Have You Really Read All Those?

I read constantly.  I'm a bit addicted to books, actually, and hoard them like some women hoard purses and shoes.  Except, unlike women with all those unworn shoes and unused purses, I read the books I buy.

After being laid off back in November, I found that I had a TON of time on my hands, so I increased the number of books I've been reading.  I usually only read at night before I go to bed, but I'll read for anywhere between one and four hours.

I just recently reread Gone With the Wind, and you know what?  It sucked.  All the main characters, with the exceptions of Melanie and Mammy, are JERKS.  Complete a**holes.  And only Rhett Butler seems to realize that he's completely worthless.  Scarlett and Ashley both think they're perfect, or - if not perfect - that their deceptions and unfairness to others is acceptable because they'll behave better tomorrow.  I thought I was going to have a coronary reading the thing, my blood pressure got so high.

Yeah yeah yeah, "Great American Novel" blah blah blah.  It's a book about a bunch of selfish people and how willing they are to mistreat the one or two decent people in the book.  So I guess it's kind of realistic, because that happens.  But now I want to know why people idolize Scarlett O'Hara, since she was such a self-serving character.  The woman was a b****.  I think back to when I read the Ya Ya Sisterhood and how they all just worshipped Scarlett, and I realize why the women in the book ended up a little cuckoo: they chose the worst possible role model for themselves when they chose Scarlett O'Hara.

P.S. Sorry this entry is a bit of a self-righteous rant.  Probably shouldn't have written about GWTW since I obviously LOATHE the characters...