, though!
Click on the book cover for the Goodreads page.
One particular type of retelling, or 'sequel', really does annoy and anger me, as I find it to be a total travesty of the original, and thus, very disrespectful to the original author. This is the type of novel in which the original book's text is actually interspersed with outrageous material that's totally extraneous to the original work. I think this type of book is just not worth reading at all! I'm thinking of such 'gems' as Jane Slayre and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (UGH, UGH, UGH). For a list of Jane Eyre retellings and 'sequels', click on this Goodreads list. I think I would probably enjoy other books on this list.
Click on the covers for the GR pages.
It's not a matter of whether or not one likes zombies, vampires, werewolves, and other creatures common to paranormal fiction. It's a matter of reading 'derivative books' that actually destroy the original work through the introduction and interspersion of material totally foreign to it and thus, to the author's original intent in writing their masterpiece.
There are other Pride and Prejudice rettellings and 'sequels' that I know I would probably enjoy, such as the ones on this Goodreads list.
There are other Pride and Prejudice rettellings and 'sequels' that I know I would probably enjoy, such as the ones on this Goodreads list.
There have been several retellings, etc. of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, who happens to be my favorite detective of all time! I have only read one, a YA novel titled A Study in Charlotte, by Brittany Cavallaro. This was a brilliant spinoff of the original adventures, and I enjoyed it immensely! In it, the detective is Charlotte, a descendant of the legendary Holmes, while her assistant is Jamie, a descendant of the famous Dr. Watson.
Click on the cover for the Goodreads page.
There have probably been many more retellings or adaptations of classic novels that I'm not aware of; the ones shown above are the ones I've heard of. It seems to me, though, that Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice are the two classics that have been 'retold' the most. That's probably because these two novels are the ones most loved by generations of female readers, and the authors of these retellings are all women.
I would be more than willing to read any of these which, again, are skillfully done, and in some way remain faithful to the originals, while also remaining respectful of them. I am definitely not interested in reading any such books which totally disrespect, destroy, or make fun of the original classics, unless, of course, the humor is meant as an affectionate take on the original work.
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