Branching Out

I haven't written in a while. Not just here, really. Anywhere. I remember a few years ago, I would do everything I could think of to find new and exciting things to write about. Now, the well seems empty.

Part of it, I think, is that I'm not finding the time to read anything that is really stimulating me. I think back to really inspirational authors that I've read before - namely people like Neil Gaiman and Truman Capote - and remember how excited I was to sit down at a computer and attempt something that would be even a fraction as good as what those guys could do. (It would never be as good, granted, but that would never stop me from trying.)

I've decided that I want to try and get some reading done this summer - like I did the summer after I graduated from college. (That summer, I read the complete works of Neil Gaiman, Cat's Cradle, A Catcher in the Rye, The Maltese Falcon, and Being There... among others.) I want to devote myself either to a single author or to several key works of literature by a number of authors and see what happens. I want to feel inspired again.

Here are some of my options at present. Some of them, I've read; some, I haven't.

1. John Cheever
I first heard of John Cheever, as many people my age did, on the episode of "Seinfeld" called 'The Cheever Letters,' in which George discovers that his fiancee's father had a relationship with the writer. Since, I've read two articles (one in Newsweek, one in TIME) about this author... and a recent resurgence in his popularity. Indeed, I find the notion of reading him intriguing, perhaps because I know so little about him and perhaps because he was such an influential writer during his time. I believe I would start with a collection of his short stories and perhaps move on to Falconer, which, as I understand it, is his best known novel.

2. Fyodor Dostoevsky
I'll admit that I once tried to read The Brothers Karamazov before I had graduated from college and found it very difficult. Since, I've been told that Dostoevsky takes time to digest and, really, deserves a second look. So, I've been considering it. I've even done my research and found that the best translations of his work have been done by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (which, I found out today, Barnes & Noble has in stock). Not sure where I would begin, though. There's a part of me that would love to start with The Brothers Karamazov, but I want to work up to that one (and likely Crime and Punsishment as well). I've considered starting with The Idiot, Demons, Notes from the Underground, or even a collection of his short stories.

3. Harper Lee
Granted, it wouldn't be hard to read the complete works of Harper Lee - she smartly stopped after her first book, which has been widely regarded as an American classic. I can't tell you how many people I've disappointed over the years by admitting that I've never actually read To Kill a Mockingbird. My students often look at me in bewilderment while saying things like, "Mr. Foxworthy, how can you never have read that?!" The answer is simple - I've never really taken the opportunity. Perhaps I should. Given her close relationship with one of my favorite authors, Truman Capote, I can't imagine not enjoying it.

4. Franz Kafka
I've tried several times to sit down and read through The Metamorphosis, but have never quite been able to complete it. Granted, I get a little further every time, but I never quite make it to the end! (I have a similar relationship with Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451.) Perhaps I should try starting with The Trial and working my way through The Metamorphosis, Amerika, and The Castle.

5. H.P. Lovecraft
I started reading some of Lovecraft's short fiction last spring on the recommendation of a student at school. I saw him reading a book of his short stories and asked him how they were. "Great," he responded. "You'd love 'em!" So, I sought some out. I must admit I was fascinated by what I read. Lovecraft has a grip on the dark and the macabre that rivals the great Edgar Allen Poe. He is an expert wordsmith able to craft unbeatable monsters and horrified heroes so easily while making the reader glimpse into the darkness of the human soul. With Lovecraft, one must begin and end with the short stories... which is precisely what I will do.

6. John Steinbeck
I decided as a freshman in high school that I hated John Steinbeck. We had just finished reading The Pearl, a book about greed and the damning effects it can have. I hated it. I resolved never to read any Steinbeck ever again. To this point, I've been moderately successful (I had Of Mice and Men read to me my junior year and, against my better judgments, I had to say I enjoyed it). However, I currently work at a school where staff and students alike LOVE John Steinbeck. I just can't get away from him! Perhaps, just to be able to enter the conversation, I should read East of Eden (which also goes against my "No Oprah Book Club" mandate), Cannery Row, or The Grapes of Wrath?

7. Michael Chabon
I picked up The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Klay last year when I had decided to do this last year's J-Term class on the history and evolution of the American comic book. I began to read it, but eventually had to put it down in order to get some more concrete research done. However, I still own it and would still love to finish it one day (I mean, the book did win the Pulitzer, for crying out loud!). Who knows? Perhaps when I finish that one, I'll be inspired to pick up some of his other works like The Final Solution, The Wonder Boys, or The Yiddish Policemen's Union.

8. Ernest Hemingway
I've been given mixed reviews of a lot of Ernest Hemingway's work. People have told me it's boring, exciting, and everything in between. I think it's time I find out for myself. What is so great about The Old Man and the Sea? Why did that girl once tell me I needed to read The Snows of Kilimanjaro? Would it really be worth my time and effort to read For Whom the Bell Tolls? Honestly, I don't know... but it might be fun to try and find out!

9. Flannery O'Connor
My first exposure to Ms. O'Connor came about when I was a sophomore in college taking a course on American Literature. Loved the prof, but found myself - by and large - unimpressed with a lot of the readings. That is, until I came across a short story called "Good Country People" by Flannery O'Connor. It told the story of a woman with an artificial leg who becomes enamored with a traveling Bible salesman who steals fake legs from women he charms. I found the whole thing absolutely brilliant! She possessed a wit and charm I'd yet to see in American fiction and have yet to see equaled. Perhaps I should pick up her complete works and give that a read-through?

10. Kurt Vonnegut
The year after I graduated from college, I picked up and read Indiana native Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle and thought it was absolutely fascinating. Loving that, I immediately leapt to his classic Slaughterhouse-five and found myself unable to finish it. Ever since his death a couple of years back, I've longed to revisit Vonnegut's quirky, fatalistic sense of humor - the stuff I'd loved so much in Cat's Cradle. Perhaps, I should take another crack at Slaughterhouse-five to see why it's so highly regarded. Maybe after that, I'll take a shot at Breakfast of Champions, Galapagos, or God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater.

These are some authors I'm considering reading this summer (along with others like Albert Camus, Ayn Rand, Ray Bradbury, Harlan Ellison, and/or Douglas Adams). Thoughts? Other recommendations? Let me know! Thanks!