daisychics Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 I would love to find enjoyment in great literature (I LOVE to read!). I could sit and read all day if I could. I read The Well Educated Mind again and tried to read Don Quixote again, but.... I don't get it. :blush: Dh suggest to read another book (NOT GO IN ORDER???!! WHA??). :glare::confused: What book(s) were you hooked on (recommended by SWB in TWEM)? I'm great at reading "How-to" books but not so great at reading novels or "great books". I don't want to give up too soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trivium Academy Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 I read Gilgamesh first. Don Quixote is sitting on the shelf. After Gilgamesh, I read The Iliad. After The Iliad, I was sort of worn out to try The Odyssey. Still haven't read Don Quixote... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 Maybe skip :auto: to the British female authors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 I loved the poetry books in WEM. So I started there while everyone else on the boards grabbed Don Q. I felt out of the loop but I couldn't stand that book. You have my permission to pick something else! :D Blessings, Christy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2vs5 Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 If it bothers you to skip it, could you listen to it? Librivox.org has it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa at Home Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 It's not that I didn't really enjoy it, I just read it in fits and starts between other books! It's really quite a funny book, but maybe you are having an issue with the particular translation/version you have? I'm a WEM drop out. I find it hard to read through a list of books in a certain order just because it's a good thing to do. There are so many good books that I already want to read! I may make it through the WEM someday, but probably not in Susan's order. BTW, I seem to remember Susan saying in the WEM what a hard time she had sticking with Moby Dick. I don't recall whether she ever even finished it or not, but the world is not going to come to an end if there are a few books you never read!:D ~Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qs3 Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 I think of it as more of a long term project. I'm not reading in order either. I've read a couple of the modern novels, some of the victorian novels, Gilgamesh, 1/2 of St. Augustine's Confessions (have to go back to that one.) I just bought Don Quixote. I realized that if I went systematically through the lists, in the order SWB suggests, it would become a chore for me! So, based on how I feel, I pick a book off the list and read it. Then I get on a tangent and read a bunch of other books (I'm currently on an Elizabeth Gaskell kick), and then I go back to the list. That way, there's no pressure, and I still feel like I'm slowly accomplishing something! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate in Arabia Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 I would really like to go through the books listed in WEM, but to be 100% honest, by the end of the day I am so tired I just want fluff to read to help me wind down. I picked up a copy of Steinbeck's To a God Unknown, and truly it was a very capitivating read but one that sapped more energy than I had to spare. It sounds ridiculous, lol, but at that point I'm ready for something that entertains without needing an excessive amount of mental work on my part... I've been really into crime novels and the like of late I really sound bad, lol... Bring on the fluff! Kate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in SW WA Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 Maybe skip :auto: to the British female authors. Yes! Austin will turn anyone into a literature addict! Start w/ P & P. Its chicky, romantic and just....wonderful :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 I agree with skipping books you can't get through. Come back to them later and give them another try, yes. But don't try and force yourself through something when you're just learning to love literature. Susan even said in that book there are books she can't get through. Maybe even start a WEM bookclub on the forum. People can all read the same book at the same time and share their thoughts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daisychics Posted April 26, 2008 Author Share Posted April 26, 2008 Maybe even start a WEM bookclub on the forum. People can all read the same book at the same time and share their thoughts. Oooohhh, great idea!! Anyone interested?! Can we add, yet another on our full plates?? ;) No pressure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in OH Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 What was your literature experience growing up? Have you already read the books recommended for the logic stage in TWTM? I found those to be a great starting place for me. I needed some practice with the older language styles and richly developed story lines and characters. I've been able to read Great Books since then with relative ease and much enjoyment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trivium Academy Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 I hosted a Great Books reading discussion group for a year, no thanks here. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yslek Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 Don Quixote is the only one I've "read" so far...I checked out the unabridged audio recording that my libary had. I've tried to read it before, but couldn't get into it. Time is a huge constraint as well. Having the CDs play in my car whenever I needed to drive somewhere was perfect, though. In the end, found Don Quixote to be very cleverly written and hilarous. Even my dc picked up on parts of it, and refer to it every now and again. Kelsy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweed Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 Maybe skip :auto: to the British female authors. I did this. Well, I didn't skip to them, but when I got to 19th century writers, I enjoyed them so much that I've spent the last several years reading as much as I can find. I was thinking recently that I really, really should move on to something more depressing like Virginia Woolf or F. Scott Fitzgerald, but I can't bring myself to do it. Qs3, have you read Gaskell's Mary Barton or Ruth? They are such gems. I'm hoping that BBC will someday turn them into a movie. I am also another Don Quixote dropout. I couldn't take it anymore.:001_huh: lol I feel the same about Shakespeare, especially his comedies. They all seem like a really bad episode of Three's Company. He misunderstands her, who misunderstands him..... Ack! I think I will have to settle for a semi-educated mind. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWSJ Posted April 26, 2008 Share Posted April 26, 2008 Austin will turn anyone into a literature addict! Oh, no, I dislike Austin... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gandpsmommy Posted April 27, 2008 Share Posted April 27, 2008 I started in the middle (because that's the kind of person I am :001_smile:). I read Anna Karenina, Crime and Punishment, and then The Brothers Karamazov (even though it isn't on SWB's list). I loved them all. I considered them pleasure reading. Jane Austen is what I consider light pleasure reading that I like to read when I need a break from something heavier. I am going to try to get through some ancient literature, but it is work for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted April 27, 2008 Share Posted April 27, 2008 Yes! Austin will turn anyone into a literature addict! Start w/ P & P. Its chicky, romantic and just....wonderful :) That's what I am saying. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted April 27, 2008 Share Posted April 27, 2008 I'd recommend Classics for Pleasure by Michael Dirda, or one of his older books; there are some exciting recommendations here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crissy Posted April 27, 2008 Share Posted April 27, 2008 Oh, gosh, I loved Don Quixote, but if I hadn't, I would have set it aside with no reservations. I'm with WendyK. Life is definitely too short to read books we don't enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WTMindy Posted April 27, 2008 Share Posted April 27, 2008 Well, I worked my way through all the novels in WEM and I'm almost done with the autobiographies. Some I have loved, and others I have merely tolerated. I almost gave up with Moby Dick, but I was NOT going to let it stop me!! (I had to read them in order too!:tongue_smilie:) My suggestion is to read it very slowly. Set a goal of 10 pages a day or some other amount that you can get through. Make it a priority if it is something you really want. I have listened to some of the books on CD. If you are like me, you have trained your mind to skim read because you choose quick, fun books that are easy to read. But, I found that I just can't do that with the books suggested in WEM. I have to slow way down and read more carefully, and it is sometimes hard, and I don't always feel like it. But, I have become a much better reader because of this. By better, I mean, more able to think about what I am reading. More able to see the themes that make the book worthy of being in WEM. To me, that is the value of reading books that you might not love at first blush. My advice with Don Quixote is to picture Chevey Chase acting out the scenes as you read them and it will crack you up! DQ took me awhile, but at least it was amusing. Moby Dick......well that is another story!! It also helps me to go to a website like Sparknotes and read about "why" the book is considered a classic, and to read about some themes to watch for. WEM gives a short summary, but it doesn't always let me know why it is worthy of the list. All that to say....don't quit yet. Just take baby steps. Let me tell you, you will feel great when you finish up DQ even if you never end up loving it. There are so many references to that work that you will find once you have read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin in Tx Posted April 27, 2008 Share Posted April 27, 2008 What was your literature experience growing up? Have you already read the books recommended for the logic stage in TWTM? I found those to be a great starting place for me. I needed some practice with the older language styles and richly developed story lines and characters. I've been able to read Great Books since then with relative ease and much enjoyment. This is a fantastic suggestion! Something I would have never thought of. Thank you! Robin (having a little trouble getting off the ground with TWEM, too) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daisychics Posted April 28, 2008 Author Share Posted April 28, 2008 What was your literature experience growing up? Have you already read the books recommended for the logic stage in TWTM? I found those to be a great starting place for me. I needed some practice with the older language styles and richly developed story lines and characters. I've been able to read Great Books since then with relative ease and much enjoyment. Yes, I think I will start there. I have read some of her recommendations (in HS using cliff notes :tongue_smilie:). bad bad bad. I hosted a Great Books reading discussion group for a year, no thanks here. :) Awww Jessica, I was hinting to you. ;) Try an easier version of the book. Nobody needs to know! And frankly, life is too short to read books you don't enjoy. I read a lot and I read a wide variety of books, but I have been known to stop in the middle of a book because I was absolutely not enjoying it. Why torture myself? And you know the recommended books in the WEM are just that, "recommendations". There are plenty of great books in the world. Not all of them appeal to everyone. Yes, life is too short and I want to enjoy what Iam reading. (*whispering* just don't let ds hear that, he'll use it against me.) All that to say....don't quit yet. Just take baby steps. Let me tell you, you will feel great when you finish up DQ even if you never end up loving it. There are so many references to that work that you will find once you have read it. I don't want to quit TWEM. :D hmmmmm.... I'm gonna put Don Quixote down for now and work my way to him.... Well, I better read through TWEM and choose one to read. Thank you everyone!! :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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