Tough-O-Meter

We've got your back. With the Tough-O-Meter, you'll know whether to bring extra layers or Swiss army knives as you summit the literary mountain. (10 = Toughest)

(9) Mount Everest

The Canterbury Tales are in Middle English. We're not going to lie to you – Middle English is really hard to read. At first. It takes a lot of practice, a lot of studying pronunciation guides and glossaries and reading aloud to get it. But the good news is that learning to read Middle English can be fun. And once you learn how to do it, you get to read Chaucer, which is even more fun. So break out the crib sheets and glossaries, and dive in! (Pssst: Check out "Best of the Web" for some resources to help you learn Middle English.)