Gone with the Wind

Gone with the Wind – Margaret Mitchell

Evan’s ESS = 10 out of 10

Erin’s ESS = 10 out of 10

Content = PG-13 (Violence, Adult Content, Profound hardship, Unnecessary Stubbornness)

“Scarlet O'Hara was not beautiful, but men seldom realized it when caught by her charm…”

"No, I don't think I will kiss you, although you need kissing, badly. That's what's wrong with you. You should be kissed and often, and by someone who knows how."

Why:  After a thorough examination and several closed door meetings at the GL, there is actually not one justifiable reason why you should not read this book.  Gone with the Wind has sold more than 30 million copies and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1937.  Rhett Butler and Scarlett O’Hara are the two greatest fictional characters of all time – and we could just cry even thinking about Melly, who is easily the most enduring.  We could seriously go on and on about the wonders of this novel (We think we will).

From the beginning Scarlett O’Hara (not to be confused with the cocktail, which includes Southern Comfort, Cranberry juice, and fresh lime – just in case you were wondering) elicits strong emotions from the reader.  If by the end you haven’t laughed, spat, gnashed your teeth, cried, and sighed in relief, you may have accidently picked up Gone with the WINE, which is a humorous guide focusing more on the fascination with drinking fermented grapes.  Just read the following monologue as the confederacy continues to be ravished by the New York Yankees: “As God is my witness, and God is my witness, the Yankees aren't going to lick me. I'm going to live through this, and when it's over, I'm never going to be hungry again. No, nor any of my folks. If I have to steal or kill - as God is my witness, I'm never going to be hungry again." Step aside Winston Churchill and Tony Robbins, there’s a new kid in town.

This book is often unfairly brandished a “girly book” (not that there’s anything wrong with girly books).  But nothing could be further from the truth.  For starters, Rhett Butler is more of a man’s man than Chuck Norris and the guy from the Dos Equis commercial could ever hope to be.  Unfortunately, some of his testosterone is offset by the character of Ashley Wilkes.  Read it… you know you want to.

Editors Note: Apparently it wasn’t the New York Yankees, but the Union army from the north that ravished the confederacy.  Sorry about the oversight…