Catch 22 is the one I probably never would have picked up any other way and ended up really liking.
I was not thrilled to get a book about the Vietnam war assigned. I am not into war novels at all, but I ended up LOVING this book.
At the time, I didn’t really appreciate any of them, but looking back I’d say Hamlet, if that counts as a ‘book,’ and To Kill a Mockingbird or The Great Gatsby if not.
It’s one of my favorite books - though I never was assigned to read it in school.
For me, the most interesting book I was assigned to read in school was Borges’ book of short stories, Ficciones. Most of the rest of the class hated it though! But for me, they were amazing - each story a perfect polished jewel.
A Green History Of The World by Clive Ponting which I read for part of my history degree. By the end I put it in my list of 5 books that I think that everyone needs to read.
My favorite Bard work was Othello.
Wow. Interesting thread but also because of my own experiences.
Here’s what I remember, spread out over four years of high school:
Outsiders
Butterfly Revolution
Hiroshima
On The Beach
Alas, Babylon
Lord of the Flies
Ordinary People
Death of a Salesmen
Adventures of Tom Sawyer? Or maybe it was Huck Finn? maybe both? I’m not sure but I think one of them.
Here’s my point. I’m an avid reader. I still enjoy reading. And while some assigned reading in college was good and I have looked at those again, but not fully re-read them, I have not re-read any of the books from high school, nor are any of them a favorite of mine. So, I’m surprised at how many people had the assigned reading become a favorite! That’s cool.
vislor