I honestly can’t tell which book I liked more. They were both books that I would have never expected to like but for some reason I loved every second of both. I think the fact that I procrastinated long enough to read Mudbound second could have something to do with why I liked it a little more than Cold Mountain. I think it has something to do with the complexity of the characters and their stories. Mudbound just seemed to have more characters with a more interesting story in my opinion.
Like every other girl is I was completely taken with Jamie. Even after the war i still loved every minute of Jamie’s stories. Another thing I think I like most about him is that he was so charming but damaged. That’s such a strange thing to say, that I like him because he is damaged. I think the main reason I say this is because I was so taken with him before that I, as well as Laura, wanted to fix him and see him get better. I would have loved to see them go on with Jamie’s life and figure out how and when (if he ever does) get better.
I was also very taken with sweet Ronsel. Oh how I loved him. He was so sweet and respectful and kind and I loved every minute of him. Despite all of the terrible things that happened to him which literally made me scream and at some points cry. I would have loved nothing more than to see what his life was like before the war, just to explore that side of his life so that I could get a better understanding of what kind of person he was. I also wonder if him and Jamie would ever speak again. Somewhere hidden i’d assume. Maybe they would write to each other and plan some sort of secret meeting where they could finally see each other after all of the mess that ran them both out of town. I can picture them meeting up probably Ronsel going to see Jamie and they would drink together and it would be just like old times. Seeing that happen would’ve made me very happy.
I think that I can relate really well with Laura. Mainly in terms of how she sees herself and her appearance. I am, like her, extremely simple and average. There’s really nothing to us, were neither here nor there and we both can tell that we are nothing out of the ordinary. Maybe that’s why I always wondered why she was so taken that Henry had wanted to marry her at first. I mean he was a pretty simple man too it seemed that they suited each other. I hate admitting that they were an okay pair mainly because i’m not really sure how much I like Henry to begin with. I feel like I didn’t like him that much because i’m the kind of person who loves to read about perfect, loving, romantic couples and they were not that. There is no doubt that they didn’t love each other dearly, although i feel like he just didn’t really give her what she truly needed in a marriage. She didn’t get the attention and love that she needed form Henry which she clearly got elsewhere… Jamie.
Another thing that I would have liked to explore would be Pappy’s life. as much as i hated his guts I still would like to know why he was so mean in the first place. Maybe he was so mean to Henry and Jamie and fathered them the way he did because his father was the same way with him. Maybe he is so bitter because he never really got the love that he needed growing up. I’m not really sure but that’s what I would like to think happened. I like to think that so that I can justify to myself that Pappy was just damaged too. Although all in all I don’t think that I could ever actually like Pappy. hypothetically damaged and all around mean he was an evil man. I’m not saying that I promote murder or anything like that but I think that in the end he got what he deserved.