January's 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime

[Joanna]

I see the lists all the time- 100 books to read in a lifetime. 100 books that are supposedly good for my literary soul. 100 books so good, I shouldn't die without having read them (and I assume if I do die before I read them, my ghost will come back to haunt the library until they are read).

In all seriousness, though, there really are some books that are just that good. The last challenge for this year is to read, or at least start making a crack at reading, those 100 books.

Now, every list of 100 is different. I found one that I like, that I think has a good mix of fiction books for all types. Each month, I'm going to post a couple for us to try. Read one. Read none. Read them all. If you've already read them, comment and tell us what you thought of them. Do they deserve to be on this list?

January's 8 are:

1984 by George Orwell

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Germinal by Emile Zola

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Tess of the D’urbervilles by Thomas Hardy

Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray

Happy reading!

[Ann]

Of these I've only read 3: 1984, The Catcher in the Rye, and A Christmas Carol. I think I'll try The Alchemist. At the moment I'm reading a series by Lauren Dane, and a history of the Romanov dynasty (from Michael to Nicholas II). I've also got Ink & Bone on hold for the Take It or Leave It Challenge.

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[Ashley]

It's funny; I own two shirts from the awesome Out of Print clothing line , and they are both books from your list - 1984 and The Great Gatsby. 1984 is forever my terrifyingly prophetic favorite. I know The Great Gatsby isn't for everyone, but I've read it so many times (some for fun, some for class assignments) that I am pretty sure I can recite the whole thing aloud.

I think I read The Catcher in the Rye too late in life. If I'd read it as an angsty 13-year-old, it probably would have resonated with me. As it were, I just wanted to punch Holden in the face for the entirety of the novel.

[J]

I'm thinking of trying Vanity Fair - we will see though... I haven't read anything else on this list so far.

[Joanna]

Ann wrote: "Of these I've only read 3: 1984, The Catcher in the Rye, and A Christmas Carol. I think I'll try The Alchemist. At the moment I'm reading a series by Lauren Dane, and a history of the Romanov dynas..."

I've only read A Christmas Carol which I did like, as it's that iconic Christmas story. But I actually really liked Dickens' other Christmas story, The Cricket on the Hearth, better.

Oh, Ink and Bone. I loved that book. Loved it. However, it made me cry. But it is really good. I have the sequel on my shelf to read.

Ashley wrote: "It's funny; I own two shirts from the awesome Out of Print clothing line , and they are both books from your list - 1984 and The Great Gatsby. 1984 is forever my terrifyingly prophetic favorite. I ..."

So Out of Print clothing line is AMAZING. I could spend way too much money there (more if they did Tolkien). Thank you for introducing us. Lol

I think I might go for 1984. I've actually never read it.

Jennifer wrote: "I'm thinking of trying Vanity Fair - we will see though... I haven't read anything else on this list so far."

I tried reading Vanity Fair once, a long time ago. Couldn't do it. Maybe now that I'm older it wouldn't be as bad. Lol

[Ann]

Ashley wrote: " I think I read The Catcher in the Rye too late in life. If I'd read it as an angsty 13-year-old, it probably would have resonated with me. As it were, I just wanted to punch Holden in the face for the entirety of the novel. "
That was my problem too. I just found him annoying, and only finished it to see what the fuss was about and to be able to say that I'd read it. :)

[R.N.]

I remember having to read Catcher in high school LOL I really want to read the classics, so I will dedicate reading at least one of these 100 a month!

[Joanna]

Becky wrote: "I remember having to read Catcher in high school LOL I really want to read the classics, so I will dedicate reading at least one of these 100 a month!"

I'm right there with you. I can't make all 100 in a year, but I'm definitely going to try and get to at least one new classic a month.