My Reads 2009: Classic and Significant Books

For no particular reason, in 2009 I spent a significant chunk of my reading time catching up on some of those books that anyone who takes reading even a little bit seriously should read.

I term them Classics and Significant Books. The classics tag is, I think, self-explanatory. Significant books are books that have endured for at least several decades and remain noteworthy.

I'd like to add links, but the Internet is running in mud this morning. This page has my reviews on Library Thing.

1.    Heart of Darkness and The Congo Diary by Joseph Conrad. Conrad's semi-autobiographical journey up the Congo River. Coppola used it as the basis of his film classic Apocalypse Now.

2.    I, Claudius : From the Autobiography of Tiberius Claudius, Born 10 B.C., Murdered and Deified A.D. 54 (Vintage International) by Robert Graves.

3.    The Case of Comrade Tulayev (New York Review Books Classics) by Victor Serge.

4.    The First Rumpole Omnibus by John Mortimer. OK, I'm cheating a little here by including this volume in this list, but it's my list and I really love the Rumpole books.

5.    War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. This book is the major reason that my total number of books read was down from previous years! The new translation is the one to read. Yes, it is worth your time.

6.    The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. I re-read this book about every five years.

7.    Joseph Andrews by Henry Fielding. I read this book as a freshman at the University of Illinois and it was one of those books that introduced an 18-year-old from Southern Illinois to a broader, deeper world of learning. Fielding also wrote the perhaps better known Tom Jones.

8.    The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco. On one level, The Name of the Rose is a decent whodunit set in an isolated northern Italian medieval monastery. Mixed in with the mystery, however, are discursions in semiotics, hermeneutics, biblical analysis, religious debate, literary theory, and medieval history. And what would a medieval mystery be without the inquisition? I find Eco's tendency to show off a bit annoying, but the guy is Mr. Smarty Pants. My review.

Saw the movie before I read the book. Both are good. Each has a somewhat different ending. The movie is easier on the little gray cells.



Try this page for a more comprehensive list of Great Books.