First off, I haven't read The Godfather by Mario Puzo, but I will eventually come to a point that I just have to

Teenagers today are exposed to very little of the classic world. I think it's good that high schools still somewhat enforces students to read the classics. The thing about Cliff Notes and the Internet is that they are only useful if you're writing an essay and are definitely not useful if you're taking a test.

What young people have to understand that there are books other than Harry Potter that exist. The world of literature is huge and very rich. Yeah, there are some older books that I just couldn't bare to read on (like The Once and Future King) but there are also books that defines the greatness of literature. But young people should choose what they would like to read. Just because they are searching for classics doesn't mean they are obligated to read Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, and Charles Dickens ... there are so much more writers out there to choose from.

As for classic movies, I'm a sucker for them. (That reminds me that I still have to watch Citizen Kane!) But I think my first exposure to them is when I saw The Godfather. I think anyone who is interested in starting off in watching classic movies should definitely check out The Godfather because you will be surprised of how different it is from today's pile of junk we get from the movies (apparently, Crash is 2005's best film). But the 70's was just a really good decade for film.