Fab 5 Friday

Books that you MUST read!

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger – Although easily interpreted as a coming-of-age story, Salinger’s most notable work has many elements that pertain to both adolescence and adulthood, which is precisely what makes it a classic. The struggles with belonging, loss of innocence, sexuality, and most importantly, identity are trials and tribulations that can occur at different stages in life, and often more than once. Holden, Salinger’s protagonist, in the classic runaway who escapes to the big city only to discover that the people he ran away from are those with whom he made memories and those he cannot abandon.

 

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee – Set during the Great Depression, this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel is an icon of American literature. With the recent release of Lee’s follow-up work, Go Set a Watchman, – which is in fact the first draft of Mockingbird – this famous story, along with its infamous characters, has been launched back into the spotlight. Furthermore, recent social tragedies, political reactions, and cultural shifts have called for a reexamination of the evolution of racism in America which is at the heart of this masterpiece.

 

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens – “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” Those twelve words are what make this historical novel a classic. The French Revolution has longed served as an inspiration for literature, art, theatre and music. A complex and poetically written work, Dickens takes readers through 18th Century happenings such as a trial for treason, the storming of Bastille, and a guillotining. All while building tension between the two historically rival states of Britain and France.

 

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley – Frankenstein is the original ‘monster created by man.’ This concept has spawned countless other books and horror movies in which humans are the sole entity to blame for whatever terror haunts them. Shelley lays the groundwork for what will ultimately become the most iconic, humanlike monster ever created through sketchy, outlandish science. Gregor “The Mountain” Clegane’s resurrection? Anyone?

 

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank – This classic is often associated with the young adult genre due to its author/narrator/protagonist being of adolescent age and the requirement of most school-age children to read this work today. However, what makes this journal stand alone as a classic in general is the nonnegotiable fact that this work documents the most influential words ever thought and written by a young girl in modern times. Anne Frank will forever serve as a symbol of innocence in a time of tragedy, a symbol of strength in a time of suffering, and a representation of what it’s like to grow up in the darkest time of modern history.

 What are some of your favorite classics?

 

 

 

 

 

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