Several years
ago, never mind how many, I came across an academic who claimed that Don Quixote was one of the few works
that really stood up to multiple readings throughout life. In fact, the scholar
claimed that Don Quixote required
multiple readings. Specifically, he recommended that everyone read Don Quixote at least three times, once
as a young adult, once in middle age, and once in old age.
I’ve thought a
lot about this recommendation in the intervening years. In fact, the idea of
books that warrant and reward multiple readings has shaped the way I think
about literature, and I’ve created my own short list of books that could reward
multiple readings every twenty years or so. I’ve identified six works that I found
especially meaningful and rewarding when I first read them in my twenties.
Those six are the Bible, “Oedipus Rex”, “King Lear”, Don Quixote, Moby Dick,
and The Brothers Karamazov. Now, as I
approach the end of my forties, I find myself revisiting that list, and
rereading works that I read in my twenties. I have a couple of years left in my
40’s, and a couple more works to finish: Don
Quixote and The Brothers Karamazov.
So, for the next
several weeks, I’ll be spending time with Don Quixote, as part of my Quixotic
quest to revisit some rewarding literature, and to live like literature can
have an impact on one’s life.
