There is one question that never fails to send my mind into a rather fantastic frenzy: “What is your favorite book?”.\u00a0 Naturally this would seem to be a simple enough question to answer without diving into a deep ocean of quotes and titles.\u00a0 However, for a devoted bookworm, such as myself, it is nearly impossible to settle on a single work.\u00a0 To be perfectly transparent, I do not have the slightest clue as to the number of books I have read in my life up to this point.\u00a0 I can also assure you that I do not know the exact amount of books I own, though I do believe I have well over two hundred.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While this number may prove to be rather extreme to some of you, I find myself unable to deny my shelves of new books or even part with the old ones.\u00a0 Yes, I am a book hoarder and I regret nothing.\u00a0 How do I decide which novel(s) to add to my ever growing library?\u00a0 I seek out books based upon my tastes and preferences.\u00a0 Of course, I am sure other\u00a0bibliophiles use the same or similar method in the bookstore.\u00a0 When we stake our claim on a novel under the influence of our interests, we are scribbling another title and author onto our personal literary canons.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
What is a literary canon?\u00a0 It is a term which refers to a body of novels and other texts considered to be of great importance and value to a certain time or place.\u00a0 This concept has been used and handed down for ages and it is purely based on an individual’s opinion.\u00a0 We all possess different interests, so we are bound to be drawn to various styles and genres.\u00a0 That being said, we can also infer that not everyone has the same literary canon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My literary canon, for example, is comprised of the following genres: fantasy, mystery, crime, and historical romance.\u00a0 While I do enjoy more recent novels, I must say that I have an admiration for the renowned classics as well.\u00a0 My bookshelves are diverse, their contents range from William Shakespeare to Stephen King.\u00a0 It is not uncommon to find me sipping a cup of Earl Grey and swooning over\u00a0a copy of\u00a0Macbeth\u00a0<\/em>or\u00a0Romeo & Juli<\/em>et.<\/em>\u00a0 Though a fair number of my peers question my sanity upon discovering my love for Shakespeare, I find his work to be inspiring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Inspiration is another factor I take into consideration when it comes to adding a book to my literary canon.\u00a0 If a novel or poem ignites ideas or creative thoughts within my imagination, then that work becomes a part of me.\u00a0 Another quality that makes a book remarkable is the impact it has on my emotions.\u00a0 As a reader, I want to be able to put myself in the the shoes of the protagonist and connect with their personality and feelings.\u00a0 So, if my heartstrings are tugged and I am moved to tears, I will likely reread the work.\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n A personal literary canon is not only necessary but vital to the mind of a reader.\u00a0 It is our interests and opinions that lure us to a certain title and author.\u00a0 Whether you delight in murder mysteries or modern romances, it is your quirks and enthusiasms that play a major role in your reading experience.\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Miranda Alexander There is one question that never fails to send my mind into a rather fantastic frenzy: “What is your favorite book?”.\u00a0 Naturally this would seem to be a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":3625,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[340],"tags":[346],"class_list":["post-3615","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-literary-studies","tag-american-literature","clearfix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3615","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3615"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3615\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3642,"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3615\/revisions\/3642"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3625"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3615"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3615"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.freedomshillprimer.com\/institute\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3615"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}