Whos into some good old classics like romeo and juliet? :)

Well, what qualifies a classic? Age or impact?

For instance, I am a huge Jane Austen fan, but I would also consider Orwell's works like 1984 or Animal farm to be classics...

There is about 300 years between Shakespeare and Orwell

>>2 With great age, comes great impact. Shakespeare's plays are old, but they also have a huge impact.

Dracula. It's annoying to read, but I can't put it down.

Not everything that is old is necessarily good. Otherwise, we would be reading those trashy novels that were popular in Regency and Victorian England as well as Dickens...

"Romeo and Juliet is not a love story. It's a 3-day relationship between a 13-year-old and a 17-year-old that caused 6 deaths. Sincerely, everyone who actually read it."

Romeo and Juliet, Diary of Anne Frank.... books like these made me hate "classics". I saw the move for Pride and Prejudace and wanted to read the book really badly cuz it's concidered a classic and books are better than movies.... -_-
I am curently reading it and i have lost all faith in clasical books... im up for ones like The Hunger Games (read it before it was cool/known, when it first came out) The Mortal Instruments (city of bones, city of ash, city of glass, city of fallen angels, etc).... books that arn't classic, but good and not pointless.

Um...lets just say penguin classics :)
narrows it down a bit doesn't it?
Yeah, classics aren't really my favourites i prefer horror or mystery more..

the raven, edgar allen poe

>>7 All of this. Yes. You are my new best friend.

>>5 All of this. Yes. Shakespeare just made me sound smart in school because I didn't need to take notes to understand it. I love the two series you mentioned. How about "Percy Jackson and the Olympians"? or "Kane Chronicles"? The movie killed the Percy Jackson one.

>>8, I agree on the Percy Jackson, but I disliked Kane Chronicles. I just thought it wasn't as well done and found myself disappointed. I can't tell you exactly why because it's been so long since I read it. His other series, Heroes of Olympus, has been going down a dark and dangerous path lately as he tries to make all of his characters extra-super-special.

I like some "classics". I actually enjoyed reading the Crucible in English class, but that may be because I have an odd fascination with the witch trials. I liked Of Mice and Men, even though it was depressing as fuck. Lord of the Flies was pretty good, except for the fact they killed off my favorite character.

Anything by Edgar Allen Poe automatically is amazing. Shakespeare wrote some of the worst abominations and some of the most amazing plays.

Sorry >>7 , but >>9 is my new best friend. I've never read Lord of the flies though. Have you read The Hobbit? That's good. The Kane Chronicles was good in my opnion, but it's been a while since I've read it. I might dislike it now. How about Song of the Lioness?

(These are some of the classics that I think are the best)

1) Phantom Of The Opera. Its insanely addicting with a good plot. Although, slightly confusing because of its French author.

2) Sherlock Holmes Mysteries. Possibly the most amazing stories you will ever read.

3) The Arabian Nights. Enough said.

>>10, I haven't read the Hobbit, yet, but I have read the LotR trilogy. I read the entire Song of the Lioness quartet, the Beka Cooper trilogy, the Circle of Magic, part of the Circle opens, and The Will of the Empress.

I read Lord of the Flies in 10th grade for school. We literally convinced one of my friends that Simon turned into a giant fly called the Lord of the Flies and that he ate Ralph. She got suspicious when we later told her Ralph ate Simon. It was a wonderful book.

>>11, I have yet to read the Phantom of the Opera, though I have watched the movie. I've been meaning to read the others for years but haven't gotten around to it.

I've been told Jane Austen books are good but I've also been told you should wait to read them until you're older so I haven't even tried to crack on open yet. Gone with the Wind is fairly decent if you can read a 1000page book. Just keep in mind that Scarlet O'Hara is an idiot and everyone around her dies.

Great Gatsby is anything but. Gatsby is a love-struck idiot who gives even Romeo a run for his money while Daisy needs to be hit on the head with a frying pan. Nick, the supposed "good guy", does absolutely nothing for the plot except for providing a meeting place for Gatsby and Daisy. Plus, he himself has no idea what the fuck is going on.

I can't think of anymore "classics" at the moment. Although, given the time, I could probably tear apart a library.

i really wanna read the adventures of sherlock holmes, cause i saw one of the movies and i really like it so i got really interested in it

>>12 Yes. You are my best friend. I'm finishing my last book by Tamora Pierce, but I won't take it out of the house because it's signed. I'll read LotR after this book and the last Eragon book. I also an to finish the Kane Chronicles. Never read the House of Night series though. It's pretty much the only thing I've hated. I'm still reading the Harry Potter series as well. I also want to read Phantom of the Opera and finish Dracula.

>>14, I still haven't gotten around to reading Brisingir. Perhaps I'll do that when I'm done with Outlander. I read some of House of Night, it was laughably bad.

>>15 House of Night is the only series that I refused to continue. I will usually eventually finish a series or book eventually, but refuse to continue reading.

>>15
Brisingr is alright, but Paolini set up most of the important action for Inheritance, the last book.

Personally, I think The Little Prince by Antoine De Saint-Exupery is a great read. It's pretty simplistic and cute, I really liked it. And there's Murder on the Orient Express, which is a mystery book. It's reeeally good, in my opinion.

And I must recommend The Picture of Dorian Gray. But yeah. If you're into narcissistic characters who enjoy psychological torture. I guess.

But yeah, those were the first books that popped into my head when I see "classics."

>>18 Le Petit Prince is adorable ;u;

>>18 I read Murder on the Orient Express, it was wonderful.

>>20 What's that book about! I must write that title down and read that book now. Yes, I'm reading it just because you like it. You have the exact same taste in books as me, but you've read more books. What are your favorite books? I'm always looking for a good book to read, but yo were the first person to enjoy the same books that I do.

>>21 You sound hyper :|

>>21, It's been a few years but this is what I remember: The protagonist is on a train (Trans-Siberian?) and a murder is committed. There's a few odd clues found, such as a note that has inconsistent handwriting and all the stab wounds on the body seem to be made with different force and from different heights. It appears that the murderer planned to get off the train at a night stop but as the train was forced to stop due to snow they were forced to stay on board. The entire thing is the passengers trying to figure out who the murderer among them is.

>>22 I get excited about books. I think anubis has a good taste in books, so if he likes a book I want to read it.

>>19 I know. ;___; I think I read it a year or two ago, but it's always stayed with me. I don't know but it's one of those books you can't ever forget about, I guess, y'know?

I actually do have more suggestions, but I haven't read all of them. Without reading though, I would definitely put Paradise Lost out there. I did recommend it some of friends knowing it was a great read and they absolutely loved it.

>>23 Lol, yeah that's pretty much it. I think it's really clever.

>>24
(anu's female)

>>18
Oooh! Forgot about that book. The Picture of Dorian Grey is a very good one, I have to say.
Other good "classics:"
-The Hobbit
-Alice In Wonderland
-Hamlet
-Lord of the Flies

A "classic" to avoid at all costs (WARNING: some classes require this:)
COAL.
Stay away from that book as if your life depended on it. Seriously. Reading 10 pages of that thing is too much for 1 person to handle.

>>26 ...no.
Only masochists read Paradise Lost and enjoyed it. Trying to decipher/read that is the equivalent to... well, this (<-gore warning).

I tried. I gave up very quickly. I highly doubt I will ever try to read it again unless it's a requirement.

>>27 Hey. I knew I was probably wrong. I went through the effort of finding the gender thread and looking through it to figure it out though. I just didn't think of that great idea sooner. I can be a dunce every once in a while.

>>26
Paradise Lost is a good read, but hard to understand due to the older English.
A bit of history regarding it:
John Milton (the author) was blind, and had his daughter write most of the books out. The books were NEVER revised in the original copy. If the daughter made a mistake, they went with it. This lead for some publishers to change some of the parts, due to grammar issues.
There are 12 books in paradise lost, and then there's paradise regained. The story follows Satan as the protagonist, and begins in media res.
Book I can be found here: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~milton/reading_room/pl/book_1/
(It's public domain, so no worries on copyright.)

>>28
Not necessarily, I enjoyed it. Although, it IS very hard to read.
A note for anyone who wants to click that link in >>28, it's Higurashi. If you know this, you can estimate what the video leads to.

>>28 omfg. Lol. Sorry you feel that way. Different matter of opinion I guess, but that's exactly how I feel when it comes to analyzing poetry, Emily Dickinson, to be specific. Nooot to get off topic though.

>>30 That's interesting. That's actually pretty cool. Thanks for the link. :3 Did you only read the first book or did you read the entire series? o3o

>>31
Only the first book so far. Takes a long time to read, honestly. ^^'

"Swiss Family Robinson" is one of my favorites. I also occasionally read "The Art of War".

I like some of the really well known classics.
Like, I've read Alice in Wonderland around fifty times now, and I'm in the middle of Treasure Island. Really good books :)

ALSO, SCARAMOUCHE!!

The hobbit- the first, the greatest, and most likely to send me on a nostalgia trip.
LOTR- a given.
The Count of Monte Cristo.
Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising sequence.
Dune series by Frank Herbert.
1984 and Animal Farm by George Orwell

I've read a lot of 'classic' classics like books by Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, Daniel Defoe and Leo Tolstoy. I especially hate War and Peace, because it was one book which took me a whole 10 days to read due to me falling asleep every 5 pages.

In general my favourite classics are those with some humour or satire in them, rather than long, boring prose.

i love classics like romeo and juliet along with almost everything from that time period down to greek ones one the gods . :D =_= i feel like a old person after re-readig this

not sure if it would be considered a "classic" but recently read Candide by Voltaire to help my sister with her western civ. II class and was pleasantly surprised to find it was full of satire and humor.

If you found 1984 thought provoking I recommend Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Three of my personal favorite books in no particular order are: For Whom The Bell Tolls, Ernest Hemingway; Catch 22, Joseph Heller; The Sound and the Fury, William Faulkner. Also you can't really go wrong with Shakespeare.

Classics are great.
"Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens is a must read.

Fahrenheit 451.

I love, love, LOVE Pride and Prejudice. I'm not a romance novel type of person, but the witty sarcasm and the tension between Darcy and Elizabeth is just so great.

Elizabeth is a strong female main character (which is what I like in novels I read) and Darcy is so sarcastic for a supposed "gentleman".

Sometimes, the subplots can be a little tedious to read and get through, but overall, this classic is highly recommended by me.

>>41 I second Fahrenheit 451.

Julius Caesar is probably my fav Shakespeare play. But out of all the classics, ovid's poem Pygmalion holds a special place in my heart.

My fav of Shakespeare is hamlet

Jane Eyre is a REAL love story, R&J got nothing on it >;)

"Catcher in the Rye"
That story will literally change how you view people. It's very influential (no wonder it's so "controversial".)

>>47 It makes people kill other people: true fact.

I still have to read it, though. After GitS and a couple more quotes I've heard I have been interested.

>>48 Yeah I know it makes people kill people. Not sure why, I guess it's because of the whole "phonies" thing, but sadly John Lennon's dead cuz of that book.

Jane Austen is a fave<3 and jane eyre is fantastic!

I like The Secret Garden, if that counts as something xD

The ABC Murders is very good and a must read.

"Lord of the Flies" is not a very good classic, but it is something that everyone should read. (Something to mentally stimulate you.)

>>51 I love it too!

Phantom of the Opera and the Velvet Letter is good :3

The thing with classics is that they are a mixed bag, and whether you like them really comes down to taste. Almost all classics walk a fine line between be spectacular and beinng terrible, and what one person thinks is on the spectacular side, another might think is on the terrible side. And the problem is that there's little way to know which books you'll like or dislike. You can get your friends' advice, but ultimately even if you have nearly the same taste, the slight difference in what you like could make or break a book. So, ultimately, the only way to know is to try. That said, here are some common classics.

I would say that Treasure Island is very good to read if you're not really into classical books, and want some kind of gateway book.
Also Arabian Nights is one of my personal favourites.
>>7 Yes. Just yes.

I've had a quick look through this thread and added some novels to my reading list - can you help me with some others?

Im a fan of Hunter S. Thompson, Ernest Hemingway, Jack Kerouac's On The Road and J.D Salinger's Catcher in the Rye ect

To Kill a Mockingbird and Lord of the Rings are among my favorite classic books.

a tale of two cities is a wonderful classic, one of my favorites. i highly recommend it; ending almost made me cry haha.

Bram Stoker's Dracula is actually an amazing novel. It's all written in 2nd person - a compilation of the various journal entries from each of the characters. I would highly recommend it to anyone, with or without an affinity for the classics.

Are Christie Mysteries classic?

It may seem a bit overused but maybe Charles Dickens Great Expectations? It's got a lot of characters which I love, and while the plot is sometimes slow there are sometimes chapters where the tension really picks up, especially towards the end! My favorite character was Herbert, but sadly it's very easy to relate to the mc Pip, and I think that's what made it even more enjoyable!

Personally, my favorite classic is Les Miserables, a sweeping epic detailing one of the many revolutions that occurred in France in the 1800's. The character arc of the protagonist, Jean Valjean, is particularly incredible and deserves to be read. Other great classics include the Hunchback of Notre Dame, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Scarlet letter, and anything by C.S. Lewis

>>47 I like Catcher, too! And through that book, I've read 'The Return of the Native' by Thomas Hardy (Holden mentioned the lead character Eustacia Vye), and it was an INCREDIBLE read! Totally like it!

Have any of you read I have no Mouth and Yet I must Scream? It's a bite in the pants, it is.

Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is pretty good, although it can get a little abstruse at times...or if you're into bildungsromans I would recommend Maugham's Of Human Bondage. His The Razor's Edge also pretty good
Idk if plays count as "classic" books but Tom Stoppard's plays are amazing! Like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead and Arcadia. And they are short too!

I do enjoy a lot of classics! Wind in the Willows and Tess of the d'Ubervilles are some of my favourite books but I'm also a big fan of Shakespeare and Charles Dickens