(Re) Reading the Classics

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“Every rereading of a classic is as much a voyage of discovery as the first reading.” —Italo Calvino

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After a friend of mine shared a bunch of quotes about the classics by Italo Calvino, I went in search of a good list of classic literature. Well, it was like going in search of a glass of water and finding yourself on the shore of an ocean.

It turns out there are many different lists of classic literature, some with hundreds of books on them. It made me wonder who gets to decide what books are labeled as classics.

“We use the words “classics” for books that are treasured by those who have read and loved them; but they are treasured no less by those who have the luck to read them for the first time in the best conditions to enjoy them.” —Italo Calvino

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Goodreads lists one thousand seven hundred and ninety (gulp) “must read classics.” The ranking on their list is driven by reader votes. Here are the top ten plus a few more that I thought deserve consideration.

 

1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

 

 

2. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

 

 

3. 1984 by George Orwell

 

 

4. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

 

 

5. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

 

 

6. Animal Farm by George Orwell

 

 

7. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

 

 

8. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

 

 

9. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

 

 

10. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

 

“The classics are books that exert a peculiar influence, both when they refuse to be eradicated from the mind and when they conceal themselves in the folds of memory, camouflaging themselves as the collective or individual unconscious.” —Italo Calvino

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Here are few more books that were further down the list. I had to stop the total list at twenty-five or I would never have finished this post.

 

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

The Iliad by Homer

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

Moby Dick by Herman Melville

“The classics are books which, upon reading, we find even fresher, more unexpected, and more marvelous than we had thought from hearing about them.” —Italo Calvino

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Some of the books listed above had an enormous impact on me. I’m afraid I may have read others when I was too young, and I need to revisit them.

 

 

So TKZers: How do you define a classic novel? Have you read any of the classics listed here? What books would you cite as classics that I haven’t included? Which books have you re-read? Which would you like to re-read?

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It’s not a classic (yet), but Lacey’s Star is an entertaining and thought-provoking mystery.

Available at  Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Google Play, or Apple Books.

47 thoughts on “(Re) Reading the Classics”

  1. If they made a comic book out of it, it’s a Classic. “Classics Illustrated Comics” were part of my reading matter for many years. Robin Hood, selections from Poe (Pit & the Pendulum, Cask of Amontillado, Fall of the House of Usher, the Gold Bug), Count of Monte Cristo, Gulliver’s Travels, Robinson Crusoe, Man in the Iron Mask, Don Quixote, and others I can’t recall. I seldom felt any need to read the full book.
    I didn’t find Gatsby all that great.
    Most HS students loathe Catcher in the Rye. It’s a book about a kid, not a book FOR kids. Few HS students have experienced the death of someone close to them. Without that, the book is impenetrable, random peregrinations, with no perceptible motivation. Whoever thought it would be a good book for high school readers should have been sent to Holden’s therapist.

    • I have the complete collection of Classics Illustrated comic books. Loved em then and now.

      And agree on Gatsby. Replace it with The Maltese Falcon on high school reading lists.

      • Two thumbs up!

        I’m green wif envy of your collection. I’d like to acquire one or two for myself to see if I can recognize the illos. I don’t remember the covers, but that may be due to reissue of titles with different artwork on the front.
        I’m sure Classics Illustrated improved my understanding of literature at some level and my vocabulary. I recall Robin Hood “scaling” a wall, a word new to me.

    • Good morning, JG!

      “Classics Illustrated Comics” — what a great idea. I hope they have Moby Dick in that collection.

      I agree about The Great Gatsby. I never understood why so many people thought that story was so great.

  2. I looked at the title and gulped in anticipatory shame, fearing embarrassment for being so culturally illiterate… I mean, I’ve read beaucoups books, but “classics”?

    Well, imagine my surprise that I’d read about half of those you listed (12), and a couple a couple of times (1984, Gatsby, Huckleberry Finn) – and a few are still on my TBR list…

    I read:
    ▪ the Hobbit but couldn’t get beyond the opening of TLOR’s first volume…
    ▪ a lot of Steinbeck beyond Grapes…

    I’d add Kerouac (On the Road), some Hemingway (The Sun Also Rises), William Faulkner (though I found him a bit tough to wade through)… and what about the “top thriller and mystery writers” of the early/mid-twentieth century – Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler…?

    I have to say that many of the classics (and so-called classics) are what inspired – and continue to inspire – me to keep scribbling, scrawling, and tapping the keys…

    • Good morning, George!

      “I have to say that many of the classics (and so-called classics) are what inspired – and continue to inspire – me to keep scribbling, scrawling, and tapping the keys…”

      Good definition of a classic. Have a great week.

  4. A while ago, I made a point of reading classic books I had, until that time, managed to avoid. In quick succession I read:
    1984, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Lord of the Flies. It was a revelation, and I am glad I made the effort.

    I have also read a fair few of the books on the above lists, and most of the ones I have not read I can hold my own in a discussion about due to having read the Classic Comic when I was a lad. (Though my wife tells me that doesn’t count.)

    • Good morning, Michael,

      The four books you mention are some of my favorites. They are unforgettable.

      I missed out on the Classic Comics as a kid. Drat.

  5. Charlotte’s Web, The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, Steinbeck, Hemingway, Anne Frank, J.D. Salinger, Raymond Chandler, Nevil Shute, Herman Wouk.

    Part of what made certain books stick with me was my age at the time I first read them. When I reread favorites from childhood or adolescence, I sometimes have a hard time remembering why they made such strong impressions back then. I think it was b/c those books may have been the first time I realized someone else (the author) had experienced emotions I was feeling and put them into words for me.

    Good question, Kay, but now you’ve added more books to my TBR pile. Gee, thanks! 😉

    • Great list, Debbie! And a good reminder about how influential books are in our lives.

      You also got me thinking about how important it is for children to read good books. Early reading opens worlds for young minds.

      I’m glad most of my TBR pile is on my iPad. Otherwise, we’d have to move to a bigger house. 🙂

      Have a great week.

    • I like your additions a lot better than some of the ones on the original list. We agree many times here. I probably should add you to my reading list.

    • …I sometimes have a hard time remembering why they made such strong impressions back then.

      So it was for me with van Vogt’s “World of Null-A.” My sister recommended it to me in junior high school. It was on the south wall of the library, halfway along, top shelf, with a red cover. I found it intricate and exquisite. I revisited it a few years ago and none of the magic was still there.

  6. I don’t consider myself a rebellious person. But in the area of reading I have been. From the time I began reading I absolutely hated that school informed you of what you got to read–you didn’t get to choose. And to me they always chose the most boring books they could come up with. For that reason, after they hyped a book as a glorious work then I read it, I was inevitably let down because I found it wasn’t nearly as awesome as the hype. To this day when people mention ‘classic’ literature I roll my eyes.

    I’ve kept thinking that as I age I’ll feel more eager to pick up the classics. But it hasn’t happened too much. LOL!

    I’ve not read all of the above, but of the list of classics you mention, I did come away with a positive experience on To Kill a Mockingbird.

    • Good morning, Brenda!

      I remember having to read Beowulf in school. Did you have that one? I don’t know if it’s required reading anymore, but I think I was too young.

      To Kill a Mockingbird is a good one to have a positive experience about.

  7. I’ve read almost all of them, but some only because they were assigned reading in high school English. By the time I discovered Sherlock Holmes via the assigned “Adventure of the Speckled Band” I was more into mystery. And then science fiction.

  8. I was blessed to attend a high school that offered 9-week sessions in literature from different eras and countries so I read Don Quixote, Anna Karenina, Doctor Zhivago, Crime and Punishment, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Grapes of Wrath, Shakespeare, The Iliad, The Odyssey, and many others in high school. I also devoured all of Mary Stewart’s gothic romances, mysteries, and romantic suspense not considered “literature.” Reading across genres and time periods helped me develop my writing style and voice. The only classics I really didn’t like were early American. That’s the one I called boring.

    • Good morning, Kelly.

      That’s an impressive reading list for high school. Reading across genres and time periods is important for everyone — maybe more so for writers!

      Have a great week.

  9. Wonderful post, Kay! I would define a classic as a book that outlives its author, one that we humans will continue to read forevermore because of how it transports us, its relatability, and its meaning. Your list is awesome, as are the additions by the commenters — though like a previous commenter I’m embarrassed not to have read them all. I’ll add just three I think meet the standard, though I could add more: 1) White Fang (Jack London), 2) Stranger in a Strange Land (Robert Heinlein), and Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison).

    • Good morning, Louis.

      “I would define a classic as a book that outlives its author, one that we humans will continue to read forevermore because of how it transports us, its relatability, and its meaning.” Great definition. The things I remember about the books I’ve read on the list are the fundamental lessons about human nature they reveal.

      I like your additions to the list. I’ve never read Stranger in a Strange Land although I’ve described myself with those exact words many times. I guess I need to read the book.

    • Love your definition, Louis! I concur.

      Intriguing question, Kay. Go Ask Alice had a profound affect on me. It scared me and made me view the world (and the people within it) differently. I think if I read it now it wouldn’t have the same impact.

  10. I hope The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe was somewhere on that list. Of all the books I consider classics, that was and always will be my favorite.

  11. There is a touch of sadness that the original list reads like a high school lit class… from 40 years ago. Are any of the books under 50? Moby Dick put me to sleep several times. I have never read “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” but it seems to have been a big hit before I was born.

    The Edutopia list better matches what my children were assigned in AP Lit 5 years ago. A much more rounded list.

    • Hi Alan,

      From what I’ve read, the classics are generally thought of as those books that have stood the test of time and continue to help us understand universal truths.

      The Edutopia list represents contemporary works that are important to our current world. It’s seems to me that students should read from both lists.

      I’m with you on Moby Dick.

  12. I am in St. Louis, St. Charles City Schools, just a hop over the Missouri River banned books in the late 1970’s. They made headlines by banning the American Heritage Dictionary. It had the F bomb in it in case you misused or spelled America’s favorite four letter word.

    I was in high school. My English teacher took the banned book list and went to the school library. Every title on the list, the library had copies of became assigned. Autobiography of Malcom X, Anne Frank, Brave New World, Fahrenheit 451, Animal Farm, Slaughterhouse Five, all became assigned.

    My buddy’s child goes to a school that has so far banned more than 400 books. I gave the middleschooler a copy of the graphic novel version of Anne Frank for her birthday. With the warning not to take it to school.

  13. Great lists, Kay.

    I’ve read Anna Karenina, LOTR, The Hobbit, Lord of the Flies, and A Tale of Two Cities. Also most of anything by Twain.

    But, I was so steeped in mysteries and spy stories when I was a kiddo, that much of these two lists escaped my notice unless forced to read them by a teacher. 🙂

    I think I’d include Lewis’s Mere Christianity and The Screwtape Letters on the list, too. Great books.

  14. I like Orson Scott Card’s definition. Loosely quoted, any book that’s passed from one generation to the next is a classic.

    From what I’ve seen in the last fifty years, scholars insist on telling us idiots what we should be reading, but all those recent “great” novels I had to read in graduate school in the early Seventies have disappeared. Those disgustingly popular novels like Tolkien’s Middle Earth series and Harry Potter are being passed through the generations.

  15. Good morning, Kay. I’m late to the party this Monday morning. Great list.

    Count of Monte Cristo was a favorite novel of mine when I read it in junior high. Dracula by Bram Stoker is a classic for me. The Great Gatsby made a huge impact on me when I read it for American Literature in high school, and I ended up doing a paper on Fitzgerald, and also included Tender is the Night.

    Of course, Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit for fantasy. Dune is a classic in science fiction. Mystery—you’ll anticipate my answer—The Woman in White.

    • You’re never too late to the TKZ party, Dale.

      Dracula is a great addition. And, of course, The Woman in White.

      We just returned from Killer Nashville where there were so many wonderful authors and good books! I’m just beginning to read Zenith Man by McCracken Poston Jr. (That’s his real name.) We had a chance to visit with him at the conference, and the true story behind this book sounds fascinating.

      • Killer Nashville sounds like a wonderful conference!

        I had the opportunity to meet and hang out a bit with McCracken Poston Jr at Left Coast Crime in Seattle in April and we both had tables at the Meet the New Mystery Author breakfast on Friday.

  16. Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart is considered the first classic that sprang out of Africa. It is said to have been translated into more than 50 languages. TFA and Achebe’s two other novels (No Longer at Ease and Arrow of God) are referred to as the African Trilogy. The titles of the first two books are taken from two of my best classical poems: Things Fall Apart from WB Yeat’s The Second Coming and No Longer at Ease from TS Eliot’s Journey of the Magi.

    I love classical books and have read many of them in plays, drama and poetry. I’ve read all Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets and most of the classical poems. Alas, I’ve only read eight of the twenty-five classics you listed here today, Kay. Thank you for bringing back these memories to me.

    • Thank you, Stephen, for commenting today. I have not read Things Fall Apart, but it’s on my TBR list now. I’m looking forward to it.

      And you’ve inspired me to revisit Yeats and TS Eliot. The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is one of my favorites.

  17. I read beaucoup classics as a kid – finding stuff in English was hard in Mexico, but my grandmother had taught high school and had several fat anthologies designed for hs kids, American Literature and English Literature, plus my parents had The Great Books. I didn’t know they were supposed to be hard or complicated – I learned a lot from context (and sometimes skipped things – it never occurred to me to consult a dictionary or a grownup).

    They’ve defined my writing mainstream fiction – all that richness is in my head. It feels like home.

    And I’ve found that the best readers of my fiction have many of those books in common with me (sometimes you can Compare Books on GR), including classics of SFF and mystery (I swallowed The Complete Sherlock Holmes at 9). Plus those readers write the best reviews!

    To join the pile-on: I loathed Catcher in the Rye.

    • “They’ve defined my writing mainstream fiction – all that richness is in my head. It feels like home.”

      You’re fortunate to have had parents and a grandmother who gave you such a priceless gift of books and reading.

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