I am reading Marie Antoinette: the Journey (see the link on the left). I have been reading it for what seems like an eternity, but what is probably only a week and a half. I am only half-way through. I am determined to finish this book! Not only is it good biography, but I have spent so much time on it already, I might as well finish it. There is a reason I don't read much non-fiction - I can't skim through this book, because I am already getting enough names mixed up. All the Countesses and Princesses. . . the only ones I can tell are obvious relatives are her sisters and mother, because "Marie" was a family name.

What have we learned, Charlie Brown:

- King Louis XVI was not a very sexual man. He had no mistresses (well, not yet anyway, I'm only half-way through the book) and was not physically close to his wife for the first few years of their marriage.

- Marie Antoinette's favorite composer was Gluck (not a familiar name to many outside of music studies). She missed a chance to patronize Mozart, as she was pregnant with her first child.

- She was not a very literate person, was near-sighted and was not able to concentrate very hard on things.

- She had issues with bossy older women like her mother, oldest sister, and others.

See! I can always make do with more random trivia!

Not so much related, except for the mention of trivia - I finally watched my Bringing Up Baby DVD this weekend. Included in the set is a documentary on Howard Hawks. I didn't realize the variety of movies the man directed! He told a funny story about Faulkner and Clark Gable, which you may already know.

He and William Faulkner were planning on going on a hunting trip and Gable asked if he could tag along. While on the trip, a discussion on great literature was started. Gable asked who the great writers were. Faulkner answered, Ernest Hemingway, Willa Cather, a couple other writers from the canon, and himself. Gable said, "Oh, you're a writer?" and Faulkner replied, "Yes. And what is it you do?"

Too funny.
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