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Which classic best to read first? :)


bethany725

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Hi Everyone! ;)

 

As I'm nearing the end of my current book, I wanted to try and branch out into something different for my next read *Gasp* !!

From some of the threads on here, I've added some classics to my TBR list and this will be my first go at a classic in a looong time... almost 5 years since I grad'd college!

I wanted to get opinions on which of these may be the easiest transition piece.. I've mostly been reading contemporary fiction/chick-lit/suspense books recently, so a classic could be a shock to my system! :P

These are the ones I have on my TBR list:

 

Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte

Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy

Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray

The House of Mirth - Edith Wharton

The Haunted Bookshop - Christopher Morley

 

If anyone has any suggestions on which of these may be the best to start with, I'd love any ideas! Thanks!

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I would probably start off with Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights if I were you. Jane Eyre is a great read, and I expect Wuthering Heights to be, too. Plus WH is shortish, if I remember correctly.

Anna Karenina is good too, but maybe a bit too chunky for a first classic read in 5 years :P

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If anyone has any suggestions on which of these may be the best to start with, I'd love any ideas! Thanks!

 

I am exactly the same! Again! :she: Only for me my usual reads are horror/serial killer novels. I've decided to try and read two classics this year and I was recommended 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' by Oscar Wilde and 'Dracula' by Bram Stoker (which I've read, but it was many many years ago). So I hope to be giving these a shot before the year is out. :P

 

Good Luck with your suggestions! ;)

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My copy of Wuthering Heights was about 400 pages long. My Jane Eyre was around 450 - both were definitely worth it though!

 

Wow, really? Only 50 pages difference? I stand corrected :P I've loaned my copy of Wuthering Heights to a friend so I can't check how many pages there are in my copy but it's definitely a lot thinner than my Jane Eyre, it's almost half of it.

 

Edit: I own Wordsworth copies of both and I checked the pages of the Wordsworth copies from amazon out of curiosity. JE is 400 pages and WH 272 pages long. There's a huge difference between different editions ;)

Edited by frankie
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Thanks for your votes, everyone! :) By the overwhelming majority, I'll definitely start with either Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. Once I finish my current book, I'll read a bit about both and see which I'll read first. Thanks again!

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  • 2 weeks later...

When we were given our guide on possible reading material for English lit at 6th form, it included a fair few classics like Wuthering Heights, and Jayne Eyre. I think now that I know I'm going to be taking it, I might get ahead with some of the possible reading material. Because if it comes up I'll be better off, and if it doesn't then I will have had some good reads anyway.

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  • 9 years later...

This topic caught my eye as I pottered about and what a bombshell question! Just as well a list of books was on offer to choose from or war could have broken out :D everybody has their own favourite, after all. 

 

I've read the others on the initial list given in the first post except -

The House of Mirth (Edith Wharton) and The Haunted Bookshop (Chris.

Morley) 

 

It's the time of year for a bit of spookiness folks so has anyone read Haunted Bookshop?  Sounds very interesting. Wonder if it applies to our high street bookshops too or just the little poky ones?! :D

 

Any other suggestions for a good classic for us to enjoy please leave it here.

 

Happy :readingtwo: everyone.

 

 

 

 

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Ooh, I very recently bought The Haunted Bookshop! It came in a two-book volume with Parnassus on Wheels (I believe both stories are linked). I became interested in these stories years and years ago (can't remember how!), but they only seemed to be available with ugly covers. Recently a new edition was released, so I finally bought it! Haven't read it yet though. I'm pretty sure both stories are freely and legally available online, such as from Project Gutenberg.

 

I'm pretty sure The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins would fall into this category. I haven't read it yet (another one I've been meaning to get to for ages!)

 

I loved loved loved Dracula. :) And from the original list, I've read all except House of Mirth and Anna Karenina.

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The problem with reading some classics - particularly ones like Dracula, is that the "brand" is so strongly represented in film, TV and popular culture, that going back to the original source can seem a little tame. I know I did this trying to read Frankenstein when I was 13. I actually did much better with those that were closer to films I'd seen of them - So A Christmas Carol would be a good choice IMO.  I started making serious attempts at reading classic novel once I was in my 30s, which was much better for me, and I have found my favourites to be those that had not been "spoiled" by seeing a TV or film version before - so Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights & Pride & Prejudice all became favourites.

 

Of course, having read them, I them immediately wanted to see the films I'd never seen, but that's another story!

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The trouble with this forum is that I get loads of prompts to get reading and there just aren't enough hours in the day :wibbly: :smile:

 

Who wrote the "Turn of the Screw"? It's a good creepy classic.

Charles Dickens wrote several spooky Christmas stories though of course "Christmas Carol" is his best known. 

Kylie mentioned the "Women in White" by Willie Collins, he also wrote the detective novel "The Moonstone" an old favourite of mine. Non creepy, but good!

 

Happy :readingtwo: everyone. Add more!

 

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  • 4 years later...

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