Revisit Your Summer Reading

Yesterday on Twitter, @simonschuster was asking about summer reading memories, which, for me, brought back a shameful recollection. I only had one class that ever assigned summer reading, you see. It was, possibly, my FAVORITE CLASS OF ALL TIME: AP English with Mrs. Shepard. The books we read in that class changed my life (particularly All the King’s Men, still my top-very-favorite-book-of-all-time, and As I Lay Dying).

Not so much the summer reading assignments, however. While I know I did read some of the books on the list (The Great Gatsby was one–that one we actually talked about at the beginning of the semester), what I remember more is what I didn’t read.

Was it because I was too busy going to Montreat, or youth group mission trips, or to $1.50 movies and then dessert with my best friend? I’m not really sure. I just know –and, Mrs. Shepard, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry– I never read A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, or The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Never did then, and never have since.

In my defense, I did start them. But, shamefully, for whatever reason, I didn’t finish them. And, luckily –or unluckily– for me, we were never tested on the books, and my ignorance went unnoticed.

Until now. Now, I’m aghast at myself for never having read two such serious classics of English literature. (At least from what I hear.) I am nothing if not a preacher for read, read, read, read–read everything, even things you don’t like much–and this omission in my own reading canon is, well, embarrassing. So I decided, this summer, I’m going to go back and revisit. I’m going to take on these two books.

My reading pile for the summer is already huge. In fact, the reading pile of my life is really huge. So, to be honest, it may be September or even December or maybe March of next year before I get to these. But I know that Mrs. Shepard assigned these books for a reason. And even if it takes me until twenty years after getting that assignment, by god, I’m going to read them.

So, what summer reading books are YOU going to revisit?

Songs In My Head Upon Waking This Week:

“I Wanna Rock n’ Roll All Night,” cover by Toad the Wet Sprocket; “Myriad Harbor,” by the New Pornographers; “All Men Are Liars,” by Nick Lowe; “Made Up Love Song #45,” by Guillemots; “Sympathy for the Devil,” by the Rolling Stones; “Judgment Day,” by Daniel Clay; “Wake Up,” by Arcade Fire