This book is, at its foundation, a mystery story. But that mystery story is inextricably intertwined with stories about history, politics, religion, and even the nature of books themselves.
Continue readingThe Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
Tag: 3 stars
Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson
I think that this title is a good choice for sci-fi fans who are willing to try something a little older, but still interesting and relevant to contemporary issues and technologies.
Continue readingThe Scarlet Pimpernel by Emma Orczy
I originally added this title to my classic lit to-read list because — and I’m realizing now while writing it that this sounds silly, but — I missed out on reading it in school.
Continue readingThe Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
Even I — an adult who unapologetically thinks that school is, indeed, cool — started to get a little weary of all the well-meaning lessons on learning to think for oneself or taking responsibility for one’s own education.
Continue readingWuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
This is not a love story.
Continue readingPoems and Fragments by Sappho
Sappho’s works have retained their greatness through millennia and near-destruction and having to be filtered through the eyes of smoothbrained schmucks like myself, which I think tells you all you need to know about her ability to somehow speak straight to the human soul.
Continue readingThe Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
This book could be a good choice for readers who are into dark YA, or I guess just anyone who’s interested in depressing themselves for a day or two on purpose.
Continue readingThe Turn of the Screw by Henry James
This is a good choice for anyone who’s looking for something a little darker to read as we approach Halloween — and it’s short, too, so it’s not too much of a commitment if you’re really just looking for a little fun-sized candy for your brain.
Continue readingA Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
Practically every review I’ve seen online for this book raves about it, and nearly everyone I’ve talked to about it IRL, too. I guess I’m a bit of an outlier for just feeling kind of meh about it.
Continue readingA Contract With God and Other Tenement Stories by Will Eisner
I think this is well worth tracking down for anyone who is interested in adding an atypical classic work to their to-read list, but especially for modern graphic novel readers who want to get a taste of what the form was like at its inception.
Continue reading