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Jane Smiley"Chicago Tribune Books"He sustains a variety of tone, subject matter and approach that keeps "Great Books" alluring and readable throughout...I was torn between getting out a copy of the book he had just discussed and reading it and going on with Denby. In every case. I went on with Denby.

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THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER

At the age of forty-eight, writer and film critic David Denby returned to Columbia University and re-enrolled in two core courses in Western civilization to confront the literary and philosophical masterpieces -- the "great books" -- that are now at the heart of the culture wars. In "Great Books, " he leads us on a glorious tour, a rediscovery and celebration of such authors as Homer and Boccaccio, Locke and Nietzsche. Conrad and Woolf. The resulting personal odyssey is an engaging blend of self-discovery, cultural commentary, reporting, criticism, and autobiography -- an inspiration for anyone in love with the written word.

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Customer Reviews

16 Reviews

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4.7 out of 5 stars (16 customer reviews)

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Love Shines Through, 1 Dec 2002

By

Bruce Kendall "BEK" (Southern Pines, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Great Books: My Adventures with Homer, Rousseau, Woolf, and Other Indestructible Writers of the Western World (Hardcover)

I have to admit I approached this book with some trepidation. I learned from the jacket liner that Denby was a film critic for New York Magazine (I vaguely remember reading some of his reviews) who had returned to the same Lit classes at Columbia he had attended in the late sixties.

What was a film critic going to tell me about the classics that I didn't already know? I've read every classic I could get my hands on since I was 13. I expected something along the lines of Adler or Van Doren (brief accounts of the hundred or so "greatest books of all time").

I'm glad now that I gave Denby the benefit of the doubt. Like Denby, I returned to college as an older student and felt a blend of exhiliration and disorientation similar to his. He's particularly adroit in conveying how politics have changed the nature of classroom discourse. There's no need here to get into a debate over the neo-relativist, agenda-driven camp on one side of academia, vs. the liberal, canonical "traditionalists," although much of the book revolves around these arguements.

What I'd like to comment on primarily is Denby's authentic love of literature and the power that it holds to shape lives. This is an old saw, but is still relevant and is eloquently expressed and demonstrated by the author.

Denby argues that "great" literature is not primarily aimed at making us feel good about ourselves. On the contrary, growth usually comes about only after a period of some discomfort and anxiety. The message of great fiction is not that we or our society or culture are superior to other peoples or societies or cultures. In fact, the message is usually the opposite.

I have to admit that I found some of Denby's recounting of his private life digressive and not especially engaging. His reading of King Lear, juxtaposed with his memories of his mother's final years, was heartfelt, but didn't quite come off in the final analysis. It seemed that the parallels he drew (friction between generations, the weakening of the intellect as one grows older, etc.) didn't seem particularly relevant or insightful.

The chapter on Conrad was, for me, the crowning moment of the book. Denby covers a lot of ground in this chapter, particularly in light of what just proceeded in the chapter on deBeauvoir. He nails down the essence of the scholarly debate, while at the same time giving us a vivid picture of the response a highly-charged piece of fiction can provoke in dispirate readers. As I lover of "the classics" myself, I might be biased as to which side of the debate I stand on, but I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read and think at the same time.

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book itself, 10 Mar 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Great Books (Paperback)

As a former classics major, I have followed the debate over the western canon with a great deal of interest. But after slogging through Harold Bloom's "The Western Canon" for over a year and a half, this book was an absolute delight. David Denby reminds us just why these books are so important--they make you strugle to build a self, which is (or should be, anyway) the true purpose of education. I am also fascinated by how much his perspective has changed in the thirty years since he read many of the books in college. And in the chapter on Shakespeare--focusing on the parallels between King Lear and Denby's own relationship with his mother--the essay itself actually brought me to tears. I have been recommending this book to everyone I know, and now I'll recommend it to everyone I don't know...read it! It's amazing!

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book about great books!, 24 Jun 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Great Books (Paperback)

David Denby tells us that our everyday assumptions are arbitrary. He says power justifies itself by pointing to powerlessness as proof of incapacity. Gems of wisdom like these appear throughout this book. "Being examined is one of the things you become an adult to avoid," he writes. "Once you pass twenty-five, you learn how to cover your weaknesses and ignorance and lead with your strengths. Every adult, by definition, is a corner-cutting phony; experience teaches you what to attend to and what to slough off, when to rest and when to go all out." One of my criteria for a great book is finding I dread being finished reading with it. Such was the case with this one. Denby's work is truly inspirational for those who wish to uphold the sanctity of ideas. Highly recommended.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A very readable and intelligent piece of writing.
AN APPRECIATION OF THE GREAT BOOKS.

Enjoy this gentle introduction to some great books. Great books are dangerous, powerful and they are addictive. Read more