Books on My Nightstand

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

This was the first hardcover I ever bought at Full Circle. I've been saving it for a special occasion. It really is that good.

Instance of the Fingerpost by Ian Pears

I started this one last fall, but preggo-brain got the best of me and I stalled out. I may have to start over.

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman by Laurence Sterne

Another one that's been languishing for a long time. The British film adaptation of this was hysterical, so I decided to try the book. I love it, but you have to read it with the endnotes or nothing makes sense.

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Bleak House by Charles Dickens
This one is still on hold, but I've been eyeing it more often lately.

Last summer I vowed to read one classic a season. I began this endeavor with Oprah's book club pick of Anna Karenina. I felt a bit, well, popish, participating in the most popular book club in the world, but I felt it was a good idea to do at least once so I could talk to customers about it. Oprah actually did a good job. She broke down a tome into managable pieces. She also posted great resources on her website.

I didn't really tackle a classic over Christmas with everything that was going on. Over the last six months I've seen Bleak House show up on several must-read lists. I'd bought it from the store more than a year ago, but it sat on the shelf until now. I'm not very far into it yet, only a few chapters, but I really like it to this point.

I think classic literature appeals to me because of the formal language and grammar. It's not often now that authors put much effort into sentence structure and word choice. Long, complicated sentences can be refreshing.

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The Ripley trilogy by Patricia Highsmith

I bought this in Everyman's Library form. I've seen The Talented Mr. Ripley, but I figure such a good movie plot must originate from an even better book. I'm not sure when I'll get around to reading it, but you can't go wrong with psychological mystery.

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