I came across a list of books entitled "23 Books That Everyone Should Read At Least Once in Their Lives." I see these a lot but what made it interesting was the statement: "Even if you don't enjoy them, their impact and message is worth it." [More here]
Some choices are solid. Others I'm not sure about.
1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I remember when the MLA Top 100 List of Novels came out and this wasn't on it. I argued it should be while I guy I worked with argued against it (he had a Ph.D in English and a J.D.). While I can see top 100, top 23 is pushing it.
2. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. Tolkien and Lovecraft are among the most imaginative artists but in the mundane act of writing, both had significant weaknesses. I've probably put a couple of Tolkien's grandkids through college but objectively top 23 is too high.
3. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I've heard people badmouth Gatsby but honestly I can't see how this book wouldn't make the cut.
4. 1984 by George Orwell. No argument here.
5. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Have not read it and don't feel compelled to.
6. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Haven't read.
7. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I've read this at least four times. I can see how people would argue but I won't.
8. Animal Farm by George Orwell. Two by Orwell and only one by Shakespeare? None by Sophocles? Or Dante? One of my objections to the MLA Top 100 list was that it picked four novels of Joseph Conrad, all of which are good, but that good? Same principle applies
9. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. I read the first couple pages and quit. Why not Jurassic Park?
10. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Personally, I wasn't a huge fan (probably due to grad school) but I won't argue this either.
11. Charlotte's Web by E.B. White. I'm not a fan of E.B. White.
12. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I don't see eye to eye with all of Lewis' religious views but his nonfiction writing is masterful. However, I never took to Narnia.
13. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. Been on my to-read list for years.
14. Lord of the Flies by William Golding. Great book for teaching philosophy. Great book for symbolism. In terms of actual writing, I'm not sure.
15. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. Haven't read it.
16. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Huge fan but top 23?
17. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I read the first three chapters in high school. I probably should get back to it.
18. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. No! This isn't even top 10 Shakespeare! If you want the best, Hamlet. If you want short and easy, Midsummer Night's Dream.
19. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. I own the radio transcipts of the original series. I still own a copy of the Infocom computer game. I made a Ford Prefect reference yesterday. I still go top 23.
20. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. Haven't read.
21. The Color Purple by Alice Walker. On my list.
22. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Culturally, it would help with horror references. I'm biased towards non-vampiric horror but, again, top 23?
23. Dracula by Bram Stoker. My views on vampires are public but I do like this one. Once, again and again, top 23?
So what should make the cut?
This is tricky because, even though I believe Ulysses is one of the top ten greatest literary works of all time, it is not for everybody. Accessibility is key.
Still, I would include the Bible and Koran. They aren't novels but neither is Romeo and Juliet. If everyone knew what was actually in these two books, we might have less fighting over them. To anyone rhinking this would be unfair to atheists: "The Old Testament is responsible for more atheism, agnosticism, disbelief—call it what you will—than any book ever written; it has emptied more churches than all the counterattractions of cinema, motor bicycle and golf course." A.A. Milne.
As mentioned above, if Shakespeare's plays count as books, I'd go with Hamlet or Midsummer Night's Dream.
I'm big on ancient literature and would like to go heavy with it but most people wouldn't work through the Epic of Gilgamesh. At the least I'd add Oedipus the King and/or Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.
A basic math book? History? Logic? Everyone ought to read something like that but I won't hold my breath.
No comments:
Post a Comment