100 books to read before you die discussion
Everyone's Progress
>
Lisa's progress
date
newest »
newest »
73) The Secret GardenI preferred The Little Princess
81)A Christmas CarolI enjoyed this but kept seeing the Disney characters in my head
83) The Colour PurpleI read this as a teenager and cried buckets
84) The Remains of the DayA reflection on a life almost over, filled with regret and longing
87) Charlottes WebSalutations! What a wonderful story.
90) The Magic Faraway Tree CollectionLoved this as a kid. I practiced learning to read to this books, aided by my dad who enjoyed the stories as much as I did
93) Watership DownAkin to Animal Farm with its descriptions if social behavior
97) The Three MusketeersSo basically when a bunch of guys are left together unsupervised, they will always get into trouble together. Incredibly funny
98) HamletI'd love to see this performed
99) Charlie and the Chocolate FactoryLoved the Oompaloompas
45) The Woman in White I was expecting something creepier but this is a well-executed suspense tale with convincing villains, fading heroines and a heroine with a backbone of steel
Lisa wrote: "98) HamletI'd love to see this performed"
My University's theatre troup did this one year, and they did a phenomenal job!
Lisa wrote: "83) The Colour PurpleI read this as a teenager and cried buckets"
Ashamed to say I haven't read this yet, but definitely want to!
UCT has an outdoor theater where they perform Shakespeare yearly, I hope to be able to attend one day. I think you'd really enjoy The Color Purple.
I know, I've had tickets three times but never got to go. The first time, I had to do a stand-in call then, then it rained the next time. Two years ago was the great computer explosion of 2011, the day before a presentation was due.I am calamity prone.
How sad! When you do get to go, I hope that it exceeds your expectations and was worth all of the foiled attempts!
28 Grapes of Wrath – John SteinbeckOne of those books that is so ingrained in our culture that I read it knowing the outcome yet still read it with a fist in my throat.
53) Cold Comfort Farm – Stella GibbonsGibbons must be a fan of Austen as she tries to copy Austen's style.
But there are problems with this book
1)the air taxi and video phone really don't work in that setting
2) with the exception of Flora, none of the characters have consistent voices
3) a farm could not run like this
4) there is no true resolution
I am not sure this is a top 100 type of book
21 Gone With The Wind – Margaret MitchellOnce again I am baffled. This is not a bad book. But it's not a great book. It's islands of brilliance floating in a sea of mediocrity. I wish Mitchell had had a good editor able to rescue the book...
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan DoyleKind of cheesy
10 Great Expectations – Charles DickensI was not entranced
76 The Inferno – DanteHeavy going but good.
71) Oliver Twist – Charles DickensIt must be me, but I find Dickens heavy going. This tale could have been told in half the time, plus having just read Great Expectations, the books felt too similar.
61 Of Mice and Men – John SteinbeckIncredible
Lisa wrote: "71) Oliver Twist – Charles DickensIt must be me, but I find Dickens heavy going. This tale could have been told in half the time, plus having just read Great Expectations, the books felt too similar."
Charles Dickens is heavy-going. His books tend to be ponderous, and most of them are similar social commentaries on poverty in London at that time. His best two, in my opinion, are A Tale of Two Cities and Nicholas Nickleby aside from the short story: A Christmas Carol. He was paid by the word for most of his novels, which were originally published serially, so he wrote a lot of words.
Rachel wrote: "Lisa wrote: "71) Oliver Twist – Charles DickensIt must be me, but I find Dickens heavy going. This tale could have been told in half the time, plus having just read Great Expectations, the books ..."
Thanks. I usually enjoy social commentaries. But this was so slow. Now I understand...I didn't know that about the number of words!
I loved a Christmas Carol.
62) Lolita – Vladimir NabokovNobokov's literary style makes difficult subject matter easier to read, yet somehow still gives a sense of the horror of the situation
17 Birdsong – Sebastian FaulkEnjoyed the premise, but found the book to be slow going
93 The Wasp Factory – Iain BanksAbsolutely bizarre.
91) Heart of Darkness by Joseph ConradA trip up the Congo River. While the plot is interesting, it is somewhat lost in the telling of the tale.
67) Jude the ObscureReading Thomas Hardy's prose is like eating a tub of icrecream.
Each bite is deliciously complex, you savor it while wanting more. You try to read as quickly as possible to see what happens; yet as slowly as possible to prevent it from ending. And when you are done, you wish you had another.
The content however is in perfect juxtaposition to the melodic prose. Hardy focuses on emotional strife, difficult social circumstances, complex characters and societal prejudices.
Jude Fawley is raised by his aunt. He prizes highly prizes education and faith. Yet his decisions to live his life contrary to societal norms as far reaching repercussions.
70 Moby Dick – Herman MelvilleI found the ongoing descriptions of whale dismemberment simply too much.
66 On the Road – Jack KerouacDisappointed
Lisa wrote: "66 On the Road – Jack KerouacDisappointed"
I read a few pages of this and couldn't take more than that.
Always thought it would be an exciting reflection of his travels. Was very wrong...
It was too bleak and existential for me. I was expecting more.
Wow, I envy you!! I've read 12 of the 100 books and was stuck on Vanity Fair for a year! From the list of books to be read, I definitely recommend you to leave that book for last!!
A social commentary with a fantastical twist, really enjoyed it.