About Classic Literature

Crawl Into Another Person's Skin... & Walk Around...

2009-07-03T17:27:14Z

I guess it's fair to say that Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorite books. I've read (and LOVED) so many great classics, but this book still makes me pause to think when the characters and/or plot crosses my mind. And, I often think about that famous image--of crawling into another person's skin and walking and walking around. For me, it's the eye altering. That change of perspective is what we all desperately need some days!

I want to see. I want to understand--not only myself, but others as well. And, literature helps me to do that. I'm immersed in the plots and stories of other people, places and experiences--all drawn from that enduring universality we all want to understand. Literature (books, poems, stories & all) gives me voices--they call, laugh, cry & scream out at me in words. And, some books stay with us beyond the first or second reading; they stay with us, and make us rethink our own actions/reactions. How well do we ever really try to understand? How does literature help you to see (or learn or feel or open your mind and heart)?

Harper Lee writes: "I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do." Experience the quotes, from To Kill a Mockingbird. Also, take a look at questions, a review, and related books.

What do you think about the novel? When you first read it, what struck you about the book? Has it stayed with you? Have you read it more than once?

Cover Art © HarperCollins.

A Literary Battle of Wits... Again, The Catcher in the Rye

2009-06-27T01:01:49Z

A Swedish author--who claims that The Catcher in the Rye is "just a book"--is now being dragged into court for creating what J.D. Salinger claims is an unauthorized sequel. According to Publishers Weekly, the court case may force the famous author to take the stand. But, even if Salinger does manage to remain in the shadows (represented as he is by lawyers, agents, etc), this case offers us an intriguing twist in the controversial history of The Catcher in the Rye.

The man who has created all the ruckus is Fredrik Colting (using the pseudonym John David California), and he's quoted in the PW article: �I wanted to explore what happens to characters. When a book is finished, do the characters cease to exist, or do they live on somehow?�

That's what a lot of us like to imagine. We like to think about what might have been--if J.D. Salinger had written a sequel, if the book hadn't ended as it did. But, for some of those questions, we can leave it to our own imagination (or wait until some far-future day when the "lost" works of J.D. Salinger will surface). I haven't read Colting's work, but I can't imagine it will compare very favorably with The Catcher in the Rye. But, there's the thing--we can't really speak to the quality of the book, nor make comparisons. We just don't know, and we may not know for a long, long time.

So, what do you think? Should the Swedish author be allowed to publish the book? Is the claim of "parody" an acceptable defense? Does it detract from the original? Would a story of this sort help you to imagine the main characters in a different/better light (or is it detestable)?

All Quiet

2009-06-22T11:48:46Z

Erich Maria Remarque was born on June 22, 1898. He would later be in the unique position to write his famous war novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, after his experience at 18 years of age, as a soldier on the front lines in World War I. With terse prose, he writes about the horrors of war, centering around Paul Bäumer, a young soldier.

In this anti-war novel, Remarque writes: "To me the front is a mysterious whirlpool. Though I am in still water far away from its centre, I feel the whirl of the vortex sucking me slowly, irresistibly, inescapably into itself." Read more quotes from Erich Maria Remarque, and All Quiet on the Western Front.

Does Anyone Write Letters These Days?

2009-06-20T01:05:17Z

I remember the days when my mom would make me get out my "nice" stationary (covered with flower, cats, or some iteration on a cutsie theme) and write my cryptic thank-you notes to aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents and the like. Now, how often do I write a letter? I honestly can't think of the last time. Do you recall?

Perhaps I should be sending you all nice, hand-written letters. We could scribble on about our shared love of literature, tell all about the last books we'd read (or tried to read), and explore all the particular loves (and hates) in the world of books. Hum, would you reply if I sent you one? Would it seem strange to receive an actual letter in your mailbox, or would you be looking for it via email?

So, why am I talking on about letters--literary notes in particular? I just received a note from The New Yorker--all about the newly discovered "lost letters" by Edith Wharton. It's always curious to me when people call them "lost," because they've just been locked away in storage somewhere. Wharton asked that the letters be destroyed upon her death, and as often appears to be the case, her wishes were ignored (the family of her governess apparently kept them in storage).

With the letters on display--soon to be auctioned off--I look forward to the future books that will be written on the topic of Edith Wharton and her relationship with her governess.

Bloomsday - Rendezvous with Destiny... a Literary Experience

2009-06-16T09:03:41Z

Today is June 16, the day on which James Joyce had his first date with Nora Barnacle, who would later become his wife. June 16th is also the day on which the infamous novel, Ulysses, is set.

Read more about James Joyce and his infamous works--on Bloomsday!

What are you doing this Bloomsday?!?

The Case of the Hard to Follow Characters...

2009-06-08T12:13:38Z

Whether you're reading a novel for a literature class, or enjoying a book on the beach, characters are the vehicles that often help to drive the plot. They make you care about what happens, and you may grow emotionally attached to them (wishing for their happiness and success). But, not all characters are very exciting. And, in some novels, the characters have such similar names that it's sometimes difficult to keep track. Here are a few tips to help: How to Keep Track of Characters...

The Sigh...

2009-06-02T11:25:48Z

The Waves is a novel by Virginia Woolf. The book is a narrative in Woolf's stream-of-consciousness style (first published in 1931). Here, Woolf gives into experimentation, as the six friends are drawn with the wave-like movement of reflection.

In The Waves, Woolf writes: "I wish then after this somnolence to sparkle, many-faceted under the light of my friends� faces. I have been traversing the sunless territory of non-identity. A strange land. I have heard in my moment of appeasement, in my moment of obliterating satisfaction, the sigh, as it goes in, comes out, of the tide that draws beyond this circle of bright light, this drumming of innate fury."

Cover Art © Harcourt.

The Final Days of May...

2009-05-28T10:58:48Z

Yes, May is drawing to a close. May Day, Mother's Day, and even Memorial Day--all the holidays of May have come and gone... (Even my birthday has come and gone again.)

Now, June starts in a few days! What will you do? What books will you read? Where will you travel in the land of the imagination, in literature?

Gilda Radner once said: "I wanted a perfect ending. Now I've learned the hard way that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the most of it--without knowing what's going to happen next."

What perfect endings will you read? Is there such a thing as a "perfect" ending? What of the mystery of reading?

To Read (and Be Busy) This Summer...

2009-05-27T20:34:11Z

Reading and summer activities may not seem to go hand-in-hand. The other seasons seem busy enough, but when you add in the summer hikes, biking, swimming, vacations, and other fun outdoor (and indoor) activities, the idea of maintaining a reading schedule may seem impossible at best (insanity at worst).

Of course, you may also start out the summer with the best of intentions and let the reading schedule slide more and more as summer fever takes hold. The weather is beautiful. The sun, sand and sea are all calling--irresistible and irrepressible. But, there are ways to make your reading schedule a part of your summer adventures. Ah! Relax, imagine, and enjoy the days as you read away. Here are some tips!

What do you plan to read this summer?

On The Road With Of Mice and Men...

2009-05-26T20:44:29Z

I'm on the road again and I'm taking Of Mice and Men with me on the drive. If you've never experienced this famous John Steinbeck classic, it's an intriguing one to pick up for summer reading. The novel was first published in 1937, and the history of the book has been fraught with controversy and book banning. Of course, it's also one of the most fascinating of Steinbeck's works (themes, context, universality, and all the rest... it has something for almost every reader, whether you find that you love it or hate it).

In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck writes: "Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don't belong no place... With us it ain't like that. We got a future." Take a look at these quotes from Of Mice and Men, and read the review. What do you think of the novel? Do you love it? Hate it?

Cover Art © Penguin.