Last week I was laying on the couch watching Idol or DWTS, or some other inane program feeling my brain slowly rot away in my head. These are pretty much the only two reality shows I allow myself to watch, but I hate myself everytime I tune into them. They just don't tell a story, have a plot or even give much drama. At least if I watch a drama, I feel at least as if my brain has to think about what's going on, or what will happen. These reality shows...well quite frankly I'm over them. But when it's winter and you live in a town where you don't have many friends, there aren't many options out there. Plus with the laparascopy, I had to stop running for over 2 weeks so I've been booooorrrrreeeed, but at least I can start that back up again this week.
But back to the original topic; reading. I decided aloud last week that I'm going to have my own summer book club. After Idol and DWTS end this season, along with all my other shows, I'm going to turn off the tv. I'm going to concentrate on running and reading, and maybe meeting a friend or two. The idea came to me because we bought new furniture last month for the office. Since I work from home, our old stuff just wasn't cutting it, and we needed to upgrade. When I was going through our bookshelves, I found all these old books that I haven't read yet. Classics that I bought and have been wanting to read, but probably turned to the just released page turner.
So starting...well, now...I'm starting my summer bookclub and I invite you to join me! I did just find out that my three most favorite authors are all releasing books this summer, but I can usually read those in a couple of days but would be happy to have those in the mix too. But I'd love to embark on a few of the classics that are new to me, or I just never read.
Here are a few of my suggestions...
Farewell to Arms (read about 1/4 of this, never finished, but need to, and loved what I read!)
Huckleberry Finn (of course read this, but back in grammar school)
Grapes of Wrath (never read, but East of Eden changed my life)
Sense and Sensibility (ugh, I think I'm the only female who is not a Jane Austen fan, but I have this on my bookshelf)
So I invite you dear friends to join me! Let's do this together this summer...I'm 100% open to some other suggestions as well. I'm finishing another book that I've already started and then would like to start on a classic. My goal is 3 classics this summer. I don't have huge goals here, but that's about a book a month and we all know how quickly the summer moves!
Leave a comment if you're interested, and what you'd like to read! If I don't get any comments, I'll just go ahead and read and report back on my findings. Happy May!
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This is a great idea! I will have to pass on Jane Austen. I can't stand her books. I'm sure the stories are good, but I can't get past the 40 word sentences that form a 2 page long paragraph just so a character can say "no".
ReplyDeleteI love to read, and find I spend most of my post-university days reading smutty romance novels, so a change is in order!
This is not a classic, but it is my favorite book of all time, so you might want to consider it. "The Handmaid's Tale".
Here is the summary from the book cover:
"(Book Jacket Status: Jacketed) A gripping vision of our society radically overturned by a theocratic revolution, Margaret Atwood’sThe Handmaid's Talehas become one of the most powerful and most widely read novels of our time. Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead, serving in the household of the enigmatic Commander and his bitter wife. She may go out once a day to markets whose signs are now pictures because women are not allowed to read. She must pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, for in a time of declining birthrates her value lies in her fertility, and failure means exile to the dangerously polluted Colonies. Offred can remember a time when she lived with her husband and daughter and had a job, before she lost even her own name. Now she navigates the intimate secrets of those who control her every move, risking her life in breaking the rules. Like Aldous Huxley’sBrave New Worldand George Orwell’sNineteen Eighty-Four, The Handmaid's Talehas endured not only as a literary landmark but as a warning of a possible future that is still chillingly relevant."
It's really good, and a fairly quick read, but it does have an underlying theme involving infertility/TTC, so if that is something you would like to avoid, you may not want this book.
Let me know when you are starting and what you are reading first. I would like to take part!
I think I'd like to try and join you. I wasn't a very good English student in school and never finished anything we were told to read. And I feel guilty for not finishing any of the classics. I have The Great Gaspy on my bookshelf and want to read that as well as Animal Farm.
ReplyDeleteMaybe we could combine this with a book club/swap. When I'm done mine I could send them to you... just a thought.