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What Rebekah said, but Camilla Send a noteboard - 02/01/2011 02:53:51 PM
My experience with "The Classics" is pretty limited. I know this category can entail all genres and may have been written a few decades ago or a few millennia ago. I would like to read something that isn't going to take me two painful months to finish but still want something of a challenge. Therefore, I am asking you, fellow RAFO visitors, to help me decide. What is the best "classic", in your opinion. I had a few I was considering (Slaughterhouse Five, The Man In High Castle, Middlemarch) but wanted to hear some good suggestions. I will probably get started on this early next week, so I hope I get some good feedback!

EDIT: I would appreciate only classics that are in English. I know translations rarely do full justice to the original language novels but I'd have some great difficulty finishing the book otherwise.


I think you could do worse than trying Bleak House or Tale of Two Cities by Dickens; or Vanity Fair by Thackeray; or Persuasion or Pride and Prejudice by Austen; or Canterbury Tales by Chaucer; or Tristram Shandy by Sterne; or Turn of the Screw or something else by Henry James (whether you count that as a whole book is up to you, I suppose).


But I don't think you would miss too much reading The Decameron in translation, for example. Or The Iliad by Homer.

Are you comfortable reading plays? Because there are some really good plays. Aristophanes, Shakespeare and others....
*MySmiley*
structured procrastinator
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2011 Challenges: For January and February the challenge is... Rebekah - 01/01/2011 11:54:05 AM 1825 Views
I'll play Camilla - 01/01/2011 12:32:07 PM 1128 Views
Have you read any Kelly Link? Legolas - 03/01/2011 06:27:02 PM 966 Views
Re: Have you read any Kelly Link? Camilla - 03/01/2011 07:36:28 PM 972 Views
We have two of her collections, yes. Rebekah - 03/01/2011 11:28:27 PM 955 Views
Both of those are available online (legally and free) as well (if anyone else wants to read them). *NM* Legolas - 04/01/2011 10:07:58 PM 509 Views
And what, pray tell... Michael - 05/01/2011 10:23:34 AM 957 Views
Re: And what, pray tell... Camilla - 05/01/2011 01:08:41 PM 941 Views
Sei Shonagon's Pillow Book Camilla - 21/01/2011 06:52:06 PM 1282 Views
I don't either, that would just be lame. *NM* Legolas - 21/01/2011 07:43:47 PM 412 Views
Indeed Camilla - 21/01/2011 07:46:08 PM 1093 Views
Let's see, what classic can I pick... Legolas - 01/01/2011 01:39:53 PM 1169 Views
A few questions... j-whitt987 - 01/01/2011 04:07:09 PM 1153 Views
A few answers. Legolas - 01/01/2011 04:31:24 PM 1116 Views
Shockingly, Paul, I agree with all of your answers. Rebekah - 01/01/2011 04:52:57 PM 969 Views
Oh no! Whatever has happened to you, Rebekah? Legolas - 01/01/2011 06:22:42 PM 983 Views
Sounds good. j-whitt987 - 01/01/2011 05:14:26 PM 1189 Views
To Kill a Mockingbird is, indeed, a great book. Legolas - 01/01/2011 06:28:40 PM 1128 Views
Re: To Kill a Mockingbird is, indeed, a great book. j-whitt987 - 01/01/2011 06:47:37 PM 926 Views
Re: To Kill a Mockingbird is, indeed, a great book. Legolas - 01/01/2011 07:29:38 PM 1083 Views
Re: To Kill a Mockingbird is, indeed, a great book. j-whitt987 - 01/01/2011 07:39:50 PM 1024 Views
ok Stephen - 01/01/2011 04:18:37 PM 1080 Views
I will be reading Gulliver's Travels. Kaldric - 01/01/2011 05:45:46 PM 1095 Views
I have my own challenge. Tom - 01/01/2011 06:39:08 PM 970 Views
I found L'Étranger quite dull, but my French was very poor when I read it. Ghavrel - 01/01/2011 07:45:27 PM 923 Views
I think that the tone was supposed to be detached. Tom - 02/01/2011 03:50:10 AM 1068 Views
Sweet. I'll knock out the family chronicle in a foreign language this month. Ghavrel - 01/01/2011 07:41:37 PM 928 Views
Just going for 50 this year. rebelaessedai - 01/01/2011 10:00:09 PM 872 Views
I challenge you to help me! Zeran - 02/01/2011 12:46:51 AM 1009 Views
It's pretty much impossible to choose a best Classic. They're all so different. Rebekah - 02/01/2011 10:12:35 AM 1012 Views
I read Slaughterhouse Five a couple years ago. j-whitt987 - 02/01/2011 01:58:54 PM 1059 Views
What Rebekah said, but Camilla - 02/01/2011 02:53:51 PM 1115 Views
I'm going to... ? - 02/01/2011 01:35:17 AM 1031 Views
Re: I'm going to... Rebekah - 02/01/2011 10:09:14 AM 1066 Views
Awesome. *NM* ? - 02/01/2011 02:08:12 PM 493 Views
I'm in, I'll read "The Picture of Dorian Gray" Brian - 03/01/2011 02:38:48 AM 1177 Views
That's a fun book. And yeah, that's kind of the idea, that people will inspire each other. *NM* Legolas - 03/01/2011 05:57:43 PM 475 Views
I'm doing that too. Got it on my kindle and am 20% done now. *NM* Fox and Ravens - 03/01/2011 09:28:28 PM 464 Views
Question on Genre Challenge aria - 03/01/2011 03:31:28 AM 1145 Views
We tried to get some less-mentioned genres, so makes sense, but you can interpret them widely. Legolas - 03/01/2011 06:23:43 PM 997 Views
Thanks! aria - 03/01/2011 06:42:19 PM 997 Views
Alrighty ... I'm going to go for Crime and Punishment. Darth_Katie - 03/01/2011 05:37:33 AM 1012 Views
Ok, let's be seeing this... Michael - 03/01/2011 09:19:20 AM 956 Views
Re: Ok, let's be seeing this... Camilla - 21/01/2011 07:33:15 PM 1216 Views
I've finally chosen my books for these challenges: Rebekah - 03/01/2011 06:46:03 PM 1043 Views
Finished A Christmas Carol Rebekah - 15/01/2011 11:12:19 AM 942 Views
What would this count as? j-whitt987 - 05/01/2011 02:20:24 AM 1146 Views
I don't think that really falls into any of our categories... Legolas - 05/01/2011 06:36:39 PM 960 Views
Well, there's book one I guess. *NM* j-whitt987 - 05/01/2011 08:02:31 PM 460 Views
Aight ranagrande - 06/01/2011 01:19:03 AM 1038 Views
Man its weird being on this board again. Wacky. edgecutioner - 10/01/2011 09:59:43 PM 1132 Views
Hey Ryan! Long time no see, alright. How's married life treating you? Legolas - 11/01/2011 09:51:48 PM 933 Views
My first round draft picks are: M & M Maddy - 11/01/2011 10:54:06 PM 1157 Views
Re: My first round draft picks are: Rebekah - 15/01/2011 11:13:59 AM 1381 Views
Re: My first round draft picks are: Camilla - 21/01/2011 07:30:47 PM 1036 Views
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