Recommendations of Classic Books

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RuqeeD
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Re: Recommendations of Classic Books

Post by RuqeeD »

jcitroen wrote:Has anyone read 'Cold Comfort Farm' by Stella Gibbons? It's truly a classic and an absolute must on your reading list. I started reading out this parody of British rural life and initially wondered 'what on earth am I reading?' However, as the humour and wit quickly grabbed my attention, I started turning the pages faster and faster, laughing all the while. Now with only 17% to go, I'm fearful that any book following this one will pale in comparison.
That's actually on my long tbr list in the sense that I'll get to it but not any time soon but you've intrigued me enough to bump it up the list and I'll have to get my hands on it soon. :D
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Va_treehugger
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Post by Va_treehugger »

At Christmas, I like to cuddle up and read Charles Dicken's book, A Christmas Carol. Between reading the story several times and watching the various versions of the movie, I know the story inside out. I have found a lot of Dicken's work to be depressing. This story is spooky, but I really enjoyed it.
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CashJames
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Post by CashJames »

Va_treehugger wrote:At Christmas, I like to cuddle up and read Charles Dicken's book, A Christmas Carol. Between reading the story several times and watching the various versions of the movie, I know the story inside out. I have found a lot of Dicken's work to be depressing. This story is spooky, but I really enjoyed it.
You and I share a Christmas ritual :)
"We're all in the gutter, but some of us are looking up at the stars." - Oscar Wilde
hello_kitty
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Post by hello_kitty »

i love the hunchback of notre dame. its so touching.
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Post by moi_papillon »

I love "Jane Eyre"!
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tmbookworm
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Post by tmbookworm »

i just finished Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier and I loved it. Highly entertaining and not as dense as some books, I highly reccommend it!
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SoMuchThatisPossible
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Post by SoMuchThatisPossible »

Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Black Arrow" is one of my favorites.

It is based during the War of the Roses. It's about a boy who gets somewhat stuck between the two sides. He, personally, is only looking to avenge his father and rescue his lady. In the process he finds himself often playing both sides of the war.

Baroness Orczy's "The Scarlet Pimpernel" is another that I really appreciate.

This book takes place during the French Revolution. It's about and Englishman who spends his time smuggling French aristocrats out of France and therefore, saving them from the guillotines. No one in France or in England know who it is that is saving these people only that he is called the Scarlet Pimpernel.

Gaston Leroux's "Phantom of the Opera" is excellent. If you have seen the movie you will have to disregard it. The movie is good as a completely non-related entity, but it really can't compare to the book. As is usually the case.

It is about a Phantom who occupies a opera house in Paris. He falls in love with one of the performer girls and coaches her as an opera singer without ever revealing himself to her. However, she is in love with another man and trouble ensues from there. One of the most heart-wrenching love triangles you will ever read.
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Fran
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Post by Fran »

Listened to a reading of Wee Willie Winkie by Rudyard Kipling yesterday .... it's from a book of Children's Stories published way back in 1888. A beautiful innocent little story .... wouldn't meet today's PC standards but of it's time :)
We fade away, but vivid in our eyes
A world is born again that never dies.
- My Home by Clive James
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Bighuey
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Post by Bighuey »

Matthew Lewis The Monk is a good one. Its a little hard to get into, but its gets exciting once you get into it.
"I planted some birdseed. A bird came up. Now I dont know what to feed it." Ramblings of a retired senile mind.
louandel
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Post by louandel »

Hi,

I would like to recommend A lesser known Charles dickens Book. At least I had never heard of it until a year ago. The Book is Barnaby Rudge and I really enjoyed. I was made to read dickens at school and like many others found them very heavy going and boring. even in later life I remembered his characters as being highly cartoon like, his plots being very suspect and whole passages being so over descriptive they were tiresome.

But for some reason I decided to give Barnaby a go and i was amazed. Reading it was an adult I saw a whole new side of dickens. First of all it was centred on a little known riot - the Gordon riots - that took place at the end of the 18th century. so it is interesting getting dickens take looking back at an historical event. secondly the main cahrecter is unique in that You could safely say he has learning disabilities. The story unfolds around the riots and follows Barnaby and his mother.

At times you see the same raw emotions that we all feel as Barnaby tries to adapt to a world which he cant quite understand and his mother tries to bring up his needy child alone. Dickens is sensitive and a great historian. He makes us feel inspired, sad, amused and afraid for the central characters.

This is a real winner and totally differnet from the formulaic dickens - give it a go!

Louandel
RHYW
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Post by RHYW »

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë is my favorite. The novel depicts the fact that true love is spiritual rather than just physical. A must read!

I found this novel on ReadHowYouWant website.
IainDGBlackburn
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Post by IainDGBlackburn »

Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice is one of my favorite classics.

It is a must read.
louandel
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Post by louandel »

Another classic I love is Don Quixote. at over 1000 words it may put a lot of readers off. But I could not recommend it more. Set in the 16th century it tells the story of an everyday man who believes he is a knight and his mission in life is to save damsels in distress and generally put look out for the under dog. This is such a funny an poignant book (and at times sad). It amazed me that the dry humour we enjoy in the 21st century was the same for the people in the 16th century. The characters are so well drawn you really feel for them. But its greatest point is that as deluded and foolish Don quixote is you cant help feeling he is no different from us in our attempts to do something right or "be" someone.

louandel
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elizabeth-murphy
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Post by elizabeth-murphy »

Sense and Sensibility-
This might have been done already, but since I just finished and really enjoyed it, I thought I'd throw my hat in the ring- this is a lovely classical novel. It is the story of the two Dashwood sisters, pragmatic Elinor and passionate Marianne. Their father's sudden death leaves them relatively impoverished and forces them to move from their home to a small cottage in Devonshire, with their mother and younger sister. The very different personalities of the two sisters lead them to react in different ways to their change in fortunes, to the new people they encounter and to heartbreak. It is funny in an understated way, like all of Austen's novels and there is no shortage of vulgar, foolish and downright unpleasant peripheral characters to keep the reader amused. I didn't enjoy it as much as Pride and Prejudice, perhaps because the most engaging flirtation is between Marianne and the villainous Willoughby, which comes to no good end. I was disappointed by the ending and didn't feel Marianne married a suitable husband- despite this, it was certainy a humourous read and a good book.
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Post by Tamispeare »

That book series is my favorite classic books series. I especially like the first book in the series.
Well, I didn't real all of the books, but I read four of them and enjoyed it, especially of the first book.

Anne is so cute and adorable, it's a girl anyone could love and relate to. I wish I were as talented as her.
She is also lucky to have an awsome friend like Diana <3.
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