I whinge all the time about having not read enough of “the classics”, so I have FINALLY decided to do something about it by joining The Classics Club. Essentially, you get up to five years to read a minimum of 50 “classics”, which can include modern and genre-specific classics. Some of the following I have read before, a small number I studied at school and some I just recognise by their name. My five years will be up in March 2019, and when I have finished each book I will link it to its review on this blog…
- 1984 by George Orwell
- A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
- A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams4*- Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
- Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote
- Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
- Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
- David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
- Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
- Emma by Jane Austen
- Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton
- Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
- Franny and Zooey by J. D. Salinger
- Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell
- Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J. K. Rowling (of course!)
- I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
- Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
- Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
- Lord of the Flies by William Golding
- Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
- Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Wolff
- Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck4*- Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kasey
- Persuasion by Jane Austen
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
- Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare4*- Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
- The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
- The Beautiful and the Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
- The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
- The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
- The Colour Purple by Alice Walker
- The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank
- The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
- The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald3*The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas AdamsDNF- The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
- The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
- The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
- The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde
- The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
- The Time Machine by H. G. Wells
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee5*- Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
Ah,classic-haven! That’s a very good list,although Russian books are missing! 😉
I see that there are classics from the 19th,20th and late 20th centuries.
I read Frankenstein,which honestly was not that great.It was insightful as far as to know what the real story was about.
Mrs Dalloway was nice,but the stream of consciousness requires much concentration! It is a nice story,but … it does have its own peculiarities.
Hmm,Lord of the Flies and To Kill a Mockingbird are among the best modern classics of literature,even though they’re both different in mood and tone.The former is extremely gloomy while the latter isn’t at all! So,I will suggest To Kill a Mockingbird as a first read.It is a lovely book,with unforgettable characters,great morals and funny moments! Although opinions about books can differ,I have a hunch that you’ll like it. 🙂
There are also Catch 22 and The Catcher in the Rye which are public favourites!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for your comment kainzow! Can you recommend some Russian classics for me? I think they intimidated me a little! But if they come with a recommendation I’ll add them to the list.
I studied Frankenstein at school 8 years ago and thought I’d have a reread, it was interesting to see where the story originated but I also wanted to read it without studying it in that level of detail, I think sometimes that can take the enjoyment out of the whole experience.
There can be some very mixed reviews on the classics, it’s a very love/hate scenario but I’m determined to get through this list, and so many of them are so well known. Even though I haven’t read many of them I could list loads. I looked most of these up on Goodreads before adding them to my list to try and get a feel for the story.
It’s settled, To Kill A Mockingbird is my first read!
R
LikeLike
David Copperfield is my favorite Dickens novel! I hope you enjoy. Welcome to the club!
LikeLike
Thanks Melissa! Looking forward to this!
R
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLiked by 1 person
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLiked by 1 person
Really nice list Rachel! I’ve read a lot of these, and I think you’re in for a treat. 🙂 I know you like a mystery, so I’ll recommend Rebecca – it’s even got some paranormal aspects to it!
LikeLike
That’s reassuring!! I’m planning to do reviews at some stage (I know I’ve read some and not reviewed them yet! Bad blogger) so it’ll be great to compare notes! R x
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
[…] The Classics Club […]
LikeLike
You should come read Gone with the Wind with a few of us, May 1 through August 1. It’s casual! You know you want to!! 😀 Sincerely, a fellow clubber.
LikeLike
Hi Corinne! Thanks for the invite. Going to go check it out, and might even join you 😀 R x
LikeLiked by 1 person