Tag Archives: Bookish Stuff

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This week’s list was much easier to come up with than the prompt from last month that asked us to list characters we want to meet.

So who would I never want to meet?

The kid from The Giving Tree.  There’s so much selfishness, greed, and codependence in this story. It’s a one-way relationship where the tree gives literally everything it has and the boy (who later grows into an adult and then an old man) is still never satisfied or willing to reciprocate. Yikes!

Hannibal Lecter from The Silence of the Lambs.  Can I assume most of you are familiar with this film or the book it was based on? If not, know that Hannibal was a violent man who did unspeakable things to his victims without an ounce of regret.

Rufus Weylin from Kindred. The protagonist in this novel is a young black woman (yes, her race is important to mention here due to reasons that will soon be clear) living in the 1970s who keeps being pulled back into time to save a brutally racist and sexist slaveowner. There’s a metaphor involving him in this book I’ll leave up to other readers to figure out for themselves, but Rufus isn’t someone I’d ever want to meet in person due to how violent and unpredictable he was.

Humbert Humbert from Lolita. This book disturbed me so much I stopped reading within a few pages and will never return to finish it. Let’s just say that there was something seriously wrong with this man and the way he thought about children.

Kevin from We Need to Talk About Kevin. What I find chilling about this villain was how ordinary his origin was. He had a safe and healthy childhood with two committed parents as well as countless other adults who tried to help him as his behavioural problems escalated. Seeing what he grew up to be frightens me as he had every reason and opportunity to become a peaceful, law-abiding citizen instead.

The Lady of the Green Kirtle from The Silver Chair. I’ll bet many of you read this book as a kid, but if not it’s a good read. This character scared me because of how convincing she could be even when she was obviously wrong. Her magic made it hard for people to remember the terrible things she had done which added extra layers of difficulty when the protagonists confronted her.

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Click here to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and to read everyone else’s replies to this week’s question and here to see the full list of topics for the year.

Here are some characters I’d like to meet.

Sister Monica Joan from Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth would be a good pick because of how creative, funny, and knowledgeable about the past this character was.

She joined Nonnatus House as a young women around the turn of the 20th century when antibiotics, chemotherapy, (the vast majority of) vaccines, genetic testing, and other modern medical advancements were still decades away from being invented. By the time the author of this book was hired to work as a district midwife in the late 1950s, Sister Monica was showing clear signs of cognitive decline and forgetfulness.

Her memory for the past was still strong, though, and she helped the young midwives solve some tricky medical cases involving diagnoses that they hadn’t personally treated before. I’d focus on the past with her and ignore anything she said about the present that didn’t quite make sense. It’s good to meet people where they’re at and learn about what life was really like generations ago.

Matthew Cuthbert from Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery is my second pick because I love spending time with fellow quiet, gentle people. I feel like I could help him with a few chores around the farm without either of us feeling like we had to speak if there weren’t any words in that moment. There’s something relaxing about hanging out with folks who are comfortable with silence.

Yetu from The Deep by Rivers Solomon. (The mermaids in this book don’t have last names). Like Sister Monica Joan, Yetu struggles with memory issues for reasons that would be spoilers to share in this post. I loved seeing how her curious and intelligent personality found ways around the holes in her memory so she could share her tale. She was thoughtful and filled with opinions about what her life should be like. I could sit and talk to her for hours.

Connie Ramos fromWoman on the Edge of Time by Marge Piercy would be another interesting person to meet. I think that once she realized I believed that she had time travelled and wanted to help her we could have all sorts of productive conversations. She was not the sort of person who reacts well to being misbelieved, but I  would hope she’d open up and share her deepest thoughts with someone who did treat her well.