The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. The description of Wilde's only novel makes it sound like a cross between the myth of Narcissus and Faust. A young man has his portrait painted by a friend, falls in love with the image of his own beauty, and bargains his soul for eternal youth. Sounds dark and moody...in short, a perfect winter read!
A Room With a View by E.M. Forster. I just finished this one, and I didn't enjoy it as much as I expected. I don't know why I'm surprised, though...I wasn't particularly enamored of Howard's End, either. Forster's prose too often reads as though it was translated from another language. I do, however, like the message that something does not have to be delicate to be beautiful.
Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy. Though it is long and by many accounts depressing, I am determined to give this book a go. I read Return of the Native in high school, which I hated (but then again I also hated Pride and Prejudice when I was forced to read it in high school). I freely admit that I primarily bought this book because it was recently re-published as part of a lovely series of clothbound Penguin classics...I feel no shame for judging books by their covers.
...and I still haven't read The Custom of the Country, which was on my fall reading list. So many books, so little time!
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Before you mentioned the reason you bought the last book, I had a moment of "would it be ridiculous to say that whether or not I read any of these, they sure do look pretty!"
ReplyDeleteI haven't sat and read a book in far too long. Any recommendations for an easy to read novel or collection of short stories?