Last year when my oldest daughter was a senior in high school, I started reading the classics along with her so we could discuss them and to encourage her to finish the books and no resort to notes. My plan didn't work, but it got me hooked on the classics (again - I loved literature in high school and college). Since last fall I've read A Tale of Two Cities, Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, War and Peace (yes, indeed), Great Expectations, and now Uncle Tom's Cabin. I feel like I'm missing some, but you get the idea. I am so enjoying these books. Anyone have a suggestion for my next choice?
I'm reading I Promised My Dad by Cheryl Landon Wilson. Is Little Women another one of them ?I'm not sure .I hated Moby Dick.Silas Mariner was another I couldn't get interested in.Is any of these some of your classics?
I just ordered Stearns Dictionary of Plant Names. Also reading Martha Grimes, "Dakota" , Baha'u'llah and the New Era. I also have books in every part of the house. GG
How about Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen? I always liked that one...a good story about the power struggle between the head and the heart! Amazon does a good job of segregating genres, and they list a large number of "classics" on their website. Here's the link to Amazon's list of classics: http://www.amazon.com/Classics-Lite..._m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=126WM951HBF6YYNMCGC6 I'm a librarian, and love the recommendations by Nancy Pearl (a librarian with her own "Action Figure")!!! She has two books called Book Lust and More Book Lust where she gives many recommendations for any reader. I'd also recommend that you try some of her recommendations.
I've just re-read "A town like Alice" by Neville Shute, but that's not really a classic. I've fetched up "Hunger" by Knut Hamsun, a book every Norwegian student has to read.
I keep passing over Sense & Sensibility because I've seen the movie. I much prefer to read the book first. I hate to know how things end. But I imagine that the book is so much better that I'd enjoy anyway. Good idea.
Here are a couple of books by John Steinbeck: The Pearl -(1947) We read this classic novella in high school as a class. It is tragic, but it really keeps your interest . . . It is about a poor Mexican family who find out that riches do not mean much in the face of tragedy. I loved it as a teenager. Grapes of Wrath -(1939) I read this novel in college. It ends nothing like the movie . . . although the movie was good. (B&W - Henry Fonda) It is about a poor sharecropper's family who travel in their old broken down vehicle to the Salinas Valley during the Great Depression. Mr. Steinbeck followed migrant families, and camped along with them during this time which I am sure helped him write his book. The Good Earth -(1931) Pearl S. Buck This novel is about a poor Chinese family who works for a wealthy household. It tells of their rise out of poverty, and the struggles they face, as they are farmers. Night - (1955) Elie Weisel - This is a true story (autobiographical account) of a Yiddish boy, and his tale of his family during the Holocaust. I read this during high school, and though it was horrible . . . it gave me a great admiration of the Holocaust survivors. The Hiding Place (1971) Corrie Ten Boom (w/ John & Elizabeth Sherrill) is another holocaust book which is true. It gives a young woman's account of how the Nazi invasion changed her life. She and her family were hiding Jews, and suffered a lot of consequences for it. The movie is nothing in comparison to the book. It is Corrie's record of God working miracles even through hopeless circumstances. The Jungle - (1906) Upton Sinclair - tells the story of families who worked for meatpacking plants, and their struggles. It is spellbinding. I love reading books about the struggles of people, and how they resiliently somehow come through although maybe the result isn't always sugar coated. I hope this sparked some interest for all. PS . . . If anyone decides to read one of these books, how about letting me know how you liked them. Some of the authors won Pullizer prizes for their work.
I read The Hiding Place as a teenager not many years after it was published. It is a fantastic book. I was just thinking the other day that it might be time to read it to my children (I homeschool our 3 younger kids, 11, 13, and 16).
Great idea! My mother read this book to us. (See below) We loved curling up next to her while she read to us. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boxcar_Children
I have read "Women Who Run With The Wolves" by Clarissa Pinkola Estes....have recent bought it on audio cassette and have been listening to it while knitting. It's myths and stories about finding, accepting and releasing the 'wild' woman inside who has been kept locked away in women for hundreds of years because of what other's tell you is the proper way to live.
Reading I'm working my way through Oprah's book list. I find almost every book a good read. Right now I'm reading Midwives. I'm only on page 4 but it's already got my interest.
I've just read "The Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follett. I found it a very good read, and also discovered that there's a book no 2 out. I'll be hunting that down later this autumn.
Pillars of the Earth is a good read - it is definitely one that you can just sit and get lost in! I am reading Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. It is a true and incredible story about his life, from being arrested for armed robbery in Australia, to his escape to India and all that he did there...it is well written and so interesting!
