a year of classics

What's that you say?  Who had no idea that the final quarter had come to an end for the 5 Minutes for Books' Classics Bookclub?  Who is it again who can't read her own notes in her calendar, the spiral bound lovely thing that is consulted on a regular basis?  Hmmm...

I found myself in a bit of a pickle this morning when I saw the final wrap-up post on 5 Minutes for Books calling for participants to link up with their last reviews or posts relating to the Classics Bookclub experience this year.  Oh man!  How did I forget about this??  I only had one more stinking book left to meet my original goal, and it was a short play at that-- wouldn't take me more than an hour to read it beginning to end!  I realized that this was what I was forgetting when I felt an odd sensation at the library last night that I was forgetting to find something.  Ugh.  I would have to either scramble to get a copy of the book/play and link up late or call it a wash and declare myself a Classics Failure.

Or...

I can rejoice for this lovely thing called the Internet, for when I Googled "read henrik ibsen's a doll's house online" lo and behold, there it was-- all three acts for the consuming without even having to change out of my PJs.   I opted for the very first link, and I spent a little while reading the whole play while the children watched a show (or two, whatever... don't judge).  Oh wow, I'm glad I picked this one back when I made my original goals at the end of last year.  Here are my thoughts after reading it today:

A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen
I remember reading this in high school and enjoying it, but reading it again as an adult, a wife, a mother... oh yeah, I *get* this.  I know it can be argued that one isn't supposed to read a play, which I understand, but since I couldn't command a performance here in my living room, I opted to read it in print and try to recall a performance I saw of it in college.  There's much to shake your head at in this story of a powerless wife who finds her back up against the wall as a secret she has kept for her family's well-being is now upon the precipice of being revealed-- the society that doesn't allow her the same rights as her husband and the consequential attitude assumed by her husband that may seem loving, but is in reality controlling and condescending.  I'd love to see another performance of this play!

Yup- my process of selection involved revisiting three classics that I remembered enjoying in high school and adding one book that is considered a must-read-classic by most literary people in the world.  Not only did I make that goal, but I added in two more unexpected books care of my online book club, and I'm feeling like a Classics Rockstar!

1st quarter: The Catcher in the Rye

2nd quarter:  The War of the Worlds, Much Ado About Nothing, and Pride and Prejudice

3rd quarter:  Ethan Frome

4th quarter: A Doll's House

If you've been playing along at home too, be sure to link your wrap-up with us at 5 Minutes for Books' Classics Bookclub!


Total Classics Success,