#1 Read 30 books - The Great Gatsby (book 1)

I love to read but I didn't have a lot of time to read leisurely while I was in school.  While I don't think this will be a particularly challenging goal on my list, I know that if I don't set, I will spend my time watching tv or reading magazines all of the time.  Originally, I set the goal to read 12 books from The Board's Best Novels list but I realized that I wanted to be able to read some fun, current books too.  So I modified my list to challenge myself to read 30 books of all genres, etc.

I read The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald in high school but that was over 12 years ago so it felt like I was reading it for the first time.  This book is a classic, listed on almost every Must Read list I saw.  I'm sure I had to write a paper or do a project on the symbolism of certain things in the book (i.e. the green light) so it was nice to read the book just for fun, without having to continuously stop and take notes for use later on.  I loved the glimpse into America in the 20s.  There were lots of references to the big, jazz parties and frivolous spending before The Great Depression.  I loved the imagery of the costumes, cars, and East coast, where most of the story takes place.  I can appreciate the book more now than I did in high school (that rings true for just about everything though!) and really did enjoy reading it.

I'm sure I'll pick it up a couple more times throughout the years and it will still surprise and captivate me.  To me, that's what makes a book classic.