New Year Challenge: Read a Classic Book (aka: Mark Twain's biblical comedy gold)

 So, my friend has a New Year's Resolution to create a book club that reads only classics. She sent me a text: "Are you in?" 

I resolutely hate classics. I've tried many over the years and with the exception of a few, in the words of Ella Fitzgerald, I just can't get started. However, in the interests of being a good friend and challenging myself, I agreed to partake. I then set about trying to find a classic book I hadn't already read that I thought I might vaguely be able to tolerate. My initial thought was a dead philosopher, something like Thoreau. I went down an internet rabbit hole for hours trying to find a few books in different genres when I struck upon complete gold.

I found a public domain PDF of Mark Twain's "The Diaries of Adam and Eve". Technically, this is two short stories by Mark Twain, which were later merged together. This is the funniest thing I have ever read. 

Whether you have any interest in the Bible or the Christianity at all is irrelevant, as this book is absolute comedy. It is a short, painless read (just over 20 pages), amazingly concise in its wording, and had me in hysterics as I read it. It's basically two people trying to make sense of a novel new world where they don't understand the rules. The intellect needed to come up with a book like this is mind-blowing, as it completely strips away everything we know and understand and writes with curious eyes. 

I particularly loved the diary of poor Adam, who is absolutely befuddled and annoyed by Eve and her confusing female ways.



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