August is RACING by.  (I guess I say that every month.)  I’ve finished a couple of books over the weekend, but I don’t know when I’ll get to writing proper reviews.  Till then, here’s a quick post for Top Ten Tuesday!

Characters I’d like to be best friends with, classics and otherwise:

1. Much from BBC’s Robin Hood.  This guy gets a lot of flak from the other members of Robin’s gang (and Robin himself), but it’s not fair… he does pretty much all the cooking and worrying for everyone.  If we’re friends, I’ll help with the cooking (even though I don’t like it) and back him up when they start picking on him.  Being my friend, he will be loyal to a fault, but also give me constructive criticism when I need it.
   
2. Miss Marple.  Poor Miss Marple… I just want to protect her from all the creepers and psychos she encounters (not that I am capable, heh).  She really needs a friend.
   
3. Lucian Gregory from The Man Who Was Thursday.  Ok, maybe not friends, more like frenemies.  But I feel an anarchist-poet would round out my acquaintanceship very well and make life more exciting.
4. Tatyana from Eugene Onegin.  She’s a good soul, but she desperately needs someone to help her stand up to her relatives and give some perspective on Onegin and how he’s frankly not worth the heartache of pursuit.  (I guess that’s more of a therapist than a friend, oops…) 
   
5. Gregor Samsa from The Metamorphosis. Not gonna lie, I am TERRIFIED of creepy crawlies of any size, so it would be a real challenge for us to be friends.  However, I can relate to having chronic problems (albeit not of the beetle variety); he could really use a friend to be on his side.
   
6. Gandalf the Grey from The Lord of the Rings.  Master of fireworks, fighter of horrid creatures, and an overall grandpa figure.  Who wouldn’t want to be Gandalf’s best friend?
   
7. Mary Poppins.  Is basically my role model for being Kind But Extremely Firm.  If we were friends we could commiserate over the nonsense of the world while sipping tea across a floating tea table.  I need this.
   
8. Bertie Wooster from the Jeeves and Wooster series.  Speaking of nonsense… We’re probably too much alike to be good for each other.  But we’d have the best times gadding about town and shocking Aunts with our funemployment.
   
9. Conseil and Ned Land from Twenty-Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.  Conseil, Professor Aronnax’s servant, is a true nerd like me.  On the other hand, I share Ned Land’s abhorrence of being a prisoner, even on the Nautilus.  I would help them figure out a solid escape plan, while trying to minimize conflict with the Professor (and Nemo).  
   
10. Sherlock Holmes.  He’s smart-aleck and also knows martial arts.  Low patience with lesser minds such as myself but literally willing to battle to the death to save our lives.  Also, we’ve been best friends since 4th grade…well, since I was in 4th grade…  As for Holmes, “he never lived, but he never died.” #bf4ever