So far, I have completed a total of 8 works of fiction as part of my independent reading program. In order, they have been
-Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
-Want by Cindy Pon
-The Mortal Coil trilogy by Emily Suvada
-Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
-Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
The work that has had the biggest impact on me would have to be Frankenstein. Of course, it is recognized as a great classical novel, and as the progenitor of the science fiction genre. Frankenstein was also surprising as it was an actually fun book. Before reading Frankenstein, I had been reading classical novels such as Huckleberry Finn, Moby Dick and all the Jane Austen novels; compared to these, Frankenstein was a positively electrifying work of fiction. This book also had the most creative use of language out of all of the above works. The language was eloquent and flowed smoothly, and was incredibly detailed and descriptive. Compared to Jane Austen’s dry, simple and methodically slow writing style, Mary Shelley wrote in a much more exciting way. Some sections of the book were slow and stagnant, while other chapters had pacing on par with modern thrillers.
I did not give up on any books during this period; however, I was extremely close to dropping Sense and Sensibility, which I would say is one of the single most drab, boring texts I have ever read. Nothing happens for a seemingly endless amount of pages, and the book is only very occasionally dotted with ‘key’ events. The language was as dry as a desert, and had less texture than a blank sheet of paper. Characters felt like puppets or robots, centralized on one or two main points that defined their entire characterization.