Happy Endings: Do You Enjoy Books That Don't Have Them?

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Disney is famous for changing the endings to such stories as The Little Mermaid, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and so on, from making them happier for the main character to cutting out the nasty bits. It makes for a nice fairy tale where the princess gets carried off into the sunset by the prince . . . but what about those unhappy endings?

Take, for example, The Kite Runner. I love that book. But it doesn't end happily, and neither does A Thousand Splendid Suns, also by Khaled Hosseini. They're sad, violent at times (particularly A Thousand Splendid Suns), but well-written books, and the endings make sense. Of course it would have been nice if things hadn't happened and the situations had been resolved differently, but it would have resulted in a very different story, and not necessarily a better one.

Which brings us to my question(s):

Does a story have to end happily for you to enjoy it and, if not, what was the last sad book you read that you liked? Have you ever read a book where you thought a happier ending would have made it stronger overall? Do you avoid books with sad endings? Would you (or have you) considered writing a book that didn't have a happy ending?




-----The Golden Eagle

Some World Events

As I'm sure you've heard/seen/read by now, there was a massive earthquake in Japan. The 8.9 magnitude quake on the Richter scale hit at 2:46 PM local time, and there are tsunami warnings in countries all around the world around the Pacific Basin, including along the USA California coast and and the state of Hawaii.

Gosh. I can't imagine what it's like to go through a quake that big. The videos and images are terrifying--all the fire and flooding and cities being destroyed.

If you're in Japan, stay safe. If you know anyone in Japan, then I hope they're okay.

*****

Have a safe, secure, peaceful weekend, everyone!


-----The Golden Eagle

Herculaneum Was There, Too!

You've heard of Pompeii, I bet. You also probably know what happened that day, August 24th 79 AD. But did you know about Herculaneum?

I've noticed that in a lot of history books there's practically nothing about Herculaneum. The most I've found is a mention that it was buried under 65 feet of ash. You would think that there would be more about a city buried under 65 feet of ash, but unfortunately, no.

That's why I was thrilled when Secrets of the Dead: Herculaneum Uncovered was aired last night:

Watch the full episode. See more Secrets of the Dead.

Because someone had decided this Roman city was finally worth looking into!

I didn't know about much of what they said. Like, that the Bourbons looted the place through a maze of tunnel leading underground. Or that the citizens of Herculaneum hid in the boat sheds as the pyroclastic flows enveloped their city. Or that 2000 year-old-bread is in existence, and even has its owner's name on it. There's ancient, carbonized furniture, and some pieces of wood that were not carbonized.

But even Pompeii and Herculaneum weren't the only cities--Stabiae and Oplontis were also wiped out.

I always find less-discovered places and people fascinating. There's so much more to learn that way. :)


-----The Golden Eagle