It's hard for me to say if the Conan stuff holds up, because I read it all when I was 10 or so. But I loved it. I don't remember him being portrayed as dumb, but I can see how Schwarzenneger would give you that impression. I may have exaggerated it all in my head, but it seems to me that there were a lot of scenes of getting tied up, and then using vein-popping muscle-busting strength to bust out.
If you do read any Austen, I'd go for Pride and Prejudice. Especially since I talked it up so highly, I'm bound to have ruined it for you. There are certain scenes in that book that I've reread at least a dozen times, and I almost never reread things. I also read Emma, (another Austen book), but it lacked the zing of Pride and Prejudice. It's also nice to see in characters like the father that sarcasm was alive and well in centuries past.
Re: your 15
If you do read any Austen, I'd go for Pride and Prejudice. Especially since I talked it up so highly, I'm bound to have ruined it for you. There are certain scenes in that book that I've reread at least a dozen times, and I almost never reread things. I also read Emma, (another Austen book), but it lacked the zing of Pride and Prejudice. It's also nice to see in characters like the father that sarcasm was alive and well in centuries past.
-Ben.