Ketura, I love your insights on so many titles in the list! I'm so happy to see some of my favs make your ammended list as well!
I also loved My Side of the Mountain growing up! Me and my brother even dug out an old stump to try and replicate his home. The dream still lives on!
Dickens is a recent favorite who's brilliance is impossible to deny. You see his influence everywhere after you read him. Same goes for Twain. And I look forward to tackling Dostoevsky in the future so we can eventually read him as a family.
An early exposure to Ray Bradbury and old time radio, fostered a love of science fiction that has never left me. Fahrenheit 451 is one of his finest maybe after Dandelion Wine.
Unfortunately, many people don't grasp that most of the required reading list is composed with an agenda that is most unsavory.
Lord of the Flies is a story inspired by Coral Island, (which i have not read but will add to my own list thanks to your recommendation!) but the author gives it a dismal outcome because of his experiences as a survivor of D day and his dark view of humanity and himself later in life. He also was an English schoolmaster with a similiarly dismal view of children as well. No surprise it was published during the time of endless nuclear war propaganda.
The irony is, that when the same scenario unfolds outside of fiction and the confused philosophical musings of a psychologically damaged man, it yields very different results.
I haven't read Jack London but have heard similar criticisms about his writing, and with a brief Wikipedia search, can learn his particular philosophical leanings and come to a similar conclusion. I'll withhold final judgment until I read him, but wouldn't want to subject my children to a avowed socialist and member of the Bohemian Club.
The more you investigate, a pattern begins to emerge. It's as if the public education system wants to turn out hopelessly depressed nihilistic atheists... I wonder why?
The inclusion of Brave New World, I think is much more nuanced work and probably not appropriate for a standard public high school setting. That being said, it was hugely impactful and influenced me in a very positive way! My only misunderstanding at the time I read it in high school, was that it wasn't a warning at all, but a sick boast by Huxley about the eugenic plan the ruling class have for the population of earth, and their design for the future of humanity.
It belongs with 1984 and a few other works of dystopian futurism, quite a few autobiographies, and philosophical works of the elites, in a graduate level class on psychopathy and world domination. If taught in that way it would be most instructive and illuminating.
I'll be teaching them to my children at whatever age is appropriate, as more of a defense against the dark arts syllabus!
When you understand some of the history of the education system, it becomes clear that the reading list is largely just propaganda, designed to enslave the mind, body and soul of our children. It's designed to destroy their belief in themselves, humanity and God.
You should read John Taylor Gatto, if you haven't already, he has amazing insights as a former educator about our system of education.
Sometimes something beautiful and true slips through the cracks. And if a love of truth is taught and nurtured, then children will be able to find it in whatever they read, and will grow to develop a sense of it, and find where it resides in its fullness.
As you can probably tell by my lengthy response, I love to read also, and have been giving a reading list for my own child a lot of thought recently. I really appreciate the post and how much thought you've put into it. Can't wait to read more of your writing!
Thank you for your in depth comment! I need to read John Taylor Gatto!! And I agree with putting Brave New World in a later list... In general I am not a fan of forbidding books and plan to do a follow up list on how just because I wouldn't require some of these books to be read doesn't mean I would forbid them to my children, or even encourage them to read them at some point.
I would love to hear more of your thoughts on literature as you’re looking ahead to educating your future children. This post was great. I’m getting married this year and moving out for the first time, and I’m excited to build my home library. I know what I like to read, and what sorts of books have influenced my thinking for the better, but I didn’t grow up reading “the classics.” As a child, I read everything I could get my hands on, which was a lot of cheap middle grade fiction and my parents’ psychology and self help books. I now have a modest collection of cook books, Christian biographies, and old commentaries, but am lost when it comes to knowing what is good quality fiction!
Thank you!! I love talking about books and will certainly write more on this topic... for now a few great books for you to check out would be any book by Elizabeth Goudge (Start with Green Dolphin Street). Also all the odd titles by L. M. Montgomery, Jane Austin's books, and Louisa May Alcott's books... specifically respectably by each author: The Blue Castle, Northanger Abbey, and An Old-Fashioned Girl.
This morning I was discussing books with my adult son, who reminded me of the wonderful Where the Red Fern Grows. How could I forget it? I've reread it several times. It makes me cry, but in a good way.
Keturah, I'm really enjoying all your posts. I did not read The Scarlet Letter until this past year (I am 42), and I am glad I did not read it sooner. It was an immensely beautiful book. Hester Prynne grows into a saint during the course of the story. Saint - I mean that in the oldest sense of the term, one who has been made like Christ through both love and patient suffering. It's a very good book, but I don't think I could have appreciated it earlier in my life.
Yes, I will do a follow up post to this article at some point -- just because I would redo the required highschool reading list doesn't mean I don't think some of these books ought not be read at some point. There is a time in life where they are most profound and necessary!
Thanks for mentioning The Coral Island. It's not one I've heard of, oddly.
On Jack London -- his Call of the Wild was the first 'real' book I read, and its scenes captivated my head. There's a sense of adventure, of encountering savage opposition and brutal conditions and yet triumphing over them, that comes to mind at the mention of London. I didn't like his Martin Eden -- much too despairing -- but The Sea Wolf is one of my absolute favorites, a bit like Captains Courageous but with philosophic debate thrown in. In it, a civilized-but-useless-intellectual is thrown overboard at sea and rescued by a whaler, run by the Nietschean wannabe uber-mench Wolf Larsen, who is physically and intellectually mighty but has no higher purpose. He and the wash-up, van Weyden, debate and spar and as van Weyden develops physical strength to match his intellectual gift and moral core, he eventually overcomes the 'wolf'. I read it for the first time in 2011, when I was about to convert to Christianity, and it would be interesting to go back and revisit it now.
I would stand by a few on your list, but for older readers. One key thing people miss about 1984 is that the tyrant was the system itself, not "Big Brother". I thought the fact that sex was part of both 1984 and Brave New World was interesting -- it's the uncontrollable thing that has to be eliminated from hoped-for systems of tyranny. Of course, literature since Gilgamesh has recognized its disruptive power. Both dystopias are depressing, but 1984 is especially invaluable for its comments on the perversion of language for political ends.
Curious: when you say "Uncle Tom's Cabin" tells this story better, do you mean the story of racial prejudice writ large? Because it and "Mockingbird" don't treat the same topic.
That's a fair question. I think part of my point is To Kill A Mockingbird is on the list for diversity's sake. But it's a list for literature, and compared for its literary and diversity merits, Uncle Tom's Cabin is the superior book imo. Obviously they both are drastically different books with different thrusts (and I like them both on their own). But I don't believe To Kill a Mockingbird belongs on a required reading list for teenagers, at least not until Uncle Tom's Cabin is read.
I agree that great works are great works, period. I do think there's value, though, in including great writers who've only entered the canon in the past 30 years or so. Zora Neale Hurston comes to mind.
This was really good!! Added a few books to my to-read list from your suggestions. Couldn’t agree more about “My Side of the Mountain” and “Crime and Punishment”- those are favorites of mine.
As someone who has always questioned the classics, I really enjoyed this post and have several more books to add to my reading list. Thank you! Have you heard of the Britfield Series? The author is trying to combat the "woke" young people's literature with an adventure tale that throws in real places and mostly realist scenarios. I've enjoyed the first two, especially the second!
Interesting concept and always enjoyable to read this kind of post. I do think you're missing out on Invisible Man though, it's a really rich and enjoyable book and perhaps not what you're expecting.
Thank you! I agree with your stated purposed of reading, and often think of your bonus point! I think most schools forget the purpose od fiction, and instead or cultivating empathy, antipathy for self, community, and the world is imprinted on young minds.
I nearly, if I didn't, tacked on Homer's Odyssey, but can't remember now! That's truly a great book!!
Ketura, I love your insights on so many titles in the list! I'm so happy to see some of my favs make your ammended list as well!
I also loved My Side of the Mountain growing up! Me and my brother even dug out an old stump to try and replicate his home. The dream still lives on!
Dickens is a recent favorite who's brilliance is impossible to deny. You see his influence everywhere after you read him. Same goes for Twain. And I look forward to tackling Dostoevsky in the future so we can eventually read him as a family.
An early exposure to Ray Bradbury and old time radio, fostered a love of science fiction that has never left me. Fahrenheit 451 is one of his finest maybe after Dandelion Wine.
Unfortunately, many people don't grasp that most of the required reading list is composed with an agenda that is most unsavory.
Lord of the Flies is a story inspired by Coral Island, (which i have not read but will add to my own list thanks to your recommendation!) but the author gives it a dismal outcome because of his experiences as a survivor of D day and his dark view of humanity and himself later in life. He also was an English schoolmaster with a similiarly dismal view of children as well. No surprise it was published during the time of endless nuclear war propaganda.
The irony is, that when the same scenario unfolds outside of fiction and the confused philosophical musings of a psychologically damaged man, it yields very different results.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/may/09/the-real-lord-of-the-flies-what-happened-when-six-boys-were-shipwrecked-for-15-months
I haven't read Jack London but have heard similar criticisms about his writing, and with a brief Wikipedia search, can learn his particular philosophical leanings and come to a similar conclusion. I'll withhold final judgment until I read him, but wouldn't want to subject my children to a avowed socialist and member of the Bohemian Club.
The more you investigate, a pattern begins to emerge. It's as if the public education system wants to turn out hopelessly depressed nihilistic atheists... I wonder why?
The inclusion of Brave New World, I think is much more nuanced work and probably not appropriate for a standard public high school setting. That being said, it was hugely impactful and influenced me in a very positive way! My only misunderstanding at the time I read it in high school, was that it wasn't a warning at all, but a sick boast by Huxley about the eugenic plan the ruling class have for the population of earth, and their design for the future of humanity.
It belongs with 1984 and a few other works of dystopian futurism, quite a few autobiographies, and philosophical works of the elites, in a graduate level class on psychopathy and world domination. If taught in that way it would be most instructive and illuminating.
I'll be teaching them to my children at whatever age is appropriate, as more of a defense against the dark arts syllabus!
When you understand some of the history of the education system, it becomes clear that the reading list is largely just propaganda, designed to enslave the mind, body and soul of our children. It's designed to destroy their belief in themselves, humanity and God.
You should read John Taylor Gatto, if you haven't already, he has amazing insights as a former educator about our system of education.
Sometimes something beautiful and true slips through the cracks. And if a love of truth is taught and nurtured, then children will be able to find it in whatever they read, and will grow to develop a sense of it, and find where it resides in its fullness.
As you can probably tell by my lengthy response, I love to read also, and have been giving a reading list for my own child a lot of thought recently. I really appreciate the post and how much thought you've put into it. Can't wait to read more of your writing!
Thanks again!
Thank you for your in depth comment! I need to read John Taylor Gatto!! And I agree with putting Brave New World in a later list... In general I am not a fan of forbidding books and plan to do a follow up list on how just because I wouldn't require some of these books to be read doesn't mean I would forbid them to my children, or even encourage them to read them at some point.
Would second Gatto. There used to be a "School Sucks" podcast that was inspired by his work, but that was over a decade ago when I listened to them.
I would love to hear more of your thoughts on literature as you’re looking ahead to educating your future children. This post was great. I’m getting married this year and moving out for the first time, and I’m excited to build my home library. I know what I like to read, and what sorts of books have influenced my thinking for the better, but I didn’t grow up reading “the classics.” As a child, I read everything I could get my hands on, which was a lot of cheap middle grade fiction and my parents’ psychology and self help books. I now have a modest collection of cook books, Christian biographies, and old commentaries, but am lost when it comes to knowing what is good quality fiction!
Thank you!! I love talking about books and will certainly write more on this topic... for now a few great books for you to check out would be any book by Elizabeth Goudge (Start with Green Dolphin Street). Also all the odd titles by L. M. Montgomery, Jane Austin's books, and Louisa May Alcott's books... specifically respectably by each author: The Blue Castle, Northanger Abbey, and An Old-Fashioned Girl.
Wow, thank you for the recommendations!
Books to Read:
Watership Down
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Follow the River
The Light in the Forest
The Trees (Conrad Richter)
Alas Babylon
A Night to Remember (Walter Lord)
The Chosen (Chaim Potok)
The Hundred and One Dalmatian
The Incredible Journey
The Everlasting Hills (Irene Hunt)
QB VII
The Last Unicorn
Enjoy.
I've read many of these, and agree they are worthy of putting on a list... maybe even good for middlegrade required reading!
This morning I was discussing books with my adult son, who reminded me of the wonderful Where the Red Fern Grows. How could I forget it? I've reread it several times. It makes me cry, but in a good way.
Keturah, I'm really enjoying all your posts. I did not read The Scarlet Letter until this past year (I am 42), and I am glad I did not read it sooner. It was an immensely beautiful book. Hester Prynne grows into a saint during the course of the story. Saint - I mean that in the oldest sense of the term, one who has been made like Christ through both love and patient suffering. It's a very good book, but I don't think I could have appreciated it earlier in my life.
Thank you!
Yes, I will do a follow up post to this article at some point -- just because I would redo the required highschool reading list doesn't mean I don't think some of these books ought not be read at some point. There is a time in life where they are most profound and necessary!
Thanks for mentioning The Coral Island. It's not one I've heard of, oddly.
On Jack London -- his Call of the Wild was the first 'real' book I read, and its scenes captivated my head. There's a sense of adventure, of encountering savage opposition and brutal conditions and yet triumphing over them, that comes to mind at the mention of London. I didn't like his Martin Eden -- much too despairing -- but The Sea Wolf is one of my absolute favorites, a bit like Captains Courageous but with philosophic debate thrown in. In it, a civilized-but-useless-intellectual is thrown overboard at sea and rescued by a whaler, run by the Nietschean wannabe uber-mench Wolf Larsen, who is physically and intellectually mighty but has no higher purpose. He and the wash-up, van Weyden, debate and spar and as van Weyden develops physical strength to match his intellectual gift and moral core, he eventually overcomes the 'wolf'. I read it for the first time in 2011, when I was about to convert to Christianity, and it would be interesting to go back and revisit it now.
I would stand by a few on your list, but for older readers. One key thing people miss about 1984 is that the tyrant was the system itself, not "Big Brother". I thought the fact that sex was part of both 1984 and Brave New World was interesting -- it's the uncontrollable thing that has to be eliminated from hoped-for systems of tyranny. Of course, literature since Gilgamesh has recognized its disruptive power. Both dystopias are depressing, but 1984 is especially invaluable for its comments on the perversion of language for political ends.
Oooh, thank you for the alternative titles! What a great list.
Thank you for reading!
Curious: when you say "Uncle Tom's Cabin" tells this story better, do you mean the story of racial prejudice writ large? Because it and "Mockingbird" don't treat the same topic.
That's a fair question. I think part of my point is To Kill A Mockingbird is on the list for diversity's sake. But it's a list for literature, and compared for its literary and diversity merits, Uncle Tom's Cabin is the superior book imo. Obviously they both are drastically different books with different thrusts (and I like them both on their own). But I don't believe To Kill a Mockingbird belongs on a required reading list for teenagers, at least not until Uncle Tom's Cabin is read.
I agree that great works are great works, period. I do think there's value, though, in including great writers who've only entered the canon in the past 30 years or so. Zora Neale Hurston comes to mind.
Yeah I don't disagree! I just think there is a proper order in how they and when they should be included!
I agree!
This was really good!! Added a few books to my to-read list from your suggestions. Couldn’t agree more about “My Side of the Mountain” and “Crime and Punishment”- those are favorites of mine.
Glad you liked it!!
As someone who has always questioned the classics, I really enjoyed this post and have several more books to add to my reading list. Thank you! Have you heard of the Britfield Series? The author is trying to combat the "woke" young people's literature with an adventure tale that throws in real places and mostly realist scenarios. I've enjoyed the first two, especially the second!
Never heard of that! I'll definitely keep an eye out!!
I saw this article a couple month ago. We will be skipping any Twain. https://movingtorussia.substack.com/p/anti-christian-why-huckleberry-finn
Interesting concept and always enjoyable to read this kind of post. I do think you're missing out on Invisible Man though, it's a really rich and enjoyable book and perhaps not what you're expecting.
Glad you enjoyed it! Comments like this make me willing to give a book another chance... I'll read Invisible Man next I see it laying around!
Thank you! I agree with your stated purposed of reading, and often think of your bonus point! I think most schools forget the purpose od fiction, and instead or cultivating empathy, antipathy for self, community, and the world is imprinted on young minds.
I nearly, if I didn't, tacked on Homer's Odyssey, but can't remember now! That's truly a great book!!