How to Read Literature Like a Professor

This book was summer reading for my AP Lit Class. I am a little bit closer to understanding literary symbolism (this book is 100% about literary symbolism), but not nearly as proficient as Mr. Foster demonstrates himself to be. That's a little disappointing, but then again, I'm not an actual English professor, so I still have time.

Mr. Foster's narrative voice is funny and frank, but even so, this book nearly put me to sleep a couple of times. Mostly because each chapter, based on one idea in symbolism (the Christ-like figure, or the symbolism of seasons). He goes on for pages and pages listing where these symbols can be found in literature and what they mean in that context. This is very helpful, but also very repetitive. There's probably a SparkNotes outline that can clarify Mr. Foster's ideas for you without all of the bulk, and while you will lose some of the background info or concrete examples, that might not be such a loss. Honestly, you can get a pretty high percentage of the book's ideas from the chapter titles alone.

I wouldn't tell you to read this book for fun, but if you've got a good reason to be seeking information on literary symbolism, How To Read Literature Like A Professor is probably one of your better choices. And it's probably going to be a really good reference text for AP Lit this fall.