While reading Their Eyes Were Watching God [Zora Neale Hurston] a few weeks ago, I realized that there were a lot of "high school reads" gathering dust on my shelves. These are all books that are commonly read nowadays in high school English classes but that were not yet "classics" while I was in school, or else books I missed reading when I switched schools between 10th and 11th grades. Some I had picked up because I wanted to see why they are so widely read in schools today, and a few others were gifts from various friends.
Since I am (very ambitiously) trying to get through as many of the books on my shelves as I can between now and the 5th of July, I decided to go through these books first. I finished Their Eyes Were Watching God - which is a fantastic read, for any of you out there who also missed reading it all those years ago - and went straight into A Separate Peace [John Knowles]. From there I have now begun Farenheit 451 [Ray Bradbury], which I started yesterday and am pretty sure I will finish tomorrow or Saturday. Following that I have Too Late the Phalarope [Alan Paton], The Good Earth [Pearl S Buck], The Brothers Karamazov [Dostoyevsky], One Hundred Years of Solitude [Marquez], and Midnight's Children [Salman Rushdie] and The God of Small Things [Arundhati Roy].
[I realize the last two are not on most school reading lists, but I am including them in my personal "high school reads" list. it's my blog, I get to do these things]
I have to admit, I'm enjoying this little trip down high school lane. I have thus far enjoyed the three that I have (almost) completed, and I have high hopes for the remaining ones. A few I think I have actually enjoyed more having read them as an adult, the same way I enjoyed The Namesake [Jhumpa Lahiri] more having read it as a 20-something rather than as a teenager. And I'm getting through them rather quickly since I spend nearly four hours a day on buses to and from work. That definitely bodes well for me making a serious dent in my pile of books before I head out in July. I don't want to carry too many books back with me, so I want to finish and leave as many behind as I can.
I'm wondering which other "classics" I need to add to my list. If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them.
xx
Since I am (very ambitiously) trying to get through as many of the books on my shelves as I can between now and the 5th of July, I decided to go through these books first. I finished Their Eyes Were Watching God - which is a fantastic read, for any of you out there who also missed reading it all those years ago - and went straight into A Separate Peace [John Knowles]. From there I have now begun Farenheit 451 [Ray Bradbury], which I started yesterday and am pretty sure I will finish tomorrow or Saturday. Following that I have Too Late the Phalarope [Alan Paton], The Good Earth [Pearl S Buck], The Brothers Karamazov [Dostoyevsky], One Hundred Years of Solitude [Marquez], and Midnight's Children [Salman Rushdie] and The God of Small Things [Arundhati Roy].
[I realize the last two are not on most school reading lists, but I am including them in my personal "high school reads" list. it's my blog, I get to do these things]
I have to admit, I'm enjoying this little trip down high school lane. I have thus far enjoyed the three that I have (almost) completed, and I have high hopes for the remaining ones. A few I think I have actually enjoyed more having read them as an adult, the same way I enjoyed The Namesake [Jhumpa Lahiri] more having read it as a 20-something rather than as a teenager. And I'm getting through them rather quickly since I spend nearly four hours a day on buses to and from work. That definitely bodes well for me making a serious dent in my pile of books before I head out in July. I don't want to carry too many books back with me, so I want to finish and leave as many behind as I can.
I'm wondering which other "classics" I need to add to my list. If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them.
xx
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