Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (1957) 1088 pages
Atlas Shrugged is considered a literary classic and I have always seen the book on the bookshelves in the English classrooms. When I found a scholarship opportunity involving reading the book and writing an essay over certain themes, I embraced the opportunity. And then the book knocked my off my feet with its tome-like size. While not too challenging in language, with very little offensive language, and with a story involving large-scale corporate corruption, this book should provide an interesting, if long-winded, read.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne (1870)
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea remains a great literary struggle for me- three times attempting to read this novel, three times failing. Interest in this book, like many on this list, is mostly inspired by the movie The League of Extrodinary Gentleman, causing me to go back and read the original books with the characters. Typical of many books written in the late 1800s, the author can be very descriptive with his settings and the details, but all in all the book does not contain an overabundance of difficult language.
Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs (1914) 245 pages
Like many kids, I loved the Disney movie Tarzan, which was based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs book series. My Dad has the entire series of the Tarzan novels, highly recommended by him, so it seemed like a good time to finally read the first novel. The novel contains more formal dialogue than I am accustomed to reading in books, but this typically appeared in novels around this time. I am mainly interested to see how the book differs from the movie, which I am sure is a great deal.
The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde (1890) 192 pages
The Picture of Dorian Grey was recommended to me by my Mom when I read a classic in English last year, but I chose not to read the book, due mainly to the fact that the language used by the author is extremely complex and would be hard to decipher for analyzing purposes. However, I have decided to take another crack at the book in the coming year. Most of my interest in the book stems not only from the aformentioned movie, The League of Extrodinary Gentlemen, in which Dorian Grey was part of the League, but also from the story- never age or show how the evil you commit affects you, except in your portrait. That sounds like a good hook to pull in readers, and give all of the AP English kids plenty of symbollism to search frustratingly for all class.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (1823) 352 pages
Universally known and often rewritten in various forms, Frankenstein is the one of the first stories about man creating monsters that they can not control and being destroyed by them. Countless stories have been written in this vein, dripping in symbollism and metaphor, so I think the time is right to find the original. Recommended by my Dad as a good read, not too long or difficult either, the sheer science aspect of the book intrigues me and could be a good model for future experiments with the process. Jokingly of course.
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien (1977) 378 pages
As a huge fan of The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and The Children of Hurin, the only logical choice for a novel would be one of Tolkien's last books. Always with interesting stories and characters from Middle Earth, I always enjoy Tolkien's work immensely. The sheer amount of characters with almost unpronouncable names complicates the reading for the first part of the book, but by the end of most Tolkien books, each character can be pointed out and described. If The Silmarillion is half as good as Tolkien's other works, then this book will be a good read.
The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells (1897)
The Invisible Man was offered to me as a choice to read for a project in my sophmore year, but after reading part of the book, I switched to the other option, The Time Machine. I have always viewed this as a major mistake, and have wanted to restart the Invisible Man ever since to correct this. With an interesting, pre-science fiction story and understandable language for an older book, The Invisible Man will be an enjoyable read to experience in the coming year.
Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien (1979) 352 pages
Frequently referenced by Thomas Foster in How to read Literature like a Professor, Going After Cacciato sounds like an interesting read- Vietnam war action, Lewis Carroll parallels, and a twisting story. Considered one of the best novels to come from the Vietnam War-era, which is quite a few, the book sounds like a high-budget movie, just in book form. The book seems like a good solution for a book that has plenty of visceral action, but also has an interesting story line.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1922) 182 pages
Often talked of as one of the greatest works of literature in history, I have heard many opinions concerning The Great Gatsby. "The best book I have ever read...", "The worst book I have ever read...", I mainly want to read the book to form my own opinion. Figurative language stuffed throughout the books pages, I will have my work cut out to understand what Fitzgerald wrote most of the time I am reading the book, but the challenge itself is part of the fun. The historical elements about the Jazz Age also add to the tale and my desire to find out what happens to Jay Gatsby.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (1884) 320 pages
With all the controversy surrounding the novel like an agressive army, ready to attack anyone who tries to defend or alter the book, most people refuse to even be in the same room as the book. However, I still want to read the adventures that Huck and company journey through. Tom Sawyer was an excellent book, and I have no doubt that Twain will fail disappoint me with Huck's tale. Often considered Twain's best work over the more famous Tom Sawyer (and being one of the most frequently used books on the AP Lit test), I figure that the time is ripe to read Huck Finn to broaden my intellectual horizons.
