Enjoy the Holidays with some great literature
ALLOW ME TO SUGGEST BOOKS, POEMS, AND PLAYS FOR YOUR READING PLEASURE
By Irwin Rapoport
It has been a tumultuous year, and we are getting through it, one way or another. And this being my last piece of the year, I’m keeping it light. The start of Christmas and Hanukkah are only days away, and from what I see, a great many are getting into the spirit of the season.
That said, let me tell you about some of my favourite books. While everyone has different tastes, I hope that my selections will inspire. Books, poems, and plays transport us to new worlds and experiences, familiar themes, and adventures, offer hope, provide wisdom and insights, and an escape from the travails of the day.
So without further adoo, here we go:
I was first introduced to the world of Middle Earth in Grade 5 when my teacher began reading The Hobbit to us in class and I was enthralled. Halfway through the reading, I had to purchase the book and after finishing it, I quickly made my way to The Lord of the Rings. These books are for people of all ages as they created an incredible fantasy world with an awesome cast of characters, vivid descriptions, wise philosophy, serious questions, and most importantly, leaving one wanting more.
I was first introduced to the world of Middle Earth in Grade 5 when my teacher began reading The Hobbit to us in class and I was enthralled… Reading The Hobbit to one’s children instills a love of reading and enhances curiosity.
J.K. Rowling‘s series of seven books introduces readers to Harry Potter and the world of magic and muggles, ending with the final battle between the forces of good and evil. It is a thrilling ride. While the first two books are more catered to older children and young adults, books three to seven appeal to all. We experience the world through the eyes of 11-year-olds entering Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and not only experience them becoming adults, but how they deal with a series of crises and hard choices, including life and death and the importance of having solid values, morals and ethics, and empathy.
The dialogue is wonderful and there are so many wonderful moments that tug at the heart. Complete with highs and lows, each character’s thoughts and motivations are well laid out. This is a world well worth exploring.
Germany 1866-1945 and The Germans
Gordon Craig, who passed away in 2005, was considered to be the premier American historian in regard to Germany. As a doctoral student, he travelled to Germany to conduct research for a thesis on the fall of the Weimar Republic.
The Wikipedia page states: “In 1935, Craig visited and lived for several months in Germany, to research a thesis he was writing on the downfall of the Weimar Republic. This trip marked the beginning of a lifelong interest in all things German. Craig did not enjoy the atmosphere of Nazi Germany, and throughout his life, he sought to find the answer to the question of how a people who, in his opinion, had made a disproportionately large contribution to Western civilization, allowed themselves to become entangled in what Craig saw as the corrupting embrace of Nazis.”
Craig authored many books, lectured in Germany, and mentored many budding historians. He knows his subject matter and shares it with us in an extremely readable manner and provides many opportunities to ask questions.
Gordon Craig… was considered to be the premier American historian in regard to Germany… He knows his subject matter and shares it with us in an extremely readable manner and provides many opportunities to ask questions.
Hitler: The Führer and the People
J.P. Stern was a Czech-born authority on German literature. His parents, Jewish and ethnic Germans, converted to Christianity.
States the Wikipedia page: “He was Professor of German at University College London from 1972 to 1986. A prolific scholar of nineteenth- and twentieth-century German literature, he wrote on Nietzsche, Kafka, Jünger, Rilke and Mann, and edited the series Landmarks in World Literature. One of his most influential works was On Realism (1973). He was also known for his study Hitler: The Führer and the People, which was translated into several languages.”
As a teenager, he watched the rise of Hitler and the Nazis and when the Germans took over his country escaped to England. Stern participated in the Battle of Britain and was shot down, spending nearly a day in the English Channel before his rescuers arrived.
I have read many of his books and was greatly informed. You won’t be disappointed.
I Claudius, Claudius the God, The Greek Myths and Goodbye to All That
Robert Graves, one of my favourite authors, entered my orbit with the BBC series I Claudius, a landmark television event in the form of 13 episodes that are available on YouTube. A poet and novelist, Graves knows how to tell a brilliant story. Like Tolkien, he served in World War One and both of them fought during the Battle of Somme. Their wartime experiences seared them.
The Greek Myths and early Christianity were of keen interest to Graves. The Greek Myths take us back to the creation of the world and end with the journey of Odysseus in The Odyssey. The myths are not only recounted but explained and sourced with local and regional context. Dive in and enjoy some very interesting dreams.
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Poe was not only a master of horror but also created the detective story genre and was an amazing poet who delved into a variety of themes.
The works of Edgar Allan Poe
I became enamoured by Edgar Allen Poe when we read his short stories such as The Black Cat, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Cask of Amontillado, and poems such as The Raven in a West Hill High School English class. Poe was not only a master of horror but also created the detective story genre and was an amazing poet who delved into a variety of themes.
Poe definitely has a place of honour in the canon of English literature, being a major influence upon later writers and inspiring readers throughout the world.
The Origins of the Vietnam War
Anthony Short‘s The Origins of the Vietnam War is a page-turner that explores the causes of the disastrous conflict that spread into Indo-China, killed millions, and led to the anti-war movement in the United States. This conflict had multiple implications and effects and the legacy of the spraying of Agent Orange still haunts us today.
Short, a former intelligence officer in the British Army, was a lecturer in the Department of Politics at the University of Aberdeen and a warden at Dunbar Hall of Residence. His study of the war is relentless and it pointed out how Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower kept resisting Pentagon demands to send American troops into South Vietnam, what led to John F. Kennedy sending in thousands of military advisors, and why Lyndon Johnson chose to have American forces engage directly in the conflict.
Short completes his thoughts, which makes for very long paragraphs that, at first, are not easy to read. However, after a while, I adjusted and could read 10 to 15 pages at a time. The effort was well worth it. There were many occasions when I had to put the book down and yell “What the hell were you guys thinking?” In one paragraph, someone on an American fact-finding delegation said that he and his associates had no idea of what was going on.
Chekhov knows how to tell a tale, keeping a reader glued to the page and audiences focused on the actors and their words.
The works of Shakespeare
I have read several of William Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets and I still go back to them. The Bard’s influence is ever present and as a playwright in the English-speaking world, he retains the top spot. The extent of Shakespeare’s impact on the world does not have to be explained. It continues to this day and is unparalleled.
The plays of Anton Chekhov
The 19th-century Russian playwright Anton Chekhov is a worthy successor to Shakespeare and his plays have been adopted into the English literature canon. He explores a variety of emotions and themes. The Cherry Orchard is a masterpiece, as is The Seagull. Chekhov knows how to tell a tale, keeping a reader glued to the page and audiences focused on the actors and their words.
And by all means, check out Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novels, Leo Tolstoy's, and the other phenomenal Russian novelists.
I can go on as this is merely the tip of the iceberg. We have access to novels, poems, and non-fiction from all over the world spanning several thousand years. The number of options is infinite with new works being published daily.
The library is a good place to start and local bookshops can be a great source of options and advice. When it comes to literature, the world is your oyster.
Please feel free to mention your favourites in the comments section.
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On a final note, I want to thank Pat Dumais and Andrew Burlone for allowing me to submit articles to Westmount Magazine. I enjoy writing and espousing my thoughts and views on a variety of issues and subjects. I strive to inform and encourage discussion on great matters. Being in a position to support and highlight our local authors and theatre scene is also a pleasure.
Thus, I also wish to thank you, the readers. I welcome your comments and am very open to suggestions for articles. Have a most excellent holiday.
Irwin Rapoport is a freelance journalist with a bachelor’s degree in history and political science from Concordia University.