In the past couple of weeks I’ve discovered two used book stores, I don’t know if they are new or just new to me. They were all $1 (the second store had hardcovers for $2). I got:

• Farenheit 451, Ray Bradbury (I’ve read this, but it was a long time ago so I think I’ll read again)
• Leaves of Grass, Walt Whitman
• Girl with the Pearl Earring, Tracy Chevalier
• The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
• Catch 22, Joseph Heller
• Madame Bovary, Gustave Flaubert
• The Bridges of Madison County, Robert James Waller (I borrowed my mom’s copy, wanted one of my own)

Before you BAWWW at me for omg not having read such an so novel, know that I am already aware of the strange gaps in my education. Some of it is my fault, for example, taking every British lit class I possibly could in college left me woefully ignorant of American Lit in general. Also, I sometimes straight up skipped reading some assigned texts, simply because I didn’t have enough time to complete all of my assigned readings. Some of it was the result of progressive teachers I had in high school, who exposed me to contemporary authors (Keri Hulme, Alan Lightman, etc) instead of more “canon” authors, which got pushed by the wayside.

That’s why I’m excited about these used book stores, it will give me a chance to fill in the gaps of my education. Plus my goal this year was to read mostly ~literature~, so it seems this will help.