Rosie's Riveters: Kay and Claire Randall

Rosie's Riveters is a weekly posting written by Booklust readers about
riveting females in literature. Many readers have strong reactions to
the women in the books they read- either very positive or very
negative. These are the characters we find riveting, for good reasons
or bad ones, and they form the population of Rosie's Riveters. Through
this weekly post, we can discuss females we love to hate, or love to
love. And maybe, just maybe - we can determine why we react so strongly
to them.

If you are interested in participating, please comment on this post or
e-mail me and I'll add you to the line-up!

This week's post is by Kay at Kay's Bookshelf. Kay has a beautiful and very organized book blog, of which my favorite feature is her "Kay's Favorite Quotes" box. She, like me, reads a lot of historical fiction and fantasy, but she also reads tons of other really interesting-sounding books. Her blog is a really great place to get reading recommendations- check it out!

Who is your Riveter?

My choice for the day is Claire from Outlander/Cross Stitch.

What book does she feature in?

She is a main character in the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon (a no less than six-book series, soon to have seven)

Do you love her or hate her?

I absolutely admire her, especially the way she was in the first book. Later on she didn't seem that surprisingly courageous anymore (but that's probably just because I got used to her being in a certain way and so I was harder to surprise).

Describe her personality- how would you describe her to a friend?

First of all, she's quite stubborn and temperamental but she's also very level-headed and quite courageous too. We first get to know her when she mistakenly travels 200 years back in time. She never loses her nerve and she adapts in the blink of an eye (true, her skills as a former medical nurse were very useful to her too). Another thing I like about her is the fact that she never hesitates to do what she knows must be done, no matter how hard. Not to mention I almost envy her relationship with Jamie (especially in the earlier books when they are all still young). Oh, and she aged really well too.

Can you compare her to a celebrity?

For some reason when I think of her Angelina Jolie comes to mind. Not because they have anything in common, mind you (they don't even look alike, Claire has curly hair), but because of the fact that they both feel at home in various conditions, ranging from the red carpet to refugee camps in Angelina's case; from Versailles to hiding in forests in Claire's.

What makes her riveting?
Her courage. The way she took her fate in her hands and never let go. The relationship she has with Jamie. I can't say more for fear of spoilers but the part at the end of Outlander is one of Claire's best moments in my opinion.

What do you most admire/despise about her?

Everything?

I remember that the author once said that when she started the book she wanted it to be about 18th century Scotland. And then she wrote Claire and she was too outspoken for that century and so the author made her travel through time. It is precisely this (the fact that she is not content with being just a female) that I admire most about her.

Would you recommend reading the book in which the Riveter features?

Outlander/Cross Stitch is a favorite book of mine. As such, I would recommend it in the blink of an eye. I am aware though that it may not match everyone's tastes as it does have a strong romance component after all.

The sequels are pretty good too.

Any parting remarks?
Read Outlander? No, I think I've already said that.

You know, I really had fun doing this.

Thank you Aarti for the idea and for inviting me to participate. :)

Have a nice day everybody, and happy reading!