Classics to read this Holiday!!
Dear bookbugs,
Tis the fifth day of blogmas and Bookbugworld is keeping up well and fast so far. Holidays are all about traditions and while it is enjoyable to read a historical fiction to get into the mood, nothing can beat the excitement and joy of reading an actual classic published a century or two ago. First of all, the sense that a book that was written years before our time can still make a connection with our heart is astounding.
And then the interesting thing, which I feel, about reading a classic is that it is like time travel. You get to see how people dressed at the time, how they talked, what was acceptable, what was the norm. Of course, their accuracy might be questionable but the book must have been a contemporary of its time and reflected the society is some form, right?
Well, as you reflect on these thoughts here is a list of classics that would go with the holidays:
- Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Nothing like a book that starts with Christmas to set up the mood. A coming of age story of the March girls. It is all about their one particular Christmas gift if you would ask me!
- Letters From Father Christmas by J R R Tolkien
A collection of letters written by none other than J R R Tolkien for his own children in the name of Father Christmas. I haven’t read this one yet but this is a classic I am sure keeping in my list of holiday reads.
- The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams | Illustrator William Nicholson
Sometimes don’t you just want to go back to that age when all your toys had life in them? Well, if you can’t go back, you can reminisce the time by reading the story of the rabbit that came to life!!
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
What is so Christmasy about Jane Eyre? Maybe nothing. But none of my classic lists are complete without a Jane Austen or Bronte sisters book. But the spiritual theme of the book in itself is a reason to read it during the holidays.
- Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
There might be a variety of Jane Austen novels to read but somehow Mansfield Park stood out to me. It appeared to be more gritty as far as a Jane Austen novel would go compared to the other sophisticated books we adore. Why read it this holiday? Again the spirit of the book would go well with the season I suppose. You know, someone who is ignored and sidelined just because she is poor and yet you cannot hide something good for too long. Now isn’t that a story to read during the holidays?
- Siddhartha by Herman Hesse
I for one love about gushing over the materialistic comforts that any festival provides. But if you are in a mood to seek wisdom and cater to that inner self of yours this might be just the right book. Christmas marks the birth of Jesus who taught the world a selfless way of life by his own example. Here we have an ordinary man who walks away from the materialistic life in search of the inner truth and contentment during the time of Gautam Buddha himself who used to go by the same name in his earlier life.
I know that this might seem like an unusual list for holidays to some. But hey, this is the list that I would like to follow myself to get into the mood of the season!!
Share your favorite Holiday classics in the comments!!
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