Julianne's Progress

[Julianne]

These are the named books:
1 The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien
2 1984 by George Orwell
3 Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
4 The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
5 To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
6 Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
7 Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
8 The Lord of the Flies by William Golding
10 Hamlet by William Shakespeare
11 The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
12 The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank
13 The Bible by Various
14 Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling
15 Alice´s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
16 Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
17 The Outsider by Albert Camus
18 Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
19 A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
20 Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
21 One flew over the Cuckoo´s Nest by Ken Kesey
22 The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
23 The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (less)

[Siarhei]

Good progress! Would you like to share some thoughts on one of these: Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, The Grapes of Wrath, Frankenstein?

I've seen movies movies of The Lord of the Rings, but not going to the book soon. I'm picking up different books and authors from the group list and avoid big series. The same goes with Harry Potter.

[Julianne]

Jane Eyre I loved, although it has been a few years since I've read it. Such a dark shadow over her life.... and yet she survives and keeps pushing forward. I'm not sure I could have done it.

Frankenstein - one of my favorites, and I've read it a few times now. For a short(er) novel - there are so many layers to it! Themes of forgiveness- and unforgiveness. What it means to be human, what it means to create. And what is our responsibility for that which we create? Mary Shelley's masterpiece is rich with symbolism as well. One of my favorite parts of the book is when she is describing Frankenstein's monster (he never had a name! To be without a name is to be without identity.) She described his yellow eye, (not eyes...). Did he just have one? And the color yellow is meant to infer 'sulfur' which was considered symbolic of the fires of hell. Now I want to go re-read this again and really dig in! It's been at least 5 years since I've been though it.

What about you? What thoughts do you have on these books?

[Siarhei]

Frankenstein was the most horrible of them. There was always some tension while reading. The book I read had some introduction. I liked reading the author's biography. The symbol of hell through a yellow fiend's skin I've felt too. The book was also frightening by a constant feeling of obsession within Frankenstein's mind. I didn't like the diaboloc nature of the creature. It was too much I think.

[Sanjana]

I have read some of the above mentioned books like Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Frankenstein,Wuthering Heights, etc
These books are amazing and I would specially like to recommend Pride and Prejudice and Wuthering Heights which are soul stirring novels. Pride and Prejudice has loads of humor in it and the book successfully grasps the interest of the reader throughout the course of the story.
I was wondering if anyone has read the book- Catcher in The Rye... I feel like reading it but have received mixed reviews about it. Kindly share your reviews and broaden my perspective...