So ABEBooks has this list that they've titled Novels that blazed a trail for Obama and, of course, I had to have a look through it. Wow, what an interesting list it is! And what a great concept: novels blaze trails for world leaders. I'd never really thought of it before. It does make sense, though, if you think about it, since novels are often stories that speak to us and help us work through issues whether they are issues of a personal nature or the social issues of our times ... so novels blaze trails for all of us.
Of the ABEBooks list, I think that Beloved is one of the greatest American novels. Ever. I'm sure I never read Uncle Tom's Cabin in school because it was banned, but I did read it as an adult. I remember wondering why it had been banned as I found Uncle Tom to be one of the most inspiring examples of the strength of the human spirit ever. I suppose it could have been a trail blazing novel for me if I had read it when I was young. Heart of Darkness, on the other hand, speaks to the fears of our worst impulses. Their Eyes Were Watching God and The Color Purple are beautiful stories of women, in addition to everything else that they are. And To Kill a Mockingbird is, imho, also one of the greatest of American novels.
As far as novels that blazed a trail for me personally, well, I'll have to think about that.
What novels blazed a trail for you?
3 comments:
There are a few for me.
Heart of Darkness, which I now teach, had a profound effect on me for the nature of humanity. This is why I look for the darkness in people's soul. For me, the image of the head's outside Kurtz's hut and the way they face is still an amazing idea.
Hamlet turned me on to the idea of double entendre and the richness of description and language
Carter Beats the Devil is not one of the great American novels, but along with Devil in White City, it is a beautiful piece of fiction with non-fiction elements.
Dante's Divine Comedy, along with the Odyssey, are quintessential examples of Epic Poetry, and Dante's work had a tremendous impact on my views of life and death.
Finally, there was poetry. Not a novel, I know, but the work of Charles Bukowski and e e cummings.
Wow, what a great question!!!
The ones that come to mind most quickly are:
My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok
Five Smooth Stones by Ann Fairbairn
Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner by Alan Sillitoe
The Family by Pa Chin (Ba, Jin, and aka Li Po, I believe)
And looking at them together I see the roots of my fascination with other cultures and surviving as a loner. Yikes, depressing!
To Kill A Mockingbird
Light In August
Little Women
Haroun and the Sea of Stories
Watchmen
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