Classics for Pleasure

This is not your fathers list of classics. In these delightful essays, Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Dirda introduces nearly ninety of the worlds most entertaining books. Writing with affection as well as authority, Dirda covers masterpieces of fantasy and science fiction, horror and adventure, as well as epics, history, essay, and childrens literature. Organized thematically, these are works that have shaped our imaginations. "Loves Mysteries" moves from Sappho and Arthurian romance to Sren Kierkegaard and Georgette Heyer. In other categories Dirda discusses not only Dracula and Sherlock Holmes but also the Tao Te Ching and Icelandic sagas, Frederick Douglass and Fowlers Modern English Usage. Whether writing about Petronius or Perelman, Dirda makes literature come alive. Classics for Pleasure is a perfect companion for any reading group or lover of books.

MICHAEL DIRDA received the Pulitzer Prize for his literary criticism in the Washington Post Book World. He is the author of the memoir An Open Book as well as several collections of essays, most recently Bound to Please (a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Award) and Book by Book: Notes on Reading and Life. He lives in Washington, D.C.