Gone With The Wind

All those years of hearing about Gone with the Wind, all the talk about Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler, I felt I knew them long before I starting turning the pages in this book. In 25 years of life I had never read the book nor seen the movie, only heard about this classic countless times. So I finally forked over a couple books when I found a torn and tattered copy of the novel at the local used bookstore. Fine, I’ll give it a shot. It sat on my bookshelf for a few weeks while I stared cowardly at it’s size. And when I finally dove in, I prepared myself for months and months of struggling through this massive period piece.

But…it turns out sometimes people know what they’re talking about. I was truly captivated by this book, and I could never really put my finger on why. Was it because I was fascinated by Scarlett? Maybe. Because I couldn’t wait to see what happened between Scarlett and Rhett? Somewhat. Mostly I think it’s because there’s hardly a dull moment. Even in the dull moments, Mitchell kept the story flowing. It’s not long because it’s too wordy or full of unnecessary narratives. It’s long because there’s so many elements to this story as it follows Scarlett through about ten years of her life–through marriages, children, war, riches and poverty, friendships, love and loss.

My only complaint is that despite 842 pages, I never felt like I quite understood who Scarlett was and how her brain and heart operated. One minute I was proud of her for being strong-willed and determined, for ignoring the social norms of the South in the nineteenth century that told her she shouldn’t run her own business as a woman or show her pregnant self in public. But then suddenly she was going on about how a “lady” would never do this or that, and how she longed for the way things were before the war when all she had to do was figure out what dress best flattered her eyes and which flighty compliment best flattered her beaux. Did I like Scarlett or did I hate her? I never really figured that out. And maybe that’s the point afterall.

Overall, I enjoyed Gone with the Wind and happily recommend it to anyone who likes to read a good classic. Or anyone who just likes to read really. Don’t be intimidated by the size. And please, please don’t just see the movie. I rented it recently and have watched about a third so far, and it really is true in this case that the book is far better than the movie. I may not even finish the movie because it’s sort of ruining for me the great experience I had with the book.