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AmySea

AmySea

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Ride a Pale Horse
Helen MacInnes
The Samurai's Wife
Laura Joh Rowland

The African Queen / by C.S. Forester ; narrated by Michael Kitchen

The African Queen (MP3 Book) - C.S. Forester, Michael Kitchen

I thought that The African Queen was a story about the male-female relationship.   It was a story about how when men and women work together (as seen between Rose and Charlie) the two genders are at their best.  When there is partnership and equality the couple can overcome powerful odds.  But when one leads and the other follows (as seen between Rose and Samuel), no one benefits.  The river that Charlie and Rose travel seems to be a metaphor for life, and Rose and Charlie navigate it together and as partners, discovering depths within themselves that they didn't know they had.  

 

I really like the movie starring Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, and reading the book didn't alter my opinion of the movie, and the movie didn't color my impression of the book.  They both worked, and the movie did justice to the story the book told.   The movie was more streamlined--Forester spent a long time describing boat repairs and such, and I do think that interrupted the flow significantly.  On the other hand, it was during these times that Rose and Charlie grew the most as individuals.  In the end I'd have to say that this was a good book that spawned a good movie.