And so a new year of reading begins. As I continue my decade-long foray into the great literature through history, I undertake the 17th Century, bookended a little, from the final years of Queen Elizabeth to the final years of Louis XIV. I plan to go to about 1715 and marvel at the halfway point, that I will have covered about 2000 years of civilization in half a decade, while the other half will cover just 300 years and be by far the greater challenge.
Major tomes to tackle will include Burton's Anatomy of a MelancholyThe Diary of Samuel Pepys, Newton's Principia, Spinoza's brief but dense Ethics, and Bayle's Historical/Critical Dictionary. Since mysteries set in historical times add some fun to the enrichment, I'm continuing to look for those as well. I've found Edward Marston, Leonard Tourney, Susanna Gregory and Laura Joh Rowland, who explore the Elizabethan and Jacobean stage; the Restoration, and 17th Century Japan. If anyone knows of others set in the time, especially King Louis XIV's court or the Cromwell/Commonwealth period, please let me know. Otherwise, I hope we all enjoy the trip.
In this month's post:
Discourse on Method/Meditations, by Rene Descartes
The Sceptikal Chymist, by Robert Boyle
The Syntagma Philosophicum, by Pierre Gassendi
Paradise Lost by John Milton
The Gormenghast Trilogy, by Mervyn Peake
Pale Fire, by Vladimir Nabakov
...and the usual assortment of historical mysteries from the era.
Enjoy!