classics

In The Three Musketeers, a historical fiction novel, D’Artagnan, a young man from Gascon who is loyal to the king and queen, travels to Paris seeking to become a musketeer. There he discovers his future best friends, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, and a plot by Cardinal Richelieu to steal the throne. The four friends go on many adventures in service of the queen and her reputation, but are often foiled by Milady, a beautiful, evil, and mysterious agent of the Cardinal. In a surprising twist at the end, Milady is brought to justice and D’Artagnan receives his wish and is promoted in the musketeers

Lord of the Flies by William Golding is definitely a classic. The book begins with a plane crash on an island, which left a group of boys stranded on their own. From then on, the decisions the boys make represent the formation of society. The protagonist, Ralph, creates an orderly society at the beginning of the novel, but the island turns to chaos as the boys begin to turn on him and create their own belief system of fear. Ralph then struggles to hide from the other boys as they become more chaotic. Finally, a boat comes and rescues them, and the chaotic boys recognize their faults.

This

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra is a comedy/tragedy following the adventures of Alonso Quixano, aka Don Quixote. Enchanted by the stories of medieval knights, Don decides, to go out, with his neighbor and squire, Sancho, into the world and imitate the stories of chivalry that he so adores.

Don Quixote is a lengthy story, spanning over 900 pages. This is part of why I gave this book a 3 out of 5 rating. Even though the book is mostly mini stories, this book length will initially scare off readers, and for good reason. There are also 2 parts to the story, Part 1being much more

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is a wonderful futuristic sci-fi story about a fascist world full of censorship and where happiness is valued over thinking and free will. The book offers an insight on what our world might become, and even though the book was published in 1953, the problems that it presents are even more present today.

The story follows Guy Montag, a firefighter, in the year 1999. However, he is less of a firefighter and more of a fire starter. Guy’s job is to set houses on fire that are believed to contain books, which are now banned. Books began to change as people began to

Anne of Avonlea​ is the second installment of L.M. Montgomery’s ​Anne of Green Gables​ series. In this book, we see Anne grow into her late teens while managing two young twins, taking on more responsibility at Green Gables, and experiencing her first year as a teacher. Though Anne maintains her childhood wonder, throughout this book we get to see her mature.

I was just as captivated by this book as I was by the first book of the series, but I am a bit sad that time moved so quickly; from ​Anne of Green Gables​ to ​Anne of Avonlea,​ Anne’s childhood sped by. Even with her newfound maturity

Pip is a young boy who lives with his older sister since both of his parents died. He is raised in a depressing and abusive manner, but seems to rub it off quite well. He has high hopes of becoming a rich gentleman and living in London, but his dreams are all crushed as his sisters husband (Joe) is only a blacksmith, and Pip by law needs to follow in his steps. This all changes when one of the most unexpected characters sponsors him, and pays for his journey to become a gentleman.

Although this book has some suspenseful and interesting chapters, the bulk of it is quite filler. Since the

In Anthem, Ayn Rand illustrates how society and individuals suffer under extremist rule. The characters are bound to one another, and assigned specific duties, with the intention of benefiting the collective. After Equality 7-2521 makes a discovery from an ancient time, he begins to work on something that is outside of his designated vocation. In a different society, where innovation is valued, his work would be praised when he brings it to the authorities. But instead, he is punished for thinking for himself and not sacrificing his own will and desires for the collective. Even though what he

I'm a regular reader of classic literature, and I've enjoyed Merchant-Ivory films based on E.M. Forster novels in the past, so I'm not sure why I had the impression that his work was stuffy. Imagine my surprise when I found myself laughing out loud while listening to the audiobook of A Room with a View--and actually describing it repeatedly to one of my friends as "hilarious." 

In the first half of the novel, Lucy and her Aunt Charlotte are visiting Florence, and their lives unwittingly become entangled with those of their fellow English travelers, particularly an unconventional father and

British consul, Geoffrey Firmin, is living in Mexico in self-imposed exile, solitary and saturated with liquor.  He was once happy, or maybe ne never was.  He isn’t sure now that he’s too riddled by alcoholism to even put on his socks.  But on this day, The Day of the Dead, 1938, he has a visitor.  His wife Yvonne has come to rescue the consul from himself.  Maybe she can persuade him to leave Mexico behind and start over with her.  Maybe she can salvage their marriage, left in ruins by her string of affairs with Geoffrey’s two best friends – both of whom are there with him in Mexico.  They

A boy named Pip lives on the English marshes as an apprentice for a Blacksmith named Joe (his sister's husband). Pip is supposed to be a common boy just like his family, but he gets the opportunity to meet a family of higher class. Pip's ideology of being common changes into shame for his social class, and he is stuck between family and image. He soon has the opportunity to embark on his Great Expectations without knowing who his benefactor is, and is struck by the harsh society of London.

This book starts out very slow and boring, but soon confronts you with many connections that are least

An instant best-seller when published in 1968, True Grit has also been made into film. Twice. These facts alone should recommend it, and I am here to back it up with a solid vote for a place on your nightstand.

Fourteen-year-old Mattie Ross follows her slain father to Ft Smith, Arkansas to settle his affairs. While her mother expects her home, Mattie has other ideas. She hires a one-eyed, grizzled old US Marshal, Rooster Cogburn, to hunt down the killer and bring him to justice.

Against Mattie’s wishes, Texas Ranger LeBoeuf joins Rooster Cogburn in the manhunt, and the two try to leave

When you get to the end of a book you've loved, there’s a sadness that it’s over.  But when I finished Their Eyes Were Watching God I was glad - glad that I had read this again.  I got so much more out of this the second time.  I was amazed at how powerfully author Zora Neale Hurston captures feelings – feelings of a woman exploring her identity, examining her inner worth.  But Hurston was before her time - this novel was written in 1937. Considered a controversial member of the Harlem Renaissance, she wrote so beautifully that her prose captures us immediately.  From the first line – “Ships

The Prince - by Machiavelli

Few books are still read 500 years after first being published.  It is even more unique if such a book is still on the required reading list at schools (like MBA graduate level schools).  The book I am talking about is The Prince by Machiavelli.  Despite its age and brevity, the book is still very relevant and influential.  A beginning course of management theory and political science wouldn’t be complete without commenting on his writing.

Machiavelli discusses how a ruler, or Prince, could accomplish conquest and rule his subjects, and rule in the face of both

Written in 1993, Ernest Gaines’ A Lesson Before Dying takes us back to the 1940s South and young, innocent Jefferson sitting in a Louisiana jail waiting to be executed. His Tante Lou and Godmother Miss Emma are determined that he should die like a man. Their nephew Grant, the one-room school teacher, is sent to teach the despondent prisoner the lessons of life. Gripping, gritty and heartbreaking this novel goes to the depths of the soul yet takes us up to the universal meaning of life. I read this after finishing The Help and was caught by the similarities of each in dealing with treatment of