End of the year blog posts about goals for the new year are clogging the blogosphere as we speak. I could get all crazy and say that I resolve to pull that hellish DVD out again and get my fat butt off the couch, or that I plan to cut down on my chocolate consumption (ha ha ha ha), or that I plan to finally get to that blog overhaul that I've had sketched out for months and months. All of those are lofty and worthy goals that I do hope to someday accomplish, but I'm not quite prepared to say that they're imminent.Instead, I'm opting to join a reading challenge of sorts, since that's the area of my life that I'm most likely to have success with. Over at 5 Minutes for Books, we're changing up the Classics Bookclub a bit, and I'm dipping my toe in a tiny bit. I'm the first to admit that I have shied away from the "classics" for a long time, always gravitating toward contemporary fiction as my first choice in reading material.
So, in light of the new Classics Bookclub, I'm making a goal of reading four books that I'm designating as classics:
Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger-- okay, so it helps that I was already planning on reading this in January for my online book club, so it's serving double duty.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen-- no, I've never, ever read anything by Austen before, okay?? I've been shamed and tsk-tsked for long enough. I guess I've been missing out big time, since everyone in the book blogosphere worships her, and I've been told that P&P is the best option for newbies like me.
Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton-- I'm picking this one purely because I read it back in high school and I vaguely remember liking it. I don't really remember what it's about at all... was there sledding somehow involved? Seriously, I have a terrible memory.
A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen-- Ditto on this selection, although I recall a bit more of this play from my high school reading, and I believe a production of it that I saw in college. I remember having strong feelings about this story when I was unmarried and 20 years old, so I'm curious to know how I'll view it as a 30-something married reader.
Those are my classics goals for 2010. Yup, just four; like I said, I'm dipping my toe in, not splashing right in. Perhaps I'll even end up feeling more sophisticated by year's end!
Looking forward to a new year of reading,
I am surprised! But picking your own is definitely the way to go, right??
ReplyDeleteI read Catcher in the Rye a couple of years ago for the first time. I'll be interested to hear/read your thoughts.
And I think that you will really like P&P. I don't know if I would have been so vigilant had it not been for Classics Bookclub (it was our first selection). It took me a while to get through the language, but once I got into the plot I was most definitely hooked.
Great list. I'll also be reading P&P, among others. Great choices for dipping your toe in.
ReplyDeleteI didn't like Catcher that much when I read it in my late teens/early 20s. But P&P...my favorite book ever (though Guernsey is a very close 2nd)
ReplyDeleteI have also been feeling classics-impaired. I am similarly ashamed that I have never read any Jane Austen. Perhaps when I finish my current read, I'll take on P&P with you.
ReplyDeleteI like Catcher, and I've always enjoyed Ibsen (I'll spare you my theatre-snob lecture that plays aren't literature and aren't meant to be read. ;) ) I know I read either P&P or Sense and Sensibility years ago, but obviously it didn't make much of an impression.
ReplyDeleteBut I have to address Ethan Frome. Really? You're reading that voluntarily? I remember reading it in high school and HATING it, almost as much as I hated O Pioneers. You're a braver woman than I.
I am PROUD of you. I myself am a fan of many classics - P&P deserves to be read every decade (or more, if you ask some people :) Ethan Frome BUMMED ME OUT but I've been thinking I should probably re-read that one as an adult also. I'm going to go checkout the bookclub :)
ReplyDeleteWell, I'll leave Lisa to harass you about P&P.
ReplyDeleteI've never read Catcher in the Rye either but have been very curious about it. What a great pick! I look forward to hearing your thoughts on it and maybe you'll be just the one to convince me to really read it for myself. ;D
Happy reading! (And yes, that's about the only resolution I'll manage to stick to as well.)
I read Catcher in the Rye in high school, and I liked it, but I would like to reread it someday. Maybe if I finish my other classics, I'll add it!
ReplyDeleteLike Jennifer said, it's easy to get bogged down in the language of P&P at first, but the plot is great, and the wit/humor is wonderful. I hope you enjoy it!
I first read Pride and Prejudice and Catcher in the Rye in high school. I enjoyed Austen's descriptions of the time and the witty dialog between the characters.
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