When I think of Colleen McCullough, I think of chunky books about Rome and Caesar. I also think of The Thorn Birds, a passionate and forbidden love affair. This book did not seem like a book Colleen McCullough would write.Perhaps, the book just seemed to small in size. While reading this book, I thought of Cranford. I thought of Jane Austen's titles. The book, at first, seems light weight. Not true, just as Jane Austen's titles are more than dime novels about women chatting over tea. Once I settled down with the characters, I began to see Missy as a woman stuck in a position ruled by her beauty or in some people's eyes her lack of beauty. I also saw Missy as a woman doomed to live the rest of her life with her mother and aunt. Missy was also certain to live without any of her dreams coming in to fruition.
While I waited for Missy to bust out of her cocoon or not bust out of it, I thought about the lives women live now. The women of today, in a few countries, are so fortunate. These women can make serious choices about their lives. Women are not judged for taking a bold stand. Although we have come a long way baby, we have a long way to go. Women still suffer domestic violence, lower pay, ownership by men and deep guilt for going to work and to war. Women travel a hard road today as they did in yesteryears. There is still a need for change in different countries, cultures and religions. I look forward to reading Half a Sky by by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. Half The Sky
