"Words and Peace" is a blog I've been following for a couple of years and I have always found some interesting new (or old) books there, especially French ones.
On her page, I found the posts by "The Classics Club" asking us to create a post, this time before next Sunday 16th February 2025, and list our choice of any twenty books that remain "to be read" on our Classics Club list. They'll then post a number from 1 through 20 and we have time until Sunday 11th of April 2025 to read it.
This time, I read only the one book from my old list (Classics Spin #39) ("Nicholas Nickleby. The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby"). I do want to concentrate on a couple of books in the near future, so I have listed only ten books and repeated them. The books are all in chronological order.
- Aristophanes "Lysistrata and Other Plays" (Lysistrata) - 411BC
- Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von "Urfaust. Faust Fragment. Faust I" (Faust) - 1772-1808
- Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
- Flaubert, Gustave "Madame Bovary" (Madame Bovary) - 1857
- Turgenjew, Iwan Sergejewitsch "Fathers and Sons" (Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862
- Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
- Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
- Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
- Faulkner, William "The Sound and the Fury" - 1929
- Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
- Aristophanes "Lysistrata and Other Plays" (Lysistrata) - 411BC
- Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von "Urfaust. Faust Fragment. Faust I" (Faust) - 1772-1808
- Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
- Flaubert, Gustave "Madame Bovary" (Madame Bovary) - 1857
- Turgenjew, Iwan Sergejewitsch "Fathers and Sons" (Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862
- Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
- Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
- Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
- Faulkner, William "The Sound and the Fury" - 1929
- Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
This is a great idea for all of us who want to read more classics. Go ahead, get your own list. I can't wait to see what I get to read this time.
So, the number has been picked and it is #4. That means for me:
Flaubert, Gustave "Madame Bovary" (Madame Bovary) - 1857
Here are all the books on my original Classics Club list.
And here is a list of all the books I read with the Classics Spin.
I haven't read *any* of those but do have a copy of 'Madame Bovary' and plan on reading 'A Farewell to Arms' at some point. What Hemingway I've read (actually very little) I liked/found interesting...
ReplyDeleteSame here, Kitten. I have read a few Hemingway books and would love to read them all.
DeleteI just can't abide Hemingway. I leave you both to him!
DeleteThat's fine, Sarah. We can't all like the same authors.
DeleteOut of these ten books, I've only read Madame Bovary and A Farewell to Arms. I liked the first, didn't the last. But that's just me. ;D Can't wait to see what you spin!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lark. I will see how I fare with the ten books, maybe I'll go back to twenty one day, we'll see. I do like Hemingway, so would look forward to A Farewell to Arms. And I like the French language but have a difficult relation to their books. LOL
DeleteThis is an interesting challenge of sorts. I love to read classics, and while I am not big on French classics I have read a few of the others you have listed
ReplyDeleteSame here, Teri. Not big on French classics or French books but some of them have turned out to be quite good, like those by Albert Camus who is my favourite "French" author and whom you might have seen under "C ist for ..."
Deletehttps://momobookblog.blogspot.com/2025/01/alphabet-authors-c-is-for-camus.html
I've been loving Conrad recently, so I'll wish you Victory - one I haven't yet read but hope to soon.
ReplyDeleteThanks, FictionFan. I've only read one of Conrad's books, his best known one, I think, Heart of Darkness. So I wouldn't reading another one by him. Thanks.
DeleteI have Madame Bovary on my list, but I'm not sure I want it to come up!
ReplyDeleteHaha, Kelly, I have that same problem. I love the French language but have found few French books that I really liked. We'll see.
DeleteI haven't read any Aristophanes since highschool, but Dumas and Conrad would also be good choices imo (like Sarah I am not a fan of Hemingway. I also struggled with Madame B - a LOT).
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of us think the same, Brona. I love classics and there are a few, like Aristophanes, which I didn't read at school and would love to "catch up", haha, after more than half a century. I wouldn't mind Hemingway, I loved everything by him so far. We will see what come up. I wish you good luck, as well.
DeleteI wonder if you will like Madame Bovary. Awesome writing, but pretty aweful characters.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed #9, but with a good introduction explaining what's really going on here
We will see, Emma. One day, I'll read it anyway.
DeleteI read Light in August by Faulkner and quite liked it.
You have an exceptional list. I enjoyed reading Madame Bovary in French last summer with a group.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Deb. I have read lots of classics, so there are always some new ones nobody has read, yet. Nice to know. I'll have to see when I read it how your group received it.
DeleteSo glad you actually did get Madame Bovary!!
ReplyDeleteHeehee, I thought you might, Emma.
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