What's so great about blogging?  There seems to be this craze taking over about people being able to post whatever they like on the Internet, from baking recipes like "Easy No-Bake Lemon Bars" to "How To Properly Eat Sushi."  Really?  I suppose since two courses in my college education require me to become part of this phenomenon, I have to succumb to blogging.  It's exciting but a little intimidating at the same time, knowing that my words are now accessible to the world wide web and other peoples' criticisms (or kudos).  Now, don't expect anything in the realm of  "Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Ever!!!" or "The 8 Top Remedies for a Good Night's Sleep."  Nope, I'll be discussing the Amazing World of British Literature!  That being said, let the blogging begin!

I've always been fascinated by British Literature since reading The Canterbury Tales in high school.  There's something so mystical and nostalgic digging back hundreds of years and diving into the words of well-versed authors and poets, and then fast-forwarding to the present to witness the changing themes and ideas of new and upcoming British storytellers.  My favorite part about literature as a whole is evaluating the piece we're working on from an analytic standpoint.  Experienced authors typically say more and mean more than just the words they've left inked out on the pages.  It's our job as readers to find out what they're trying to say (by what they didn't say).  It's like solving a puzzle or mystery, but the best part is, hearing other peoples' thoughts and interpretations of the same poem or book, as well as voicing your own.  You compare and contrast other classmates' arguments to your own, hoping to reach a sense of resolution after all of the circulating opinions.  It's a melting pot of ideas.  Some of the best works that I've read and analyzed over and over again are just left up to interpretation, and in my opinion, that can be a great thing.   Take the novel The Icarus Girl, for example.  Reading Oyeyemi's story allows my mind to wander and to go on this literary journey.  I'm left wondering: Is TillyTilly real or is Jessamy just creating her psychologically?  Where is this "bush" which Jessamy enters at times in the novel?  Is it clear what happens to Jessamy at the end of the novel?  Is there denouement, or resolution?  All of these questions can be debated and in the end, probably will still be continue to be debated because of the way Oyeyemi leaves her audience in The Icarus Girl.  What good literature comes down to is that new thoughts and ideas can be brought forward, leading to new insights, and of course, great group discussion.  What is there not to like about the world of (British) literature?

My British Literature is dealing with works written from 1798-Present.  First off, we're meeting the words of Helen Oyeyemi in her novel, The Icarus Girl.