A Modest Proposal - Jonathan Swift

For some reason, this is on the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die list. Not that it isn't worthwhile reading, but it's a five page essay, not a book. Nevertheless, I figured it was an easy way for me to get one step closer to the 1001 goal! I'm not a huge fan of Jonathan Swift. This disappoints me because he is a satirist, and he comes up with wildly crazy characters and stories - I usually love these qualities in a writer. But, he just doesn't work for me - maybe because he's so old (this was written in 1729), I don't quite get the humor/political statements. "A Modest Proposal" is Swift's solution to Irish poverty, and comment on England's tyrannical rule. I read it in college, and unlike most things I re-read, I think I probably understood it better back then. I think Swift was the Stephen Colbert of his time. Quirky and witty to some, simply lost in translation to others.