☯Emily ’s Comments (group member since Jul 27, 2011)

☯Emily ’s comments from the Classics for Beginners group.

Usually Penguin is a good translation: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... might be a good option.

Nina wrote: "So far I have only read one out of my goal of 12 (though, thanks Goodreads for encouraging me that I am on track..) but that was War and Peace, which I had been meaning to read for years..."

I don't remember The Scarlet Letter being written in Middle Ages English. It takes place in the colonial period of the US.

Holly wrote: "Anyone interested in reading Middlemarch, The Idiot, or East of Eden with me?"

Wow! You don't pick short books. Sorry, but I have too many other long books to read right now.

Still here. Posted messages on every thread I could find on the Goodreads Feedback thread, including one called "Compliments for Goodread staff." That got their attention since they like to read the compliments. Since my complaint wasn't a compliment, my problem was fixed the next day!

Thanks for your kind words.

Hortense almost seems like a caricature, except I have met a few girls like her. My son (same one as mentioned above) was accused by his first girlfriend of being stingy and tight-fisted. So, when he had another girlfriend, he went in the opposite direction. He bought her everything she wanted AND gave her a credit card in his name. Can anybody guess what happened? She maxed out his credit card, leaving him $50,000 in debt. He declared bankruptcy before he was 25. It is amazing that greedy girls can quickly find their prey and stick their claws into them. Who knows what kind of life Clyde would have had if that relationship with Hortense hadn't been stopped.

I don't know when the term 'peer pressure' came into common usage, but the author clearly understands the concept. Beginning in Chapter 7 and continuing throughout much of Book 1, he shows how Clyde succumbs to a lifestyle that is the opposite of how he was raised. At first, he has doubts that his friends are doing the right thing, but he is easily led and persuaded. He doesn't have the strength of character to stand up to his friends. His own desire to be popular and well-dressed leads him to become an utterly selfish young man. Yet, he is so typical. I have a son much like Clyde, so knowing Clyde becomes the American Tragedy fills me with much disquiet.

Margaret wrote: "Thank you, Emily. Do members try to read at the same rate?"

No. We put up the threads for the entire book and people read at their own pace. You can also read the book later and make comments since the threads will remain open for a while.

The January selection is listed on the home page which is here: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/.... Since An American Tragedy is very long, we are reading this over two months.

Thanks for joining us. I am reading several French Canadian authors. I loved The Tin Flute by Gabrielle Roy.

Glad you can join us!

I have started reading this book. My tome is about 5 pounds with 556 pages. Each page has two columns. This is a limited edition book with illustrations by Reginald Marsh. It was published in 1954, the year that Mr. Marsh died. My book also has a dust cover. I will not be taking it with me on my travels.
For more on Mr. Marsh: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reginal... and a sample of his work: http://eeweems.com/reginald_marsh/lar...

Faust has been nominated twice over the past few months and has come in twice both times. May be that the third time is the charm.

Nina, I don't know what I did, but the challenge is now on the home page!

Nina wrote: "I just set up a 2017 Classics Challenge as it seems that challenges are much loved, by some of us at least. The challenge runs from 01 January - 31 December 2017. You define which shelf will count ..."

Priya wrote: "I couldn't see Classics challenge on homepage like the previous year's. I had to go to challenges page to find it, but it was easier if it was on homepage.

Moderators, Can you please get it displ..."

Nina, do you know how to put the challenge on the home page? Nicolle has always done it before.

LeonardusThe wrote: "Utopia by Thomas More? I am not very willing to lead discussion."

What language was this written in?

Charlotte wrote: "Can I nominate All Quiet on the Western Front?"

I'm assuming the original publication was in German? If so, it is eligible.

Priya wrote: "I couldn't see Classics challenge on homepage like the previous year's. I had to go to challenges page to find it, but it was easier if it was on homepage.

Moderators, Can you please get it displ..."

We'll see if we can do that for you.

I'm nominating a Polish writer who won the Nobel Prize: Henryk Sienkiewicz. I'm nominating Quo Vadis. I can lead.

Thanks for setting these threads. I hope to join you!

The Forsyte Saga is a very long classic that is very easy to read. If it were nominated and won, it would be read over a two month period.

In this group, we consider a book a classic if it is still read and relevant after 59 years. The Forsyte Saga certainly qualifies as a classic.