Favorite Books: Ivanhoe

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After writing my non-fiction recommendations a little while ago, I got to thinking about what my fiction recommendations would be. These are a little bit harder, because I read a lot more fiction than non-fiction and there are so many wonderful books that I could recommend. To counteract this problem, I've decided to write a series of blogs about my favorite books.

As someone who reads a lot, I usually find it hard to answer the question, "what is your favorite book?", it's like asking a parent to pick their favorite child. However, after much thought and deliberation, I have decided to that Ivanhoe, by Sir Walter Scott, is my favorite book.

Ivanhoe, in my view, is an unlikely classic. In the words of my friend's father, who is an English professor at Penn State, Ivanhoe is the classic "that no one ever reads". I can understand that; it's a story about chivalry, love, and honor and other virtues that are looked upon as 'medieval' in today's society. Not to say that it isn't an extremely romanticized book, in many ways a quintessential fairy tale, Victorian to the core, but that, to me, is what's so attractive about it. People scoff at fairy tales for being 'unrealistic', but real life fairy tales happen every day. They happen in marriages, births, accomplishments, and lives well spent. Fairy tales tell us that, while life doesn't always work out the way you plan, everyone has good things in their life. That can be hard to remember when you're reading books like Frankenstein, The Stranger, and Crime and Punishment (although, that one, strangely did end happily, well, except for the people who were murdered).

Ivanhoe harkens back to the days of 'merry old England', with jousts and knights and even Robin Hood. I don't know about you, but I'm a sucker for Robin Hood. Ivanhoe is an exciting, entertaining story piece of historical fiction that goes back to England's golden age. While it may seem like a simple, one-note story, it also has under tones of humor, tragedy, and it highlights the relationship between the conquered and the conqueror. The language can be a little daunting at times, but you get used to it after a while. It's a mixture of folk lore, cultural mythology, and the quintessential English spirit.

Just readin'

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