Hannah: Read The Education of Bet this morning and am working my way through Persuasion. After so much fluff (aka current YA fiction), Persuasion takes so much more brain power to read. I'm SO out of practice!
Then, I read and agreed with Tahereh's latest post.
Now, I'm wondering where I stand exactly on this. I adore YA fiction. Always have and probably always will. However, I find myself wanting to read more of the classics again. I'm only on chapter 9 of Persuasion right now. Why? Because each chapter is taking 10-15 minutes to read and comprehend. (That's 4-6 pages in each chapter) Terrible timing! I should be better than this. I USED to be better than this. I blame it on YA fiction. BUT, I don't regret my YA, so, what to do? I've got an idea and I would like to know if it sounds too crazy.
Since I've well passed my goal of 200 books read this year, I've got time to "waste" reading. Here's my idea:
I've got ALOT of classics on my new bookshelves that I've still not read even though I've had many for well over ten years. I think I should probably tackle reading them now that they're out in the open. How about for every non-classic that I read for the remainder of the year, I tackle a classic just so that I can actually say that I've read all the classics that I own? Sound like a good plan? This would allow for my YA addiction to be satisfied, while reviving the practice of reading and comprehension of all the OLD books.
Tell me...what do you think? "Good idea" or just "plain ludicrous...you'll never make it!"
5 comments:
All right, seester, here's the low down: YOU ARE DA BOMB!! Absolutely, you should take the challenge of reading a classic for every YA you read. But brace yourself, you may face powerful language, complex thought processes, and (of course) incredibly boring descriptions of scenery. But will it be worth it? Um, YEAH. *side effects may occur, including but not limited to: speaking in an English accent, an obscene expansion of vocabulary, and a liberation of mind from narrower scopes to the limitless world of older imaginations! Do not consult your doctor before beginning this regime. Take often and in large doses.*
I say "go for it!" I have so many classics and have read almost none of them. It feels like work. Great stories, too many details. I like the Great Illustrated Classics versions. I know. I'm lame. Really, though. Give it a whole hearted try. Maybe you'll get better at it. And you can write a book about how a modern reader can enjoy reading classics. And then I can enjoy them too. :^)
Go for it! Sounds like a plan. Glad I stuck with the book I was reading because it is turning out to be a good book. So, you may find yourself dragging at the beginning of a classic, but stick with it because it didn't become a classic for nothing.
I say go for it also. I often use a similar approach for heavier books vs "fluff" books.
I really like what Mom said about books not becoming a classic for no reason!
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