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OK, I have something to confess that I am pretty ashamed of. I'm a Humanities major with an emphasis in music (no, that's not the confession, silly! ) and a French minor. I love all kinds of music and theater. I love reading. You would *think* I could be considered a pretty cultured person, right? Wrong! I have slowly come to the realization that am not cultured at all, and am in fact almost the opposite (there, I said it ); I just would like to think I am. As a college student, I am not completely ignorant, but I know that I have a long way to go.
This thread marks the beginning of my attempt to become a cultured individual. Among other things, one big project I am undertaking is trying to become "well-read". Here's where you all come in. Having been here for over a year, I am highly aware that most people that post on this forum read a lot. I also read a lot, but I get stuck on certain authors (*winkwink*).
So here is your mission: Tell me what to read. I want a large, diversified list, with books from every culture and genre. Anything that you personally would consider a "classic" or a book that any cultured person has (or should have) read. Assume that I haven't read anything. Chances are I haven't read any of them (hence the reason I am ashamed to post this ).
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Why do you want to be a "cultured person". To say that you are? To discover some of the glories that are out there? If it's just to be one, that doesn't matter. There's no point system for this kind of thing. If you're looking for some works of genius that might change your soul, though, here's a start.
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Have you read Candide by Voltaire? I consider that to be pretty cultured. But I'm studying it in High School... and if you're in University with a French minor... chances are you've already read it.
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Well, I guess mostly I want to become cultured for my own benefit. I am fascinated by the things that I have read, and I want to know more. I love to see the things other people and other cultures have created. They all teach me something new about myself. I feel like I have grown up kind of in a bubble (being in Provo doesn't help that much either, ), and I want to be exposed to the great works there are in the world.
I definitely don't just want to in order to say I'm cultured, anyone can do that, and I think it's kind of snobby anyway.
There are a lot more reasons...I just have a hard time putting them into words.
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I'd start with the list. Candide is great. Grave of the Fireflies - the movie being discussed on the other thread - is a heartbreaker and a must fo shizzle.
Memoirs of a Geisha Beloved The Hunchback of Notre Dame That latest translation of Beowulf
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I'm not clear what you're after, Jennie. Novels? Philosophy (religious/non?)? Nonfiction? All of the above?
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I'm taking a class called Human Event. It's an honors college class, and the reading is full of "classic" literature. Lots of fun, actually. I've learned a lot. So...things we've read (we read only excerpts from some works):
Gilgamesh Tao te Ching Confucius Code of Hammurabi The Odyssey (translated by Lombardo -- very easy version to read) Antigone Lucretius (The Nature of Things, I think...) Lots of Plato (Symposium and part of Republic) Metamorphosis (by Ovid) Politics (by Aristotle) Beowulf Bits of the Old and New Testament Canterbury Tales King Lear
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Reading off of lists isn't bad. I read works from this list for my MA, and it was quite enjoyable because the works are somewhat subjectively chosen: World Literature List (PDF file).
But I think the best way to go about things is to let one work lead to another. For example: I just read Potok's _My Name is Asher Lev_ and _The Gift of Asher Lev_. Great novels -- I now see what all the fuss is about. In the second novel, Potok references Letters on Cezanne by Rilke. Rilke's _Sonnets to Orpheus_ is an amazing work -- one of my favorites of German lit. So I now have in my hands _Letters to Cezanne_ which I'll start reading tonight. Well that also got me thinking about aesthetics, so I also checked out a book titled _The Author, Art and the Market: Rereading the History of Aesthetics_. I know a little bit about aesthetic theory (my senior thesis focused on the 'sublime' {Kant etc.] and representations of the red rock areas of the Southwest [particularly the Grand Canyon]), but not a whole lot. This book appealed to me because doesn't focus as much on pure philosophy as on how views of aesthetics influenced artists and markets and vice versa, which is more up my alley. Now that I've read Potok, I've also become interested in 'writers of faith' so I'm going to try one of Flannery O'Connor's novels. I've read her short stories, but not any of her novels.
Also: I recently read Robin Hobb's _Liveship Traders_ and really enjoyed it, and now I'm thinking of seeking out another novel (fantasy or not) that focuses on seafaring folk.
Anyway, my point is that if you read books as part of a program, that can be frutiful, but even better, imo, is to develop threads of interest and inquiry.
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You should know some Homer if you don't already. The Iliad is actually not hard to read.
Other than that, I'm really a genre-whore myself. I think I may take some of these suggestions someday, having read almost everything the science fiction and fantasy genre's have to offer.
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Siddartha, by Herman Hesse Foucaults Pendulum, by Umberto Eco Where River's Change Direction, by Mark Spragg Angle of Repose, by Wallace Stegner The Brother's Karamazov, by Theador Dostoyevsky Refuge, by Terry Tempest Williams The Hundred Secret Senses, by Amy Tan My Name Is Asher Lev, by Chaim Potok A River Runs Through It, by Norman McClain The Princess Bride, -- by William Goldman Catch 22 -- by Joseph Heller Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad The Making of the Atomic Bomb -- by Richard Rhodes
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To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Mama Day by Gloria Naylor The Color Purple by Alice Walker Canterbury Tales by Chaucer (and then immediately after read Hyperion by Dan Simmons) Any of Shakespeare's tragedies, but my favorite is Hamlet Any of Shakespeare's comedies Through the Looking Glass and What Alice FDound There by Lewis Carroll Huckleberry Finn by Twain Mark Twain's autobiography--either/both versions Great Expectations by Dickens Travels With Charley by Steinbeck The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell (nonfiction) Against All Odds by Armando Valladares (nonfiction) Moby Dick by Melville The Scarlett Letter by Hawthorne
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Catch-22 by Heller Anything by Vonnegut, but especially Slaughterhouse Five. If you prefer your absurdism not quite so depressing, then you might prefer Breakfast of Champions. The Fountainhead by Rand. ::ducks:: No, I'm not an Objectivist or an Egoist, but I still think this novel is worth reading.
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Zalmoxis, that's really what I had in mind when I asked for suggestions. I'm making a list that is way too long to read all at once, but I'll pick one that sparks my interest and see where it leads me. If I get stuck, I'll pick another one and go from there. I can't get at the list you posted though. I clicked on the link, and my computer opened it, but it won't let me click or right-click anywhere on the document or scroll down at all. (It actually won't even let me close the document at all.) Posts: 1635 | Registered: Aug 2002
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rivka, you're danged scary. I think I've found another twin. Jennie...what rivka said. Those are the books that are tattered and torn on my shelf, the ones I've read the most amount of times.
You just need to read Gone With the Wind. You just have to.
Nicholas Nickleby- Dickens. Brilliant writing, brilliant characters and sarcasm that would slay the most stalwart.
All the stuff by Francis Hogdson Burnett. Her writing is out of this world.
The Sea Wolf- Jack London
If you're majoring in humanities, you HAVE to read The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone. Being my twin, I think you'll really really love it. Also try Those Who Love by the same author.
E.E. Cummings poetry-phenomenal
I'm getting into good old poetry too-Milton, Keats, Tennyson...there's some others, I'll have to find them for you.
If you can find good translations of some Garcia Lorca or Octavio Paz...or if you can understand the original Spanish poetry, it's wonderful stuff.
I second Rabbit's vote for The Princess Bride. The writing is genius and so much fun.
Persuasion- Jane Austen
All of Louisa May Alcott's beginning short stories. These are the ones she wrote for the newspapers. They're cheesy as all get out, but really good stories. All of her novels are amazing as well.
The Screwtape Letters- CS Lewis
The Space Trilogy- CS Lewis. Really fun sci fi with religious allegory and fun thrown in. Brilliant writing.
I guess that's all for now. You can probably have tons of fun for months with the stuff listed on this thread.
katharina, thanks for posting that list. It's awesome!
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Just to give you an idea of what you are dealing with, I went through the list katharina posted, and I have read ten of the books on the list, and have read selections of about 19 more.
Of the ones listed thus far on this thread, I have read:
Almost all of the Little House books (Rivka and Narnia, I think I'll pick those up again, it's been a while ) King Lear Most ( ) of the Old and New Testaments A River Runs Through It The Princess Bride To Kill a Mockingbird (though it's about time to pick it up again, great book.) Great Expectations
(Not counting the ones I've only read selections from)
Pretty sad, eh? Keep 'em coming! Posts: 1635 | Registered: Aug 2002
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I've actually read One Hundred Years of Solitude. That was one of the few books I thoroughly enjoyed that we had to read for English class my junior year of high school.
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I'm one of those strange people who enjoys reading the classics. I'll try to trim my list of ones I love to be just what I imagine you would like, Jennie. Not that I know you that well, but I'll do my best.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Victor Hugo) has already been suggested, but I'll second that. I read it in a few days—devoured it, more like—and loved every minute. It's deeper and darker than the movie by a long shot, but it also has some delightful humor and characterization.
Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoevsky) is a beautiful book. I still want to read The Brothers Karamazov because of it. Be prepared for a bit of a love story between a crazy axe murderer and a prostitute, but also be prepared for a beautiful story of redemption and hope. Oh, and an intriguing, complex character in Raskolnikov.
I'd suggest reading one existential book. I found Kafka's The Metamorphosis depressing, but it's short. Besides, existentialism is supposed to be depressing. Albert Camus's The Stranger is also depressing, but I enjoyed it much more. I don't know why.
Dickens is fun if not worldview-changing. You'll enjoy any of the books suggested on this thread.
Read Shakespeare. I have a complete Shakespeare with plentiful and helpful footnotes that I can lend you if you want it. Just give it back. I love Shakespeare more than I love OSC. I seriously can't get enough. I especially love Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth of the tragedies and Much Ado About Nothing and Comedy of Errors of the comedies. I've heard that Twelfth Night is excellent too (comedy), but I haven't had a chance to read it yet.
Do read Pride and Prejudice, but not if you mind that it's word-for-word the same as the movie, almost. I'm not quite as thrilled about the rest of Jane Austen's works, to be honest.
If you're feeling brave, read John Donne's Holy Sonnets. I believe they are among the most beautiful, interesting poetry written in English. But they're tough. You'd have to read them several times to get all the layers. This isn't a classic, but I'll suggest it anyway. Margaret Edson's play, "W;t," is a great introduction to John Donne, and it's beautiful as well. You can read it in an hour or two.
If you want to hear some essential classics in music, the Mad About the Classics CDs have all kinds of musicy goodness on them. They're pretty cheap too, if I remember right.
[edit: Camus wrote The Stranger, not Sartre. Confusing my French existentialists again!]
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Read what you like. Then, when someone you're talking to hasn't read one of your favorite books, act amazed at their lack of erudition. Scoff at them even!
In this manner, you will eventually come to define "well read" and have fun doing it.
While you're waiting for this plan to succeed, may I recommend that you pick up every Victor Hugo book you can find.
And read also: A Tale of Two Cities
That will give you enough literary quotes to throw around so that you can take on the trappings of conventional well-readedness while you wait for the world to adopt your own personal standard. And the books are fun too!
Good luck!
Oh, and read Hatrack a lot!
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Honestly Bob, I think that Hatrack is responsible for 40% of my culturedness...and 60% of my desire to be MORE cultured. Posts: 6415 | Registered: Jul 2000
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From an early childhood education standpoint, there are children's books that you simply must have (and read, and practice reading aloud):
Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss Roxaboxen, Alice McLerran Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak
From a "spiritual/seeking" standpoint:
The Seven Storey Mountain, Thomas Merton Christy, Catherine Marshall
For the contemporary heck of it and because she's a good author:
Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series
Let's see, other titles off the top of my head:
The Handmaid's Tale The Gate to Women's Country The Politics of Breastfeeding (non-fiction and this is a tough one to get in the USA)
hmmmmm -
Yes, definitely read the Anne of Green Gables books, but then go get the videos and settle in with a comforter and popcorn - they're absolutely wonderful!
Did anyone mention Nietzche yet? Well, forget about him then . . . Posts: 5609 | Registered: Jan 2003
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Gag on the Anne of Green Gables videos!! The first one is ok, but I absolutely despise the second one and all of the rest because they CHANGE THE STORY!! (Shan, I love you, I just happen to feel strongly about that particular subject. )
I just finished reading Crime and Punishment a couple weeks ago. I loved it. It was actually my second time reading it, and I must say, I appreciated it a whole lot more this time. (Maybe that's because last time I was annoyed the entire time that I was being forced to read it when I was on vacation for Spring Break. )
Anyway, sadly, I have never been able to get into Shakespeare. I have no idea why. I recently read King Lear, and I've read Macbeth and selections from Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet. I don't know what my problem is. Maybe I just need to read more of it.
Shan, I'm with you on the Anne of Green Gables (I guess we aren't twins on this subject, Narnia ) I love those movies! We were just watching them on Sunday night. Posts: 1635 | Registered: Aug 2002
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But dear, have you read the books??? If I hadn't read all the books, I would probably love the movies too...and if I wasn't an obsessive compulsive freak about that kind of thing, I would have loved the movies. I still think Gilbert is hot.
For good getting into Shakespeare fun, read Hamlet and Much Ado About Nothing. Those are two of the best and most fun in my opinion. Hamlet floors me every time I read it. I think you'll be hooked.
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I'm told Hugo reads much better in French than in English. I confess I've only read the English translation of Les Mis, but the pacing was terrible. It alternated between "I can't put this down!" to "Why don't I go drive nails into my eyes?"
I know these aren't classic classics, but they're all worth reading. Check out Sophie's Choice by William Styron. Wonderful novel about the Holocaust. Or a woman's life post holocaust I suppose. Also there's The World According to Garp by John Irving. By far and away his best work. We were talking about The Grapes of Wrath the other day in chat, which is certainly also worth reading. And lastly, let me suggest some Canadian content. Go read some Michael Ondaatje, it's beautiful and poetic and wow. Rather than reading The English Patient I'd go with Anil's Ghost, although In the Skin of the Lion was good too.
Edit: Fixing italics.
[ October 28, 2003, 11:32 PM: Message edited by: Bob the Lawyer ]
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Don't feel bad if you can't get into Shakespeare. They were written to be seen, not to be read. I'd say, rather than reading the plays you should look up a brief summary online and then go out and see some live theatre.
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Narn, yay! Someone else who read those books to death. I actually never owned them -- I got them from the library. Repeatedly.
And I absolutely agree on e.e. cummings! *starts reciting "maggie and milly and molly and may"* And ditto on Burnett! And Alcott!
Oh! And if you want another series, Jennie, try the All-of-a-Kind Family books, by Sydney Taylor. And you must read Cheaper by the Dozen and Belles On their Toes by the Gilbreths. Oh! and Momma's Bank Account.
And definitely read Flowers for Algernon -- at least the short story, though I prefer the novel.
And Island of the Blue Dolphins!
For variety, some books many Americans have never read: The Family from One End Street by Eve Garnett, and absolutely everything by Enid Blyton.
I agree with Ic on Through the Looking Glass. But you must also read Carrol's Hunting of the Snark. If you can get your hands on The Annotated Snark (annotations by Martin Gardner), absolutely read that. The annotations are amazing. But I'm not sure how available it is.
Wiesel's Night is very good, but there really are far better books about the Holocaust. Most are not from "mainstream" presses, though.
I agree with Brinestone about Shakespeare. Although seeing his plays is much better than reading them, IMO. Twelfth Night is indeed lots of fun.
Donne's Holy Sonnets are lovely, although I personally prefer his other poems.
Other poets you should read: Stevie Smith, Robert Burns, Seamus Heaney, Elizabeth Bishop, E.A. Robinson. If you can get your hands on the Norton Anthology of Poetry or something like it, that would give you a nice spectrum.
That should be enough to begin with. Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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Classic sci/fi (pre-1980) I recomend anything by Gene Wolfe or Theodore Sturgeon, my two favorite authors--Wolfe is more consistently great though Heinlein-I've read almost everything by Heinlein. This is what I'd pick. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress--revolution on the moon Stranger in a Strange Land Time Enough for Love Citizen of the Galaxy Glory Road--fantasy, very influential Starship Troopers (far better than the movie) The Past through Tomorrow (short stories)
Isaac Asimov The Foundation Trilogy I, Robot--short stories that introduced Asimov's Laws of Robotics--many other robot novels and story collections Fantastic Voyage
Roger Zelazny The 10 book Amber series--fantasy This Immortal Lord of Light Roadmarks--weird fantasy sci/fi mix Many fabulous, award-winning short stories and novelettes
Larry Niven--many great short story collections Ringworld--3 sequels Protector The Long Arm of Gil Hamilton--short story collection, sci/fi detective mix The Magic goes away--fantasy, 3 sequels Niven with Jerry Pournelle The Mote in God's Eye--one of the best first alien contact novels ever The Gripping Hand--sequel to Mote, almost as good. Lucifer's Hammer--comet hits Earth. Duck and cover, boys and girls! Inferno--modern rewrite of Dante
Clarke--2001, a Space Odyssey Rendevous with Rama Imperial Earth Childhood's End other novels which I am less familiar with, plus many great short stories
John Brunner The Traveler in Black--fantasy, a short novel but great The Shockwave Rider Stand on Zanzibar The Sheep Look Up--these last two are both long and depressing, but very good
Poul Anderson Tau Zero--wow, I haven't read that in years, I need to snag a copy Three Hearts and Three Lions--fantasy, there's a sequel?!? News to me Psychotechnic League series, Future history of the Polesotechnic League series--I've read some of these and enjoyed them, haven't read them all Also never read the Time Patrol series but always meant to. Phew! Enough sci fi
Mainstream Fiction I second Catch-22 and The World according to Garp--two of the funniest novels ever written
Non-fiction Anything non-fiction by Isaac Asimov or Martin Gardner is a joy to read, they were both genuises who could really write.
Anything non-fiction from Thomas Wolfe in the 60s and 70s, before he became a sell-out
Life on the Missisippi, Mark Twain The Prince, Machievelli Life with Charlie, John Steinbeck
Hunter S. Thompson Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail 1972--twisted look at Nixon's reelection campaign Hell's Angels--twisted look at CA motorcycle gangs Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas--just twisted
quote:Other than that, I'm really a genre-whore myself. I think I may take some of these suggestions someday, having read almost everything the science fiction and fantasy genre's have to offer.
Wanna bet?
Anyway, my list of must-reads only has one book on it (because I'm too lazy to mention more, not because I can't think of any): The Chess Garden by Brooks Hansen. An unjustifiably overlooked novel.
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Can't believe no one mentioned George Orwell (Animal Farm, etc) or Brave New World (hated the book, but it sure made for some interesting discussions on cultures) or Machievelli (I think I spelled it wrong)
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I'll second the John Irving novels already mentioned: The World According to Garp and A Prayer for Owen Meany. I think Owen Meany is better, but your mileage may vary.
I'll also second anything by Gene Wolfe. If you prefer standalone novels, I recommend Peace and The Fifth Head of Cerberus (which, although it is a collection of three novellas should be read as a cohesive whole). If you like longer series, I recommend The Book of the New Sun, followed by The Urth of the New Sun, followed by The Book of the Long Sun, followed by The Book of the Short Sun (12 books in all).
Others I recommend (some of which have already been mentioned):
The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut. One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. East of Eden, by John Steinbeck. The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett. Eyes of the Dragon, by Stephen King. Watership Down, by Richard Adams. Dune, by Frank Herbert. The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien. On the Road, by Jack Kerouac. Anything by Tennyson A Farewell to Arms, by Ernest Hemingway. Cyrano de Bergerac, by Edmond Rostand. Anything by T.S. Eliot
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Plato Socrates Gilgamesh Beowulf The Oddessey The Illiad The Aeneiad (There are some Roman writers I haven't got around to yet) The Majabaratta (spelled wrong) The Annalects--Confusious The I-Ching Various Taoist books The Divine Comedy Shakespeare's Histories Immorte' De' Arthur (Mandatory for any French minor fantasy fan) by Sir Thomas Mallory Milton Cervante's Don Quixote (more modern, The Death and Life of Miguel Cervante's is gauranteed to blow your mind, though perhaps not in a good way) Nathaniel Hawthorn's works, especially The Scarlett Letter Everything by Edgar Allen Poe Sherlock Holmes, a couple of stories each, including one Moriarity story so you understand the characters Mark Twain, as much as possible. (Do not start with Huckleberry Fin, I swear that Twain got stuck with the story and didn't know how to end it.) Moby Dick War & Peace
Memorize all of the above plus the bible. There will be a test tomorrow. Throw out as many quotes as you can and everyone will say you are a well learned person.
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Apparantly alot of people have gotten together and agreed that "Old and boring" is synonymous with "culture".
I assure you this is not the case.
If something bores you the point of attempted suicide, dont force yourself through it simply because someone said you needed it to be cultured.
Go watch Family Guy on DVD and do some laughing. Try to figure out what all the obscure classical references are from. That'll learn ya some culture.
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![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
) and a French minor. I love all kinds of music and theater. I love reading. You would *think* I could be considered a pretty cultured person, right? Wrong! I have slowly come to the realization that am not cultured at all, and am in fact almost the opposite (there, I said it ![[Embarrassed]](redface.gif)
); I just would like to think I am. As a college student, I am not completely ignorant, but I know that I have a long way to go. ![[Smile]](smile.gif)
Having been here for over a year, I am highly aware that most people that post on this forum read a lot. ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
I also read a lot, but I get stuck on certain authors (*winkwink*).![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
Saruman ![[Confused]](confused.gif)
![[Kiss]](graemlins/kiss.gif)
)![[Cry]](graemlins/cry.gif)
) I love those movies! We were just watching them on Sunday night. ![[Taunt]](graemlins/taunt.gif)
![[Evil]](graemlins/evil.gif)
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
there's a sequel?!? News to me
