Journal: 10/09/05

I finally finished Dickens’ Little Dorrit this morning, and now I can’t wait to start re-reading my favorite parts. Like a traveler who has just made his first tour of a beautiful and exotic island, I don’t even want to take a short breather before I start retracing my steps through some of the most interesting parts of the book. Reading this book has been a marvelous adventure, and I don’t want the adventure to end. Like a traveler who has all the time in the world and no deadlines to meet, I’m looking forward to casually revisiting this story. What I’m especially eager to do is take a closer look at some of the many characters in the novel. I met at least a dozen important and intriguing people in my journey through these 800+ pages, plus another dozen less important ones, and I feel like I want to get to know them better. I probably totally missed some vital information about these characters – information that might help me understand them better. I also missed, I’m sure, some central themes in the book. One example is Miss Wade’s notion of predestination. Perhaps, on my second visit to the book, I can pick up that thread and carefully follow it to the end. Why would I want to pack my bags and quickly rush away from a beautiful island like this wonderful novel by Dickens? Surely the next great book I want to explore will wait a week or so.