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Coming Full Circle: The Platypus Reads Part LVII



This string of posts began with a brief review of my three favourite books. The first two, "The Lord of the Rings," and the "Oresteia" became the subjects of the opening reviews. The Third, Tennyson's "Idylls of the King," fell behind and it's only just now that I'm reading it again.

I read "Idylls of the King" in my tenth grade year and it changed my life. When I was asked this past summer if I would take over 10th grade Literature, I made sure to add it to the reading list. Right now, my students are beginning "Jane Eyre," but once that's done, we'll be moving on to Tennyson. I'm interested to see how it goes over.

The problem with having favourite books from when you were a kid is that somewhere, deep down, you're afraid that you'll stop liking them. There's that worry that the day will come when adulthood sinks in and the poetry ceases to enchant and the depths of meaning are plumbed. Diving in for what must be my seventh or eighth time, I can say with confidence that the poetry has only grown more powerful and the depth to be plumbed ever deeper. In a world where so much comes up dry, that's a comfort.
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