Though nothing can compare to reading the classics of literature for yourself and forming your own opinions of them, it is always nice to get the perspective of others. Here are some books that I have found very helpful in giving overviews of different works as well as introducing me to new authors.
Invitation to the Classics by Louise Cowan and Os Guinness
This is probably one of the most helpful books on western literature that I have read. It covers just about everything from the ancient to the modern classics including novels (Dickens, Tolstoy, Flaubert), political woks (Machiavelli, Rousseau, de Tocqueville), religious & philosophical works (Luther, Kierkegaard, Aquinas) and poetry (Eliot, Keats, Shakespeare). The book, which has a Christian perspective, moves in chronological order and summarizes each work including plots, themes and author bios. At the end of each summary, there are then questions to ask yourself regarding the themes of the work as well as recommended editions and translations. It is a beautiful book with selected quotes, pictures and trivia as well as sections on classics from different countries including France, Germany and Spain. It was through this work that I was inspired to read many of my favorite works including The Brothers Karamazov, Madame Bovary and Les Miserables. If you don't read any other reference book on great literature, read this one!
The Well-Educated Mind by Susan Wise Bauer
This is the companion book to Bauer's The Well-Trained Mind, and its main goal is to help train your mind to the format of a classical education. In the 1st half of the book, Bauer focuses on reading and re-reading and re-reading the works as well as EXTENSIVE note taking. The whole thing is rather daunting and would be very time-consuming if you were to follow it to a "t", but thankfully, you can take certain elements and use it in your reading. The 2nd half of the book contains helpful summaries of different works including fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Though you may not want to implement Bauer's whole plan, it is certainly worth a look and you will probably find many helpful tips for your reading.
Daniel Burt set out on a daunting task when he wrote these books. The Literary 100 ranks the top 100 authors of all time (according to Burt and other "scholars") and The Novel 100 ranks the top 100 novels of all time. How he managed to sit down and actually pull this together I'll never know. Though you may not agree with his final rankings, Burt's works provide some fascinating glimpses into some of the world's best literature and takes both literary and historical importance into account. There are also appendices in the back that give some additional books/authors that didn't quite make the list, but are still worth your time. Both of these books are wonderful for browsing and are also great for those who are interested in more than just western literature.
In case you haven't heard, I completed my Summer Reading Challenge a couple of weeks ago. Reading The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings was definitely a summer well-spent, and I hope to have some reviews for you within the next few weeks (I'm trying to finish the LOTR movies first). Per Hannah's suggestion, I put some ice cream in the freezer as a reward for meeting the challenge. Yum! (Note to my family: before you start tearing our freezer apart looking for it, it isn't there. It's at work!)
