A classic is a book that gives the exhilarating feeling that a part of life finally has been uncovered. It is a book that has stood the test of time, that people keep reaching for throughout the ages for its special enlightenment. Here are some suggestions to help open up the world of the classics: (1) know if what is being read is a novel, a drama, a biography, or a history; (2) don't read in bed (classics can be tough going); (3) don't be thrown by a lot of characters; (4) give the author a chance and don't give up on the book too soon; (5) read in big bites; (6) read what the author read; (7) read about the author's time; (8) read about the author's life; and (9) read the book again. The following are a few classics worth trying: Homer's "Iliad" and "Odyssey"; Rabelais's"Gargantua and Pantagruel"; Geoffrey Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales"; Cervantes's "Don Quixote"; Shakespeare's plays, especially "Hamlet,""Macbeth," and "Romeo and Juliet"; Charles Dickens's "Pickwick Papers"; and Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn." (DC)