The Book Challenge

One of my two bookshelves in my room... because I love books

If you've read my About Me page, then you'll know that I have my degree in English Literature and Italian Studies. It's something that I'm very proud of as I pursued a major that I was truly passionate about and thus, was always excited to go to class to learn and discuss. Since being out of school, I've obviously been dealing with the transition from campus life to home life outside of what I like to call "the college bubble," but one of the things that I miss the most (surprisingly or unsurprisingly if you know me well) is going to class.

I'm sure that if you're reading this right now and you're still in school (especially high school), you're probably groaning and thinking "you wouldn't miss it if you were still on campus and assigned tons of work." The truth is, though, when I was interested in class, I loved going and sometimes the papers weren't so bad because I could actually argue about something I believed in. Now that I spend my days job hunting without much intellectual stimulation, I am looking for something that will challenge me and force me to utilize those parts of my brain that have now been rendered inactive by too much reality TV or bouts of boredom.

In an attempt to battle this lack of brain activity throughout the day, I decided to put my literature degree to the test and challenge myself to some reading -- but not just any reading, of course. While at the library the other day looking for something to read, I stumbled across a brochure listening the Modern Library's rankings of the top 100 English language novels and wondered how many of those I had actually read. After checking off a dismal eight, I decided I would attempt to read all 100 books, though not necessarily the exact 100 as listed by the Modern Library. After recently finishing Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, I think I might find a list containing the top 100 novels of all time in general, since books like Tolstoy's would be left out due to the fact that they're translations.

So what do you think? Am I setting a lofty goal or is it an exciting challenge? Are there any books or lists you think I should consider when tackling this challenge? As of right now, the next few books my agenda are Animal Farm by George Orwell, Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolfe (not on the Modern Library's list) and Ulysses by James Joyce. There are so many books that are considered classics or must-reads that I haven't even picked up in my over sixteen years of being in school, but I figured it would be the perfect way to exercise my brain and do what I do best --learn.

I have three weeks before I have to return these books... A seemingly formidable task.