Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

Currently reading Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr, War with the Newts by Karel Čapek,and The Spectre General: The Golden Age Science Fiction Classic by Theodore R. Cogswell.

Starting
Love as Always, Kurt: Vonnegut as I Knew Him by Loree Rackstraw,a friendship memoir. I am readjngnthis before beginning my 2025 personal microstudy of Kurt Vonnegut.

Papyrus: The Invention of Books in the Ancient World by Irene Vallejo, a group read at one of my nonfiction groups.

Started Nausea by Jean-Paul Sartre and
Einstein’s Dreams by Alan Lightman

I am doing a challenge in another group and managed to use 2 classic books for it.

The Jungle Book and The Secret Garden

The Jungle book is on its way to me and I own a copy of Secret Garden.

Michele wrote: "I am doing a challenge in another group and managed to use 2 classic books for it.

The Jungle Book and The Secret Garden

The Jungle book is on its way to me and I own a c..."

I read The Secret Garden for the first time in ages last year - and it was just as good as I remembered. I hope you're enjoying it, too.

Cynda wrote: "Now that have finished reading 2001: A Space Odyssey, I am in awe. Thank you for cheering me as sci-fi is a reading fear/challenge that I keep being pleasantly surprised by."

Years ago I binged on Arthur C. Clarke. I also like 2001. May I suggest [book:Rendezvous with Rama|112537?

Continuing my Cabell reread 4 books down now
with The Cords of Vanity by James Branch Cabell [4/5] review

Also finished Einstein’s Dreams by Alan Lightman [3/5] review and started Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, the latter part of my attempt to read more from the group shelves.

Reading for the first time the 'Dune' series by Frank Herbert. My editions are in Russian. Currently on book 2, 'Dune: Messiah', Мессия Дюны

Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?
Each year I say I will read some more Jeanette Winterson writer of great metafiction--not just art for art's sake but art for the heart's sake.

Finished Nausea by Jean-Paul Sartre [3/5] review and
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston [2/5] review

Started The Waves by Virginia Woolf (which might be a 5-star) and an apocalyptic (probably satire) book A World of Women (1913) by J.D. Bereford. Not the version with that neat cover though.

I have been looking for a used copy of Lonesome Dove. No luck so far, but it is on my short list. I just finished Tropic of Cancer. And I just started Roman de Ronce et d'Épine.

I’m currently reading, To kill a mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseini, and a few others, you can check out my profile for the rest 😆

I just started The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumasfor another group along with a modern thriller/horror Hidden Picturesby Jason Rekulakfor another group.

A conversation on a different site led me to rereading Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold. Now I'm hooked again and will probably end up rereading most of them. lol A look at my GR record tells me I do this every 2-3 years, so I guess it's time!

I'm also reading The Law and the Lady by Wilkie Collins. I like it so much more than The Woman in White!

I've been savoring Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent by Judi Dench audio and ebooks, but they're due back at the library, so I need to finish them soon.

Such great ideas in this thread. I just finished Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte and am finishing up a nonhistory on the Anglo Saxons. I hope this will give me a good solid bearing before reading Bernard Cornwall!

Also I recently finished 'If Beale Street Could Talk.' It was my first James Baldwin novel. Some very powerful prose in there.

Mira wrote: "Such great ideas in this thread. I just finished Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte and am finishing up a nonhistory on the Anglo Saxons. I hope this will give me a good solid bearing before reading Bernard..."

I read Agnes Grey two years ago, 2023 I had only read book:Wuthering Heights so a decade ago or so I decided to read one Bronte sister novel per year. Anne's voice as an author is different from her sisters'. I liked the book quite a lot.

I had a short review:

"I really liked this one. This shows me that human nature really has not changed that much. I think Anne Bronte would have fit right in with modern society and struggled a bit to maintain her composure in her times.

The thing I find hard to believe is that anyone could have ever thought this was written by a man named Acton Bell. I think her deep understanding of the workings of young women's minds, emotions, and most of all conversations would have pointed to a female author."

Lynn wrote: "Mira wrote: "Such great ideas in this thread. I just finished Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte and am finishing up a nonhistory on the Anglo Saxons. I hope this will give me a good solid bearing before re..."

Hi Lynn,

Thanks for sharing your review. I agree! Though we no longer have governesses, the frustration of handling turbulent kids is something many a babysitter/parent has contended with.

I admit - The passionate and brooding Heathcliff and Mr. Rochester's of the world were always my cup of tea. By comparison, Agnes Grey and her cleric love interest were quite tame in comparison.

Interesting insight - I did not think about the necessity of male aliases. I too find it tough to believe that anyone might think Agnes Grey to have been written by a man, too. It feels that Anne lives and breaths as Agnes in every passage.
I look forward to reading The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte next.

Lynn wrote: "Mira wrote: "Such great ideas in this thread. I just finished Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte and am finishing up a nonhistory on the Anglo Saxons. I hope this will give me a good solid bearing before re..."

It was nice to read your review, Lynn, since I'm planning on reading Agnes Gray this year! It's the only book by the Brontë sisters I haven't yet read. I think I prefer Charlotte, since my favourite books by them have been Jane Eyre and Shirley. I like Anne's writing too, though, and enjoyed reading The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, so I'm excited to get to Agnes Grey!

Finished The Waves by Virginia Woolf [5/5] review absolutely fantastic.

Started reading Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.. wasn't expecting it to be 1000+ pages. This one could be quite the chore (for multiple reasons).

Finally getting around to Stendahl's The Red and Black. Intriguing and not at all what I was expecting. Not a hundred per cent sure it's a bookclub read but, if you like a classic classic, it's probably for you.

 On my studies of "Ulysses" (and, one cannot just simply read this filet, it must be studied), I have decided to take a side journey, just a quick stroll across the street to the ice cream shoppe, with a short story by Frigyes Karinthy called "Chains" (1929). It's only about 5 pages and you can literally download a copy on-line.


     Just as Sir Isaac Newton formulated those laws of gravity, with Albert Einstein conceptualizing what gravity is and how it works, John Donne coined the term "No man is an island", while Frigyes Karinthy delved more deeply into why this is so. We are connected by chains of association. So, I can connect to any other person in the world through these chains. You know, my brother knows so and so, who knows so and so, who knows so and, who knows this factory worker in China (who shall remain anonymous, for fear of reprisals)... There's a Hollywood version called "6 degrees of Kevin Bacon", where Kevin Bacon (the actor) can connect to anyone else in the movie industry in 6 degrees/chain-links or less (Kevin Bacon worked on a film with this actress, who worked with that director, etc).


     Well, with all due respect to Mr Karinthy, I have further addendummed his work with my own premises. I mean, after a 100 years, it needed a fresh coat of paint... We affect and are affected by others through these chains of connectivity. Every interaction we've ever encountered, whether real or imagined, has affected our development to some degree. From birth to death, these interactions are how we develop into who we are, or shall become.


     If I strike my brother in the face, that will probably put him in a sour frame of mind (and, I'll probably get slugged in return). So, he yells at his wife, who in turn screams at her son (my nephew), and so on... So, I could be affecting that factory worker in China, without even realizing it. So, it matters what we say and do.


     Every chain is a tiny fiber. These fibers are woven together into a fabric. That fabric of connectivity is the blanket in which we develop. This is the connective force at work. So, we cannot develop into who we are, or who we shall become, without this blanket of connectivity. This is the FINE PRINT we all signed before we entered this existence (our prenup agreement).


     So, through these chains of connectivity, we can connect to anyone past, present, or future, by degrees/chain-links of separation (even that cave man in the Geico commercials)... For, "No man is an island"... However, Mr. Donne, may I update your poem with a modern revision? If not honoring women by retitling your poem altogether, at least may they have equality? For, although men are likely to have the more elevated opinions of themselves, and thus are more confident and aggressive, women overall possess the higher intellect, compassion, and organizational skills. Yes, women are the superior gender.

Wreade1872 wrote: "Finished The Waves by Virginia Woolf [5/5] review absolutely fantastic.

Started reading Atlas Shrugged by Ayn..."

Many years ago I had a friend who encouraged me to read Atlas Shrugged. I made sure I tackled it over a summer break from teaching. I used an audiobook as well as a physical book. Many, many hours of the audiobook were listened to while I was cooking or some such thing. I think Ayn Rand made some good points, but she takes the philosophy to the extreme, in my opinion. Still many arguments need to be taken to the extreme to see the differences between systems. I am glad I read it because once you do, you will suddenly see subtle references to it in the speech and attitudes of others - whether they know it or not. Ayn Rand admirers will mention John Galt. Others might unknowingly mimic the words or actions of one of the other characters in the book.

One of the moments in the book I most remember is a man who loved to listen to classical music. He ends up punching a girl in the face. I can't help but think about him when I see street protesters in the modern world.

Lynn wrote: "Wreade1872 wrote: "Atlas Shrugged"

I just finished it. Yeah some 'interesting' stuff but not more so than most utopian fiction i've been through. Read it very quick though as it felt like about 250 pages of plot and ideas stretched across 1200.
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand [2/5] review

I just finished several really great books, all different.

The Law and the Lady by Wilkie Collins. I like this much better than The Woman in White!

The Year That Made America: From Rebellion to Independence, 1775–1776 by Tom McMillan. Great nonfiction about the people and events that led up to the American Revolution.

Cheerfulness Breaks In by Angela Thirkell. Published in 1940, this is a fictional look at England just on the cusp of WWII. I love Thirkell!

And I'm currently reading another awesome book - Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold. This is a reread of the Vorkosigan series. Though I knew I liked this book, I'd forgotten how much she packs in here. :)

I’m reading Patriot: A Memoir by Alexei Navalny. It’s excellent! Once I finish it, I’m back to War and Peace, which just happens to be Navalny’s favorite book.

Looks like this group mostly reads the Classics! I mean... but I am a little surprised that it is practically all I recognize in this thread.
So i will add my classic read as well as some others. I have about 9 books going, but just worked out a schedule for 6. I will list 3.

A Tale of Two Cities- going regularly, but slightly slower than I had hoped. I rerented it, so other books are taking priority now. It's good, but I cant say it is great yet. I read a childrens version last year, so i am somewhat familiar with the story, but it is a little bit different, more detailed.

Never Let Me Go- I think this might actually be a classic too, but newer. Am working on it tonight. I was really excited in the beginning, but now i am getting a bit frustrated with the narrative style. Like, if that isnt what you want to talk about now, then dont. But like things just keep going back and forth and while that can be done well, this just seems a bit choppy.

Nickel Boys- is this a classic? Anyway, this one seems to be pretty great, but i am dreading it getting really sad and upsetting.

One more- Long Live Evil- ok this one cant be a classic, yet anyway, but I am really excited about this one! If you love a good villian, this is the story for you. Multilayered character villainess brings you into her world of suffering and her fight to live. It is pretty touching and inspiring so far... then again, no one has been killed yet. Haha!

April wrote: "Looks like this group mostly reads the Classics! I mean... but I am a little surprised that it is practically all I recognize in this thread.
So i will add my classic read as well as some others. I..."

Everyone's different, but I don't share every book I read here. I usually just talk about classics, vintage, or books I'm really loving. But you are welcome to do whatever works best for you.

A Tale of Two Cities is a personal favorite of mine. Is it Dickens' best? Well, no, but I think he's doing something different here, and it really works for me.

Currently rereading for 3rd or 4th time Fahrenheit 451. This edition has introduction by Neil Gaiman and some literary commentary on the novel. The extra information is nice. What stuns me more this read: How meditative this short novel is.

Cynda wrote: "Currently rereading for 3rd or 4th time Fahrenheit 451. This edition has introduction by Neil Gaiman and some literary commentary on the novel. The extra information is nice. What s..."

I need to do a reread. Such a great novel.

Cynda wrote: "Currently rereading for 3rd or 4th time Fahrenheit 451. This edition has introduction by Neil Gaiman and some literary commentary on the novel. The extra information is nice. What s..."

I have the same introduction from Gaiman in my edition as well. This is one of my favorite novels.

Right now I just started Prince Caspian. I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe last year and loved it, and the I want to try to eventually make it through all the series. I never read them all as a child so why not now.

I finished Gilgamesh: A New English Version by Stephen Mitchell and [book:Gilgamesh: The Life of a Poem by Michael Schmidt. To finish my current study of this oldest surviving poem, I have Andrew George's translation to read next! It's all fascinating.

Katy, the novel is worth rereading :)

Franky, I read several of the Narnia books to my child when he was just aging out of them. Others have told me that they work for adults too--just as C S Lewis said they would.

I am currently reading The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy , which is the first of the three trilogies that consist The Forsyte Chronicles. I love it from the first page and pretty quickly I could tell that this will be one of my favorites. I really like the narration on this one. For this, John Galsworthy was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature in 1932 "for his distinguished art of narration which takes its highest form in The Forsyte Saga ."

K&S library, that looks like a good secondary work to read as one reads the novels.

I have just finished this weekend

Timequake by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. as part of a short Vonnegut study I am doing this year. As usual, there us something wise and profound that Vonnegut strives to describe. Sometimes it sounds like a dance about, yet life sometimes feels like a dance about, doesn't it.

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren as a return to a childhood memory of watching Pippi Longstocking movies on television. As a woman of mature years, I can see both the joy of Pippi's childhood and the concerns of community adults.

I am currently reading The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant by Drew Hayes

I was unsure about reading a vampire story after having read horror books such as Carmilla: A Vampyre Tale and Dracula. But this Fred the Vampire book is fun and easy. Just what is needed now. Whew.

Currently reading, “A man called Ove” never thought I would root for an old man (💀) but found myself genuinely smiling ear to ear and for him 💕

Just finished reading Exit by Belinda Bauer

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I'm reading lots of nonfiction at the moment:
The Farm in the Green Mountains by Alice Herdan-Zuckmayer
Take to the Trees: A Story of Hope, Science, and Self-Discovery in America's Imperiled Forests by Marguerite Holloway
Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age by Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough
Near the Forest, By the Lake: Discovering Nature Close to Home by Angela E. Douglas
Penelope's Bones: A New History of Homer’s World through the Women Written Out of It by Emily Hauser

Fiction-wise I'm continuing my read through of Angela Thirkell with Northbridge Rectory

I have just read Remembering Selena: A Tribute In Pictures & Words / Recordando Selena: Un Tributo en Palabras y Fotos by Himilce Novas. This book is written for a more popular audience, one that sometimes lives near or on the Spanish-English language line. I did learn some things I did not know before, such as Selena playing a part in a telenovela/Mexican soap opera series, Dos Mujeres un Camino. Written and published in the year of Selena's death on 1995, the written has a slight emotional edge. The photographs are abundant. Definitely fan writing. I rated the book 3 stars.

For a more academic book with significant rhetorical analysis, I recommend Selenidad: Selena, Latinos, and the Performance of Memory by Deborah Paredez. More informative/Less emotional. I rated it 5 stars.

Currently reading "What Maisie Knew" by Henry James. Just finished the wonderful "Washington Square" by the same author.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
(minor spoilers)

I just started reading The House in the Cerulean Sea as it will be an assigned summer reading book for my students. Definitely found some nice sentiments and fun parts to it, but I'm only maybe 1/3 into it so far so I will withhold too much judgment. I just wonder how much teens really care about 40-year-old protagonists.

I hope to go back to Jude the Obscure to finish it soon. To be honest, it's nice to have something less bleak to change up the mood a bit.

I finished Thornyhold by Mary Stewart (1988). This is in the vein of popular literature. It is a charming, light Romance, 5*. Sometimes I like a pleasant easy book between some of the heavier books we read here.

Lynn wrote: "I finished Thornyhold by Mary Stewart (1988). This is in the vein of popular literature. It is a charming, light Romance, 5*. Sometimes I like a pleasant easy book betw..."

I've always enjoyed Mary Stewart's cozy mysteries.

Finished Animal Farm for the first time. Just WOW!! Great story and the message is still as relevant today as it was when it was written.

I just finished Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis and just started the high fantasy adventure The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan.

I'm really enjoying Penelope's Bones: A New History of Homer’s World through the Women Written Out of It by Emily Hauser. It's fascinating, full of archaeology, Homer and history. I'll be reading The Iliad translated by Emily Wilson next, and I look forward to what I've learned to it.

Book and Dagger: How Scholars and Librarians Became the Unlikely Spies of World War II by Elyse Graham is a look at the librarians and classicists recruited by the US to become OSS spies.

Also Four Max Carrados Detective Stories by Ernest Bramah. Pretty good stories about a blind man who helps a private detective.

Hi All, I just completed reading Journey to The Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne. here is my review on it:

https://youtu.be/3xfKCjrGnoo

Giving up on Finnegan's Wake by James Joyce [1/5] review, threw a real spanner in my reading.
Finding it very difficult to get going again, still reading Ernest Maltravers by Edward Bulwer-Lytton and Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72.

I've grabbed an audiobook of Maltravers to hopefully help a bit and i'm also starting a random sci-fi book i grabbed The Last Yggdrasill .
Maybe those will help push things over the hump.

I'm reading The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon. I've had my eye on it since it won the Pulitzer, but worried that you needed to be a fan of comic books to really appreciate it. I'm about 25% in, and would say that's not so. It's really well done historical fiction with likable, flawed, and intriguing MCs. So far, so good.

The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England by Dan Jones. For some reason I struggled getting through Henry II, but now that he's dead it feels like it's moving much better.

Otherwise I've just finished several nonfiction NetGalley books and am thinking about what else to pick up.