I used to read a lot. I've been reading less recently, but I'd like to
keep a list of current books of interest, and perhaps some
comments. I'm always looking for suggestions.
Recent books:
- Beowulf, trans. Seamus Heaney. A beautiful version of a
classic. I wonder how many people will read and enjoy this who
otherwise would have been scared away by bad experiences in English
class.
- Lady Chatterly's Lover, D.H. Lawrence. Literature
with erotic merit.
- Women in Love, same. More philosophy, less sex...
- The Origin of Species, Charles Darwin. Every biologist
should read this, if only because the popular use of "natural
selection" as a buzzword doesn't do justice to Darwin's impressive
work.
- Arcadia, Tom Stoppard. Love and the second law
of thermodynamics. I'd like to see the play some time.
- The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkein. For the
nth time, of course.
- On the Road, Jack Kerouac. Exactly what I needed to read
before deciding to go off in search of adventures (or at least, a PhD
on the other coast).
Future choices - if you hear me complaining about boredom, say
"Liana, why aren't you reading one of these?":
- Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov.
These lists are useful for finding good books, even if they aren't
perfect:
- The Modern Library's best
100 novels published in English in the 20th century.
- The Radcliffe Publishing Course's list,
along the same lines.
home work fun etc.