Where do I start

[Kate]

Hi all,
My name is Kate and my goal is to become a well rounded reader. Like many, I am intimidated by classic literature due to its "verbose" prose and length. I would really appreciate some suggestions I can formulate my classic reading list :) Topics of interest are women and class conflict.

Thank You

[Jeane, Book-tator]

Let me see, well,Madame Bovary, although I hesitate to put for the repricustions of some of our followers, lol! We had it for a book pick a few months ago and no one really liked it, but our group was very small back then. I recommend Emma(which I LOVED) and Mansfield Park (which I did NOT love so much!) both women and class conflict though Emma not as much as Mansfield. Those are just off the top of my mind

[Lisa]

I would recommend Agnes Grey. It is amazing, an easy read, and it is all about class conflicts centered around a governess as she works in different homes. I am reading it right now for the first time and I can't put it down.

Also, there is an iPhone app called SparkNotes and it will help you understand what is happening in a lot of classics. Also, the Wikipedia articles about some books can be very helpful.

I hope you have a lot of fun reading.

[Diane L]

For class conflict I would recommend Hard Times by Charles Dickens (honest, it is a short one) or The Iron Heel by Jack London.

[Karena]

Lisa wrote: "I would recommend Agnes Grey. It is amazing, an easy read, and it is all about class conflicts centered around a governess as she works in different homes. I am reading it right now for the first t..."

I didn't know Sparknotes had an app. That is awesome, Lisa. Thanks.

[Richard]

The Awakening by Kate Chopin

[Selena]

Many of the classics I don't particularly like because I was forced to read and analyze them at school. I never understood why we couldn't just read them. Though I am willing to give a few another try. Maybe Crime and Punishment or A Separate Peace. I doubt however that I could stomach The Catcher in the Rye again.

[Karena]

Selena, that was definitely my idea about the classics which is why I wanted to help Jeane put the group together. It's nice to get away from that. :)

[Sally]

Edith Wharton is another author who deals with women and class struggle.

[Bian is always tired]

Jules Verne is always nice, especially Around the world in 80 days.

[Selena]

Karena wrote: "Selena, that was definitely my idea about the classics which is why I wanted to help Jeane put the group together. It's nice to get away from that. :)"

I don't think I could have appreciated East of Eden if I had read it in high school or earlier, though considering some of the things I was reading at 11 and 12 I might have.

[Rachel]

I started Jules Verne 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. DO NOT start with that. I can't get through 2 pages without falling asleep. Apparently his other books are better though.

[Anthony]

Rachel wrote: "I started Jules Verne 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. DO NOT start with that. I can't get through 2 pages without falling asleep. Apparently his other books are better though."

I didn't finish that one either. I too, am only recently getting into the classics, mainly through audio books. I wrote a blog post about the experience (http://ambjr.com/item/121-the-classic...?) I found Treasure Island to be a fun listen. Pride and Prejudice was another easy listen. I particularly enjoyed A Tale of Two Cities.

[Frederick]

Fuzzysquirt wrote: "Hi all,
My name is Kate and my goal is to become a well rounded reader. Like many, I am intimidated by classic literature due to its "verbose" prose and length. I would really appreciate some sugge..." Try anything by Emile Zola: Therese Racquin and Germinal are his definitive tomes, but Nana is a fascinating story - Paris in his day must have been a completely decadent city. Seriously, his books are very readable. They get to the plot and move it along without too many pages describing drainpipes or the wart on some minor character's nose.

[Frederick]

Rachel wrote: "I started Jules Verne 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. DO NOT start with that. I can't get through 2 pages without falling asleep. Apparently his other books are better though." Not much better! Some prose ages badly, and Verne's is a prime example, I believe. His plots seem pretty cranky, too, by modern standards. I wouldn't expend too much time on him. Wells is a little better.

[[deleted user]]

Anthony> I checked out your blog about audio books. I'm having the same experience. I've read a lot of classics (most of which I've enjoyed), but there were always a few works I couldn't get into. I find they are much more palatable as audio books. For example, I'm currently listening to Dante's Divine Comedy and it is fantastic. A good narrator is essential, someone who can do justice to the work. I never liked
Alice in Wonderland until I heard it read by Micheal Yorke.

[Anthony]

Donna wrote: "A good narrator is essential, someone who can do justice to the work. ...."

Totally agree. I had no idea how much of a difference the narrator could make; I thought the book is what counts and it speaks for itself. Yes, the words are the words, but a good narrator can add something to it dramatically and give you a good pace through the book.

I remember starting on A Tale of Two Cities in college and not getting very far in it. If anyone had problems with that book, give Paul Adams' recording of it a shot. He did a free LibriVox recording of it and it's fantastic.

A Tale of Two Cities read by Paul Adams

I'll add Micheal Yorke's reading to my list.

[Lazy]

Adam wrote: "I'm going to be a heretic and say that in my opinion, Wells comes over better in film than the original books. His writing style isn't as engaging as his plots are brilliant."

I'll echo that. Didn't enjoy The War of the Worlds or The Time Machine as much whilst reading them as I did thinking back to them afterwards.

If you're looking for an easy read and a relatively straightforward story, I'd recommend King Solomon's Mines. A personal favourite of mine, particularly for it being written for a low-wage bet!

[[deleted user]]

Anthony> My library has the Blackstone Audio version of A Tale of Two Cities narrated by Frederick Davidson (aka David Case). I'll give it a try. It might be awhile as I have so many things waiting on my book shelf including Great Expectations read by Simon Prebble. Maybe over the Christmas holidays.

[[deleted user]]

anything from Charles Dickens and Jane Austen would be a great start...

[Jeane, Book-tator]

Frederick wrote: "Rachel wrote: "I started Jules Verne 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. DO NOT start with that. I can't get through 2 pages without falling asleep. Apparently his other books are better though." Not..."

Rachel wrote: "I started Jules Verne 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. DO NOT start with that. I can't get through 2 pages without falling asleep. Apparently his other books are better though."

I read Journey to the Center of the Earth after catching an old, old movie of it late on television one night. I thought it had a woman character go with them in the book, but the book turned out to be rather sexist! It doesn't help that I used the feminist criticism lens to write most of my papers in college, so i trained myself to read looking for sexist aspects of literature, but still.... I might give Around the World in Eighty Days a chance because it's read aloud on audio by the audio-book-famous Jim Dale. Peter Pan was also read aloud by Jim Dale and I couldn't overlook the sexism in that book so we'll see.

[Frederick]

I'm not sure you can avoid sexism wherever you delve among the authors of the Edwardian era. Verne seemed to be unwilling to admit to the existence of women, and where he was forced to introduce a female element to the plot it was in the most peripheral way possible! A sign of the times, I guess.

I like Wells better for his non science fiction work. Try 'Kipps' or 'The History of Mr. Polly' maybe.

Oh, and am I missing something, or is dear old Conan Doyle absent from this discussion? Surely Sherlock should get a mention somewhere?

[Eduardo]

I would recommend To Kill a Mockingbird. It has an appealing story, easy prose and interesting plot.

[Alessia]

If you're interested in the themes of women and class I think you should read North and South It's something like Jane Austen meets Dickens: there's the romance but more importantly it's a story about the conflict between the values of southern, rural England and the industrialized north, between the landed gentry and the new rich, the manufacturers and also between masters and servants inside the factories (it's set during the tumultuous first years of the industrial revolution).

There are a number of very well-rounded characters that come from all kind of cultural and social backgrounds and the heroine is smart and independent (even if she's a bit naive at the beginning of the novel). One really couldn't ask for more.

The only thing that I found slightly off-putting was the author's constant insistence on religion which got a bit repetititve and contrived at times, but I suppose it was my problem after all.