On holiday break? A great excuse to pick up a classic novel.

I like to throw in a couple classic novels into my reading rotation.  Some of these novels I read in school and others I am reading for the first time.  I enjoy and appreciate the stories so much more reading them for the second time.  However, not all classics have rocked my reading world.  I struggled to get through The Grapes of Wrath…I didn’t start enjoying it until the last 200 pages.

So when I picked up Anna Karenina a few months ago I was a little apprehensive – a 900 page book written in 1875.  It had been sitting in my “to be read pile” for over a year and was taunting me.  Imagine my surprise when I couldn’t put it down!  It grabs you from the first page and doesn’t let you go.  Definitely not what I would consider light reading but if you are on the cusp of reading this book – go for it!

Another classic favorite is To Kill a Mockingbird.  I had seen the movie starring Gregory Peck years ago and loved it. But read the book! The scenes between Atticus and his children are poignant. I found myself re-reading certain pages over and over again.  Even though the ending was no secret, I stayed up all night until I finished it.

Maybe the book you choose will stay with you forever.

photo: CCAC North Library