Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

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thank you Pink for this thread.

Excellent addition! :)

Let's make the thread "sticky" so it doesn't sink if no one asks any questions for a time.

Nente wrote: "Let's make the thread "sticky" so it doesn't sink if no one asks any questions for a time."

Good idea, done :)

Question: is considered a classic?

Jim

Jim wrote: "Question: is considered a classic?

Jim"

I'd say so yes. Looks like a great classic collection of letters :)

Classic can be nonfiction or fiction -- I'd say a definite yes. Mozart is a classic for our culture.

It's on my TBR mountain but not on the 12 + 2. Penguin Classics, thought I'd check.

No problem Jim. Actually, I'd add that anything good enough to be published by Penguin classics should be good enough for our groups purposes, whether fiction, non-fiction, poetry etc. Though I might draw the line at Morrissey's 'classic' autobiography that they chose to market it as!

Moby Dick is winning the polls.
I've always wanted to read it.

I confess, I've not read it yet. I only read an illustrated abridged version when I was a kid.

I had not planned to read it this year. Actually I had planned to read mostly short stories. But I'm really tempted. A group read would be great.

The thing is, I'm scared of that book. Dammit! I'm a coward. But I'm seriously thinking about finally getting on the ship.

I'm not sure yet whether I download an e-book or buy a tree-book. But I'd like to have the traditional printed paper book this time. Does anybody know a good annotated (with glossary and everything) edition of Moby Dick?

I'm looking forward to your good advice. :)

The Penguin Classics edition is well-annotated with an excellent intro: Moby-Dick; or, The Whale. It's the well-worn copy I have on my bookshelf (it's been read 4 times).

There's no need to be scared of the book. Melville's one helluva a writer and his book is actually pretty funny. I hope you give it a try.

Milena, it looks like Squire has given you a good recommendation for an annotated version. I echo what he's said, there's nothing to be scared of. I think a few people will be giving it a try for the first time, for our group read, so you'll be in good company.

Milena, I am in the same boat as you. Or avoiding the same boat I should say! I thought I'd decided to continue not to read this one, but now you are tempting me. Of all the "really should read" books I haven't read, this is probably the really shouldyest.

Kathleen wrote: "Of all the "really should read" books I haven't read, this is probably the really shouldyest...."

I have a few of these books myself!

I think we all have those books! :)

Good afternoon,

I am actually staying in a hotel while my house is being remodeled after a hose burst on my clothes washer, flooding my kitchen and part of my living room with 2-3" (about 50-76 mm) of water. Before the work began earlier this month (after wrangling with the insurance company, finding a contractor, etc.), I had to box everything I wanted to keep and throw out everything I wanted to throw out. I boxed all the books that I wanted to read and hadn't read yet.

The book I am currently reading, Mozart: A Life in Letters, is one of three books I borrowed from the library due March 8, 2017. The book, containing the German to English translations of 184 letters (of some 1,200 extant) written by W.A. (1756-91) and his father Leopold (1719-87) between 1762 and 1791, are an excellent, intimate portrait of the Mozart family dynamics and travels, of life in various European countries at that time, and of W.A.'s works and fame.

I didn't know, Kathleen, that "shouldyest" was a word. It's an apt description of many, many books on my TBR mountain, which is probably closer to a mountain range than to a single mountain. I have the Barnes and Noble Classics edition of Moby-Dick, but it's not among the dozen that I have piled in the hotel room.

Jim

Jim wrote: "Good afternoon,

I am actually staying in a hotel while my house is being remodeled after a hose burst on my clothes washer, flooding my kitchen and part of my living room with 2-3" (about 50-76 mm..."

Yikes Jim! I'm so sorry for your troubles! I hope that the remodeling and renovations go well! Been there, done that! Not fun! :)

Meanwhile, enjoy your books and may they provide some solace during this difficult time! :)

Wow Jim, that sounds like quite a disruption. I'm glad you managed to rescue your books and take some of them with you while you're at the hotel. Happy reading!

What an awful thing, Jim. But maybe Mozart provides a good solace? (That sounds like another book I have to add.) Good luck with your repairs.

Squire wrote: "The Penguin Classics edition is well-annotated with an excellent intro: Moby-Dick; or, The Whale. It's the well-worn copy I have on my bookshelf (it's been read 4 times)."

Thank you Squire, the Penguin Classics edition
Moby-Dick; or, The Whale is among those that I was thinking about, the other being the Norton Critical edition http://books.wwnorton.com/books/webad...

And I just read that Moby Dick is one of the books you'd take if you were shipwrecked on a desert island, so I trust your opinion. :))

Milena wrote: "And I just read that Moby Dick is one of the books you'd take if you were shipwrecked on a desert island, so I trust your opinion. :)"

Wow! I'm flattered. Of course I could name at least 6 people on GR who would disagree with me. But, thanx.

:>D

I have a lot of Norton critical editions left over from my college days (which are very good as well), but not for Moby Dick.

Pink wrote: "Milena, it looks like Squire has given you a good recommendation for an annotated version. I echo what he's said, there's nothing to be scared of. I think a few people will be giving it a try for t..."

Yes Pink, I think I'm buying the edition that Squire recommended to me and I'll be ready for the Apr - June Long Read.

Part of that concern was due to the fact that I want to read it in its original language and English is not my mother tongue, but once I have an annotated version, nothing can stop me anymore.

Kathleen wrote: "Milena, I am in the same boat as you. Or avoiding the same boat I should say! I thought I'd decided to continue not to read this one, but now you are tempting me. Of all the "really should read" bo..."

Kathleen, yesterday I read a few lines of the first chapter in the Internet and WOW! The book sprang up from my shouldys to my wontys.

I hope I tempted you enough to convince you to get on board. :)

Jim wrote: "Good afternoon,

I am actually staying in a hotel while my house is being remodeled after a hose burst on my clothes washer, flooding my kitchen and part of my living room with 2-3" (about 50-76 mm..."


What a disaster Jim. I hope you can fix everything up soon.
I join Loretta, Pink and Kathleen in wishing you that a good book may provide some solace in the neantime.

Milena, I'm glad you've picked your copy of Moby Dick. It almost made the cut for my desert island list, just not quite. It's a great book, so I hope you enjoy it :)

Your enthusiasm was the extra nudge I needed, Milena--count me in. And I hope Squire and Pink add their thoughts to the threads too when the time comes.

Yep, will do :)

Hi Chit Chat & All That, fellow classics readers. I need to ask a question: What is it that makes a classic? Is it the way it has been written? Is it the book's subject matter? Is it the endurance of the book over the years? Is it the originality of the book and its theme?
I am something of a nerd as well as a reader of the classics and am, err... this is slightly embarrassing, currently reading a collection of four BIGGLES books by Captain W.E. Johns. For the discerning Chit Chat reader these books are: Biggles in the Baltic, Biggles Sees It Through, Biggles Flies North and lastly, Biggles in the Jungle. Biggles was hugely popular in the 1950s and 60s when I was growing up and the books are still in great demand by collectors.
The question I would like to ask - Are the Biggles books considered classics?

Paul wrote: "Hi Chit Chat & All That, fellow classics readers. I need to ask a question: What is it that makes a classic? Is it the way it has been written? Is it the book's subject matter? Is it the endurance ..."

You might want to check out this thread that discusses your question: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Count me in, too!

Hi Pink! When we do a buddy read, can we set up a discussion thread in the Buddy Reads folder ourselves, or are only moderators supposed to create new threads?

There's no problem setting up the threads yourself, just if it's been a group read before there will already be discussion threads for you to continue using for the buddy read. If not, feel free to start a new thread :)

Pink wrote: "There's no problem setting up the threads yourself, just if it's been a group read before there will already be discussion threads for you to continue using for the buddy read. If not, feel free to..."

Great, thanks! It hasn't been a group read before, I've checked. :)

Are you guys familiar with the books; The Things They Carried, The Awakening, Weep Not Child, and Ethan Frome?

Sarah wrote: "Are you guys familiar with the books; The Things They Carried, The Awakening, Weep Not Child, and Ethan Frome?"

I've read The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Why?

Same here, I've heard of them all, but only read The Awakening.

Sarah wrote: "Are you guys familiar with the books; The Things They Carried, The Awakening, Weep Not Child, and Ethan Frome?"

I've read all except Weep Not the Child. Trying to figure out the correlation between them. Do you have a project with these books?

I've read Ethan Frome, but I've heard of all of them.

Laurie wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Are you guys familiar with the books; The Things They Carried, The Awakening, Weep Not Child, and Ethan Frome?"

I've read all except Weep Not the Child. Trying to figure out the corr..."

Same here.

Sarah wrote: "Are you guys familiar with the books; The Things They Carried, The Awakening, Weep Not Child, and Ethan Frome?"

I've read all but Weep Not Child, in fact I've never heard of it till now.

I thought The Awakening was quite good and Ethan Frome was not my favorite Wharton, but well worth reading. I have The Things They Carried on my TBR, so I will be interested in hearing your opinion if you read that one. Had not heard of Weep Not Child, so you may have introduced a lot of us to a new book.

Loretta wrote: "Sarah wrote: "Are you guys familiar with the books; The Things They Carried, The Awakening, Weep Not Child, and Ethan Frome?"

I've read The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Why?"
I was wondering if these were considered classics. And yes i have read them all.

Are all everbind books classics?

Well, it sort of depends on how you define "classic."

Some people would say that The Things They Carried is too new to be considered a classic since it was only written in 1990. Others wouldn't have an issue with it.

We had a discussion about our criteria for defining classics not too long ago. If you're interested.


I'm not sure what Everbind is. Is that a publisher?


I haven't read the other two, but I'd certainly call The Awakening and Ethan Frome classics.

Melanti wrote: "Well, it sort of depends on how you define "classic."

Some people would say that The Things They Carried is too new to be considered a classic since it was only written in 1990. Othe..."

I said everbind because on some of the books i read and mentioned earlier there was a little golden rectangle on the cover that in the center said everbind. It was probably the Awakening but i cant remember. There are some books that say 'everbind' on the cover.

Alright i searched everbind and the book "To kill a mocking bird" says everbind on it but when i search it in here it doesn't show that it is an everbind book, so i dont know what to say.

Looks like Everbind is a re-binder. They take books from other publishers and put a hardback cover and reinforce the spine so they'll hold up better in a classroom environment.

It seems they focus on classics and classroom-worthy books but aren't necessarily classics.

Melanti wrote: "Looks like Everbind is a re-binder. They take books from other publishers and put a hardback cover and reinforce the spine so they'll hold up better in a classroom environment.

It seems they focu..."

That makes sense

My reaction to that list of books was that they are part of common high school reading.