I've been looking for some new books to read lately, as well as some summer reading material for the kids. Pages like NPR's Backseat Book Club and GoodRead's Required Reading in High School have given me a lot of good ideas..In addition to my reviews, I'm going to ask the girls to start blogs of their own to do the same.
First up for me is The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It's a classic straightforward mystery, and I was a little surprised at how little Sherlock Holmes appeared in the first half of the story. Several chapters take place without him at all. Frankly, the mystery itself wasn't all that mysterious, although I was eager to see how it all played out at the end.
For me, the real test of a book is how much I want to keep it. When I was in college and money was very tight, I had a great used book store. I could take in a stack of novels, and walk out with one or two new ones, and no money changed hands. When I needed a new book fix, I'd look through all my books, and decide which ones I could bear to part with before walking past the library (oh the irony) to the bookstore.
Hound is sitting on a pretty low shelf; it would be one of the first to get sold. It's not a bad book, but I know the plot already and the characters and setting aren't enough to keep me coming back, so it isn't likely I'll read it again.
Would I "assign" it to either of the kids to read? No, but I will make it one of their options. (I generally have a crate of books available and have them pick from it). I found this study guide at Quizlet.com, which is helpful. The language & concepts are a little archaic, but not too bad.
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