The Classics Club Spin #8

On By Andrew G LockhartIn Books, The Classics Club

Twenty of my Unread Classics

The Classics Club Spin #8 for November sounds like a bit of fun as well as a challenge, so I decided to have a go. The idea is to take twenty books from my Classics reading list and classify them in groups of five according to the four different criteria: hesitant to read; eager to reader; neutral anticipation; free choice according to author, genre etc preference

Here goes! My twenty books are these –

Hesitating to Read

1. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo: This is a very long book and I know it’ll take me a while to get through it.

2. Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy: Although I have never read this book, I know how it ends and that’s something of a deterrant. However, I am determined!

3. The Republic by Plato: It’s a very “serious” work and I’m going top need lots of free time and no distractions.

4. Hotel Savoy by Joseph Roth: I bought this book on recommendation in Vienna and want to read it in the original language, so ditto …

5. The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens: This novel was unfinished. I’m not superstitious really but wonder maybe if that’s an omen.

Eager to Read

6. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck: I don’t read enough American fiction and really should read more!

7. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton: Ditto

8. The Castle of Udolfo by Ann Radcliffe: I have been studying the early English novelists and this is a classic example of the gothic.

9. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain: I ought to have read this decades ago – probably just want to recapture some of my youth.

10. I Robot by Isaac Asimov; These are short stories so I can stop and start. I know I have read some of them before but would like to read them all.

Neutral

I’m neutral, so I don’t have to give any explanation – Right?

11. The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

12. The Tempest by William Shakespeare

13. The Invisible Man by HG Wells

14. The Island of Dr Moreau by HG Wells

15. Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Favourite Authors, Genres, Re-reads etc

16. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen: a favourite author and haven’t read

17. Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott: a favourite author, genre and re-read after many years

18. Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas: a favourite genre and haven’t read

19. The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas: a  favourite genre and re-read after many years

20. Death in Venice by Thomas Mann: liked the film and the Mozart background music – always fancied reading it

 

 roulette wheel

I wonder where the spinning wheel will stop!

 

 

 

 

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16 thoughts on “The Classics Club Spin #8”

  1. Some good ones on the list.
    Grapes of wrath and i robot are ones i want to read at some point.

    Plato’s Republic is surprisingly accessible. Tom Sawyer is great.
    I found the Island of Dr Moreau a let down, strange writing style of Wells’.

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  2. Hallo, Hallo! 🙂

    This is the first time I am participating in a SPIN myself, so I’m just overjoyed with the experience! And, getting to visit other bookish bloggers who adore the Classics as much as I do is an added benefit! 🙂 Now, then, the books on your list of interest to me are:

    Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
    Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
    The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
    The Invisible Man by HG Wells
    Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
    The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas

    I’m putting together a RAL for Jane Austen (which includes Mansfield Park) this December as I’m wanting to not only read 3 books of Austen before 2015 but want to encourage myself to pick up Edith Wharton in January! 🙂 I was tempted to put Les Mis on my own SPIN list but as I’m picking up *War and Peace* finally after attempting to since February, I felt I was pushing it enough by adding another Tolstoy book to my SPIN! lol

    Tess is a novel I only know in generalities but I think like you expressed if you know the ending it might spoilt the enjoyment of reading it. Meanwhile Collins & Wells selections are two that have winked at me to read because I love the genre they fit inside! Not to mention I *loved!* the film version of the Invisible Man years and years before I ever realised it was a novel! lol

    The Dumas novel is my most daunting novel of all — I simply had trouble getting settled inside the narrative as a teen; of course years have gone by now as I’m a thirty-something but evenso; sometimes you wonder if some books are just not a good fit for you.

    Happy readings!!

    ps: I did have a bit of trouble reading this blog post as the colours hurt my eyes a bit but I’m glad I staid to see what you picked!

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    1. bookheathen

      Thank you so much for such a detailed comment. I’m really sorry you had a problem with the colours. Just because I liked the scheme it doesn’t mean other people do. I wonder what others think.

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      1. You’re most welcome! 🙂

        I love visiting bookish blogs & getting to know who is participating in tCC! I’ve simply been unable to visit until recently. It’s the white on black — it glares on my eyes. I have to read another blog whose colours are the same via my Reader (WP) to subtract the difference as it comes out on white rather than dark.

        I had another blogger who had black with red text, and I suggested she changed it to gray with red text — the result was easier on my eyes to read her content. I am not sure overall — my vision plays enough of a role in what I can read but I try not to discourage personal preferences but as it was an issue I decided to let you know I worked through it.

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      2. bookheathen

        Sorry again that you’ve had a problem; I experiment from time to time with other themes, but I have to say that I have a problem with red on grey. C’est la vie!

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  5. I loved Les Miserables complete with Hugo’s digressions and all! I have Plato’s Republic coming up to read and I’m a little intimidated but I’ve heard that its not too bad. Edith Wharton rarely disappoints and Dumas writes rollicking reads. You have a great list!

    Best of luck on your first spin and through it I’m glad to have found your blog!

    Cheers!

    ~ Cleo ~

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  6. I’m reading The Age of Innocence at the moment. Enjoying it but it took me a while to get into the rhythm. Lots of others on your list I would love to read. Fingers crossed you get a good pick. Emma

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    1. bookheathen

      I’ll have to catch inflenza again, I think, and be confined to house!!
      Seriously, I’m sure I shall enjoy enjoy it – pretty much know the story anyway so it shouldn’t take too much effort.

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