Since I’m a bit stalled on the classics readalong that Karen and I are supposed to be working on (I just don’t feel like reading Walden right now), I thought I’d join some other readalongs, reserving the right to change my mind as I go along. The first one started last week:

Once Upon a Time II (hosted by Carl)

Once Upon a Time…

For me these four words conjure images of four classifications of story: Fantasy, Folklore, Fairy Tales, and Mythology. These four classifications, or genres, or subgenres of story can exist separately or in various combinations but their one common factor in my mind is that they can all very easily begin:

Once Upon a Time

Carl offers a number of options, but I think I’m going to pursue Quest the Third:

Fulfill the requirements for … Quest the Second* AND top it off with a June reading of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

The challenge runs from the first day of spring through the last.

*Quest the Second: Read at least one book from each of the four categories. In this quest you will be reading 4 books total: one fantasy, one folklore, one fairy tale, and one mythology.

The books I’m hoping to read are:

• Fantasy: The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman
• Folklore: Mules and Men by Zora Neale Hurston
• Fairy Tale: The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
• Mythology: The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan

Don’t those sound like interesting choices? Any other takers? Karen? Grey Kitten? Jenn?

This book review, which The Morning Times pointed me to, has me intrigued.

Maryanne Wolf’s Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain sounds fascinating and I can’t wait to add it to my list of books to read in 2008.

(Speaking of which, my Into the Shelves feature will return on April 1 with what I’ve been reading since the beginning of the year.)