Classics for Beginners discussion
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You think? I feel like I don't read enough... or fast enough...
Fast or enough of what?Looks impressive to me.
Seems pretty impressive I think. it's not about how fast or prolifically you read but how much you enjoy it and how much the books mean to you I say.
I have to say that this group has helped me add a lot more books to the list! The difficulty I am facing now is that I want to continue to read the monthly "group read" but as we read more "series" books (like Sherlock Holmes, and the Lord of the Rings trilogy) I am drawn to continuing to read the rest in the series... so little time...
Chris. Very impressive list! Love Steinbeck! Have you read any of his other works?
I read Of Mice and Men so long ago I almost left it off the list but I figured I remembered enough of it to list it. I was not my favorite work though I would be interested in trying it again as an adult...What is your fav Steinbeck?
Try his Tortilla Flat or The Grapes of Wrath. I have to read Of Mice and Men myself.
Of mice and men is a favorite of mine but as for his other works, I would recommend The Pearl, The red pony or travels with Charlie
Just finished the Complete Sherlock Holmes... that took a while!
Chris wrote: "Just finished the Complete Sherlock Holmes... that took a while!"Good work, that's my goal for this year. Only read 3 out of my anthology...
My favorites were A Study in Scarlett, the Hound of the Baskervilles, and the second half of the Valley of Fear...It also felt like Doyle's writing style changed a little after Reichenbach Falls but I couldn't quite put my finger on it...
Chris wrote: "My favorites were A Study in Scarlett, the Hound of the Baskervilles, and the second half of the Valley of Fear...It also felt like Doyle's writing style changed a little after Reichenbach Falls ..."
Well critics comment that he was reluctant to write Sherlock after Reichenbach since it was public pressure that resurrected Holmes...
Yes, I had read that as well... what I didn't expect was that I liked some of the later stories more than the earlier stories.
Just finished Gone with the Wind. I am curious for those that read and/or own a copy of this.The last sentence in chapter 58 of the Kindle addition I purchased reads: "Whereas, she, Scarlett — ". I found another electornic copy through Google which ends the same way. Can anyone confirm if this is the same in a print edition?
If so, is this an editing problem that slipped by since the 1930's? It is a curious way to end a chapter.
Hi Chris,I actually have a first edition of Gone with the Wind. The last sentence of chapter 58 is "Whereas, she, Scarlett-".
Did you enjoy the book? It is one of my favorites, I need to reread it.
There will be spoilers following...I have to say I did not care for Scarlett or the book until I was through the first third. The birth of Beau and the burning of Atlanta was a turning point for me.
It was interesting to read about the civil war from a southern perspective (although I do agree with others that the presentation of the Klan and slavery were biased and ridiculously simplistic but I digress)...
When Scarlett started to get into business (the store and mills) it reminded me of Atlas Shrugged, although better written and more engaging. She made a better Dagny Taggart than Dagny Taggart in my humble opinion.
It was some of the best relationship psychology I have read since Anna Karenina. The ending was heartbreaking. I am glad to have read it!
Gone With The Wind took me by surprise when I read it. While I found the 4-hour movie "never boring--though not always interesting," I was completely swept away by the book. I loved everything about it.
Squire wrote: "Gone With The Wind took me by surprise when I read it. While I found the 4-hour movie "never boring--though not always interesting," I was completely swept away by the book. I loved everything abou..."Hello Squire, I have never actually watched all of Gone With the Wind, the parts of the movie that I have seen I found rather boring. I totally agree with you about the book, it is one of the best I've ever read, quite a story!
Chris wrote: "Just finished Gone with the Wind. I am curious for those that read and/or own a copy of this.The last sentence in chapter 58 of the Kindle addition I purchased reads: "Whereas, she,..."
I'm reading it for the first time now :)
Just finished The Art of War. I heard it mentioned in a radio story on NPR about how it had a lot of great connections to the business world. I wish I found it more interesting than I did. Sadly, I am just glad it is over so I can move on...
Chris wrote: "Just finished The Art of War. I heard it mentioned in a radio story on NPR about how it had a lot of great connections to the business world. I wish I found it more interesting than I..."That's quite a long book, I haven't attempted it yet either
Finished reading the Iliad, one of the more violent books I have read, I ended up liking it more than I had expected although I had to switch to a prose version about 1/3 of the way through... re-reading The Odyssey next...
Does everyone that's read Don Quixote love it? I am 40% through it and I am having the hardest time getting into it...
Chris, I read Don Quixote a couple of years ago. I really liked parts of it, but on the whole it did not keep my interest. I finished it, because I am one of those that (almost) always finishes a book. It isn't one I would want to re-read.
Finally done with Bulfinch's Mythology, not my favorite, but I think I appreciate Don Quioxte at bit more after reading the stories about King Arthur and Charlemagne.
Don Quixote become one of my favorite books shortly after I started reading it. It was one of the most consistantly entertaining books (Part I & Part II--I count them as one) I 'd ever read.
Finished David Copperfield, I much preferred the first half of the novel... and Mr Micawber's role could have been reduced by at least 50% imho...
What???HERESEY!!!
Mr. Micawber was the best character in the book! I thought his role was too small.
;>P
Congratz on finishing it.
:>)
I've not read Copperfield yet, but am loving the humor in THE PICKWICK PAPERS.
Pickwick Papers - one of my favorites ☺
Ok, among the books I have read in 2017 are:Candide
1984 (second reading)
The Stranger
The Jungle (finished today)
I think the selections are seriously starting to depress me. I need to move on to some lighter classics... :-)
Finally got around to Moby-Dick or, The Whale. The writing style was different than I expected, but I liked it...
I read The Fellowship of the Ring back in 2012 as a group read with this group. I finally finished off the trilogy this year with The Return of the King.
Although not a classic itself, I am about to finish How to Read Literature Like a Professor and I am finding it interesting and worthwhile!
Classics for Beginners
Books mentioned in this topic
The Grapes of Wrath (other topics)Babbitt (other topics)
Babbitt (other topics)
The Scarlet Letter (other topics)
How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines (other topics)
More...
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Animal Farm
Anna Karenina
Antigone
The Art of War
Babbitt
Brave New World
Bulfinch's Mythology
Candide
Catch-22
The Catcher in the Rye
A Christmas Carol
The Complete Sherlock Holmes: All 4 Novels & 56 Short Stories
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
The Count of Monte Cristo
Crime and Punishment
David Copperfield
The Diary of a Young Girl
Don Quixote
The Epic of Gilgamesh
Fahrenheit 451 (2x)
A Farewell to Arms
The Fellowship of the Ring
Flowers for Algernon
Frankenstein
Gone with the Wind
Great Expectations
The Great Gatsby
Gulliver's Travels
Hamlet: By William Shakespeare
The Hound of the Baskervilles (2x)
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame
The Iliad
Jane Eyre
The Jungle
Les Miserables
Little Women
Lord of the Flies
Macbeth
Moby-Dick
1984 (2x)
The Odyssey (2x)
Oedipus at Colonus
Oedipus Rex
Of Mice and Men
The Old Man and the Sea
Oliver Twist
The Pearl
Peter and Wendy
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Pride and Prejudice
The Prince
The Prince and the Pauper
The Red Badge of Courage and Selected Short Fiction
Republic
The Return of the King
Romeo and Juliet
The Scarlet Letter
Slaughterhouse Five
The Stranger
The Sun Also Rises
A Tale of Two Cities (2x)
The Tempest
Tess of the D'Urbervilles
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Turn of the Screw
The Two Towers
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Walden
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
Wuthering Heights
Reading:
The Grapes of Wrath