Sunday, May 31, 2009

Recommended Reading

Last Christmas my parents gave me a great book from my wish list (because they are rock stars).



Many people will find this a bizarre request, and perhaps even in poor taste for a holiday wish list, but it has become one of my favorite books. I recognize that it will not be recorded in history as an important piece of literature, but it was an entertaining and (surprisingly) intelligent book.

If I didn't have a headache tonight, I would take the time in this post to explain why I think so. But since my head is pounding, I am simply going to suggest that you give it a chance. Why not? You never know. You might like it. And it might even help to enlarge your literary boundaries. This has been the case with me. Just last night I stopped at the Borders in Columbus Circle and purchased a Jane Austen novel, which is something I never would have done before. I am engrossed in the book and have already read eleven chapters. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies has held my interest thus far, and I don't think I will lose interest in it before the end.


Okay, so Seth Grahame-Smith has expanded on the original text to create a new "edition" of Jane Austen's original novel, but I think it has really enhanced the story. True, I never read the story in its original form, but I can't help thinking that the addition of the undead in the English countryside has enriched the bantering and prattling on of the characters. And for those offended by these changes, please note that according to an article I read in The Week, "85 percent of the original text hasn't been touched". Isn't it worth sacrificing 15 percent of the original writing to get more people interested in such a classic piece? I think so. (I'm even willing to let people on the subway see me reading Jane Austen now, without embarrassment!)

Fight on, Miss Bennet!