Download A Classic
August 27th 2006 23:15
Download a Classic
How’s your list of classic literature looking? Been awhile since you last picked up a classic novel? The sad fact is – most of us have been put off classic literature at some time in our lives, usually from monotonous study and over analysis. I really wish our education system would leave the in-depth study of books to university graduates. All teenagers really need to learn is how enjoyable reading can be. So if you put down your last classic book in year 12, I’ve got news that could get you back on the horse.
Personally I like to read at least 2-3 classic novels a year (I’m in the middle of Madame Bovary at the moment) to help round off my knowledge of early literature. And reading them simply for the joy of it and without the added pressure of study is something every reader should try. I know, there is some pretty heavy stuff out there. I’ve tried Homer’s Odyssey twice, but I’m still none the wiser with that one!
My classic shelf boasts Dickens, Hardy, Steinbeck and Bronte, but some of the most memorable characters I’ve met are in the pages of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Salinger’s Holden Caulfield in Catcher In The Rye and poor harassed Hester Prynne in Hawthorne’s Scarlet Letter.
There is some great literature around nowadays, I don’t dispute that. In Australia alone we have the likes of Tim Winton and David Malouf giving us first class stuff, well on the way to being Australian classics, but there is something about an early classic novel that satisfies a reader’s appetite for truly exceptional prose. Maybe it’s the history that comes along with some of these titles. Dickens characters are known to us before we even open one of his books for the first time. The feeling of acquainting oneself with a familiar character can be a strong pull in a book too. A good example is Bilbo Baggins from The Hobbit. He was the key link to my interest in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I suppose it is the way a character out-lives a story that makes a true classic.
Dickens’ Pip and Scrooge have certainly managed to succeed in this. Imagine a world without these fictional but larger than life characters!
OK, I’ve got you primed, now for the good news. If you don’t fancy prowling the book stores or libraries in an effort to expand your classic reading, try logging on to the 1st World Library. This is a great on-line nonprofit organisation that you can join free of charge. And - you guessed it - they have a huge classic e-book collection that you can download for free. I love this idea. In my opinion libraries are one of the best inventions mankind has come up with, and in today’s plugged in, click on world, this is just brilliant. Some of the world’s best literature is accessible to pretty well anyone with a computer and internet connection. And this Society does a lot more to promote literacy world wide, so go and have a look. Join and have a browse through the e-book collection. I’ll bet there’s at least one book there you’ve been meaning to read, so down load and enjoy.
How’s your list of classic literature looking? Been awhile since you last picked up a classic novel? The sad fact is – most of us have been put off classic literature at some time in our lives, usually from monotonous study and over analysis. I really wish our education system would leave the in-depth study of books to university graduates. All teenagers really need to learn is how enjoyable reading can be. So if you put down your last classic book in year 12, I’ve got news that could get you back on the horse.
Personally I like to read at least 2-3 classic novels a year (I’m in the middle of Madame Bovary at the moment) to help round off my knowledge of early literature. And reading them simply for the joy of it and without the added pressure of study is something every reader should try. I know, there is some pretty heavy stuff out there. I’ve tried Homer’s Odyssey twice, but I’m still none the wiser with that one!
There is some great literature around nowadays, I don’t dispute that. In Australia alone we have the likes of Tim Winton and David Malouf giving us first class stuff, well on the way to being Australian classics, but there is something about an early classic novel that satisfies a reader’s appetite for truly exceptional prose. Maybe it’s the history that comes along with some of these titles. Dickens characters are known to us before we even open one of his books for the first time. The feeling of acquainting oneself with a familiar character can be a strong pull in a book too. A good example is Bilbo Baggins from The Hobbit. He was the key link to my interest in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I suppose it is the way a character out-lives a story that makes a true classic.
OK, I’ve got you primed, now for the good news. If you don’t fancy prowling the book stores or libraries in an effort to expand your classic reading, try logging on to the 1st World Library. This is a great on-line nonprofit organisation that you can join free of charge. And - you guessed it - they have a huge classic e-book collection that you can download for free. I love this idea. In my opinion libraries are one of the best inventions mankind has come up with, and in today’s plugged in, click on world, this is just brilliant. Some of the world’s best literature is accessible to pretty well anyone with a computer and internet connection. And this Society does a lot more to promote literacy world wide, so go and have a look. Join and have a browse through the e-book collection. I’ll bet there’s at least one book there you’ve been meaning to read, so down load and enjoy.
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