Alright, so I've read a lot of
light, mindless, escapist books lately. Something about living in
paradise & being unemployed have truly brought out my laziness gene.
I am incapable of going cold turkey, I need to slip in a few classics that I
have never gotten around to reading. Working in a high school library has
led me to read a freakish amount of books, since I have learned the hard way
not to recommend anything I haven't read... has anyone else noticed that
classics are generally heavy on sex scenes? So, let's start with 10 short
classics that have passed me by:
#1: An English teacher at LHS
always included The Awakening in his American Lit class. All I
heard was grumblings from students... they did not understand why this
was forced upon them. Hopefully, this story about a woman "finding
herself" won't make me want to lose myself in a nap.
#2: The premise for A Bell
for Adano intrigues me. It's about an Italian-American major during
WWII that tries to replace a towns' church bell after theirs was melted down
for bullets. Supposedly it's not a true "war" novel... WWII
just serves as the catalyst for the story. As a history major, I enjoyed
the stories behind the dates more than strategies. I loved Killer
Angels for that very reason; it introduced the reasoning behind the
battles, not just endless maps of how the armies lined up, timelines of who
moved where and when, blah, blah, blah.
#3: Another novel I have
avoided for some reason is The Three Musketeers. It has always struck me
as such a guy's book, that it has never interested me much. Supposedly,
there is humor as well as adventure, so I will give it a shot.
#4: If The Three Musketeers
is too swashbuckling for me, I will try The Count of Monte Cristo.
I've seen the movie version with Leonardo deCaprio, and really liked it,
despite that fact that I'm not a rabid Leo fan (don't even get me started on
how much Tom Cruise bugs me). It's over 1000 pages though, so I hope I
can muddle through with musketeers.
#5: Believe it or not, I have
yet to read The Jungle Book. I am assuming there won't be any
scenes of Baloo rubbing up against a palm tree sing "The Bare Necessities",
but I won't hold that against it. Supposedly I should have read this when
I was young... sorry to say I had a neglected childhood.
#6: I have also neglected As
I Lay Dying. I have had friends recommend it, and I have read other
books by Faulkner that I have enjoyed, so I don't know why I have been avoiding
this book. Maybe I'll find out...
#7: Here's another one that is
always a bridesmaid: The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman. For
some reason, I always imagined it as a long, long story... it covers 100 years,
right? Upon actual research, however, I discovered it's less than 300
pages! Is my face red. That eliminates the main stumbling block, so
I better commence to readin'.
#8: Due to the fact that I am
a naturally depressed person, I didn't believe that The Bell Jar was in
my best interests to read. I don't need a whole lot of reasons to feel
sad or overwhelmed; I can manage that very nicely all by myself, thank
you. But then something tells me I need to get over myself & read
this book, so I'll give it a go. However, it will only be read during
nice, sunny daylight hours.
#9: I don't know why I haven't
read The Chosen yet, except for the fact that our library copy was
stolen. So I guess the problem is that I'm lazy... go figure.
#10: I will have to end my
list with Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. Since I
helped a student make their way through an essay about this novel, I feel like
I have already read it. However, I would like to read it for myself to
get the full impact of the story.
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