Actually, her first published book was a book of essays she'd done as a journo called John Chancellor Makes Me Cry in 1973, I think? And I'm pretty sure that Heartbreak Hotel came next, in '75 or '76.

Oh, that's right! I'm not sure if I ever read Heartbreak Hotel.

Oh, that's right! I'm not sure if I ever read Heartbreak Hotel.

Oh... you must. I think the reason I like HH and Downtown the best of all her novels is because they cleave most closely to her own life experiences and I guess as such, they feel even more alive.

Heartbreak Hotel is the book that made me want to be a writer.

I get that certain tragedies are cathartic and all, but oy, so much obsession with spiritual death and ruination of women.

I guess for me, Hardy felt like he was raging against the class structure, and Austen feels like she's gently poking it while participating and accepting it.

Basically, with Charlotte,

Oh. Huh. In the bonus zombie edition, it IS a case or marriage or death for Charlotte. Actually, marriage AND death. She'd been bitten by one of the zombies, and basically doesn't want to be an old maid when she has to be killed and have her head cut off.

Henry James made me pull out a read pen and edit out all the repetitive language. And , as you all know by my selling and grammatical errors, I'm not that picky. It was just that slow going - so I noticed.

Oh, poor Charlotte. That's not nice. On the other hand, zombies.

Jilli, you own the book, or you borrowed it? Because if you own it, I MUST READ.

Austen feels like she's gently poking it while participating and accepting it.

I don't feel that Austen is really accepting the class structure, and I think the jabs she takes at it are quite strong ones.

Plei, I own the book. It's worth the $12 paperback! Love.

My seniors this year have read as required reading:

King Lear
Picture of Dorian Gray
The Handmaid's Tale
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Hamlet
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
The Knight's Tale
Importance of Being Earnest
Doll's House

That's a good list