Since I finished my college level English class, I haven't read many books. Very few of them have been "classics", well regarded books that have usually been out for a long time. Some of my favorites are The Catcher in the Rye and The Great Gatsby. On my list to read are On the Road by Jack Kerouac and The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. What are some of your favorites? Any classics you'd like to read but haven't found the time?
I have may all stashed on my bookcase and on my kindle. Among them are Wuthering Heights and Crime and Punishment. I did begin to read them both, but as I was down and they are both dark books, I needed something to cheer me up instead. I do have to be in the mood to read them, and I like to read them in one go if I can.
Can we say Flowers for Algernon is a classic? Because I read it in my English class and it really struck me, it's so beautiful and sad. I also love the short stories from Edgar Allen Poe (the goosebumps I felt when reading those!), and those can be considered more classical than the first story.
I’ve mentioned previously that I went through a spurt of reading some of the classics I’d always meant to read. There were a handful I didn’t enjoy at all, but those I did enjoy included Brave New World, Candide, The Time Machine, The Stranger, The Metamorphosis, Venus in Furs, Fahrenheit 451, A Clockwork Orange, Siddhartha, The Bell Jar, and probably a few others I’m forgetting. Those were definitely the most memorable, though. I’ve never read Hemingway and I’ve always meant to get around to it. James Joyce as well, but his work intimidates me a bit…
A Tale of Two Cities is one of my favourites. I'm a bit eh on a lot of Dickens novels, but Two Cities is an excellent blend of quasi-courtly behaviour and bloody conflict. If you want an interesting story about the French Revolution, that's the book to read. I also agree with sissibombix on anything by Poe. I have a giant collection of all of his stories, and I break it out every few months for a re-read. He was an excellent writer, and sadly under-appreciated in his time. I've started, but not finished, The Great Gatsby. I honestly couldn't say why I haven't finished it yet. It's so tiny.
One of my definite favorites Little Women. I really loved the story of the March sisters, although it did end in a sad tone for me. And of course, there's Romeo and Juliet. Sadly, the one I read is the "turned into a novel" one because I can't take reading the original Shakespearean script. I'm not sure if this also counts as classical, but I also really love the Sherlock series.
Dracula. I love reading that book every since I was a kid. Although it feels really cheesy now and it is cheesy back then, but it makes it even more interesting and entertaining to read. It makes me feel like a kid again back in the days where everything feels like a Halloween afternoon.
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens was a really great read - a bit long, albeit, but it was worth the time. There is also North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell, a really great story about the industrial revolution and the conflicts and class statuses that arose from it. BBC also made a mini series of it, which was very well caste and executed. I highly recommend both.
Is the The Hobbit book considered a classic? Because if it is, then that is my ultimate favorite book in the classic genre. I think i only read it twice so far but man whenever i read it, it gives me that weird happy feeling that i just can't explain. lol I just tune out the outside world completely and the world of adventures and faraway places and monsters suddenly are what my world is all about. It's really an amazing experience, even if i read it twice, it just gives me the same feeling as the first time reading it.
As many people are wondering what is considered a classic I also wonder if we can put Agatha Christie under that category. If so "And Then There Were None" is my all time favorite. This is the book that really changed the way I looked at mystery books, I was always a fan of them but this threw my young brain at the time for a whirlwind and I loved it.
