My favorite genre has always been mysteries. I remember as far back as The Bobbsey Twins, Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Agatha Christie and Sherlock Holmes. When I got my Kindle, I loaded it up with detective stories, thrillers and romantic mysteries. I finally needed a change.
Returning to books that were required reading in high school, I started with Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s “Crime and Punishment.” The setting is nineteenth century Russia and the story follows a brilliant student who becomes a self-afflicted young man guilty of a premeditated gruesome murder. The reader follows his torment and misguided actions along with the impact on those who care about him.
Beginning this book was like the first time I walked on a treadmill in uphill mode, stretching muscles that had never been stretched, asking myself why I am doing this. I didn’t think I could stick with it but once I did, I became a devotee. The book is intense, dark and addictive as you follow unraveling thoughts enveloped in love, hate and fear. Unlike modern-day literature this form of writing takes you through a journey filled with long, winding passages of soliloquy. Imagine what readers from 1866, the year this book was published, would think of our 140-character society.
There was one line in particular that struck me: “He longed to forget himself altogether, to forget everything, and then to wake up and begin life anew.” I used to believe those longings were unique to me. Maybe if I had appreciated the classics in high school, I would have gained the perspective I needed to guide me through those early years. At the time, I just saw them as old books no longer relevant.
Better late than never, I suppose. Do you read classic literature? Any recommendations? Don’t worry. I won’t ask you for a book report 🙂
Gail's Blog 
You might like to read MOBY DICK by Herman Melville or DUBLINERS by James Joyce.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Tim. I’m taking notes.
LikeLike
I loved Moby-Dick. It’s not hard to see how it has captivated the minds of so many.
LikeLiked by 1 person
When I was younger, the phrase “Youth is wasted on the young” was lost on me. But now it makes more sense. 🙂
It’s true that many of the books they made us read in high school didn’t resonate with me. They seemed aged, old, archaic — boring. But I’ve re-read a few, and I realize now how much more depth they have.
LikeLike
With age comes wisdom.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I read Crime and Punishment about 25 years ago. I loved it. I remember being enthralled by Raskilnikov’s thought processes — the justification of the murder, the lack of remorse, the obsession, the madness, the remorse, and finally, the religious conversion (I believe that happened…if I remember correctly) . If written today, I wonder how that thought process would change. Would there be that final conversion (if written by a secular author)? I’m planning on reading and re-reading some classics (thinking Brother’s Karamazov/The Red and the Black/The House of Mirth). Do you plan your book list ahead of time?
LikeLike
Glad you stopped by, rileypark. I don’t usually plan my book list in advance, but with my newfound interest in classic literature, I have been noting recommendations from my blog friends. Thanks for your suggestions!
LikeLike
You are so right – classics require more time and space than their modern counterparts. Late last year I revisited ‘Of Human Bondage’ by W Somerset Maugham. Any equivalent these days would have been seriously abridged but there was a joy in slowing down and taking the time to read the carefully structured passages. And the language was a delight. The classics definitely earned their stripes! Thank you for a thought provoking post.
LikeLike
Thank you for reading. I am adding Human Bondage to my list now. My library has gone digital, and I’m looking forward to downloading these classics one book at a time.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Dostoyevsky is one of my favorite classic authors (along with Dicken’s and Faulkner). If you’re looking for classic mystery, you might want to add Wilkie Collins, particularly the woman in white to your list. Its a great read
LikeLike
Thank you so much, Gabe. I am adding that to my reading list now.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I read Crime and Punishment many years ago, I don’t remember the story but I do remember enjoying it much more than I’d thought I would. I’ve generally stayed away from most of the classics since leaving school – sometimes I resolve to read more, but it usually doesn’t last!
LikeLike
I know. I think I need a break in between the classics. Right now I am reading the Amanda Knox autobiography. Once I’m done, I’ll select another classic from the long list I now have from my kind readers.
LikeLiked by 1 person
For the longest time Dostoevsky was my favorite. Then I read “Moby Dick”. I wouldn’t say one is better than the other but “Moby Dick” resonated with me more. Maybe it’s the American in me that heard his meld of the common and the divine. It is also incredibly difficult. Last year I read “East of Eden” by Steinbeck. I can, with great confidence, say that this is one of the greatest works ever written in any language. I have read a lot of great books (I’m a literature teacher at a liberal arts school). None has hit me as hard as “East of Eden”. If you haven’t read it, it needs to be near the top of your list. It’s a generational novel so takes a bit to get into but it is like an avalanche and, in the end, you’re left under the rubble, uncertain which direction to go or what to do with this incredible experience.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! Moby Dick was on my list and I just added East of Eden. Right now, I am reading “Woman in White,” by Wilkie Collins and am struggling to assimilate it. I find it takes me longer to become absorbed in the classics than modern-day writing but am trying to develop the discipline to continue on. Is there any advice you give your students to adapt to the old literary style of writing. I imagine it must be especially challenging for the younger generation who grew up with Twitter and fast-track information.
LikeLike
I used to but my particular advice about Shakespeare or Beowulf etc. seemed to cause the opposite result. Now I just tell them not to sweat the small stuff. There will be a lot they won’t understand and that’s okay. Don’t use secondary sources for the first read and definitely don’t use a dictionary (though for adults this may be different). This is a first read. It just takes time. After they have a couple of experiences of, “This book is so dry and boring and the language is stuffy and difficult, to “This is incredible!” they begin to see the language and voice barrier as a minor inconvenience that will dissolve with exposure; on the other side of the barrier is the endless and wonderful unknown. The students’ the biggest obstacles are apathy and sloth. Once those are overcome, they may still struggle but they have a reason to want to struggle. Our conversations seem to give them the desire to pull themselves up and the strength follows.
That probably didn’t help you in any way whatsoever.
LikeLike
It does, actually. Thanks!
LikeLike
I mean, just read this excerpt! “Tom, the third son, was most like his father. He was born in fury and he lived in lightning. Tom came headling into life. He was a giant in joy and enthusiasms. He didn’t discover the world and it’s people, he created them. When he read his father’s books, he was the first. He lived in a world shining and fresh and as uninspected as Eden on the sixth day. His mind plunged like a colt in a happy pasture, and when later the world put up fences he plunged against the wire, and when the final stockade surrounded him, he plunged right through it and out. And as he was capable of giant joy, so did he harbor huge sorrow, so that when his dog died the world ended.”
LikeLike
I love it!
LikeLike
My favorite classic will always be 1984.
LikeLike
Oh yes, Hannah, I really must read that again. I understand “1984” has had a resurgence since the election. I remember reading it as a kid along with a friend and, in our innocence, we were both absolute that it could never come to fruition. Not in our wildest dreams…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Dostoevsky has to be my favorite author. I’ve read ‘The Idiot’, just finished ‘The Brothers Karamazov’, and just started ‘The House Of The Dead’. ‘Crime And Punishment’ has been on my list forever! Thank you for this lovely post!
LikeLike
The Brothers Karamazov is in my reading queue. I am adding the others you mention to my list, thank you! I took a break from Dostoevsky for a while to read The Secret Garden, Anna Karenina, Woman in White and Great Expectations. Crime and Punishment is still my favorite classic work so far.
LikeLiked by 1 person