"How to Read Literature Like a Professor" by Thomas C. Foster

When should a book that resides in the “Teen” section of the library present itself in the Adult Book Blog? In this reader’s opinion, it has its place when the book is “How to Read Literature Like a Professor” by Thomas C. Foster (Call number: Teen 808 Foster).

In spite of the somewhat intimidating tone of the title, this 299 page soft cover volume is fun to read, especially for readers of all ages who love to read about reading. Author Thomas Foster, Professor of English at the University of Michigan at Flint, writes in a conversational style that makes some of us wish we could be a “fly on the wall” in his lecture hall. Those adult readers who often re-read literature will enjoy Professor Foster’s take on works that challenged us as teen readers, some of which selections continue to present less than an “easy read” for mature bibliophiles.

The author includes a suggested reading list ranging from familiar fairy tales to Joyce’s “Ulysses.” He also offers a few titles he terms as “Master Class,” as well as secondary sources to guide the reader through literary pilgrimages. It’s a short, funky, do-it-yourself travel guide through a few fields of the Western Canon, a place to begin- to either explore their mysteries or to revisit them in order to unravel the maze.

I give it a thumbs-up and will re-read it in portions as time goes by.

However, witty and lighthearted as Foster’s style may be, some young teens may not have yet been introduced to enough of the literary examples used throughout his book to induce them to read it through. Therefore, if for no other reason, I believe “How to Read Literature Like a Professor” should share the spotlight in a blog designated for those of us who once were “teens.”

Patricia Salerno