Should Be In Bed, BUT...

Yes, I should be in bed, but I feel like I've been pushing through to get things done for tomorrow to such a degree that now I'm too wound up and need to UNwind! Can I just say though that I've missed graduate school so bad that I could hardly stand it?!? Yes, I miss being around other students and professors who are reading and overanalyzing anything and everything. (EDIT: I think I miss the schedule! :) As I roll out of bed to head to school by 7:15 am every morning I think to myself, "Why did I stop being a student?!?)

Well, I might be missing graduate school and its work, but my recent reading choices wouldn't necessarily reflect what I "should" be reading. :) I just finished The Luxe early this morning, and while it's definitely a little eyebrow raiser, I thought the writing style and story to be pretty engaging. Also, what can I say? I liked all the descriptions about pretty clothes and how rich people lived in NYC at the turn of the 20th century. It is a little scandalous, and the characters are definitely getting some action, but it's not described in detail (thank goodness). Basically, the story is very much like Edith Wharton's famous novel Age of Innocence (which I loved, by the way), with women who must be married to men with money, and men must marry women with social standing. In neither case does love play into their choices, so we find that like other cultures that FORCE loveless marriages on their children (Hmm...am I bringing my personal experiences into this? Yes...I think I am!), that the characters must struggle with responsibilities to family and society versus true love. Here we get that age old question about whether true love can withstand poverty, or if it can win out over all? We keep wishing and hoping!


I actually really enjoyed this YA novel, and while it has its fair share of 90210 (since I've never seen Gossip Girls) drama, it manages to clip right along and keep you interested and engaged in the characters' lives. I'm not sure I'd recommend this to every one of my students, but to some of the older ones I might. If nothing else, I'll recommend it to friends who have a penchant for YA fiction. :) Now let's see if I can nod off! Honestly, I just need to pick up Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy, and I'll be out in no time! Wish me luck, and until then, Adios.