BOOKREVIEW#65 Great Expectations by Charles Dickens






I think it's quite universal to find difficulty in reading classics. So with that, let me give you some of my secrets in making that classical reading experience more naturally enjoyable. :)

Want to know more about Great Expectations? Read after the jump! For more book reviews, visit this page. Great Expectations is available at Fully Booked. For inquiries, tweet them here.

1. It would be an overkill if while listening to classics, you also listen to Mozart or Bach. For a change, listen to Vitamin String Quartet as they give a rich and multi-level musical dimension to today's popular music.


2. Read by a candlelight. There's something magical about how fire flickers and dances with the slightest movement of the wind. It would be most enigmatic to read via a soft yellow glimmer to make those classic worlds of fiction a part of your world. To make it more magical, use scented candles.

3. Sit on a chair. I know that sounds a bit eerie, to have to emphasize how you should be on a chair but trust me, reading upright on a proper chair can make the experience more like a great library moment! Don't read a classic while lying down on the bed. It's a small change but it can boost your psyche's imagination. (What I do is that, I try to imagine I'm reading inside a high-ceiling great library!)

4. Disconnect from the world. Classics are universally challenging to read and sometimes comprehend because they follow an old language and writing style. Our multi-tasking fast-paced minds sometimes get easily distracted from the change of tone and one easy way to help yourself avoid succumbing to those distractions is to pull the plug from the very beginning of you reading adventure. iOS6? Turn on your "Do Not Disturb" settings. Turn off that wi-fi and stay away from the TV. Your entertainment has been written for you so many years before your time. Give it your time now.

5. Have a pen and paper ready. Most likely, you will encounter a scene or a line that would crush or inspire you. Write it down. If something spoke to you on a personal enigmatic level, respond to it someday. Chances are, you will experience numerous scenes or quotes that would want to be written on your pad, the next best thing to do is put those pieces together. Redefine the meaning of a particular classic according to your terms--to how it affected you. Part of the reasons why a classic is a classic is in its ability to transcend time. Classics can be read in limitless ways and the most important thing to do when you read one is to add one new unique way of understanding a story as inspired by your own unique "big picture". Reinterpret and be inspired to respond to what you read. That's the reformation classics, among other titles, can give you.

I read Great Expectations because Carlos Ruiz Zafon kept on referring to it in his book Angel's Game. Now, I feel like I know my books a little more--like a love.

Or a wife.

How about you? Any classics you would like to recommend?

It's my birthweek this week so I'm dedicating the entire week to Book Features! Starting Oct. 15 until my birthday, I will be posting book features after book features. If you love reading as much as I do, I worked very hard to find titles worthy of your precious time so I hope you do come back to check out my daily book recommendations. :) Cheers!


Don't forget to join my birthday giveaway (who can resist high-end lipsticks?!) Click on the image below to join. You may also simply visit this link.

Good luck!

Comments

  1. i love reading the classics!

    (following you now via GFC, hope you follow back my blogs as well, cheers!)

    www.citybehindthefog.blogspot.com
    www.officiallygirlyfied.blogspot.com
    www.psychochicklessons.blogspot.com

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    1. That't good to hear Sam. You should share which your favorite is :D

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  2. No offense to Mr. Dickens but this is one of the very rare occasions that I actually like the movie better than the book! Not that this book is bad, the 1997 movie was just marvelous! If you haven't seen it yet, I suggest you should!! :)

    http://angeldiamante.blogspot.com/

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    1. I haven't seen the movie but now I want to :) Thank you for sharing!

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    2. The movie isn't really faithful to the original Dickens novel, but it is beautiful :) You can also try the 1940s version of the film, whose every scene is by the book.

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  3. Try Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray. :) And The Good Earth by Pearl Buck. :)

    http://www.dekaphobe.com/

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    1. I read Oscar Wilde's greatest hits na (lol greatest hit?) But not the latter. will note that down :D

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  4. I haven't had the chance to read this book yet but I've seen the movie. Will definitely give this one a try :)

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    1. You're the second person to mention the movie. Now I know i have to see it

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  5. I just read (really read) my very classic novel -- Pride and Prejudice! I've been meaning to read it ever since I watched the movie (Matthew Macfayden is such a cutie!)

    Since I'm not really a fan of classics, it was such a surprised that I enjoyed reading it. I'm not scared to read them anymore. In fact, I'm now in the middle of The Secret Garden. Next on my list are Sense & Sensibility and Mansfield Park. =)

    Interesting number 3 tip. Never thought of that. Will try that when I come across a really taxing novel. =)

    Btw, read My Name is Memory. It's the best! Or one of Kate Morton's books. She's one of my favorite authors. =)

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  6. I do love my classics!

    A childhood fave of mine was "A Little Princess". And yes, I knew the story before Camille Prats did Sara Crewe. Hahaha! How can I ever forget the line " I am a princess. All girls are. Even if they live in tiny old attics. Even if they dress in rags, even if they aren't pretty, or smart, or young. They're still princesses. All of us."?

    I've always liked the Col. Brandon-Marianne love team from Sense and Sensibility. Torpe guy waiting patiently to get out of friendzone, to put it in the modern context. Hahaha! They're one of my favourite literary couples, actually!

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  7. That's the book my niece wanted me to give to her for Christmas! She loves reading so much!

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