Gone With the Wind

Here's the thing. Scarlett O'Hara is Irish- they love the land. To emphasize this (exaggeration used) they explain the land of her home several times throughout the novel, maybe 5 times, each time saying almost the SAME exact thing, and taking about TWENTY pages to do it. I loved the storyline, and I even loved the description of the land- but in my opinion it should've been shortened. I thought the purpose of the book was to tell her story, not emphasize that she was Irish. Yes, it's a part of her, but shorten it just a little. When you repeat it, only repeat the things that actually had some effect on the character... Example, the gently rolling hills made her feel at home and she looked ahead with anticipation to the bend from where she'd be able to see her home. (I haven't read this in years, so obviously NOT an exact quote). Instead I felt like it was more like, "She looked ahead to the rolling hills, and as she rounded the bend she could see her house." Same way, every time. No emotion. Just a statement of fact. The rolling hills were there- she saw them. The bend was there, and from there she can see her house.

SO... to sum up my opinion, take out a few of the descriptions of the land, or shorten them or rewrite them and you have a great novel. With it, you have a great story with some boring parts that although, they do emphasize an aspect of her character, are easy to fall asleep in and miss any value those pages might contain.