The Clockwork Orange- Anthony Burgess

I cheated a bit on this one, reading the first half of the book, and sparknoting the rest of it. It has a very interesting story to it, and after reading the shortened version, I don't totally hate it. I do, however, have no desire to see the movie, because I think it will be very gruesome, but I have to for my class.

The story brings up some very interesting points, and in the last bit brings up a very good thought: "youth will always have to suffer its own mistakes". The main character, Alex, realizes that, as he thinks about having a family and children, that no matter how much he tries to teach his children, they're going to have to learn on their own, and make their own mistakes. I like that.

I'm writing this part a couple weeks after I watched the movie and I just have to say that I enjoyed the movie in some ways. It wasn't nearly as gruesome as I thought it would be. I can't say I'd recommend it for everyone, but at least listen to the soundtrack. That's what I enjoyed the most. And, Malcolm McDowell does an excellent job of portraying Alex, the main character.

Amadeus- Peter Shaffer

This is the first book I'm going to blog about (obviously), but the funny thing is, it's not even a novel, it's a play. But I'm still counting it.

I read this book for a class, and, surprisingly, I still really enjoyed it. It's a play that on the surface, seems to center around Mozart's life and his music, but is really about Salieri, a composer of the same generation who is driven mad with jealously that God had given a person like Mozart that kind of talent, and didn't give it to him.

I'm in the process of watching the movie as well, and we are watching it in class, but since I'll be gone for some of it, I'm watching it on my own time as well. It does take some time, considering it's a three hour movie.