The Literary Blog Hop, hosted by The Blue Bookcase, is open to blogs that primarily feature book reviews of literary fiction, classic literature, and general literary discussion. This week's question is: What one literary work must you read before you die?
The weight of books which I must read before I die could easily bring about said death. Choosing just one book is practically impossible, but I will attempt to narrow it down.
Ulysses by James Joyce immediately comes to mind, especially since I started but failed to finish this complex behemoth in February. And it's a possibility that Jill at Fizzy Thoughts may kill me if I don't slog through the sucker since I'm sort-of-maybe-kind-of the one who encouraged her to read it.
Then again, I've been telling myself I would read Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita for like ten years now but never actually picking up the thing. It's one of those books that scares me for no good reason. It's not that long, I've heard tons of positive things about the story, and yet every time I look at it, I get this sinking feeling in my stomach.
I, like many others, have been toying around with reading Tolstoy's longer works - War and Peace and Anna Karenina - for over a decade but the time commitment gets me all twitchy. Same goes for Hugo's Les Mis and of course Moby Dick. But forget about all these classics, I think that the one book I need to be sure to read before I die is:
The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. Seriously people, I have never read it. My reading tastes progressed dramatically in the early years of my life, and I pretty much skipped over a giant chunk of age-appropriate material. My mother did read Green Eggs and Ham to me as a child, but no Cat in the Hat.
Read Cat in the Hat, and then go find a copy of Lolita! Better yet, just listen to Jeremy Irons read it. I'll even give you a pass on piece of crap Ulysses if you read Lolita. :-D
ReplyDeleteRead Cat in the Hat and watch the original children's classic t.v. version :) but do not do not do not watch the movie version with Mike Myers :p a travesty!! Dr. Seuss would be more horrified with the movie than he would be that you've never read it ;)
ReplyDeleteSeriously!!! I think you should hold out as long as you can because being able to say you've never read The Cat in the Hat is quite the claim to fame.
ReplyDeleteYou should read Cat in the Hat! Go to the library and check it out. March is Dr. Seuss' birth month so what better time to read it then now?
ReplyDeleteread it it's brilliant, I posted on a cat in a hat (in rhyme) with my 9 yr old daughter last year, for fun, as for the others lolita's the easier of the 2 but you need to commit to joyces work completely to make them work.
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge Dr. Seuss fan. Love it.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read it either :S
ReplyDeleteAs for those big classics, some tempt me, others not. I just don't feel I MUST read them, maybe one day if I have time (although Ulysses and Lolita are on my TBR list). Thinking about it now, reading shouldn't feel like an obligation, which is implied by the term "must", maybe that's why I had troubles answering the question...
You were robbed! Cat in the Hat is so subversive, it's best enjoyed when you are a child, but you should definitely read it now. I use Green Eggs and Ham all the time in my high school classroom to teach poetic meter and scansion. Works like a charm.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on Lolita and Ulysses. Now, Dr Suess that's a real treat. My 4 year old loves Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham. Do read it soon!
ReplyDeleteHee hee, The Cat in the Hat. That is awesome. I've been thinking about my Book Bucket List recently, but never thought to go back to books from my childhood to add to the list.
ReplyDeleteYou definitely need to read The Cat in the Hat! And everything else by Dr. Seuss. The man changed children's literature in amazing ways. The Cat in the Hat was considered highly subersive when written, and is still a little creepy. The idea of children disobeying their parents was shocking at the time.
ReplyDeleteI actually have War and Peace AND Les Mis on my list. Not so original as it turns out.
that's a great choice. for me, well, i don't know!
ReplyDeleteYes, Dr Seuss! They are wonderful books and not just for children. I really enjoyed reading them to my kids (maybe even more than they did). Pick up The Cat in the Hat, it's not a big time commitment. :-)
ReplyDeleteConsidering the Cat in the Hat is probably the best of the bunch and only takes about 10 minutes to read, I vote for that one. And if you read Jill's final post about Ulysses, I think you will let that one drop!
ReplyDeleteI actually didn't like the Cat in the Hat as a kid - I know, heresy. I thought the whole affair felt pointless - sort of 'To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street' without the punchline. Wouldn't it be fun to take some of these cultural touchstone picture books and review them though? Power structures and food pathology in 'The Poky Little Puppy', 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' as a myth of American consumerism, Dick and Jane's role as heteronormative training manual for 50's families... :P
ReplyDeleteJason - Hell yes that would be fun. Now get on that! I would love reading your thoughts on all of that. :)
ReplyDeleteLolita is my bucket list read. I have sort of stayed away from it because frankly, the subject matter skeeves me out a little, but I have heard such amazing things about the book, that I simply must read it for myself.
ReplyDeleteBrilliant choice. I say go read it right now. Though, honestly, I love Green Eggs and Ham a little more.
ReplyDeleteHere's my post: http://readerbuzz.blogspot.com/2011/03/book-you-must-read-before-you-die.html
Read Cat in the Hat and Lolita back to back. Seriously, Lolita is surprisingly good given the subject matter. Having read and War & Peace just lst year I'm not sure I'd put it on the deathbed list.
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