Reading the classics

Having finished Moby Dick, I wanted to talk a bit about reading the classics. I try to read a couple books a year that would fit into this category. There are a couple of reasons for this. First, I know there are books out there that I haven't read and I want to. I think Huckleberry Finn will be next on the list. (No, I never read it in school, just as I never read To Kill a Mockingbird. The honors English classes read things such as The Odyssey and Don Quixote.) J. read the book James earlier this year and I want to read Twain's version first. 

The second reason is that I find if I read too much contemporary fiction, my concentration and reading skills become... less robust. Sentence length and grammatical complexity are much, much simpler in the majority of books written in this century. While it can be relaxing to whip through an easy book, it is too easy to lose skills if that is all you read. I do worry that older literature, which includes truly excellent books, will become unreadable to many. Sometimes I just have to make my brain work a little harder. 

If you are interested in dipping your toe into more classical waters, but don't quite know where to start, I highly suggest the book, 1000 Books to Read Before You Die: a life-changing list by James Mustich. Ages and ages ago, James Mustich ran a book catalog company called, The Common Reader. I was thrilled when a new catalog arrived and would sit down and read it cover to cover. James Mustich had the ability to make every book sound interesting. Plus, the books listed were a little out of the ordinary. I found some wonderful books through his catalog and felt a bit bereft when it went out of business. Then a few years ago, 1000 Books came out. Reading it was like reading my old friend The Common Reader catalog. It is a great place to browse for new titles and I highly recommend it. 

One of the things I love is the checklist in the back of the book of all one thousand titles. I will never check all one thousand off, because there are books on the list I know I don't want to read. It's still fun to go through and add a check when you finish one. 

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