Delycia
and I often feel like were traveling through mystifying wilderness areas as we
read two of the books for our “classics book discussion group”.
For
our November meeting, we are reading a largely forgotten novel, “The Crock of
Gold”, by the Irish poet James Stephens, written in 1912 and rarely read today,
I gather. However, our discussion leader, a retired English professor at the
University of Connecticut, assures us there is great wisdom and rare beauty in
the book, so Delycia and I are valiantly hiking through the chapters, searching
for signs of the magnificence the professor sees. For the first third of the
book, we felt fairly lost and bewildered in a wilderness of words, but
suddenly, just this morning, we felt like the forest of the book opened up
somewhat and we were actually able to see some views of wonderful wisdom and
splendor. Perhaps the hiking will be a bit easier and more inspiring from here
on.
For
our March meeting, we are getting a head start on Tolstoy’s 1300 page mountain
called “War and Peace”. The tricky part of the expedition through the book will
be just keeping track of all the characters. Like wilderness travelers with
detailed maps, we are taking notes as we read, and also – quite unashamedly –
making good use of Sparknotes. For a journey through a book like this,
Sparknotes (or Cliff’s Notes or Shmoop or Bookrags, etc.) can be like having an
well-informed friend alongside to show us the highlights along the trail.
So
each day we shoulder our packs of pencils and stickies and strong minds and
head out into the backcountry, the wilds, the bushland, the great outdoors of
great books. How lucky can two old-timers get??
