Trust & Obey

When the typical person reads a classic, it’s probably for academics. Whether it’s Pride and Prejudice, Treasure Island, or Frankenstien usually people read it as an assignment and write a paper on it. I find that as I’ve gotten older, the more books I read are based around college homework. For instance, I recently finished The Princess Bride for my English class (it was ok in case you’re wondering). So throughout my teen years, I have questioned if classics are any good.

The first one I really tried was Sense and Sensibilities by Jane Austen. It was a decent-sized book and a bit slow at times. Although, it was so much deeper than the typical books for our era. The story about Elinor and Marianne was very relaxing and intriguing. The romance isn’t a crazy roller coaster of emotions, but a book you could read after a stressful day with a cup of tea, obviously. You feel very attached to the girls afterward because you have spent so much time with them and Austen develops them profoundly. When you close the book you almost feel you knew them. My favorite quote from the book was “Elinor went to her room where she was free to think and be wretched.” Elinor is such a sensible and logical person but I liked how this simple sentence gave more depth and realness to her.

After my successful trial with Austen, I had an E-Lit class and read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Honestly, I wasn’t that excited to read it. The first half is all about siblings Gem and Scout and their childhood adventures. I wasn’t too fond of that. It was boring and felt unnecessary. However, the second half was incredible!!! The storyline really picked up and I wanted to know what happened next. I thoroughly enjoyed the second half and would recommend people suffer through the beginning because of how much I had fun reading part 2.

My Oma – it means “grandma” in German if you’re wondering- has been a person who has inspired me to keep reading these old books as I have gotten older. When I go to see my Oma or she sees me, we usually sit and talk about older books. I think the reason I like them is because of her. This last time I told her about Wuthering Heights, for a book from the 1800s it’s pretty dark and wacky! The latest she has suggested is The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickins. For the last couple of months, she’s really encouraged me to read it! I’m planning to read it in a week or two, especially since the Christmas season is right around the corner!

In conclusion, I would 100% tell anyone to try their hand at classical novels. The key, though, is to read what genres you like. You like romance? Read Jane Austen! You like sci-fi? Try The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde! Don’t want to read something that’s 500+ pages? No problem, you should try Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe or Jekyll and Hyde! These books improve your vocabulary, have complex concepts, and create characters you care about! I would recommend keeping your phone by you to look up repeating words you don’t know. It is incredibly helpful!

Let me know what your favorite classic is and why in the comments below!