Update February 12th

Update: book review on romance stories

Hi everyone, so this weekend is Valentine’s weekend. What I like about this day is that Saint Valentine (well one of them anyway) stood up for marriage when a roman emperor had banned marriages.

This made me think of married couples in books and romantic stories in general. I tried to think of books that portrayed a successful long term marriage and all I could think of was Arthur and Molly Weasley in the Harry Potter series.

Of course we don’t know what happens to them after book 7 but considering that their oldest two children, Bill and Charlie, must be in their twenties, they’ve been together for quite some time. Their relationship has lasted through Voldemort’s first reign of terror and throughout the days of his return.

They stuck together while struggling with money and being ridiculed for mixing with muggle born wizards. There has been trouble with several of their children and through it all, they kept it going. We don’t know much of their private life as a couple but what we’ve seen from the outside looks pretty good.

However most romantic stories focus on the early days when a couple to be has just met or are trying to find their way to each other. Since I had trouble coming up with more long term couples, I present you today with a small list of my favourite romance stories.

1) Much ado about nothing
This classic by Shakespeare features one of the earliest couples (that I know of) who are presented as equals. Beatrice and Benedick are both clever, loyal and in good standing amongst their friends and family. I wonder if their constant bickering has been the source for all those stories where the heroin and hero start off on the wrong foot only to fall in love later?

Charles and Mary Lamb wrote a version in modern English prose in their Tales from Shakespeare. While Penguin has the stage play with the script in Elizabethan English. If you’ve never read the story before I’d recommend starting with the modern English version so you can focus on the story. The play version will have you struggling with ye olde English featuring all kinds of jokes and colloquialisms you’ve never heard of. It’s a nice follow up once you know what the main story is about.

2) Sense and sensibility by Jane Austen
When mister Dashwood dies at the beginning of the story, oldest daughter Elinor is left to be ‘the sensible one’ in the family. She carries a lot of responsibilities for her remaining relatives while hoping for Edward’s love. However, Edward has quite some baggage and family expectations that make him seem completely out of reach. Both have to endure a lot and make some sacrifices along the way.

Meanwhile Elinor’s younger sister Marianne, the sensitive one (sensible in Jane Austen’s 19th century English), has a lot to go through before she realises what love is truly about. In their social circles there are other romances going on. Some portray happy marriages, others are clearly mismatched.

I personally feel this book can (and should) be read twice: once for the romance and once for the societal critique that Austen delivers with her ironic jokes and her remarks on the side. I love reading Penguin editions because of all the extra information they give so here's a link to one of their editions of Sense and sensibility.

3)  A tie between The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery and The Fault in our Stars by John Green
The Blue Castle is fun because it’s set at the beginning of the 20th century in Canada. Also the protagonist is 29 years old and single. Which nowadays is almost unheard of in the romance novel industry. Most of the main characters are in their late teens or early twenties. With any older character you’re reading about infidelity, break ups, divorce and/or second marriages. I like some of the old fashioned stuff. I read contemporary romances but most of them don’t stick in my mind.

Which brings me to the other number 3: The Fault in our Stars. Mostly because bad things happen to nice people. You know it, I know it and John Green wrote a book about it. I liked these characters a lot and I think it’s good that we get to see things from their perspective. Usually the very sick and possibly dying are written as side characters that the main character gets to weep about. So I found this point of view to be refreshing.

Honourable mention: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
I’m giving this an honourable mention because on the one hand, I disagree with the anthropology and morals of this story. I honestly don’t know why the Goodreads description calls this a life affirming story. Without going into spoilers let me just say that the way this romance plays out goes against the grain for me.

But on the other hand, the writing is compelling. I got attached to most of these characters and I wanted to protect them from all the horrible things that happen. (It really is a romance story, it’s just grittier than most). I definitely recommend The Night Circus if you’re tired of sappy romance stories and would like something suspenseful (and sometimes a bit frightening).   

That’s it for today. Have a good week,
Suhail.