wow... Being abroad feels like a world away now. It's almost as if it was all this crazy dream and I've woken up again. But it was all a real part of my life. I really was in Europe for a long time so it's impossible to come back and pretend that didn't happen. It would be crazy...
This is it. A new years resolution turned two-year project is finally done. Yes, I failed to read 12 books in 12 months, but I was not about to give up and have that electronic proof just sitting at [6/12] blog posts of book reviews. So here, at the end of December 2016 I am writing a 12th and final book review, never again will I have to write one of these.
So in Paris, there is this little bookshop called Shakespeare and Company. It's one of the best known English bookshops in the city, sitting in the center of the city on a tiny street across from Notre Dame. When you purchase a book from here they put a little stamp with the shop logo on the first page, so of course, I needed to buy something purely for the stamp. I decided to buy a story that is special to me and very stereotypically "French" to mark my time in the city. There was no better option than The Phantom of the Opera. The story that inspired my favorite musical of all time which is set right here at the Paris Opera house.
I had never read the novel before, so I was expecting it to be the same story that I've seen on stage and screen so many times. To my surprise, the two plots did not align perfectly. The focus shifted in a way I wasn't expecting, it was written from a point of view that was completely separate from the plot, and it was a much more drawn out story than I was expecting. It was interesting to read as a source text for an adaptation. The musical adaptation just pulls a few key concepts from the novel such as the character of the Phantom, the love triangle Christine gets tangled in, and the idea that the opera is gaining new ownership. The adaptation takes these and creates a more appealing story for the stage, something that a viewer would become more emotionally attached to, while the novel is much more descriptive with the events that happen and the character Vicomte de Chagny's journey to save his love.
Overall I think it was a perfect little story to read during my last few weeks in Paris and a great keepsake from my time there. I will always love the story of The Phantom of the Opera, but I think I prefer the adaption that I've watched far too many times.
Julia Carrington
So in Paris, there is this little bookshop called Shakespeare and Company. It's one of the best known English bookshops in the city, sitting in the center of the city on a tiny street across from Notre Dame. When you purchase a book from here they put a little stamp with the shop logo on the first page, so of course, I needed to buy something purely for the stamp. I decided to buy a story that is special to me and very stereotypically "French" to mark my time in the city. There was no better option than The Phantom of the Opera. The story that inspired my favorite musical of all time which is set right here at the Paris Opera house.
I had never read the novel before, so I was expecting it to be the same story that I've seen on stage and screen so many times. To my surprise, the two plots did not align perfectly. The focus shifted in a way I wasn't expecting, it was written from a point of view that was completely separate from the plot, and it was a much more drawn out story than I was expecting. It was interesting to read as a source text for an adaptation. The musical adaptation just pulls a few key concepts from the novel such as the character of the Phantom, the love triangle Christine gets tangled in, and the idea that the opera is gaining new ownership. The adaptation takes these and creates a more appealing story for the stage, something that a viewer would become more emotionally attached to, while the novel is much more descriptive with the events that happen and the character Vicomte de Chagny's journey to save his love.
Overall I think it was a perfect little story to read during my last few weeks in Paris and a great keepsake from my time there. I will always love the story of The Phantom of the Opera, but I think I prefer the adaption that I've watched far too many times.
Julia Carrington
Last night I had to say goodbye. I walked to the Eiffel Tower one last time to watch it sparkle. I spent the evening at my favorite cocktail bar with all my favorite people from the semester. We were chatting and laughing about memories from our times together. At the end of the night, we gave our hugs...
After three long months, I believe I have been in Paris long enough to have some repeat places and favorite spots in the city. I know this city better than the city I go to school in because I put so much pressure on myself to go out and explore in all of my free time. There's a...
Strasbourg, the capital of Christmas. Colmar, the inspiration for Belle's provincial town. We were set up for a great couple days of Christmas markets and perfect little storybook towns. France's Christmas markets are by far the best way to get into the holiday spirit and there's no better place to go see them than where they all began,...
Oh, Amsterdam. You were the most confusing place I have ever been to. I wanted to love you with all of my heart and in moment's, I did, but then you would remind me about how much of a disappointment you can be. Yet with all of that, I will still allow you to hold a special place...
London is just one of those places that, as an American girl, sounds so dreamy and perfect. London is where all those perfect looking British boys with their sexy accents come from. London is extremely fashionable is a more eccentric way than Paris. London is full of elegant tea rooms where you can get afternoon tea every single...