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14 classic reads for the summer

By Jamshid Mousavinezhad | amNY.com

May 14, 2008

Classics can not only change your life, but even help to shape an entire country's self-image. Here are some classic 'national works' from the U.S. and beyond to put on your summer reading list.

China: Wu Cheng'en's Journey to the West, 1590s
One of the four classical novels of Chinese literature, this account of a Buddhist monk's journey to India mixes adventure with spiritual lessons.

Finland: Elias Lönnrot's Kalevala, 1835

The 22,795 verses compiled by Lönnrot from traditional Finnish sources is credited with an upsurge in national pride that led to Finland's independence from Russia in 1917.

India: Bhagavad Gita, between 5th-2nd centuries B.C.
An ancient Sanskrit text centering on a battlefield conversation between the god Krishna and master archer Arjuna, the 'Song of God' lays out the tenets of Hindu philosophy.

Iran: Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, 11th century
This epic poem tracing Iran's history and myths served to assert the country's identity after its conquest by Islam, and helped keep Persian separate from the Arabic language.

Italy: Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, 1321
The poem tracing the idealized Beatrice's journey through the underworld reflects both medieval Italian politics and the Church's view of the afterlife.

Japan: Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji, 11th century
Sometimes called the world's first novel, Genji centers around the life of an emperor's son--focusing on romance and the aristocratic class.

Nigeria: Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, 1958
50 years after it was written, the story of Okonkwo and his village's struggle to navigate colonialism, missionaries and tribal beliefs is still read all over Africa and the world.

Russia: Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace, 1865
This sprawling work set during Napoleon's invasion covers all the age-old great topics--war, love, society and death--through the prism of five families.

Spain: Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quixote, 1605
The dreamy man of La Mancha and his sidekick Sancho Panza go questing through the countryside in what may be the most influential Spanish-language work ever.

U.S.: Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, 1885
Twain's novel captures America in all its diversity, from its description of life along the Mississippi river to racism to a boy trying to find his place in a booming country.

Herman Melville's Moby Dick, 1851
Ahab, Ishmael and Starbuck have all made the jump from Melville's tale of the hunt for a great white whale into broader popular culture.

Ernest Hemingway's For Whom the Bell Tolls, 1940
Robert Jordan, the young American who volunteers for the anti-fascists during the Spanish Civil War, has made a strong impression on many readers--including Sen. John McCain.

Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man, 1952
This searing and highly-metaphorical novel follows a black man as he moves to New York and confronts his role in American society.

Jhumpa Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies, 1999
This slim, lucid collection of short stories that crystallize the immigrant experience might well be on required reading lists in 2050--get a jump by reading (or rereading) it this summer.