8 Comments

What a great way to inspire us to read ! Thank you. I used to love to read but haven’t as much these past years. I have read several of C.S. Lewis works but never made it through the Screwtape Letters. Thank you for the recommendation on who to listen to as I don’t much enjoy hearing books read by others, but I will give this one a try.

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As a way into reading fiction, may I suggest starting with short stories? As smaller works, they’re more concentrated, and don’t require as much of a time commitment as novels do. Also, you can put the volume down once you finish the story, and pick it up again, if/when you wish. Very beneficial sometimes! V.S. Pritchett and William Trevor are masters of the form, and their stories document lost worlds. Happy Christmas!

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In fiction, I would recommend Jane Austen's work, as well as Charles Dickens' "David Copperfield" and "A Tale of Two Cities." So far, I have only read through those two of his novels, having started to delve into his work recently, but he is *good*.

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If you like CHARLES DICKENS, you might like to read Peter Ackroyd's, Dickens - the history of the man. I have read a number of Peter Ackroyd's books, always informative and easy to read and many of his subject revolve around England and its history.

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May I ask if you've read "A Christmas Carol?" That's my favorite story of his and I think one of the best ever written.

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If you can find it, I'd recommend "The War Against The Family" by the late great William D. Gairdner. The only Canadian author worth reading as far as I'm concerned. Poor fellow died just about a year ago, Jan. 12, 2024. It's a very long and involved book and looks at the political and spiritual war that is being used to destroy the family as we know it and has been going on now for many decades.

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Like you , I generally do not read fiction, except classics like Dickens which are based on his observations of life, truth and reality of the time. I wish there was a 3rd category of books I would call Faction ; fiction based on facts.

I prefer to read a book and be informed and learn something that I was not aware of before such as :

World without cancer : the story of vitamin B17 by Griffin, G. Edward.

The Creature From Jekyll Island.pdf (PDFy mirror). by Griffin, G. Edward.

180 Degrees: Unlearn The Lies You've Been Taught To Believe. by Feargus O'Connor Greenwood (Author).

The Falsification of History : Our Distorted Reality – May 14, 2013 by John Hamer (Author).

RMS OLYMPIC Paperback – November 21, 2013 by John Hamer (Author)

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Wow, John Cleese narrated The Screwtape Letters? Surprising but probably was entertaining to hear. Great choices!

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