My oldest doesn't like "girlie" books, and I'm scared

[Nakia]

that she won't like Jane Austen one day!!!!!:svengo:

 

She loves fantasy, science fiction, and historical fiction/adventure (things like Sign of the Beaver) books. The Percy Jackson books were her favorite last year. Her all-time favorite series is Harry Potter. She just read The Hunger Games and loved it. She also loves the history/literature selections from our SL studies.

 

I checked out Anne of Green Gables for her, and after the first paragraph, she looked at me and said, "Mom!!! For real???" LOL! I told her she has to read 10% before she can give up. She is reading and tolerating (barely) Little Women. Both of these were beloved favorites of mine growing up. She tried to read Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm last year, but it nearly drove her to tears. :tongue_smilie:

 

So while I really am concerned she won't love Jane Austen (again I say :svengo:) my real question is how much should I push her to read different genres? She is pretty diverse even with the list I posted above. She always has assigned reading plus at least one other book, of her choice, going at a time.

 

Anyone else have a kid like this? It's kinda foreign to me. I've always loved to read so many different genres, though I do have my favorites. Is the 10% rule a good one or should I try something else? I don't want to make her read something she hates. She's being pretty difficult about a lot of things lately, but reading isn't one of them. She is a voracious reader. She's just pretty opinionated, and I have no idea where she gets that. :lol:

 

One last thing. Can anyone recommend some books for her? She is getting ready to read The Hobbit and then the LOTR books. She's read all the Warrior cat books. She tried Redwall and liked the first book, but she wasn't fond of the next one. She loves animals, especially horses, and she's read all the horse books such as The Black Stallion, Black Beauty, etc.

 

Thanks!

[PhotoGal]

It is okay. She doesn't have to like the same things you do, right?

 

My kids hate the Muppets. I do not understand it. I remember LOVING the muppets when I was a kid. But something about them makes my kids run out of the room screaming. :confused:

 

That said, I think it is okay to assign one or two books a year that aren't her usual style (classics that might be assigned in any school). I would discuss what you liked about it, etc., but don't worry if she doesn't. You never know how her taste will change later as well.

[AK_Mom4]

Jane Austen - Yuck! <ducking....>

 

DD10 is reading a series called "Missing" - authors name is Haddix. Also good are the Magyck books by Angie Sage.

[Word Nerd]

I never read any Austen until I was in college because I wasn't a bit interested, and I love her now. I don't have the same taste in books as my mom for the most part, though we both love Flavia de Luce and still find common ground.

 

My older DD does not like girly books either. She loves all the Wimpy Kid books, and the most recent books she loved were the Origami Yoda books. She liked The Mysterious Benedict Society when she finally listened to my advice and read it. I do occasionally assign her a book to try and broaden her interests.

Edited December 26, 2011 by WordGirl

[Veritaserum]

My dd11 is similar. I'm indoctrinating her by having her watch Austen movies with me. :)

[Nakia]

I want to make sure everyone knows the part about Jane Austen was said tongue-in-cheek. I don't expect her to love the same books I love. I'm just joking with that part of my post, but I am looking for some other books that she might enjoy. And I am sincerely asking how much I should push her outside of her preferred genre/style.

 

Thanks!

[weaver_67579]

though she is starting to like Jane Austen too at 13yo. She loves fantasy and historical fiction.

 

We are fairly liberal with what dd can read. She loves fantasy-her favorite genra. I dont' know your parental requirements, but her favorite author is Tamora Pierce-strong female leads often lady knights or similar type characters. They vary a lot in age appropriateness. Some have some references to s*exual acts (I don't remember anything really graphic-but you knew they "did it" and we listen to most on audio together), but a lot of her books don't either. There would also be violence in many of the books (as would be expected from a working knight) and magic. She listened to the Circle of magic series when she was that age and I only remember magic in that series. She also loves the Inheritance series by Christopher Paolini (Eragon is the first book). That would include graphic violence (set in a war) and magic. Even if you find them not appropriate at this time-she may like them when older.

 

Dd also loves historical fiction and just finished War Horse and loved it. I didn't read it so don't know the age I would find it ok for. For historical fiction she likes the author Avi.

[Pippen]

I checked out Anne of Green Gables for her, and after the first paragraph, she looked at me and said, "Mom!!! For real???" LOL! I told her she has to read 10% before she can give up. She is reading and tolerating (barely) Little Women. Both of these were beloved favorites of mine growing up. She tried to read Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm last year, but it nearly drove her to tears. :tongue_smilie:

 

First off, let me congratulate you on raising a daughter with such excellent taste in literature. :thumbup:

 

I'd never read Anne of Green Gables as a child, and based on the recommendations of moms who loved it growing up, I started it as a read aloud to my daughter when she was ten . A few chapters in she started begging me to quit and I was seriously relieved. I might have been driven to tears if forced to continue myself.

 

I'd let her be in her personal reading. Help her find good books that she'll want to read and continue to encourage her love for reading. My daughter is now 13 and her own reading journey has always looked very different than mine. At age 11 she strongly preferred historical fiction. This year she's voluntarily reading through last year's Caudill nominees and is gaining an appreciation for well-written books outside her prefered genre. Recently she took a detour and devoured "The Hunger Games." What she has never tolerated well are books written with older styles, like Anne of Green Gables, Heidi, and Swallows and Amazons.

 

"and yet there is something so amiable in the prejudices of a young mind, that one is sorry to see them give way to the reception of more general opinions." Colonel Brandon

[Mergath]

:lol:

 

I grew up reading hard sci-fi and fantasy from the time I was twelve or so, and I love Jane Austen to pieces. Still love my nerd books, too. So don't give up! There is hope. :D

 

As for book recs, I'd just bring her to the YA section of the library and turn her loose. It's such a popular genre right now that she'll probably come out with more books than she can carry.

[bettyandbob]

I think I'd aim for 3 to 4 book study novels per school year, in addition to additional reading on her own, for which you may or may not assign a book report or other project. I would choose the 3 or 4 books from classic age appropriate novels in different genres. You can even get her input "here are descriptions of three examples of historical fiction, you must read one, which will it be?" Do the same for things in other genres.

 

As an adult I don't read across genres often, with school different genres will provide exposure to vocabulary and writing style you won't get reading the same stuff. You learn to analyze different things and develop logic skills.

 

Just my two cents.

 

Oh and I hate the stuff my dd prefers too. It's a bummer!

[linders]

I devoured mysteries and fantasy growing up - the only "girlie" thing I read was Little Women, and I most identified with Jo. Finally read Austen (and Jane Eyre and other similar), but not until my late thirties. Oddly, I was inspired by some of the excellent BBC productions!

 

I could say "be patient," but you might be waiting a while!

[Mommy_of_4]

I have never liked "girlie" books. I will pick any fantasy over "girlie" books.

[Farrar]

Libba Bray's Rebel Angel series! For girls who love fantasy, adventure AND Jane Austen! Eleven might be a little young for it, but maybe not.

[elegantlion]

I read Austen as an adult. Nope, didn't do it for me. Read Homer as an adult, loved it. So maybe she's more of Homer gal? :tongue_smilie:

 

I don't care for girlie books either, except I read Twilight as, um, writing research, yeah that's it.

 

If she hasn't read them, I'd recommended Caddie Woodlawn and Witch of Blackbird Pond. These books both have protagonists that question the status quo of girls in their time period. Alice's Adventure in Wonderland is another girl empowering one.

 

If you're looking for a fun read to go along with Alice, I'd recommended The Looking Glass Wars.

 

For music, I know you didn't ask, but it falls into that same empowering lineup, is Superchick. I wish their music had been around when I was a kid.

[flyingiguana]

I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade (although I have to point out that we found the beginning a lot better than the middle and end)

 

One of my daughters really liked the Tamora Pierce books, as well as the books by Gerald Morris (e.g., The Squire, His Knight, and His Lady). Now, looking back on them, she tells me they were actually pretty awful. Not quite sure what to make of that.

 

They both liked the classic fantasy type books like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Mathilda (and others by Roald Dahl, but he also wrote some pretty gritty adult books, so you have to be careful). The C. S. Lewis books and The Wind in the Willows also went over well. Some people absolutely hate The Wind in the Willows, though.

 

LeGuin also wrote some books that would be appropriate for kids. You might look into the Earthsea trilogy.

 

Have you tried Babe? I recall that it's actually pretty easy and short. The other books by this author are also interesting.

 

At that age, one of my kids was reading Animal Farm. She did actually get a lot out of it, although it might be good for her to read it again.

 

A few others that my kids liked were The Twenty-One Balloons and Charlotte's Web. They didn't much care for Stuart Little, though.

 

You might also try The Borrowers.

 

At that age, I really enjoyed the Padraic Colum adaptations of things like The Iliad and Norse myths. I also read Edith Hamilton's Mythology cover to cover more than once, but that might not appeal to everyone.

 

I wouldn't expect an 11 year old would really find Little Women all that riveting. That's a book that may benefit from abridgement. Most people I know who say they loved that when they were younger actually read an abridgement. Anne of Green Gables is also better when one is a little older.

 

Has she tried The Secret Garden or A Little Princess? As "girl" books go, those were 2 my daughters appreciated. And my daughters have never really been into "girl" books.

 

Another genre you might try is the one where "pioneer girl gets kidnapped by Indians" -- seriously, there are a ton of these books. I think Beaded Moccasins and Indian Captive are a couple of these.

 

Also, anything by Eloise Jarvis McGraw might be worth looking at. My kids thought Master Cornhill was her best, followed by Mara, Daughter of the Nile. (Mara features a love story, which is likely why they didn't go for that one quite as much).

 

We've found an awful lot of the current young adult books to be pretty awful. Maybe they're easier to read and that's why so many kids eat them up. We seriously did try a lot of these that were recommended, but my kids were a bit bored by them.

[flyingiguana]

If you have to read Twilight:

The language is occasionally atrocious, so be forewarned. (The first minute or so is a bit dull.)

[deacongirl]

Well my dd loves Little Women and A of GG and Austen...but what she just finished up and loved that I bet your dd would like is the Peter and the Star Catchers series.

[KungFuPanda]

I attempted to read Pollyanna to my daughter when she was 6 or seven. She couldn't get past The Glad Game. She never cared for the uber-girly, sugary stuff. In fact, she preferred to read about doomed civilizations and was really in love with A Series of Unfortunate Events. I figure since she always has 2-3 books going at once, I've done my job. At 14 she reads Shakespeare for fun. She follows authors like some girls follow rock stars. She has tickets to a Daniel Handler book signing next month and I expect her to take a stack of books with her.

 

A few years ago I went in her room to get the second Twilight book to read. (I HAD to know what everyone was talking about.) She informed me that I wouldn't care for it because the characters were really shallow. So far, it hasn't mattered that she never got into Little House on the Prairie or Anne of Green Gables. She's preferred darker stuff since she was little.

[Parrothead]

Well, if our girls ever meet at least they will have reading in common. Dd is heavy into fantasy, but still a bit immature in her reading. She can and does read at a higher lever (She is reading The Hobbit for school) but prefers her personal reading to be light. She picked up The BFG by Roald Dahl from the library last week if that helps.

[Onceuponatime]

Have you tried:

 

My Side of the Mountain

The Incredible Journey

Watership Down

The Prince and the Pauper

The Jungle Book

James Herriot's books

Island of the Blue Dolphins

[PiCO]

I checked out Anne of Green Gables for her, and after the first paragraph, she looked at me and said, "Mom!!! For real???" LOL! I told her she has to read 10% before she can give up. She is reading and tolerating (barely) Little Women. Both of these were beloved favorites of mine growing up. She tried to read Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm last year, but it nearly drove her to tears.

 

So while I really am concerned she won't love Jane Austen, my real question is how much should I push her to read different genres? She is pretty diverse even with the list I posted above. She always has assigned reading plus at least one other book, of her choice, going at a time.

 

I'm sure this is exactly how my mother felt about me. She was always trying to get me to read Anne of Green Gables, because she chose Anne (with an "E"!!) for my middle name because of that book. I think she was envisioning all the shared conversations and shared love of books.

 

There is hope- I read all the Anne books as an adult, and I love them. I haven't read Jane Austen, but I like some of the movies made from her books- that's as close as I'll get there I think.

 

I do think a good literature study will include books that she doesn't really like, just limit them to really good examples of literature.

 

 

One last thing. Can anyone recommend some books for her? She is getting ready to read The Hobbit and then the LOTR books. She's read all the Warrior cat books. She tried Redwall and liked the first book, but she wasn't fond of the next one. She loves animals, especially horses, and she's read all the horse books such as The Black Stallion, Black Beauty, etc.

 

I like the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld. There was a thread on the high school board about future dystopian novels- lots of good suggestions there.

[Nakia]

Thanks so much for all the suggestions! She has read a lot of the books mentioned. I'm making a list of the ones she hasn't read for her to take with her to the library. She is going to be so happy!

 

Thankfully, I like a lot of fantasy books too. I am a huge Harry Potter fan, so we do have some common ground, lol.

 

And I now have hope that one day she, too, will read and love Jane Austen. :D

[SailorMom]

I never liked Anne of Green Gables, the Little House books, or any Jane Austen :)

She'll be just fine :)

[Ester Maria]

When it comes to assigned readings, they have to read them - rarely, if they really cannot stand a work that is easy to replace with another work, the change is allowed.

When it comes to their free readings, they get to choose them. Very rarely I will ask them not to read a certain work yet if I believe there are some maturity issues there, as I am generally aware of what they read in their free time, but for the vast majority of time, they get to read what they want.

 

I think that if you carefully choose assigned readings to cover, educationally, keeping in mind what you want them to encounter, there will be enough diversity there.

We still talk about other books too, and sometimes I will make suggestions for them, but I do not dictate their free readings.

 

I do not like Jane Austen either... :)

[CalicoKat]

that she won't like Jane Austen one day!!!!!:svengo:

 

She loves fantasy, science fiction, and historical fiction/adventure (things like Sign of the Beaver) books. The Percy Jackson books were her favorite last year. Her all-time favorite series is Harry Potter. She just read The Hunger Games and loved it. She also loves the history/literature selections from our SL studies.

 

I checked out Anne of Green Gables for her, and after the first paragraph, she looked at me and said, "Mom!!! For real???" LOL! I told her she has to read 10% before she can give up. She is reading and tolerating (barely) Little Women. Both of these were beloved favorites of mine growing up. She tried to read Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm last year, but it nearly drove her to tears. :tongue_smilie:

 

So while I really am concerned she won't love Jane Austen (again I say :svengo:) my real question is how much should I push her to read different genres? She is pretty diverse even with the list I posted above. She always has assigned reading plus at least one other book, of her choice, going at a time.

 

Anyone else have a kid like this? It's kinda foreign to me. I've always loved to read so many different genres, though I do have my favorites. Is the 10% rule a good one or should I try something else? I don't want to make her read something she hates. She's being pretty difficult about a lot of things lately, but reading isn't one of them. She is a voracious reader. She's just pretty opinionated, and I have no idea where she gets that. :lol:

 

One last thing. Can anyone recommend some books for her? She is getting ready to read The Hobbit and then the LOTR books. She's read all the Warrior cat books. She tried Redwall and liked the first book, but she wasn't fond of the next one. She loves animals, especially horses, and she's read all the horse books such as The Black Stallion, Black Beauty, etc.

 

Thanks!

eh, it's not the end of the world. :D She's reading. Mission accomplished.

[jhschool]

Farmer Giles of Ham by J.R.R. Tolkien

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (sp?)

Gregor the Overlander

Spiderwick Chronicles

The Search for Wondla.

The Pit Dragon books by Jane Yolen

Merlin books by T.A. Barron

The Tapestry trilogy

Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life (by Wendy Mass?)

Children of the Lamp (some nasty stuff in this one--pre-read please)

[i.love.lucy]

Our girls sound quite similar. I have enough battles to fight with her, I don't need one over forcing her to read books she hates!

 

After reading Percy, and devouring all other Riordan books, mine still loves all things Greek. For Christmas I got her The Fire Thief by Deary that she's excited about. She's in the midst of Ursu's Chronus Chronicles that starts with The Shadow something or other. I agree about Looking Glass Wars and Peter and the Starcatchers. Also the Inkspell books by Funke.

 

I found a few more to try for her by browsing around on Amazon lists: The Girl Who Circumnavigated the Globe (I think that's it), The Book of Elsewhere, Tuesdays at the Castle, The Apothecary by Valance.

 

You are already promoting good literature within the genre she likes. I think Tolkein and CS Lewis are great examples of that. You may have also tried Swiftly Tilting Planet, etc. Who's to say that those old fashioned historical novels are the only path to loving good literature like Jane Austen? I think a great way to get there is the movies too. My dd doesn't like to read things like Little Women but right now will enjoy the movie with me. We love all the Austen movies and lots of other Masterpiece type movies (she really loved Wives and Daughters).

 

ETA: Yes, Gregor was a much loved series! Forgot about that one!!!

Edited December 26, 2011 by i.love.lucy

[leeannpal]

My daughter actually prefers non-fiction books. I, too, was worried about her never liking some of my favorites. Recently, she picked up a Little House book and loved it. I was really surprised. I think I'm going to just keep introducing all types of literature and let her develop her own taste.

 

(I would be heartbroken if she didn't like Anne of Green Gables though. My dd is so much like Anne in many ways :)

[JohannaM]

A few I liked growing up, but I'm not sure if they would be good for an 11yo...

you may want to pre-read, but these were written 1950s-1970s, so they tend to not have as much objectionable stuff as newer books!

 

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card (there is some kids fighting kids violence)

Foundation series by Isaac Asimov

2001 by Arthur Clarke

[Robin M]

All I read for years was science fiction and fantasy. I came out okay and now read all genres. Let her enjoy her reading and make the "for real,mom" books mandatory for lessons. :001_smile:

[mommymilkies]

I have NEVER been a girly-girl. I am a huge tomboy. I love Austen. So I wouldn't worry about it. ;)

[ocelotmom]

Your daughter sounds like me. I never really got into Jane Austen, and was an adult before I read Anne of Green Gables. We recently read Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, and lost interest about 3/4 of the way through (after forcing ourselves through most of the second half), though I did eventually end up finishing it myself. Jane Eyre was more my speed, but it took me literally years to get through the last third or so of the book.

 

There are a lot of less girly classics, as well as well-written fantasy and SF. I think that if you encourage those, you'll teach an appreciation of the language that will help make Jane Austen accessible if she ever does decide she likes it.

 

I dont' know your parental requirements, but her favorite author is Tamora Pierce-strong female leads often lady knights or similar type characters. They vary a lot in age appropriateness. Some have some references to s*exual acts (I don't remember anything really graphic-but you knew they "did it" and we listen to most on audio together), but a lot of her books don't either. There would also be violence in many of the books (as would be expected from a working knight) and magic. She listened to the Circle of magic series when she was that age and I only remember magic in that series.

 

Yep. I remember being shocked that they'd put those books in the children's section of the library when I read the Alanna series as a teen :)

 

I love Tamora Pierce and feel that she portrays sexuality in a manner that is reasonably healthy, sane, and appropriate for the age of the characters (especially given the fantasy-medieval setting of the books). But it does make me a bit hesitant to introduce my kids to her books until they're at least in their teens. I might do the first book in the Alanna series as a read-aloud at some point, but I can't remember in which book she hits puberty, and I'm not sure I feel like getting into that in a bedtime story!

 

And yes, the Circle of Magic series is utterly devoid of s*x (two of their teachers are in a committed same-sex relationship, but it isn't really dwelled upon and there's no discussion whatsoever of the mechanics of that). I don't think The CIrcle Opens has much of anything, either. But The Will Of The Empress, in which they're in their late teens and of marrying-age in that universe, is all about the s*x.

Edited December 27, 2011 by ocelotmom

[Photo Ninja]

My dd loved to read, but hated Austen, Bronte and other similar authors. She did love Anne of Green Gables, but later in the series got mad because Anne was clearly with the wrong guy, so she didn't want to read them anymore. :lol: I tried and tried to get her to read Austen and Bronte, but no go. "Too wordy". She did love the movie Pride and Prejudice, though. Just not the books. She liked Little Women, but one ds is the one who read the rest of the books, not dd.

 

She is in college now. She emailed us a Christmas list, and most the list was books - including Austen, Bronte and Hugo! Apparently one of her roommates is a voracious reader as well, and has introduced her to Austen's and Bronte's books. Apparently, my dd's tastes have changed over the past 5-6 years. Dd was thrilled to open up Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, Hunchback of Notre Dame, and many more books on Christmas morning.

 

So there is hope for your dd, too. She may end up loving those books when she is older!

[Joker]

My dd sounds the same. She's reading Chasing Lincoln's Killer now and will follow it up with the second Kid Lawyer book by John Grisham.

 

She did love Anne of Green Gables but I think because dh read them aloud and made up voices for everyone. :tongue_smilie:

[Julie Smith]

I have never read Jane Austen. But I have read Anne of Green Gables, Emily of New Moon, Rebecca of Sunnybrook farm.

 

I find with my boys they will get into a 'phase' where they only like books of a certain style, or type.

 

I wanted to recommend the book, "Dealing with Dragons" and it's 3 sequels. It's a great series that I think both of you will get into. It is available as a audio book with different voices for all the characters.

[flyingiguana]

Mary Poppins

101 Dalmatians

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

The Phantom Tollbooth

Girl of the Limberlost

The Dancing Bear

Winnie the Pooh

The Horse and His Boy

 

Mary Poppins, in particular is way different from the movie.

 

You might also try some animal books:

Rascal

That Quail, Robert

Julie of the Wolves (there is an attempted rape scene, but it's pretty mild)

The Black Stallion

Frightful's Mountain

Shiloh

Black Beauty

Mr. Popper's Penguins

Misty of Chincoteague

The Tale of Desperaux

Old Yeller

The Jungle Book (at least the Riki Tiki Tavi part)

 

 

If she's interested in historical fiction, The Birchbark House is good. It's supposed to be an alternative to the Little House books -- about the Native Americans who were living in a similar area.

 

And there are at least 3 books about the dog that went on the Lewis and Clark expedition:

The Captain's Dog

Seaman's Journal

Lewis and Clark and Me

 

My kids really liked ONE of these but not the others. Problem is, we can't remember which one it was.

Edited December 27, 2011 by flyingiguana

[Aelwydd]

that she won't like Jane Austen one day!!!!!:svengo:

 

She loves fantasy, science fiction, and historical fiction/adventure (things like Sign of the Beaver) books. The Percy Jackson books were her favorite last year. Her all-time favorite series is Harry Potter. She just read The Hunger Games and loved it. She also loves the history/literature selections from our SL studies.

 

I checked out Anne of Green Gables for her, and after the first paragraph, she looked at me and said, "Mom!!! For real???" LOL! I told her she has to read 10% before she can give up. She is reading and tolerating (barely) Little Women. Both of these were beloved favorites of mine growing up. She tried to read Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm last year, but it nearly drove her to tears. :tongue_smilie:

 

So while I really am concerned she won't love Jane Austen (again I say :svengo:) my real question is how much should I push her to read different genres? She is pretty diverse even with the list I posted above. She always has assigned reading plus at least one other book, of her choice, going at a time.

 

Anyone else have a kid like this? It's kinda foreign to me. I've always loved to read so many different genres, though I do have my favorites. Is the 10% rule a good one or should I try something else? I don't want to make her read something she hates. She's being pretty difficult about a lot of things lately, but reading isn't one of them. She is a voracious reader. She's just pretty opinionated, and I have no idea where she gets that. :lol:

 

One last thing. Can anyone recommend some books for her? She is getting ready to read The Hobbit and then the LOTR books. She's read all the Warrior cat books. She tried Redwall and liked the first book, but she wasn't fond of the next one. She loves animals, especially horses, and she's read all the horse books such as The Black Stallion, Black Beauty, etc.

 

Thanks!

 

I was that kid, lol. Oldest of three girls, huge horse fan, read all Walter Farley's Black Stallion novels, and then went on to devour lots of sci-fi and fantasy.

 

I'd recommend Anne McCaffery's "Dragons of Pern" series when she is a few years older (I started reading them at 13). Fantastic series, and I'm heartbroken she died a few months ago.

 

I think it's good to encourage her to read other books, at least to read a few chapters. There were times when I had to read books that I didn't like, but had to anyway. Unfortunately, even though she enjoys reading, it's true that sometimes boring stuff must be endured because it's required reading. :tongue_smilie:

 

P.S. I have tried reading Austen, and it never appealed. I never could get into books that revolved around women's relationships with men. Not my cuppa.

 

However, for classics, I did enjoy reading Greek myths and legends, Shakespeare's works (they always had a lot of plot), stuff by Dickens, Of Mice and Men, etc. I also liked a lot of non-fiction.