Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

Hi - new to the group and just discovered this challenge over the weekend. I did some research, looked at the backlog of books on my kindle and thought I would give it a try. I was already part way through reading Murder on the Orient Express. While doing my research, I read the White Cottage Mystery, so hopefully I will be able to catch up!

Here is my list (updated April 9, 2018):

1850's - North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
1860's - Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
1870's - Little Men by Louisa May Alcott
1880's - The Forsaken Inn by Anna Katharine Green
1890's - The Blood of the Vampire by Florence Marryat
1900 - The Complete Tales by Beatrix Potter - read March 30 - ****
1910's - The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton
1920's - The White Cottage Mystery by Margery Allingham - read March 19 **
1930's - Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie - read March 17 *****
1940's - I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
1950's - Something by Patricia Highsmith

I will keep researching for something from the 1880s.

Leslie

Good luck on your challenge, Leslie.

Welcome to the challenge! I am reading North and South right now (almost finished!) and am really enjoying it. The Custom of the Country is also on my list -- hope that's a good one. I am a Wharton fan so I have high hopes!
FYI--You mention "something by Patricia Highsmigh." I will tell you that I am reading The Price of Salt right now and am liking it (writing style, setting, characters) so far (almost half way through). Also, I have read The Talented Mr. Ripley and Strangers on a Train and enjoyed those -- and they're all written in the 1950's, so they all fit the category. I'll be interested to see what you end up with by her, you might read something that I'll add to my list!
Have fun reading! :)

Welcome to the group and the challenge, Leslie R. I'm glad to see The Blood of the Vampire on your list, as that's one of the unknown variables on my list. I can attest to the quality of North and South, which coincidentally is currently leading the poll for the next montly read, so if you're patient and lucky, you may get to read it alongside the rest of the group.

In terms of the 1880s, I have The Story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner marked out on my plan, if that helps any.

The introduction for the 2010 edition of The Blood of the Vampire is available in Google Books. Now I'm intrigued.

Terris wrote: "Welcome to the challenge! I am reading North and South right now (almost finished!) and am really enjoying it. The Custom of the Country is also on my list -- hope that's a good one. I am a Wharton..."

Thanks for the welcome Terris and for the suggestions for Patricia Highsmith. I still haven't settled which of her books I will read but I will consider the ones you've suggested.

Aubrey wrote: "Welcome to the group and the challenge, Leslie R. I'm glad to see The Blood of the Vampire on your list, as that's one of the unknown variables on my list. I can attest to the qualit..."

Thanks Aubrey - I am saving North and South for the group read in May.

Hi again everyone,
Thanks for the welcome and encouraging words. I have been tied up with work since joining and since I sit in front of a computer all day, I tend to stay away from it during the evenings. I haven't been able to work out how to post and update from my ipad yet. I finally had a bit of a break today, so took the opportunity to update my list to include my 1880's selection and also to record that I finished the Collected Tales of Beatrix Potter.
Although Little Men is my 1870's selection, I am currently re-reading Little Women because PBS is broadcasting a new adaptation of this book in May. I read it as a child but my clearest memory of the story is from the Susan Sarandon/Winona Ryder adaptation, which I love. So I thought I'd reread the book to compare both adaptations.
My thoughts on Beatrix Potter will come later - I'm still processing.

Cheers,
Leslie

Just finished North and South and gave it 4 stars but really more like 3.5 stars. I found it hard to get into and, once into it, very uneven. The parts I liked, I really liked. For example, Margaret realizing the south has its negative side when Higgins says he's going to move there and she tells him it wouldn't suit him. That was the first time I liked Margaret. I also liked Thornton and his character development, from hard company man surprised by his attraction to this snobby girl from the south to recognizing his workers' needs through his relationship with Higgins. But I didn't like Margaret for most of the book so found the chapters about her hard going. And I found some of the plot development too fast. The ending was quite abrupt. I read on the group read page that this was serialized and that Gaskell didn't enjoy that format. For this reason, I would try another Gaskell novel.

I finished Blood of the Vampire on June 1 and gave it **. I liked the story because it was a very different take on vampires. But I found the racism hard to read. I didn't think the story fulfilled its potential.

I've just started Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton, but I keep being distracted by the Great American Read!

Here is my list updated June 27, 2018:

1850's - North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell - Read May 27, 2018 ****
1860's - Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
1870's - Little Men by Louisa May Alcott
1880's - The Forsaken Inn by Anna Katharine Green
1890's - The Blood of the Vampire by Florence Marryat - Read June 1, 2018 **
1900 - The Complete Tales by Beatrix Potter - read March 30 - ****
1910's - The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton
1920's - The White Cottage Mystery by Margery Allingham - read March 19 **
1930's - Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie - read March 17 *****
1940's - I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
1950's - Something by Patricia Highsmith

I really loved Custom of the Country and found The Forsaken Inn super fun. You are making good progress...keep it up!

Nice going!

Hi - I'm sorry I have been so behind in updating my challenge - I spend so much time in front of a computer during work hours that I don't want to spend time after work. And I can't figure out how to post on my iphone or ipad.

Anyway, I am 2 books short of my challenge as of January 2, 2019 - not sure whether I will finish them or just move them to a new challenge. I console myself that I read a number of other classics by women authors this year either as part of the monthly read on this group (The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West - excellent, gave it 5 stars) or as part of the Great American Read on PBS (Little Women and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn).

Here is my list updated to January 2, 2019:


1850's - North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell - Read May 27, 2018 ****
1860's - Lady Audley's Secret by Mary Elizabeth Braddon - Read Nov 25, 2018 ***
1870's - Little Men by Louisa May Alcott - read December 1, 2018 ***
1880's - The Forsaken Inn by Anna Katharine Green - Sept 2, 2018 - **
1890's - The Blood of the Vampire by Florence Marryat - Read June 1, 2018 **
1900 - The Complete Tales by Beatrix Potter - read March 30 - ****
1910's - The Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton - July 20, 2018 - ****
1920's - The White Cottage Mystery by Margery Allingham - read March 19 **
1930's - Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie - read March 17 *****
1940's - I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith - started in December 2018, not finished yet
1950's - The Talented Mr. RipleyPatricia Highsmith - not started yet

Still made great progress and had some great reads. The point is not to finish, but to enjoy. Happy reading in 2019.