In Greek, as always, I’m reading Homer. Also Pindar. I recently got D. Page Sappho and Alcaeus: An Introduction to the Study of Ancient Lesbian Poetry, and this means I’m reading a good deal of those two poets. Little bits of Lucian as the mood strikes, but my major bus-to-work reading is still Eurpides’ Alcestis. I’m using a self-contained student edition (text, notes, full vocab), but check with Dale’s Oxford commentary regularly.
About a month ago I finally read Scribes and Scholars: A Guide to the Transmission of Greek and Latin Literature which is just fascinating reading. Many of the authors we talk about all the time here come to us by the narrowest of paths, and could easily have been lost. We all know that, but this book gives the hows and the whys.
For fiction, I just picked up Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke. It is massive, but also delightful. It is written under the influence of 19th century English novels, and has already infected my own prose style. I haven’t finished it, so I can only say that I like the beginning quite a lot.
Current bedside reading: The Oxford Book of English Verse, edited by Christopher B. Ricks, who should not, if his introduction is typical of his writing style, be allowed to write prose. This book assumes you know what your about, and makes few concessions to the untrained reader. If you don’t know 16th century English, you’ll find the notes only the slightest help.
I have a copy of The Oxford Book of English Verse, which I pull off the shelf occasionally to read a poem or two. The introduction, if I did actually read it, did not leave an imprint in my memory of excessive verbosity or bombast, if such are the qualities that you found repugnant, but I should probably take another look at it. Bad prose, I have found, can be as instructive for the aspiring writer as good prose.
The poets that I am reading – in English, unfortunately, since my knowledge of Latin is as yet nascent (from nascor, I suppose?) – are Emily Dickinson and Adrienne Rich. The vast abyss separating the styles and sensibilities of the two poets figured into my decision to read their works. For Dickinson, I have a much thumbed through hardcover of the complete poems. Since they are arranged chronologically, not only do I have access to the poems that are less commonly anthologized, but I also can attempt to trace her development as a poet. When I am not in the mood for rhyme and meter, I read a much smaller collection of Rich’s poetry called The Dream of a Common Language, which contains a number of the poems she wrote during the mid seventies. If you’re not familiar with her work, it is comparable with the other confessional poets like Anne Sexton and Sylvia Plath.
My Latin work proceeds through both Moreland and Fleischer’s textbook and the Vulgate, beginning at the beginning, of course (Le Génese). To aid my understanding of the latter, I am referring to an English translation and a French Bible, in addition, of course, to dictionaries.
I could ramble on about the novel I’m working through, but I shall resist that urge. In short: Aldous Huxley wrote a number of works besides his classic Brave New World, though many of them have received scant attention in the past decades. One such book is Point Counter Point, which resembles what Ayn Rand might have written if she had been 1) cynical and 2) eloquent. And that sums it up, I think.
Alas, in latin, my vocabulary and my knowledge of grammar is still too insufficient to read any original work. I hope to be able to soon! So I’m reading in my grammar book mostly.
Otherwise, I’m currently reading various novellas by Guy de Maupassant and The Gay Science by Nietzsche.
I am currently reading “The Meaning of the Millennium” by Robert Clouse. It is an interesting discussion of the four views of interpreting the timing and character of the millennial kingdom of Jesus.
I’m finally reading Campbell’s “The Hero with a thousand faces”. You know a book is good when you wish that you have read it a long time ago. However, his writing style is dense at times.
I have a bad habit of reading two or more books at a time, so the other book that I’m reading is Bare-Faced Messiah by Russell Miller. It’s a Ron Hubbard bio. I quite enjoyed reading about the megalomaniac fits. I’m not really reading it to uncover truths per se, but there’s lots of sociological trinkets in a book like this.
I’m trying to read Le Guin’s Left Hand of Darkness, but I’m procrastinating. This book seems like a good place to start reading Le Guin material. I’m trying to find out what is all the fuss about her books. I suppose that’s not a good way to approach a fiction book because you tend to be more hyper-critical and enjoy reading less.
Oh yes, I forgot, I still haven’t finished “The signs of our time” by Jack Solomon. This is the best semiotics book I’ve read so far. However, the subject itself is a different story. I’m yet to discover the significance of this subject because it is seems like an amalgam of cultural anthropology, sociology, and semantics.
School just ended (I graduated on Saturday! YAY! ), so I’m now able to do something besides study for finals (i.e. post on textkit )..
My Greek class this past quarter was on Homer - I absolutely loved it, and I think I’ll continue to work through the text on my own this summer. (The Greek program at my university starts off with Attic, and gets to Homeric at the end of the second year.)
I picked up Plutarch’s Life of Antony yesterday, so that’s also on the summer reading list for Greek.
Other than that, not much yet (which I’m sure will change). I’m still in shock about being out in the real world.. I intend to brush up my Latin this summer (I haven’t done much with it in 5 years and so it’s back to Wheelock and 38 Stories for me..), and I’m going to attempt to learn some Italian.
..i am also looking forward to the next Harry Potter book..
The second book of the Iliad, and First Greek Book by White.
When I feel the need, I read from a collection of the Best American Homurous Short Stories. Some of them are actually funny but there are quite a few that don’t belong in a book of that title.
English translations of Plato’s dialogues.
They give some more sense of progress than crawling on Greek words.
And it’s a preparation for reading them in the original language in the future.
Those Greeks had very funny ideas really.
It’s charming really how a child enjoys the same book over and over. Some children’s books are done so nicely. They appear simple, but I’m very sure it’s a real art to write a good children’s story. I have a whole new appreciation for how clever and fun Dr. Suess books are. Nathan has The Cat in the Hat almost memorized.
Reading a childrens book called “The Six Wrinkled Woos of Hawaii” to my almost 3 month old daughter. The book is a bit too advanced for her right now, but I am hoping she will grow to love it someday. I even got the book signed to her by both the author & artist.
I’m reading (again) all books of the “First Man of Rome” of Colleen McCullough, I’m at the 3th at the moment (“Fortune’s Favorites”). But to tell the true for the last days, and for the next days, what I have been reading is the mistakes of my students in theirs laboratorial reports sigh
The Dr. Suess books are incredible. It’s amazing how often someone will try to write their own “sing-songy” type of poem and try to pass it off as either similar to Dr. Suess or a parody of him. In all cases I am amazed at just how much better he is than those who try to imitate him.
I have read that book to my kids so many times that I can recite the first 2/3 of the book off the top of my head and in about 30 seconds. It drives them crazy when I do it.
I am currently reading the much-discussed Lingua Latina: Familia Romana and am anxiously awaiting for it to get interesting. I like it, though, because I can read it while running on the treadmill (unlike real latin authors, for whom I need a dictionary and, at times, grammar reference, on hand).
), so I’m now able to do something besides study for finals (i.e. post on textkit 
)..
I intend to brush up my Latin this summer (I haven’t done much with it in 5 years 