Need help finding hard to read literature. :-)

[tncekm]

Hello everyone, I know this may seem silly to some of you, however, I would really appreciate it if you would consider my request!

 

In short: my reading speed and comprehension are poor. When I look at words as I read (when I can keep my focus long enough) I tend to fall into a mode of just word processing, and I am not actively reading. I blame this, primarily, on the fact that I previously avoided books and my college texts like the plague. I was able to get away with that until now because I was a science major, and I had a pretty good knack for understanding and retaining visual and auditory instruction. However, now I'm preparing for a big standardized test that has a relatively difficult reading comprehension portion (difficult, primarily, because of the time constraints on relatively complicated passages). So, I now need to increase my reading comprehension level and speed.

 

Having said that, I was wondering if anybody on this forum would be so kind to indulge me with a list of books / opinionated short essays / passages / or overall, just good, complicated reads that I can immerse myself in until I love reading, and am a bit more efficient at it

 

Oh! And, if it helps you out, I'm prepping for the Medical Colleges Admission Test (MCAT; I'm sure some of you have had the pleasure of taking this test before).

 

Thank you so much for your time, I really appreciate it!

[Guest]

I think I'd advise starting off with short stories. Ray Bradbury writes spectacular ones in my opinion. Also, Neil Gaiman. They've had several anthologies published apiece.

 

As for short novels, there are the briefer classics such as The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.

[tncekm]

Thanks! I'm starting a list right this instant and I'll be heading to the library tomorrow!

[Kell]

Head for a genre you know you generally enjoy and try them first - at least you're more sure of having something that will grab your attention a little more. Once you get into the swing of things, try other genres - perhaps off-shoots of the ones you already enjoy - and expand that way.

[~Andrea~]

Short, readable classics such as

 

Animal Farm - George Orwell

Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck

 

might be a good plan. As might short stories as suggested above, and the genre thing is important too. How about any of these short stories, which I have loved.

 

The Birds - Daphne Du Maurier (suspense, slightly supernatural undertones)

By his Bootstraps - Robert A Heinlein (Sci Fi)

Nightfall One - Isaac Assimov (Sci Fi)

The Turn of the Screw - Henry James (Ghost story)

 

Let us know how you get on

[Paul]

James Joyce's Dubliners is a collection of highly readable short stories also, despite his reputation for difficulty from writing Ulysses.

[~V~]

How about some Martin Amis? His books aren't too long

 

 

Oh yes, see if you can find Nicholson Baker anywhere. He's a favourite of mine but you don't see his books around too much

[tncekm]

Thanks again for all of your help!!

 

I think I'll probably be pretty busy with all of these suggestions. I'll keep you updated!

[tncekm]

James Joyce's Dubliners is a collection of highly readable short stories also, despite his reputation for difficulty from writing Ulysses.

 

Difficulty is good! These passages in the MCAT can be pretty monstrous!

[Paul]

Difficulty is good! These passages in the MCAT can be pretty monstrous!

Well, If it is deliberate difficulty you are looking for, then there is always the opening sentence of Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom! (120 words I think I remember) and then keep on reading for sheer enjoyment -- and more long sentences. Good luck with your project!

 

Added in Edit: As an after thought. it occurs to me that the US national documents, namely the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, make reading that probably requires focus and attention. For just plain excellent writing there are Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and, even better, his almost unknown Second Inaugural Address. ("With malice toward none and charity for all")

[tncekm]

Well, If it is deliberate difficulty you are looking for, then there is always the opening sentence of Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom! (120 words I think I remember) and then keep on reading for sheer enjoyment -- and more long sentences. Good luck with your project!

 

Added in Edit: As an after thought. it occurs to me that the US national documents, namely the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, make reading that probably requires focus and attention. For just plain excellent writing there are Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and, even better, his almost unknown Second Inaugural Address. ("With malice toward none and charity for all")

Thanks, I'll be sure to have a look over all of that material--its about time I read the Constitution from cover to cover, anyway

[Freewheeling Andy]

If you want really, painfully complex and difficult, James Joyce is probably your man. Particularly Ulysses or Finnegan's Wake. Legendarily brilliant, so it's probably worth your while; but I've never made it past page 3 of Ulysses nor past the first two paragraph's of Finnegan's Wake (but I wasn't feeling particularly stubborn at the time).

 

Otherwise, Jorge Borges too is very heavy on idea and complexity, and his short stories in Labyrinths could be a good place to look.

 

Also in the heavy complexity and depth stuff, you could look at Thomas Pynchon. I've only ever read (the very wonderful) Mason & Dixon, but it took several months and was very chewy.

 

Without wanting to be silly, I think a lot of the stuff mentioned up-thread is actually fairly easy to read, stuff you'd use to access fiction rather than to really give your brain an intense work-out.

 

Ah. And on the Irish thing like Joyce, I'd also recommend one of my favourite books of all time - At-Swim-Two-Birds by Flann O'Brien. It's incredibly funny, but it's spectacularly complex in the structure, as it's about an author who's writing a book in which the author is writing a book and the characters from that book come to life in the (second-tier) authors book. The third-tier characters are also story-tellers, so you sometimes end up with a story within a story within a story within a story.

[~Andrea~]

If you're looking for something deliberately complex then I'm not sure since I tend to avoid very difficult stuff I like light reads as a general rule.

 

If I, personally, wanted a more challenging book, I would go maybe for John Fowles, The French Lieutenant's Woman or an older classic like Jane Austen or Bronte, Dickens or Hardy, which are enjoyable yet require a little bit more concentration.

Something like Daphne Du Maurier's My Cousin Rachel or Margaret Drabble's A Summer Birdcage are both intelligent books that give your brain something to do while still being short, readable and enjoyable.

 

HTH.

[Freewheeling Andy]

Last edited by Michelle : Today at 12:39. Reason: posts merged, please edit instead of double posting

 

Bah! I like double posting. I do it deliberately. It makes posts not seem so long and overbearing, and also gives a track of my disjointed train of thought.

[Michelle]

Your posts aren't that long Andy. We specifically ask people not to double post in the guidelines, hence yours were merged.

[Echo]

For me, Henry James is one of those authors whose books are hard to get through, but I don't want to recommend an author just because he's boring. Because Henry James is B O R I N G!!!

[Freewheeling Andy]

Yeah. There's a difference between hard-to-read because it's boring and rubbish, and hard to read because it's full of complex ideas and dense writing, but very good. That's why I was praising Pynchon and Flann O'Brien (and Borges). They're interesting (and in the first two cases I've loved reading them), but full of ideas and requiring lots of thought.

[~Andrea~]

For me, Henry James is one of those authors whose books are hard to get through, but I don't want to recommend an author just because he's boring. Because Henry James is B O R I N G!!!

 

Apart from The Turn of the Screw which I loved

I couldn't get on with Washington Square though. That was boring. The paragraphs and sentences were like mini marathons.

[Echo]

I had to read The Bostonians last semester for my American Literature class. I only got halfway through and had to fake it through an essay, pretending I understood all the themes. Just SO long and boring! And you're right about his paragraphs...I certainly felt as though I had run a marathon (a boring one) after reading!