Jane Eyre. Loathed it as a teen. So hard to understand back then (30+ years ago). Love it now.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:??? No one I know over 45 changed their taste in books as they aged. I'm 42 and like the same books I liked 10, 20, 30 years ago.

Really you like the same books as a middle aged person as you did when you were an elementary schooler? I’m going to guess you are the rare one. Most of mature in our understanding of issues and appreciation of well written language.

PP you replied to. I was an advanced reader in school, and read plenty of classics in my Scottish boarding school. What I enjoy is discovering more layers as I age. Also, I LOVE well written children's books. One of my favorites is Winnie the Pooh! I've read to my kids all my favorite children's classics, and they help me discover great contemporary children's novelists.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For me, Marianne Robinson is completely unreadable schlock. That was me in my 30s, 40s and now 50s. And my dad, who tried reading her in his 70s agreed.

Hahaha. I’m OP. Thanks for that; I’m off the hook! Thanks all for the other suggestions. I had seriously considered whether to read my HS kid’s English syllabus.

DP: Yes! And your own HS English syllabus as well. There are a few books that I read every decade or so, and it’s startling what that’s like with a more experienced perspective. I first read books like the Diary of Anne Frank, the Chosen, the Bluest Eye, and To Kill a Mockingbird when I was around 10 or so. I highly identified with the positions and challenges of the younger characters. In my late teens, I saw political themes and interpersonal dynamics. Later still, I saw systemic themes that I was able to compare and contrast with those found in other texts as well as in familiar societies. It’s all good!

Tldr: Go for it! Although I, personally, don’t plan to read either Moby Dick or Heart of Darkness ever again.

Anonymous wrote:For me, Marianne Robinson is completely unreadable schlock. That was me in my 30s, 40s and now 50s. And my dad, who tried reading her in his 70s agreed.

Hahaha. I’m OP. Thanks for that; I’m off the hook! Thanks all for the other suggestions. I had seriously considered whether to read my HS kid’s English syllabus.

Willa Cather's short story collection "Not Under 40" was one I read in college and want to re-read now that I'm in my 40s.

Anonymous wrote:??? No one I know over 45 changed their taste in books as they aged. I'm 42 and like the same books I liked 10, 20, 30 years ago.

Really you like the same books as a middle aged person as you did when you were an elementary schooler? I’m going to guess you are the rare one. Most of mature in our understanding of issues and appreciation of well written language.

Anonymous wrote:All the classics you read in high school. You wouldn’t believe how differently you feel about then as a middle-aged adult.

+1
Moby Dick was magnificent. As was Anna Karenina

Anonymous wrote:All the classics you read in high school. You wouldn’t believe how differently you feel about then as a middle-aged adult.

+1 much more appreciation for the writing, the story, and in some cases the underlying commentary on society.

??? No one I know over 45 changed their taste in books as they aged. I'm 42 and like the same books I liked 10, 20, 30 years ago.

All the classics you read in high school. You wouldn’t believe how differently you feel about then as a middle-aged adult.

Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner. Just exquisite.

Beloved, Toni Morrison

For me, Marianne Robinson is completely unreadable schlock. That was me in my 30s, 40s and now 50s. And my dad, who tried reading her in his 70s agreed.

Tehanu (read the rest of the series first but my mother swears it only gets better with age)

I hear Marianne Robinson books fall into this category. What do you recommend for readers over 45?