Well-Read Twenty Somethings discussion
Year Three
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Circling back to this conversation, I want to add that when there is a discussion to be had about "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society", I'm here for it! I absolutely loved that book and then surprisingly loved the movie, too!
Well-Read Twenty Somethings
Books mentioned in this topic
The Fellowship of the Ring (other topics)The Two Towers (other topics)
The Return of the King (other topics)
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (other topics)
Mere Christianity (other topics)
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Begin your year by beginning your journey through Middle-Earth with part 1 (well technically parts 1 &2 but whatever) of The Lord of the Rings. Whether you are a first time reader, or if you have read it multiple times, reading these books is always a new experience. This book starts by introducing you to the lovable hobbits and brings you quickly into the drama and danger of the story. The Lord of the Rings is the book that really brought me into reading, and I hope it has a lasting impression on you too.
Favorite Quote: “The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.”
2. The Two Towers
Well, you can't read the Fellowship and not read Two Towers. If I had to pick, I would say this one is my favorite of the three books, BUT THANK GOODNESS I DON'T ACTUALLY HAVE TO PICK!
Favorite Quote: “I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.”
3. The Return of the King
Here we come to the end of the story (jk, there is so much more if you really want to go on reading about Middle Earth...SO MUCH MORE). The Return of the King is beautiful and rich, and I dare you not to cry at some point. Tolkien seems to have a hard time ending things, so this book has like 17 different endings, which really makes it all the better because all of them are great and you actually don't want it to end at all.
Favorite Quote: “I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil.”
4. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Great name, great book. This is the WWII book of the year, but it is very much unlike any other WWII book I have read. I actually don't want to tell you anything about it, because I think it is better that way.
Favorite Quote: "We clung to our books and to our friends; they remind us that we had another part of us."
5. Mere Christianity
Lewis does a beautiful and simple way of reflecting on the Christian faith, and the core values that bind all Christian faiths together. I don't know if it was intended to be a spiritual book, but Lewis' style kind of makes it one.
Favorite Quote: “Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.”
6. Crime and Punishment
Ok, so I've tried to *suggest* Russian literature for the book lists and every year I did a very negative response, but this year I do not care! I just read Crime and Punishment for the first time and I am already itching to read it again. It's not as long as some other Russian Lit books and it's doesn't delve into quite as many philosophical wormholes, but it does make you think and keeps you entertained the whole time. You will love it. It's fast paced and has one of the best (if not THE BEST) murder scenes I've ever read.
Favorite Line: "all my friends there are drunk, yet they are all honest, and though we do talk a lot of trash, and I do, too, yet we shall talk our way to the truth at last, for we are on the right path."
7. The Awakening of Miss Prim
I have not yet read this one, but everyone I know who has says it is delightful. It follows a young woman who drops everything to go work as a librarian in a small french village...all of which does, in fact, sound delightful.
Popular quote I thought was nice: “This was where she discovered that intelligence, this wonderful gift, grows in silence, not in noise.
8. A Moveable Feast
Here is another one I have not read, but I have yet to be disappointed by Hemingway, so I'm sure this one will be great too. Hemingway has a very clear and concise style, so you know you aren't getting any fluff out of him. His books are typically character driven, with little attention or effort into the plot. However, when he is focusing on the plot, PAY ATTENTION, because if it's included, it's important.
Quote so real I felt it in my bones: “If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast.”
9. A Christmas Carol
Jumping from a very concise writer (see above) to a notoriously lengthly one. Dickens was paid by the word when he was a hired writer, and boy oh boy does it show. Our last book of 2019, however, is one of his rare small books. This Christmas classic has been adapted into every format possible, but it is nice to go back to the original form from time to time.
Favorite Quote: “For it is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child Himself.”