Re: The troubles

[twayburn@juno.com (Thomas L Wayburn)]

The reason they are classics is because catholic taste deems them GOOD.  
BUT, I am going to read YOUR choices and I shall let you know what I
think of them when I am done.   Remember, though, I have book marks in
over 50 books -  from Feynman to Hitler, Tarski to Sommerfeld and, yes,
Dirac.   Thanks for your useful reply and a chance to read a "new"
author.

Funny story:  I informed the clerk that *The Naked Lunch* (William
Burroughs) was not on the shelf.  He said, "It's in classics."   I said,
"Classics?   He isn't even dead.  I saw him yesterday."   He said, "He's
in classics because he's good not because he's dead."
******************************************************************************
On Fri, 10 Oct 1997 09:12:49 -0400 (EDT) "Michael N. Monce"
<mnmon@conncoll.edu> writes:
> On Thu, 9 Oct 1997, Thomas L Wayburn wrote:
>
> > On Thu, 9 Oct 1997 01:03:19 -0400 Hugh Haskell 
> <hhaskell@mindspring.com>
> > writes:
> > "Your reading list doesn't strike me as one that will bring in many 
> > > takers, even among the scholarly community."   It isn't even the
> > beginning of a reading list.  It's just what I happen to read lately 
> and
> > some drama and poetry that it reminded me of, but what can be 
> removed
> > from a list of such great writers?   It strikes me that any scholar 
> in
> > the liberal arts who had not read everything on *that* list isn't a
> > scholar.  But, you have aroused my curiosity.  Could you give me 
> some
> > examples of what quasi-intelligent people *do* read nowadays?    
> "Please,
> > God, don't let it be Tom Clancy."   
>
> 	Well....yes I do read Tom Clancy and enjoy it.  He spins a 
> good
> yarn.  I guess that makes me quasi-intelligent.  My favorite right now 
> is
> the fantasy series by Robert Jordan, "The Wheel of Time".  I've read 
> the 7
> books that are out now 3 times and am eagerly awaiting the next.  Why 
> do I
> like it??  Very well-written with unique character development, 
> expecially
> with reagrd to some very strong female characters.  It also is a story
> which draws a lot from classical and modern mythology, and has some 
> great
> quotes regarding personal relations, besides having a story line with
> enough twist and action to keep one's interest.
>
> 	I read to relax and for enjoyment.  I do not understand the
> correlation between reading the "classics" and one's intelligence.  I 
> have
> read some of those titles and found some interesting, some not.  But, 
> then
> I have never considered myself a scholar; just a physicist.
>
> 				Mike Monce
> 				Connecticut College