BTT - February 28

Who is your favorite female lead character? And why? (And yes, of course, you can name more than one . . . I always have trouble narrowing down these things to one name, why should I force you to?)

Many of the books I read have strong, admirable, and likable female characters. Here are my top five:

Scheherazade from One Thousand and One Nights- That girl is smart. She was faced with a seemingly impossible situation, and found an ingenious way to overcome it. Plus, she's a great storyteller.

Offred from The Handmaid's Tale - This is one of my all-time favorite books, and Offred is one of the reasons why. She lives in a society that is severely oppressive, but it does not break her. She is a courageous woman who is determined to survive. I also love the fact that she steals pats of butter to use as lotion - to me, a sign that she remains hopeful that someday someone will want to touch her face with a loving touch.

Morgaine from Mists of Avalon - Finally we see her portrayed as something other than evil. Morgaine fights for what she believes, carrying the burden of her responsibilities with poise.

Jane from Jane Eyre - How can you not love Jane? She's honest, compassionate, an all-around sweet, loving girl.

Miss Marple - A genius in an understated way, this "old maid" defies the stereotype. She seemingly goes about her business in an unassuming way, but her keen sense of observation never misses much. She is an amazing judge of character. Thank you, Dame Agatha, for creating such a lovely character!