Literature Spotlights: Little Women

I keep turning over new leaves, and spoiling them, as I used to spoil my copybooks; and I make so many beginnings there will never be an end.

Jo March was my literary idol growing up. I remember ordering my copy of Little Women in a Scholastic book order catalog during sixth grade. I was immediately enchanted by the story of the March sisters and of Jo in particular. Her aspirations to be a writer, her fearlessness, her quirky individualism, and her courage in the face of challenges were all things I wanted as I grew up. In many ways, I hope I embody many of those qualities today.

Literature Spotlights: The Great Gatsby

It eluded us then, but that's no matter — tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther . . . And one fine morning — So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. 

It is time for some new content here on Certainly Candid. Just as I did my 30 Days of Gratitude last November, I have decided to start a new series of posts. I feel that the classics do not get the recognition they deserve, and as such, these are spotlight posts. They represent my favorite classical literature pieces, either in the form of a dramatic work, a novel, or a short story (or collection of short stories).

The Great Gatsby is one of my favorite novels. F. Scott Fitzgerald paints a picture of a man who is lost in the illusion of the past and dreams gone by. It is a story of both idealism and realism, of the goal of trying to obtain things we are haunted by from our past.