Jessa Crispin, the founder of bookslut.com, wrote an article a while back that I found myself in full agreement with. http://www.thesmartset.com/article/article09221001.aspx. If you don't feel like reading the whole article, it is about not reading Freedom by Jonathan Franzen. I have heard a ton about Franzen's latest book. Tons. Way more than I cared to hear. It sparked a debate about Chick Lit. About female writers in general. About book critics. About if a book written in 2010 can be considered "the book of the century". Drama drama drama. I was never planning on reading Freedom. Now that it is in Oprah's book club, I am definitely not reading it. It is nice that I am not the only person who was, is, and shall continue to be ignoring it.
However, this post is not about reading or not reading Franzen. It is about the second part of Crispin's article, the part about must read books. You always hear that there are certain books everyone should read. You have to read Tolkien, Harry Potter, Jane Austen, Tolstoy, Franzen, Twilight, Hunger Games, Hemingway, Mark Twain, etc., etc., etc. I am in agreement with Crispin that there is no such thing as a must read. Why must I read Jane Austen? Who is to say that I will enjoy Pride and Prejudice? Or that I will relate to it at all? Or that I even care? Do I really need to read Hemingway? Really? Who says?
Who decides what books are must reads? I think what you should read depends on what you enjoy. If you are a fan of horror/thriller/mysteries you should probably read Stephen King. But then again, maybe you don't want to and you would rather read Dean Koontz. For me, Stephen King is a must read, but that just means that I must read him, not that you must read him. People are constantly telling others what they should read. It is the whole point of Oprah's Book Club. Here are the books you should read. I've read two books off of the entire list since the book club started and they were both for classes. I don't like reading a book just because it is popular or lots of people read it. You know why? Because I am not lots of people. I have certain tastes that do not necessarily coincide with other peoples' tastes. I enjoy fantasy, romance, mystery, and action. I especially like when they are combined. I love chick lit that has some fantasy and mystery in it, but still has a fight scene. I have a friend who loves fantasy and romance, but doesn't like the action stuff as much, so we have different must read books.
One other reason that I dislike any sort of "must read" "book of the century" "book club" book is that I really don't like people telling me what to do. If you suggest that I may enjoy a book because you know me and know what I like to read, I will probably take your suggestion. If you arbitrarily mandate that everyone must read this book, I will totally avoid that book, even if I may have been planning on reading it anyway. As my sister says, I am contrary.
Next time someone tells you about that Must Read book, go ahead and read it if it sounds like it is something you would enjoy, but don't read it just because someone said to. If you read it due to duty instead of enjoyment you will end up hating it. Just ask any student ever. The majority of books that students are forced to read, they hate. Read things you enjoy and everything else can be read by some other people.
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