Why Fun with Classic Books?

What do you do with a classic book?

I've always been fascinated by classic books, but never could quite figure out what to do with them. I have felt like there was a club of people who did know what to do with them, but their secrets remained hushed whispers that I could not hear. 

I've downloaded classic books from terrific book lists and curriculum, and am ashamed to say, most have remained unread or under-utilized. I've printed out pages from the books thinking we would be better engaged with the text if we at least had some paper to work with. However, even that somehow fails me.

In some ways, I feel an ebook is too plain a thing. I enjoy holding the book in my hand and seeing the illustrations first hand. But, as any book lover knows, shelf space is at a premium and owning a whole of lot of classic books, or any books, 'just because' isn't very practical. 

But, and this is a big one, the lure of the ebook continues to draw me in. Unlimited book space and instant delivery.  Oh, a Kindle is a fun little gadget. What more could you want?

As it turns out, I still wanted more than that.

Having nothing but a book list in hand and a calendar to follow do little for my wandering mind. "Read X amount of pages over Y amount of days" always leaves me and my children unfulfilled. 

For some reason, my mind freezes up and I can't think of anything to ask to make a discussion lively. I know not every discussion will be lively, of course, but I'd like to help if I could. Then, there is the problem with trying to put together activities. It's a fun hunt, but time consuming.

I keep my hopes up are longer than they do. They give up quickly. I give up stubbornly.

Born out of a stubborn determination, are all the things on my blog.

I hope that you'll find something useful.

I hope that you will have fun with classic books.