books

Why, What, When Classic?

Full disclosure: these ramblings are entirely the private thoughts of this book fanatic. I have read a lot of classics though. One of my mother’s accidentally brilliant moves was when she bought a bunch of very cheap anthologies and left them in my bedroom when I was a teenager. My parents also had an extensive collection of The Great Writers Library classics. I have always been a sucker for pretty books and this was pre-mobile phone so it wasn’t long before I read my way through all the anthologies and many classics.

So anyhoo…what makes a book a classic? Why are some books more classic than others? Who decides?

Well the obvious, short answer to the last one is the publisher. But I suspect it’s not as simple as that. I would imagine for modern classics it’s a combination of cost of rights, popularity and critical success. What about books past the copyright expiration (70 years after death of author)? Do they automatically get classic status because people today read more into them than was intended? When first published, Austen’s work was viewed like today’s chick lit and disparaged as such. Eighty years from now, will Bridget Jone’s Diary be classed together with Pride and Prejudice as a critical indictment of society’s treatment of women of the late 20th century?

Yet just like movies, what makes a book a classic is very much subjective. One person’s Godfather is another person’s Top Gun. Similarly I get that not everyone will love Wuthering Heights like I do.

So here’s what I think. I think everyone should get to choose their own classics. If you think Bridgerton should be read through the ages, then you go right ahead and recommend it to everyone you know.

This means that no one is allowed to diss anyone else’s reading habits. This includes those fusty old books from a century ago that make for great soporifics for many.

I will always be grateful to my parents for their passive force feeding of the classics because I honestly don’t have the time or patience to read them today except at 1.5x speed on audio. I tried to listen to War and Peace as a reread of it, but even that was just…too…slow…. So my point is that if your current life journey means it gives you more stress than pleasure to give the classics the time they deserve, then you shouldn’t feel pressured by anyone to read anything you don’t want to.

However, if you do have the time and inclination, I would highly recommend giving them a try. The language can be stilted and there will be a lot of descriptions (I skipped an entire chapter of a description of the view of Paris from the roof of the Notre Dame in The Hunchback of Notre Dame) and also more philosophising (also skipped a lot of that in War and Peace). But it is totally worth it.

There are “lighter” ones that read more easily. Wilkie Collin’s mysteries are highly readable even today. Or more modern ones like Hemingway, Steinbeck, Maugham or Burgess. They span all genres as well and even children will read Verne. The best part? Many of them are free of copyright and widely available online in full.

Need recommendations? Drop me a line! Or check out some of the previous blog posts with book lists. Coming soon will be a list of books “ahead of their time”.

Cosy Classics for Winter 2024 Update

Days are getting shorter, cloudier (even here in Perth it happens occasionally) and, hopefully, will be getting wetter soon. I’ve even started knitting again, a sure sign it’s cosy season. Are your reading choices influenced by the seasons? Sort of for me. Especially if I’m going on holiday in winter versus summer. With the latter, I like quick, easy to read page-turners. Whereas if I’m holed up somewhere with a fireplace, squashy chair and snacks, I like getting stuck into something meatier. Here are a few suggestions if you are similarly inclined.

The Movie Was Maybe Better?

Now 9 out of 10 times the book is better than the screen adaptation. Why? Well it’s just so hard to capture all the details. Each person’s experience of a book is unique and so it’s even more difficult to pander to everyone’s view point. However, you have those rare instances when the movie is either as good as or better than the book. Here are a few of my choices for As Good As, Better and the last are books that are way better. Do you agree? What would you add to it? Comment away!

As good as

  1. The Lord of the Rings trilogy - I recently read and watched this again and am struck anew with how good they both are. They deliver different things but the effect is much the same.

  2. The Hunger Games trilogy - I’ve watched the movies several times so they are almost a comfort watch, which is really weird for a post apocalyptic story based on teenagers killing each other. The books are also good, but the movies are just a bit easier to digest.

  3. The Hobbit - Many die hard Tolkien fans will not agree. The movies are definitely more Hollywood, but I liked the added action and drama.

  4. Great Expectations - I may be in the minority, but I really liked the Gwyneth Paltrow/Ethan Hawke movie.

  5. Alice in Wonderland - The Disney version captures that trippy, happy atmosphere really well without being creepy.

  6. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - Reread and watched both a few times.

  7. The Sandman series - If you haven’t watched/read these yet, I highly recommend both the new TV series and the full-cast audio versions.

  8. Empire of the Sun - Both are brilliant.

Better

  1. Frankenstein - any movie. I just felt like Dr Frankenstein was so WHINY in the book.

  2. Stardust - Sure it was cheesy, but I just felt the ending in the book was such a let down. Villains can’t just change at the end.

  3. Mary Poppins - I mean Julie Andrews IS Mary Poppins. Amirite? Or amirite?

  4. How to Train Your Dragon - The book was a bit odd after watching the movie. I mean I get it but I enjoyed the movie more.

  5. The Jungle Book - Honestly my favourite Disney cartoon.

  6. Romeo and Juliet - Makes the ridiculous premise and ending less so with the amazing soundtrack and the fact that the actors are not 15 years old.

  7. Apocalypse Now (based on Heart of Darkness)

Do not touch these movies with a 10-ft tub of popcorn

  1. The Neverending Story - This is the WORST book adaptation IMO. Honestly, just read the book.

  2. The Shining - The screeching violins were the scariest part.

  3. The House of Spirits - Ok, the movie isn’t that bad, but it’s not good. Book is way better.

  4. The Witches, Matilda and both Charlie and the Chocolate Factories - Perhaps it’s the fact that these ignited my love for reading, but they fall so short of the brilliance of his writing that they make me angry.