The actual topic for today is “10 Sequels You Can’t Wait to Get Your Hands On” but I honestly don’t think I know enough ongoing series to make a complete list…and I also wanted to do this one that was a topic in October:

Top Ten Character Names That I Love

I love character names. Sometimes having an awesome name makes me enjoy a character and the book he/she is in even more. And also, whenever I’m writing something (which is not too often…) I put a ton of meaning into the character names; to me it’s a subtle way of reinforcing a theme I want the story to have.

So here is my list of favorite character names (not in any particular order):

1. James Matthew “Jem” Blythe (Anne of Green Gables series): this one is in a particular order. It’s my favorite. I have always adored Jem’s name, ever since I was a little girl reading this series for the first time.
2. Peeta Mellark (Hunger Games series): besides the fact that I love Peeta, I like his name because of its originality…and ok, it sounds like “pita,” which fits our beloved baker perfectly ;)
3. Captain Frederick Wentworth (Persuasion): Wentworth is such a lovely name…I think one of the characters said it best when she said, “‘Lady Wentworth’ sounds very well. That would be a noble thing, indeed…”
4. Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy (Pride and Prejudice): continuing with Jane Austen heroes, who doesn’t love ‘Darcy’ as a name? To me, it’s one of those names that speaks for itself, as if I could easily tell someone with that name, “Oh yes, you look like a Darcy.” (side note: I also believe that I look like a Maggie)
5. Phineas (A Separate Peace): this is one of those names that I love so much, I would want to give it to my future son. Alas, my husband does not agree, so maybe I will just have to be content naming Sims Phineas or Finn ;)
6. Robin Hood: not only do I love Robin Hood, I also love his name. Robin by itself is ok…but Robin Hood just makes it sound so much more legendary.
7. Sirius Black (Harry Potter series): now I’m starting to wonder if this list is about character names that I love or just characters that I love who also have amazing names. Anyway, Sirius is a perfect name for this character (who happens to be my favorite HP character, along with Ginny Weasley).
8. Madeline (from the Madeline books): I honestly don’t know why I love this name so much, but I was so upset for the longest time when I found out my husband does not like it (therefore our future daughter could never be named that)! I also love lots of variations of this name (like Madelynn, which is what I named my Stegosaurus Build-a-Bear).
9. Bagheera (The Jungle Book): I just love saying this name…or, I should say that I love shouting this name, because you can’t just whisper it, you have to shout it like Baloo does in the Disney movie: “Baaaagheeeeeeeeerrrraaaaaaaa!” That’s me, every time.
10. John Keats (the poet): this is not a character name, but I have always adored the name “Keats”. I wish I knew someone with that name in real life :)

If I could have made this list longer, there would definitely have been some Shakespearean and Dickensian character names in there. What are some of your favorite character names?