I love The Secret Garden. I love the story and how when I read it, I’m 10 years old again…There have been surprisingly good movie adaptations over the years, and I loved The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton, which played tribute to The Secret Garden and featured Frances Hodgson Burnett as a minor character.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. I love the coming of age and the way Francie experiences her city and life. I really resonated with her from the start of the book. Plus, I enjoy experiencing New York in that time frame.
Gatsby is a great choice. I still love it after teaching it many times. And I agree about Jane Eyre reading differently each time. I'll never forget reading Middlemarch on a train journey, completely immersed with nothing to do but read. Wish I could give more books that kind of attention!
Are we the same person?! I've also enjoyed Gatsby, even after teaching it, and I read Middlemarch on a train across Europe. I read Jane Eyre the first time when I was 8 or 9 and have read it every few years since then. It's a repeat core memory, and it never gets old.
Oh, man. I love so many old books! Over the last couple years I have been discovering and devouring Willa Cather books. My favorite so far is O Pioneers! Her writing is just so stunning and evocative.
For all you Cather fans, the ultimate Willa Cather experience is to visit her home in Red Cloud, Nebraska. There is a museum, childhood home tours and prairie tours, and you can even stay in her second home which is an AirBnB. I’ve been there twice, and it was never for enough time. I love the prairie.
I'm reading O Pioneers! right now! I read my first Willa Cather earlier this year (My Antonia) and enjoyed it so much that I'm now seeking out her other novels. So glad I found her.
I read through Cather's entire catalog of works over the past few years and she is amazing. I love O Pioneers! also. I wrote an essay about her life and work on my publication. Also, Joshua, the author of The Recovering Academic, did his graduate studies on Cather and has written quite a few articles on her work.
For me it’s The Count of Monte Cristo. An absolute doorstop of a book (and one I fully expected to put in the DNF pile). But I couldn’t put it down. Somehow Dumas manages to weave oodles of sub-plots into the main story that propels it every step of the way. Love, heartbreak, betrayal, swordfights(!), revenge…it’s all there.
I received it as a Christmas gift one year & made it my winter project-a perfect escape for dreary days! To my surprise (& delight) I finished it in about 2 weeks.
I love thinking about particular books as 'projects.' I finally did that with Wuthering Heights after trying (and failing) to read it four times. When I finally made it through, it was very rewarding. Such a tough book — one I admire, but don't like. But wow, Emily B did a brilliant job with it. —Mel
House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. I’ve read it many times. I like the way Wharton writes, you can’t beat her for her SSP-New York in the Gilded Age. Lily Bart, our protagonist has chutzpah. Initially, you see a vapid, shallow, grasping woman. But no-she is just trying to survive in a world with lots of rules and a strong streak of patriarchy. She is actually stronger than she knows. I am not %100 sure why I love this book. I just really do and I usually reread in the fall, so thanks for the reminder!😊
First I must insist upon lodging a formal complaint regarding this question. It's too difficult to answer! How can I possibly pick? I'm going to go with Dracula, but I am quite torn about Pride & Prejudice and Jane Eyre. I also really enjoy Great Expectations. And The Sun Also Rises. Okay, I can't answer this concisely.
Is it sacrilegious to have been an English major and yet not love classic novels? If I had to choose I'd probably say "To Kill a Mockingbird." I used to love Dickens, but besides "A Christmas Carol," I haven't read him in decades. I have read "Little Women" a few times over the years, but honestly like it less the more I read it.
And what is truly considered a classic? I consulted this list:
and found things on there that were quite contemporary. It did have "The Wind in the Willows" which I did ADORE reading to my son. I also love helping my son with "Beowulf" in high school.
But truthfully...I don't seek out classics. I like reading about more about contemporary issues or historical novels told in a contemporary way (like my all-time favorite "Hamnet" by Maggie O'Farrell. Do I feel some measure of readerly guilt? Yeah. But the heart likes what the heart likes.
Sep 11·edited Sep 11Liked by Mel Joulwan & Dave Humphreys
I think you should get that “readerly guilt” right out of your head! Any book you enjoy is a good book! And maybe, as an English major, your specialty is "contemporary fiction" :-)
So many good contemporary authors dedicated to their craft. Patti Callahan (Surviving Savannah) and Louise Penny - awaiting her 19th - and many of these will readily credit the classics for inspiration and style. One of the newer classics I’d highly recommend is Tuesdays With Morrie. Incredible inspirational book by Mitch Albom.
Not sacrilegious at all! Unless you have to read for some external reason, you should follow your heart with reading. Life is finite — read what you love.
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I love the characters in the novel, and I find that the stories of the relationships of Levin and Kitty and of Anna and Vronsky show the sharp contrast between a loving marriage and an illicit affair.
I also love Anna Karenina, but my true fav is War and Peace, which I am listening to now and just loving the variety of characters. I have read this multiple times, and am amazed at the scope of this huge book. But I love many classics, Moby Dick by Herman Melville, all of Jane Austen's work, the Bronte sisters (especially Jane Eyre).
I would like to do a War and Peace project, but I have to finish my Macbeth immersion first. Our friend Tillie read War and Peace a few years ago and absolutely loved it. Do you think audio or page is better for a first-timer? —Mel
If you want to immerse yourself in a long book, and really commit, then go for the page. However, after reading the physical book several times, I find the audio is a good choice *now* and for some reason I find the characters (with all their Russian names) easier to keep track of when I'm listening - don't know if that would work for everyone.
I would love to sit and debate audio vs page with you guys - I love both, for different reasons.
Jane Eyre. I read it for the first time in college and remember feeling so seen! Jane is such a badass! She sticks to what she knows is right and doesn't let anyone sway her. She's constantly adapting, but always remaining true to herself. Love it!
Oh boy! Long list. Pride & Prejudice (I watch the Colin Firth film several times a year) Mrs. Dalloway & To the Lighthouse and still #1 Ulysses by James Joyce. The novel was such a departure from how fiction was written. Each chapter written stream of conscious or another with people congregating and speaking to each other. The way the writing changes in style from chapter to chapter, or Episodes as they are called is just amazing and it works. I never came across anything like it.
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy is my absolute favorite classic novel. It’s full of excitement and adventure and, to me, it feels more like a modern bestseller than a classic. If I were to recommend a second favorite, it would be Daddy Long-Legs by Jean Webster. Written as an epistolary novel (what fun!), it features a strong female protagonist.
Both of these books have been adapted into movies, but I found the film versions disappointing because they strayed too far from the original stories.
I just learned about Daddy Long-Legs a few weeks ago (was it you who introduced me to it? I don't recall...), and it sounds like such a good fit for me. I'm excited about that! —Mel
Was Daddy long legs mentioned on the podcast? I first heard about it a few weeks ago too, if I see it a third time somewhere soon I’ll know the universe is telling me to read it 😊
I forgot about The Scarlet Pimpernel . . . so good! To me this is what modern-day writers of historical romance novels are trying to achieve. Haven't read Daddy Long-Legs--I will look for it! (was there a movie with Audrey Hepburn?)
The 1955 Daddy Long Legs movie, which they made into a musical, is with Leslie Caron and Fred Astaire. The book was written in 1912 (available free at Project Gutenberg). I'm a big fan of Leslie Caron, Fred Astaire and old musicals, but I think comparing the movie to the book could make for an interesting project in women’s studies. Hope you try it!
Crime and Punishment for two reasons 1) The style was so different than anything I had come across, and some parts were incredibly effective and making you feel in a fever dream. Also, the translation matters a great deal. After reading, I read a comparison of a few passages from different translations, and the styles, words, and sentence structure were wildly different which surprised me. 2) I told my Mom I had wanted to read some Russian literature and that I had just started Crime and Punishment, and she said she thought the same thing and had just finished it. Such a strange coincidence that I love!
Isn't it fun to compare translations or edits of classics?! Such a good reminder that they're works of art as flexible as interpreting a painting or a piece of music. I love that! —Mel
Jane Austen’s six novels. I read them starting each January to get me through the long dark nights of winter. A tradition of half a century now!
Oooh, I love this! What a great idea! —Mel
A great tradition!
I love The Secret Garden. I love the story and how when I read it, I’m 10 years old again…There have been surprisingly good movie adaptations over the years, and I loved The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton, which played tribute to The Secret Garden and featured Frances Hodgson Burnett as a minor character.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. I love the coming of age and the way Francie experiences her city and life. I really resonated with her from the start of the book. Plus, I enjoy experiencing New York in that time frame.
I've not read this book (yet), but it gets so much love in the nonfiction book 'When Books Went to War.' https://www.npr.org/2014/12/10/369616513/wwii-by-the-books-the-pocket-size-editions-that-kept-soldiers-reading That book is fantastic — the story of pocket-sized paperback books sent to soldiers during WWII. Highly recommended. Anyway, they all LOVED 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.' —Mel
I love this one! I first read it a few years ago, and wish I had read it as a child
- Shruti
Gatsby is a great choice. I still love it after teaching it many times. And I agree about Jane Eyre reading differently each time. I'll never forget reading Middlemarch on a train journey, completely immersed with nothing to do but read. Wish I could give more books that kind of attention!
I want to read Middlemarch — got the audiobook last fall and haven't had the chance to dig in yet.
Strong agree that train/plane reading is fantastic, focused time. But trains are WAY better than planes :-) —Mel
Are we the same person?! I've also enjoyed Gatsby, even after teaching it, and I read Middlemarch on a train across Europe. I read Jane Eyre the first time when I was 8 or 9 and have read it every few years since then. It's a repeat core memory, and it never gets old.
I love “train journey reads”—or any situation that gives you “permission” to do nothing but focus on a good book!
You've both made me want to take a train trip and read Middlemarch again!
Oh, man. I love so many old books! Over the last couple years I have been discovering and devouring Willa Cather books. My favorite so far is O Pioneers! Her writing is just so stunning and evocative.
For all you Cather fans, the ultimate Willa Cather experience is to visit her home in Red Cloud, Nebraska. There is a museum, childhood home tours and prairie tours, and you can even stay in her second home which is an AirBnB. I’ve been there twice, and it was never for enough time. I love the prairie.
Visiting Red Cloud is on my short list of travel plans!
Such great tips! —Mel
I'm reading O Pioneers! right now! I read my first Willa Cather earlier this year (My Antonia) and enjoyed it so much that I'm now seeking out her other novels. So glad I found her.
Are these good books to save for November/ December vibes in NY?
I'm halfway through O Pioneers! and I'm not getting a winter vibe yet, but My Antonia is definitely good for winter time. I read it in January.
Thanks so much. I love a read that coincides with the season.
These books always come up on Jeopardy! and I've not read any of them. #holeinmyeducation —Mel
I read through Cather's entire catalog of works over the past few years and she is amazing. I love O Pioneers! also. I wrote an essay about her life and work on my publication. Also, Joshua, the author of The Recovering Academic, did his graduate studies on Cather and has written quite a few articles on her work.
Have you read One of Ours yet? It’s very different than her other books but it’s one of my favorites
It's on my list!!
For me it’s The Count of Monte Cristo. An absolute doorstop of a book (and one I fully expected to put in the DNF pile). But I couldn’t put it down. Somehow Dumas manages to weave oodles of sub-plots into the main story that propels it every step of the way. Love, heartbreak, betrayal, swordfights(!), revenge…it’s all there.
I've only read 'The Three Muskateers,' and loved the swashbuckling-ness of it all. —Mel
Yep, lots of buckles are swashed in Dumas’ books!
That's great to hear because my family book club just picked this book! (It was my grandma's favorite...)
So cool that you can carry on a family tradition!
It's on my list to read - I always shy away because it's soooo long.
I received it as a Christmas gift one year & made it my winter project-a perfect escape for dreary days! To my surprise (& delight) I finished it in about 2 weeks.
I love thinking about particular books as 'projects.' I finally did that with Wuthering Heights after trying (and failing) to read it four times. When I finally made it through, it was very rewarding. Such a tough book — one I admire, but don't like. But wow, Emily B did a brilliant job with it. —Mel
Same here. I love The Count of Monte Cristo. All the intrigues along the way. Very satisfying!
Excellent choice. I have always loved that book. I reread it earlier this year and it was so good.
Such a great book!
Love that one too.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.
Such a strong sense of place! Love all the descriptions of the physical environment. —Mel
That book was such a surprise for me - not at all what I expected based on the monster lore I knew as a child.
Right? It's much more introspective than I imagined. —Mel
Me too! The ending was so sad.
House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. I’ve read it many times. I like the way Wharton writes, you can’t beat her for her SSP-New York in the Gilded Age. Lily Bart, our protagonist has chutzpah. Initially, you see a vapid, shallow, grasping woman. But no-she is just trying to survive in a world with lots of rules and a strong streak of patriarchy. She is actually stronger than she knows. I am not %100 sure why I love this book. I just really do and I usually reread in the fall, so thanks for the reminder!😊
I just read 'The Age of Innocence' for the first time a few months ago. Edith Wharton is so good at the sentence level — just lovely. —Mel
First I must insist upon lodging a formal complaint regarding this question. It's too difficult to answer! How can I possibly pick? I'm going to go with Dracula, but I am quite torn about Pride & Prejudice and Jane Eyre. I also really enjoy Great Expectations. And The Sun Also Rises. Okay, I can't answer this concisely.
YES, Dracula! It's so much fun to read that one! And the travelogue bits are very, very good. I like the notes to get recipes for Mina. —Mel
Is it sacrilegious to have been an English major and yet not love classic novels? If I had to choose I'd probably say "To Kill a Mockingbird." I used to love Dickens, but besides "A Christmas Carol," I haven't read him in decades. I have read "Little Women" a few times over the years, but honestly like it less the more I read it.
And what is truly considered a classic? I consulted this list:
https://www.penguin.co.uk/articles/2022/05/100-must-read-classic-books
and found things on there that were quite contemporary. It did have "The Wind in the Willows" which I did ADORE reading to my son. I also love helping my son with "Beowulf" in high school.
But truthfully...I don't seek out classics. I like reading about more about contemporary issues or historical novels told in a contemporary way (like my all-time favorite "Hamnet" by Maggie O'Farrell. Do I feel some measure of readerly guilt? Yeah. But the heart likes what the heart likes.
I loved Hamnet and want to read it again soon.
I think you should get that “readerly guilt” right out of your head! Any book you enjoy is a good book! And maybe, as an English major, your specialty is "contemporary fiction" :-)
So many good contemporary authors dedicated to their craft. Patti Callahan (Surviving Savannah) and Louise Penny - awaiting her 19th - and many of these will readily credit the classics for inspiration and style. One of the newer classics I’d highly recommend is Tuesdays With Morrie. Incredible inspirational book by Mitch Albom.
Not sacrilegious at all! Unless you have to read for some external reason, you should follow your heart with reading. Life is finite — read what you love.
Re: Beowulf. Have you read the translation by Maria Dahvana Headley? I really want to read that one! https://www.npr.org/2020/08/27/906423831/bro-this-is-not-the-beowulf-you-think-you-know
SSoP is a GUILT FREE ZONE —Mel
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I love the characters in the novel, and I find that the stories of the relationships of Levin and Kitty and of Anna and Vronsky show the sharp contrast between a loving marriage and an illicit affair.
I also love Anna Karenina, but my true fav is War and Peace, which I am listening to now and just loving the variety of characters. I have read this multiple times, and am amazed at the scope of this huge book. But I love many classics, Moby Dick by Herman Melville, all of Jane Austen's work, the Bronte sisters (especially Jane Eyre).
I would like to do a War and Peace project, but I have to finish my Macbeth immersion first. Our friend Tillie read War and Peace a few years ago and absolutely loved it. Do you think audio or page is better for a first-timer? —Mel
If you want to immerse yourself in a long book, and really commit, then go for the page. However, after reading the physical book several times, I find the audio is a good choice *now* and for some reason I find the characters (with all their Russian names) easier to keep track of when I'm listening - don't know if that would work for everyone.
I would love to sit and debate audio vs page with you guys - I love both, for different reasons.
So juicy! —Mel
Jane Eyre. I read it for the first time in college and remember feeling so seen! Jane is such a badass! She sticks to what she knows is right and doesn't let anyone sway her. She's constantly adapting, but always remaining true to herself. Love it!
I first read it in middle school and loved it. Have read it several times over the years and continue to love it.
Jane is truly the best of us. —Mel
It has to be Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier, was my favorite book for ages since I first read as a teen. (Still in the top ten maybe even five!)
YES! Solid pick. —Mel
Oh boy! Long list. Pride & Prejudice (I watch the Colin Firth film several times a year) Mrs. Dalloway & To the Lighthouse and still #1 Ulysses by James Joyce. The novel was such a departure from how fiction was written. Each chapter written stream of conscious or another with people congregating and speaking to each other. The way the writing changes in style from chapter to chapter, or Episodes as they are called is just amazing and it works. I never came across anything like it.
My favorite James Joyce girl :-) —Mel
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy is my absolute favorite classic novel. It’s full of excitement and adventure and, to me, it feels more like a modern bestseller than a classic. If I were to recommend a second favorite, it would be Daddy Long-Legs by Jean Webster. Written as an epistolary novel (what fun!), it features a strong female protagonist.
Both of these books have been adapted into movies, but I found the film versions disappointing because they strayed too far from the original stories.
I just learned about Daddy Long-Legs a few weeks ago (was it you who introduced me to it? I don't recall...), and it sounds like such a good fit for me. I'm excited about that! —Mel
Was Daddy long legs mentioned on the podcast? I first heard about it a few weeks ago too, if I see it a third time somewhere soon I’ll know the universe is telling me to read it 😊
I forgot about The Scarlet Pimpernel . . . so good! To me this is what modern-day writers of historical romance novels are trying to achieve. Haven't read Daddy Long-Legs--I will look for it! (was there a movie with Audrey Hepburn?)
The 1955 Daddy Long Legs movie, which they made into a musical, is with Leslie Caron and Fred Astaire. The book was written in 1912 (available free at Project Gutenberg). I'm a big fan of Leslie Caron, Fred Astaire and old musicals, but I think comparing the movie to the book could make for an interesting project in women’s studies. Hope you try it!
YES, take us down the Daddy Long Legs rabbit hole. I love everything about this.
Loved Daddy Long-Legs as a kid! Time for a reread, I think.
Crime and Punishment for two reasons 1) The style was so different than anything I had come across, and some parts were incredibly effective and making you feel in a fever dream. Also, the translation matters a great deal. After reading, I read a comparison of a few passages from different translations, and the styles, words, and sentence structure were wildly different which surprised me. 2) I told my Mom I had wanted to read some Russian literature and that I had just started Crime and Punishment, and she said she thought the same thing and had just finished it. Such a strange coincidence that I love!
Isn't it fun to compare translations or edits of classics?! Such a good reminder that they're works of art as flexible as interpreting a painting or a piece of music. I love that! —Mel