I read for topical as well as contemporary content. I finished reading all of the classics I cared to a long time ago. They may be well written, but they lack the necessary interest that would captivate me and provide value of thought. While quite a bit of the current production is want for good, wholesome plot perhaps, it contains material I can better relate to, find more relevent to modern times, and stimulate the creative processes enough to keep my attentions.

This is not to say that we can't gain from reading of the adventures of Ulysses, or Gremio, or even a more recent Huck Finn. Surely much of the classic literature contains veritable sagas of the human condition and lessons which are ageless. I find that the more modern the writing, the more compelling the message in general, simply because it is often more relevant, and therefore more interesting to me. Critically it may not approximate the caliber of the classics. I attribute this decline in literature mainly to the expeditious nature of modern life, and the diminished standards by which our recent talent have been educated in the language arts. Good writing is timeless in quality, but often superceded by more current events.