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With a little more time for us in the foreseeable future, and another socially distanced holiday weekend on the horizon at the end of May, we’re going to have to start looking for new ways to keep things interesting like the conditions of the COVID pandemic. -19 Continue. Maybe an opportunity for those titles you’ve always wanted to read, but never had time to read? Cue, seven classic books you can complete in a weekend during lockdown.
Yes, a lot of reading is about seeing where the story takes you – but there’s also something so satisfying about getting to the last page and putting the book back on your shelf. If, like us, your current attention span isn’t likely to spill over into some of the longer, more labor-intensive tomes, here are seven shorter reads to add to your lockdown list.
1
“The Pearl” by John Steinbeck
John Steinbeck is one of America’s best-known writers 20th century for good reason. The Pearl tells the story of Kino, who, like his ancestors, dives into the pearl for a living. He earns just enough to help his family get by, until one day he discovers an incredible treasure. The Pearl is based on a Mexican folk tale, and at 96 pages, it should keep you occupied for at least a few reading sessions.
2
“A room of your own” by Virginia Woolf
To this day, Virginia Woolf is presented as a pioneer in favor of women in the spaces of writing and creation. A room of your own is an in-depth essay, based on a lecture titled Women and Fiction, given by Woolf at two Cambridge University Women’s Colleges in 1928. Still regarded as a leading feminist text, the essays were published the year following in 1929, and read as a discussion of traditional literary stereotypes. It might not be fiction, but it has the rhythm of a novel, with characters and a storyline to keep you engaged until the last page.
3
“The bluest eye” by Toni Morrison
The bluest eye was the first novel by legendary author Toni Morrison – who became the first African-American woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature – and at 216 pages, it’s the perfect length to get lost on a long weekend. It follows the story of 11-year-old Pecola Breedlove, who grows up with her family in Ohio and prays to God that her eyes will turn blue so that she is as beautiful as her white peers. Pecola’s life changes eventually, but in ways she never could have imagined.
4
“A room with a view” by EM Forster
If you fancy being taken to the Italian countryside then A room with a view is the next best alternative. He follows Lucy’s escape to Florence with her cousin Charlotte, freed from the drudgery of their daily life and the limiting social expectations placed on them. You’ll feel like you’re there with them as they explore the new and avoid the mundane – a delicious slice of escape.
5
“Bloodborn and Other Stories” by Octavia E. Butler
While science fiction usually comes in the form of massive epics, the new incumbent here, Blood child, is only 31 pages long. It transports you – along with the Terrans (humans living on another planet) – away from terrestrial standards, to exist alongside an alien race, threatened with extinction. The only way aliens can survive is to plant their larvae in human bodies. Ultimately, it’s a story of sacrifice and love in unusual places, something we can relate to on some level right now.
6
“Giovanni’s Room” by James Baldwin
Set among the glamor and grain of 1950s Paris, Giovanni’s bedroom opens with an American proposal to a young woman. Shortly after this exchange, however, he found himself embroiled in an affair with an Italian bartender. It’s a captivating exploration of the conflicts that sexuality can present and the consequences of infatuation and forbidden love.
seven
“The Mysterious Affair at Styles” by Agatha Christie
The mysterious affair of styles is the first of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot series. We meet the famous detective as he moves into a country house after the Great War. Soon, however, the wealthy elderly lady who helps Poirot is poisoned. So far, so Christie. With plenty of likely culprits, this is a classic – almost heartwarming – mystery that will keep you going until the last chapter.
