Jane Eyre

I admire Jane. She's fictional, imaginary, and I admire her. This writing feels like the journal of a real friend. A real friend who's a brilliant writer, a courageous moralist and is just herself.
I'd never read this before. But my grandma had the 1944 Jane Eyre movie that I'd watched several times. I thought the movie was okay. But turns out it was missing about half of the book.

Bronte captures personality so vividly. Even the characters you hate you understand why they're so disagreeable. The ones I hated: her aunt, her cousins, Mr. Brocklehurst, and at times, Mr. Rochester. The ones I loved, besides Jane: Helen Burns, Diana and Mary.

Jane's relationship with Mr. Rochester I found awkward at first; with the calling him "master" and all. And I didn't quite trust him either. But I thought his foil of St. John Rivers was brilliant and masterful. It made me realize that Mr. Rochester is what she needed, because his opposite surely wasn't. Like Mozart's works (at least according to the Amadeus movie): there's just no other way it could be written.

I underlined and made notes as I read. I plan to go back and reread my notes often. And the book as a whole too. I feel more courage to do what's right and hard because of Jane. And to trust that God will guide my path as I do what He asks me to do. And that doing that will bring me the greatest happiness in ways I couldn't have expected.