Anyone read any of the classics? I've been picking off a few over the last few years and some of them are amazing reads. Orwell's 1984 is probably my favorite, but there are so many good ones. If you like post apocalyptic stuff give Aldous Huxley's Brave New World a shot. Like 1984 it is timeless with amazing social and political incites. I read For Whom the Bells Toll by Hemingway and it wasn't one of my favorites. Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is special though and it's a fairly easy and short read.
But I'm presently part of the way through The Count of Monte Cristo by Dumas and I have to say it is absolutely amazing. I've been putting it off but Ive read so many comments about the book on Reddit, many who believe it's the best book of all time, that I thought I'd give it a shot. So far I'm not disappointed. It's set in France during the reign of Napoleon and then the restoration of King Louis XVIII, the hundred day return of Napoleon from exile in Elbe, and later the second restoration of Louis. How some of the characters tried to position themselves as Bonapartiste and Royalist or both in order to come out ahead in these transitions of power is fascinating. Just knowing that your allegiance will either be met with the riches inherited by the winners or imprisonment or worse if you fall on the wrong side of history makes for a turbulent time. Although it is set in France in the early 1800s it's fascinating to see the parallels between people then and now. Men haven't changed over time. They are were as much driven by ambition, prejudice, and self serving behavior centuries ago as they are now. The whole Donald Trump fury and the spectacle of this election seems important to us now but pales in comparison to the turmoils of history.
But I'm presently part of the way through The Count of Monte Cristo by Dumas and I have to say it is absolutely amazing. I've been putting it off but Ive read so many comments about the book on Reddit, many who believe it's the best book of all time, that I thought I'd give it a shot. So far I'm not disappointed. It's set in France during the reign of Napoleon and then the restoration of King Louis XVIII, the hundred day return of Napoleon from exile in Elbe, and later the second restoration of Louis. How some of the characters tried to position themselves as Bonapartiste and Royalist or both in order to come out ahead in these transitions of power is fascinating. Just knowing that your allegiance will either be met with the riches inherited by the winners or imprisonment or worse if you fall on the wrong side of history makes for a turbulent time. Although it is set in France in the early 1800s it's fascinating to see the parallels between people then and now. Men haven't changed over time. They are were as much driven by ambition, prejudice, and self serving behavior centuries ago as they are now. The whole Donald Trump fury and the spectacle of this election seems important to us now but pales in comparison to the turmoils of history.
