Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

for the first time in many a year, I am forgoing an Old & New challenge,
but I do quite fancy the categories in the

Challenge #4 - Members Choice Challenge :
1. 19th Century: Mysteries Hamsun, Knut 1892 - Finished - 2.5 Stars
2. 20th Century: Earthly Powers Burgess, Anthony 1980 - DNF
reserve: A Sport and a Pastime Salter, James 1967 - Finished - 3.5
3. A book originally written in a language other than your own: The Mulatta And Mister Fly Asturias, Miguel Ángel 1963 - Finished - 4.5
4. Current or Past Group Read: The Remains of the Day Ishiguro, Kazuo 1989 - Finished - 4
5. An Author not read before: The Book of Daniel Doctorow, E. L. 1971 - Finished - 4.5
6. Diversity Classic: Carol (oka Price Of Salt, The) Highsmith, Patricia (as Claire Morgan) 1952 - Finished - 3.5
7. Science Fiction/Fantasy: Robot Wiśniewski-Snerg, Adam 1973 - Finished - 3.5
8. Action/Adventure: Dersu the Trapper Arseniev, Vladimir 1923 - Finished - 5
9. Childrens/Young Adult: The Witches Dahl, Roald - Finished - 3.5
10. Nonfiction: Black Hawk Down Bowden, Mark 1999 - Finished - 4.5
11. Mystery/Thriller: Epitaph for a Spy Ambler, Eric 1938 - Finished - 3.5
12. Horror or Humor: Second from Last in the Sack Race Nobbs, David 1983 - Finished - 3.5

by curious coincidence, I already had planned a 2023 "New Author" personal challenge, so they can go straight into:

Challenge #7 - Expand Your Horizon With New Authors:
Tim Winton: Cloudstreet 1991 - Finished - 4.5 Stars
Graham Swift: Waterland 1983 - DNF
Mordecai Richler: Solomon Gursky Was Here 1989 - Finished - 4 Stars
Derek Raymond: I Was Dora Suarez 1990 - Finished - 3 Stars
Marie Darrieussecq: Pig Tales 1996 - Finished - 4.5 Stars
Michel Houellebecq: Atomised 1998 - Finished - 3 Stars
Anne Enright: The Gathering 2007 - Finished - 3.5 Stars
Nigel Williams: The Wimbledon Poisoner 1990 - Finished - 3.5 Stars
Keiichirō Hirano: A Man 2020 - Finished - 3.5 Stars
Peter De Vries: Slouching Towards Kalamazoo 1983 - Finished - 2 Stars
Robert Plunket: My Search for Warren Harding 1983 - Finished - 3.5 Stars
Timothy Mo: Sour Sweet 1982 - 3.5

Challenge #5 - Short Story Challenge :

The Phantom Rickshaw by Rudyard Kipling
My Own True Ghost Story by Rudyard Kipling
The Strange Ride of Morrowbie Jukes by Rudyard Kipling
The Man Who Would Be King by Rudyard Kipling (re-read)
The Defenders by Philip K. Dick
Catastrophe by Dino Buzzati
The Sentinel by Arthur C. Clarke
Bringing Up Baby by Hagar Wilde
The Swimmer by John Cheever

I'm glad you like the categories for challenge #4, good luck and happy reading.

You chose a fun challenge, Darren!

I'm particularly interest in Second from Last in the Sack Race. I've never heard of it, but it sounds like a lot of fun! I'm going to find a place for it in one of my challenges!! Thanks a lot! :)

Roald Dahl is always a good choice, Darren. All the best!

Terris - I loved Nobbs' The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin so thought I would try another of his

meanwhile for January I'm looking at:
Earthly Powers (Members Choice, 20th Century)
Pig Tales (New Authors, Marie Darrieussecq)

oh dear, not off to a v.good start: DNF-ed Earthly Powers
so invoking a reserve "20th Century" choice, namely James Salter's A Sport and a Pastime

Sorry, that happened. At least you did not waste time and pulled the plug. I am getting better at doing that. I hope your replacement is better, how about 5 stars better.

Sport and a Pastime was a style-over-substance 3.5 Stars

February will be:
12. Horror or Humor: Second from Last in the Sack Race Nobbs, David 1983

Darren, I have a question for you, after seeing that you read "Second from Last...." which is also on my TBR list (I'm looking forward to it).

My question is: Can I count MASH: A Novel about Three Army Doctors as a "classic" humor (I4 in the Bingo challenge)? I just read it and loved it! But I don't know if I can/want to count it as a "classic." I'm kind of picky about what people call "classics." A few people on the genres list classified it as a classic but....
You read so many books from the Guardian list, etc. that I trust your judgment -- what do you think?

gosh the responsibility! not sure anybody is a sure-fire authority on what is a classic and what isn't, but...
I would say...
YES!
it has a lot of editions and a highish rating and a lot of people have heard of it (admittedly mainly through first acquaintance with the TV/film, but I am biased wrt fave film-related books!)

Terris, I don’t wish to intrude on a question you have asked Darren, but as to MASH being a classic, I would also say yes. It will be 55 years old this year and has certainly stood the test of time.

forgot to mention my "New Authors" read for January:
Pig Tales by Marie Darrieussecq, which was a wild/wacky 4.5 Stars!

February will be:
Nigel Williams: The Wimbledon Poisoner 1990

Bob wrote: "Terris, I don’t wish to intrude on a question you have asked Darren, but as to MASH being a classic, I would also say yes. It will be 55 years old this year and has certainly stood the test of time."

Thank you, Darren & Bob (and anyone else who wants to chime in)! I appreciate your thoughts and clear reasoning. I am counting it! :)

Terris wrote: "Bob wrote: "Terris, I don’t wish to intrude on a question you have asked Darren, but as to MASH being a classic, I would also say yes. It will be 55 years old this year and has certainly stood the ..."

I used it as a classic. It is a humorous book written by a first hand participant. The doctor wrote his story and it is the book MASH. There is a continuing series of MASH books that was written by a ghost writer, and although I have not read those the quality and purpose of the first book seems lost in the later ones.

Lynn wrote: "Terris wrote: "Bob wrote: "Terris, I don’t wish to intrude on a question you have asked Darren, but as to MASH being a classic, I would also say yes. It will be 55 years old this year and has certa..."

Thanks for the info, Lynn. I did use MASH as a classic! Another Bingo square marked off ;)

Member's Choice report:

February's Second from Last in the Sack Race was mostly enjoyable 3.5 Stars
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

March I decided to go with Remains Of The Day, as it has been a relatively recent Group Read in both of my GR groups and I missed it both times!
an "as expected" 4 Stars as I know the film so well and v.similar

April will probably be Roald Dahl's The Witches, but this might change...

New Authors report:

February's Wimbledon Poisoner was mostly hilarious 3.5 Stars
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

March I'll be going with Keiichirō Hirano's A Man...

Member's Choice report:

April did indeed turn out to be:
9. Childrens/Young Adult: The Witches Dahl, Roald
which I rated as 3.5 Stars - strangely lacking in "witchiness"(!)

and (in a rather startling change of character) May will be:
10. Nonfiction: Black Hawk Down Bowden, Mark 1999

New Authors report:

March was:
Keiichirō Hirano: A Man - 3.5 Stars
which was well enough written and had some intriguing aspects, but was a bit sprawling/unfocused.

April was:
Tim Winton: Cloudstreet - 4.5 Stars
close to 5-star modern classic

May will be:
Peter De Vries: Slouching Towards Kalamazoo 1983

I read Cloudstreet a few years ago, and was really impressed with it as well. But I've also known people who found its magical realism jarring. I'm glad it worked for you!

New Authors report:

May was:
Peter De Vries: Slouching Towards Kalamazoo - 2 Stars
not impressed

June was:
Robert Plunket: My Search for Warren Harding - 3.5 Stars
enjoyable, if somewhat shaggy-dog, story

July will be:
Timothy Mo: Sour Sweet 1982

Member's Choice report:

May was:
10. Nonfiction: Black Hawk Down Bowden, Mark - 4.5 Stars
superb combat non-fiction


June was chosen as:
3. A book originally written in a language other than your own: The Mulatta and Mister Fly Asturias, Miguel Ángel 1963
but only recently got started, so still ongoing...

July will be:
1. 19th Century: Mysteries Hamsun, Knut 1892

Darren wrote: "New Authors report:

May was:
Peter De Vries: Slouching Towards Kalamazoo - 2 Stars
not impressed

June was:
Robert Plunket: [book:My Search for Warre..."

I guess I'll take "Slouching" off my list!

Member's Choice report:

July was:
1. 19th Century: Mysteries Hamsun, Knut - a mystifying 2.5 Stars

August was:
6. Diversity Classic: Carol (oka Price Of Salt, The) Highsmith, Patricia (as Claire Morgan) - a competent 3.5

September will be:
7. Science Fiction/Fantasy: Robot Wiśniewski-Snerg, Adam 1973

New Authors report:

July was:
Timothy Mo: Sour Sweet - excellent 4 Stars

August was:
Derek Raymond: I Was Dora Suarez - solid police-procedural - 3

September will be:
Mordecai Richler: Solomon Gursky Was Here 1989

(enjoying already!)

You're making great progress!

Member's Choice report:

September was:
7. Science Fiction/Fantasy: Robot Wiśniewski-Snerg, Adam - a weird/disjointed 3.5 Stars

October was:
11. Mystery/Thriller: Epitaph for a Spy Ambler, Eric - an enjoyable but disjointed 3.5 Stars

November is still ongoing:
5. An Author not read before: The Book of Daniel Doctorow, E. L. 1971

and finally December will be:
8. Action/Adventure: Dersu the Trapper Arseniev, Vladimir 1923

New Authors report:

September was:
Mordecai Richler: Solomon Gursky Was Here - a recommended 4 Stars

October was:
Graham Swift: Waterland - DNF

November was:
Anne Enright: The Gathering - a "tricksy" 4 Stars

December will be:
Michel Houellebecq: Atomised 1998

I finished my New Authors challenge (see Message#2),
with best two being
Tim Winton's "Cloudstreet" and
Marie Darrieussecq's "Pig Tales"
and honourable mentions going to
Mordecai Richler's "Solomon Gursky Was Here" and
Anne Enright's "The Gathering"

Congratulations Darren. I have not read anything by the 4 authors you mentioned. I keep learning new things here!

Bravo Darren! Well done completing your New Authors challenge.

Way to go, Darren! You always read interesting things :)

Thanks guys :o)
I've also just finished my Members Choice challenge (full report to follow) and by curious coincidence one of the best of those was the new author slot, namely E. L. Doctorow's "The Book of Daniel"

Darren wrote: "Thanks guys :o)
I've also just finished my Members Choice challenge (full report to follow) and by curious coincidence one of the best of those was the new author slot, namely E. L. Doctorow's "The..."

Congratulations!!

so finished
Challenge #4 - Members Choice Challenge :
1. 19th Century: Mysteries Hamsun, Knut - 2.5 Stars
2. 20th Century: Earthly Powers Burgess, Anthony - DNF
reserve: A Sport and a Pastime Salter, James - 3.5
3. A book originally written in a language other than your own: The Mulatta And Mister Fly Asturias, Miguel Ángel - 4.5
4. Current or Past Group Read: The Remains of the Day Ishiguro, Kazuo - 4
5. An Author not read before: The Book of Daniel Doctorow, E. L. - 4.5
6. Diversity Classic: Carol (oka Price Of Salt, The) Highsmith, Patricia (as Claire Morgan) - 3.5
7. Science Fiction/Fantasy: Robot Wiśniewski-Snerg, Adam - 3.5
8. Action/Adventure: Dersu the Trapper Arseniev, Vladimir - 5
9. Childrens/Young Adult: The Witches Dahl, Roald - 3.5
10. Nonfiction: Black Hawk Down Bowden, Mark - 4.5
11. Mystery/Thriller: Epitaph for a Spy Ambler, Eric - 3.5
12. Horror or Humor: Second from Last in the Sack Race Nobbs, David - 3.5

overall mostly good/enjoyable stuff
particularly impressed with the writing of Asturias and Doctorow
and with the two non-fictions of two of my fave films Dersu The Trapper and Black Hawk Down

That's great! And well done finding so many you really enjoyed!

Darren wrote: "so finished

Challenge #4 - Members Choice Challenge
:
1. 19th Century: Mysteries Hamsun, Knut - 2.5 Stars
2. 20th Century: Earthly Powers Burgess, Anthony - DNF
reserve:..."


Congratulations! Every time you mention Doctorow it catches my attention. I have heard the name for years, but have not read anything by him yet.