Thursday 22 July 2010

Character Connection (1)- Joey Bettany- The Chalet School series

I recently discovered this wonderful meme hosted by Jen @ The Introverted Reader and thought it looked creative and fun to do and would be interesting to share so this is my first post on it.

Here is what Jen has to say about Character Connection:


We all have characters we love. Let's spotlight these fantastic creations! Whether you want to be friends with them or you have a full-blown crush on them, you know you love them and want everyone else to love them too!

Most of you will probably post about how much you love each character, but this is a great place for the more creative ones among you to let go and have fun! Write a love letter to Captain Wentworth. Write yourself into a scene with Anne and Diana. Draw a picture of yourself in Jamie's arms. The possibilities are endless.
 
Be sure to post the book's title and author, and be very careful not to give away spoilers while talking about how much you love your characters.
 
Mr. Linky will be posted here on The Introverted Reader every Thursday.

I really like the idea of making the post into a bit of creative writing to make it more unique but will leave that to explore for another week.
Joey on the front cover of the
 first book in the series
My character this week: Josephine Bettany from the Chalet School series by Elinor M Brent Dyer

Josephine Bettany- or Jo/Joey as she much prefers to be called- is the protagonist of the Chalet School books(at least the first part of the very long series.) If you want to read my post about the series click here.

When we first meet her in The School at the Chalet, Jo she is a young orphaned girl of 12 living with her 24 year old twin brother and sister, Madge and Dick. She is a very frail child and her health is a constant worry to Madge but Joey is still very boisterous and as in in the first chapter: 'possessed at least five times as much spirit as strength, and fretted continually at the restrictions they are obliged to enforce.'

Jo makes the books come alive with her very caring and loyal but wild nature and fiery temper that gets her into all sorts of scrapes when she goes to the Austrian Tyrol with Madge who decides to start up The Chalet School. She has a good moral sense at heart which often shines through but usually acts quite impulsively before thinking. Her personality with a hint of cheekiness was very loveable and she is very much looked up to in the school, especially as she moves up the years and is friends with everyone. I would love to have her as a best friend as she is very loyal and trusting, once she is friends with someone, they are her friend forever and the pranks that she and her friends play sounds like great fun! I also love how Joey has always been treated like an adult in the things that her sister Madge tells her but she is very reluctant to grow up and see friends who were former pupils at the Chalet School marry and have children.

Interesting facts about Joey:

  • She is trilingual in English, German and French
  • She loves history and has a special love of Napoleon
  • She hates maths (especially algebra and trigonometry!!!)
  • She is the editor of the Chalet School Magazine: The Chaletian
  • She wants to be a famous author and LOVES reading a lot
Joey has been likened very much to Jo March of Little Women and I would say that this is definitely true as the 2 characters have a very similar personality, share the same aspirations and talents and of course, their name. I love them both and Joey is a very hard character not to love!

Do you have a favourite character and why do you love them? I'd love any comments :)

6 comments:

  1. +JMJ+

    A special love for Napoleon, aye? How interesting! I like her already--and her being a big reader and the school paper's editor also help. =)

    Her name does make comparisons to Jo March inevitable, but I suppose her poor health makes her a cross between Jo and Beth?

    I hadn't heard of this series at all until now, so I'm glad I read your post.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes, I love her quirky interest of Napoleon and I am the editor of my school's newspaper that I set up too so I have a few things in common with her, especially as I want to have a book published too.
    I never thought of her being a cross between Jo and Beth but I suppose you could say that.

    Give the Chalet School series a go when you have time, I'm sure you'll enjoy it :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Welcome to Character Connection!

    I haven't heard of this series either, but Jo does sound like a character I would love! I lean more toward Anne Shirley than Jo March, but she sounds like she might have a bit of Anne in her too! I'll have to check the series out further!

    In answer to your question about the character in a tv series and a book--yes, you can write about her. As long as she made an appearance in a book, it's all fine. So many books get made into movies or shows, it would be hard to avoid characters who show up in both!

    ReplyDelete
  4. @IntrovertedJen
    Thanks Jen! Yes, she does have a bit of Anne in her too, Anne is also one of my favourite characters.
    The character I was thinking of when I asked the question was Sara Stanley, from The Story Girl, which was used as a basis for Road To Avonlea Canadian TV series. If you are a fan of Anne, you may have heard of it. If not, check it out as it is very similar to the Anne films.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jo seems to be just the sort of girl I would love to be friends with! I love her character! I am not familiar with the series, but Jo kind of makes me want to be.;)
    Great post! Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Love the Chalet School series, especially the early books. Jo is a great character, just so full of energy and enthusiasm for everything (except of course Maths, Art and Sewing.) It's a shame this series isn't better known.

    ReplyDelete

I love comments, they make me smile! So thank you for taking the time to write one, I read all of them.
I try my best to reply here or on your blog :)

Stephanie x