Where To Start With Classic Books - 10 Classic Novels + A Bonus One 

Thank you for the bonus! 📚

The Woodhouse book sounds so tedious for the American reader. Like one of the upper class twits from Monty Python. Uggh. I'll try it but the intro sounds SO BORING.

I think they're meant to be cosy and I generally like that kind of thing (am English btw) but I have to admit I've tried them twice and did find them boring.@@nosuchthing8

@@nosuchthing8 hi, give it a go, they are quite funny. Another that you may enjoy is " three men in a boat" a great book!

@@nosuchthing8 lt is Wodehouse, and it is not Pythonese, far from it. Not slapstick, just the foibles of upperclass English twits. Worth checking it out.

Thank you so much. I am hoping to record an audio book at some point thanks to encouragement like yours.😀❤️

What a wonderful idea! I love audiobooks but they’re almost all murders & thrillers !

I'd 2nd the audio book your positivity and pace are easy to pick up friend0

Me too

Aww thank you. I'm blushing 😊

his enthusiasm is most contagious...love it.

me too 🤗

Same!!!

Absolutely!

Totally agreed. Yet so light of touch.😀

Let’s not forget about the reboot Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

That’s always been my favorite Frankenstein fact

Even more astonishing when you consider the friends included poetry legends Percy Shelley and Lord Byron!

Which would you recommend that we read first?

I have to agree. Jane Eyre would be in my top 3.

A wonderful book. Such a good story.

What a great story. Given my table of values as a reader, I’d rank that as basically a perfect memory. Too rare those are.

I'm ashamed to admit I did the same with an Anne Rice novel some years ago

Same thing for me, except it was picking it up before a flight. Jeeves in the Offing.

Love that. I did the same thing with Stuart Little one random morning 😅 it was so nice

Same! And the hope you're living your best life kind of phrase!

Pretty great

Wow. Wonderful story and thank you for sharing. I am only 24 and love reading but am curious if you could share about how your love for reading has impacted your life, relationships, and perspectives! Also, do you find any physical effects like eye problems or neck discomfort that have developed over time?

Superbe!

Best book I've ever read. Can't wait to have the time to read it again

Thank you so much. If you want to recommend my channel to any friends, please do 😄👍❤

Set your camera angle differently. Don't be looking down on the viewer, you should be eye level.

If I am not mistaken, your Top 10 included an 11th book, the one by P.G. Wodehouse. Nevertheless,I am glad you did, as I, a 78-year old retired Lawyer, preacher, professor, have never read his works. I grew up in a small villager in rural Southern Illinois in the USA. I recall the first and only book in our house: my mother bought a Bible when I was around 9 or 10 years old. Most parents of me and my class mates had less than a high school education. My father had an 8th grade education & my mother a 6th grade education. Nevertheless, I was fortunate. One gracious, well-read teach came into my life because her husband wanted to be a superintendent of schools before retiring. She was an English teacher who understood our area. We read Shakespeare, Dickens’ A Tale of two Cities (awakened me to great literature), Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain), and much more. Often we had to read it aloud to the class, so she would know we had read some great books. Until i took her in high school, I do not think I had read more than two books. One was about how to play every position if on an American baseball field; the other a book entitled “Stretch Makes a Basket. She changed me from a life of relative illiteracy when it came to literature to someone who still aspires to read and write. You gave me a few books I have not yet read. Thank you for you post to RU-vid! :). L. Keith Whitney, a retired professor changed by books.

I read most of these but your descriptions have made me yearn to read them almost all again. After all, how many times does one read Pride and Prejudice when there are so many yet to enjoy? Thank you so much.

More sheep, you mean. Think for yourself

How unlucky you were -- every book I had as a set text in school set me to reading more and more. I had read all the books on this list before I was halfway through high school. But I was brought up reading -- I could read at 3, and had my first adult library card at 8. My parents were both avid readers, and it was something I was keen to join them in.

@@VLind-uk6mbwoah bro, save some books for the rest of us

Same here, But I kept going with Hardy and have read pretty well every word he ever published -- all the novels, the complete short stories, the poetry. I loved his work so much I did some of my graduate work on him. Tess is perhaps one of the greatest of the novels, but the one I keep going back to is Far From the Madding Crowd.

I found the series in a vintage old school bookstore near me and bought it in its entirety. What is the order of the stories to read?

@@ChurchTromboniststart with ‘A study in Scarlet’, after that it gets tricky as the order of original release is not the same as the chronological order in terms of Sherlock’s career. However most books and stories stand alone, and you can google suggested orders and decide which to follow. Happy reading!

I have read several of the stories and love listening to them on audio recording on youtube.

A fabulous book!

​@tristanandtheclassics6538 my favorite book! It is awesome.

@@annechappee8825 Try The Moonstone -- the first English detective story. It's fantastic.

Personally, his best. I loved TWiW much,much more than The Moonshine and some others. Still have ten more Wilkie Collins books to read but my TBR is now OTT and full of brick-sized books 😮😅

Great book…but I HATED it. The ending was so sad! Tess too…though it’s one of my top-3 recommendations for Classics. Both AMAZING books, very true-to-reality which is why I love and loathe them both.

Yes, it wonderfully cuts deep and opens us to feel deeply.

Yes. Exactly. Every word. Perfect.

Sounds like you had a perfect setting to read that ❤

Great movie too

Quite a few of these exist as free audiobooks on youtube, many of the Sherlock holmes for instance.

You might commit to reading a very small amount. Maybe the first page, or first paragraph, or first sentence. Keep shrinking the size down until you get to something easy to do. Then do it. Often, starting can be the hardest step. Just take a very small one. Once taken, you'll almost certainly find that the next step will be much easier. Give it a try. You can do it.

My husband listens to books on CD as he drives. He only travels about 20-30 to and from work but he really enjoys listening to books as he drives.

@@jazamaraz8029, excellent advice. You comment reminded me of trying hui read Turgenev’s “Fathers and Sons.” I was supposed to read it in college. I got a D- on a paper because I read everything but that required book. It was awful! I couldn’t get past the first page! For years guilt drove me to withdraw the book from the library to finally read it. Every time it was the same thing. The first page was dreadful and I never got any farther. Finally, at least five years later I got a different English translation from the Russian. It was from “Everyman Library” series. Finally, I was able to get beyond the first page. It was brilliant! I devoured the book - even taking notes. Yes, everything is possible. But translations matter if it’s not originally in English.

My advice is to get some ear buds and turn on a book from you tube or wherever. I've never looked more forward to housecleaning in my life! Hope that helps

One of my favorites. The only Dickens I have read.

Or basically anything by Elizabeth Gaskell. 😉 She's one of my absolute favourite authors.

Dickens is good isn't he. Some of the passages are heartbreaking in Oliver Twist.

I just finished it. It was a bit of a struggle at times, only due to some of the language, but I absolutely loved it!

Read it when I was 11 years old thanks for reminding me to read it again😊🙏

I used to work in the Clerkenwell district of London, where many of the famous scenes are set in locations you can still visit. Dickens had an account with a bank there and was very familiar with it.

Great Expectations is wonderful.

The original book, "Dracula" is amazing too!

Jane Eyre, Pet Sematary. Who’s counting.

Hi LuLu, so pleased to read your comment. Hemmingway is a always a vivid read. Let me know what other books you enjoy.👍

@@tristanandtheclassics6538 Hemingway only has one "m." I'm amazed an avid reader is not more attentive to the printed word.

When pip disappointed uncle Jim... first time a book made me cry

@@ambision4114 Uncle Joe?

Yes, and Pip realizes he has become somewhat of a snob. GE is my all-time favourite book, followed by Price and Prejudice.

Clifton Fadiman can be your guide. He taught at the University of Ohio for thirty years and read the greatest stories by Eudora Welty and John Cheever.

He has Checkov’s gun hanging on his mantelpiece.

He killed dogs in his youth.

I agree! He’s got me wanting to re-read all of these beautiful classics

Thanks for the recommendation 😀

I remember my parents mentioning that book when I was very young. I read it when I was about 12. I still remember it.

@@VLind-uk6mb I just bought it at the thrift shop and they gave me three more copies for free.

It’s a boring book about a guy called Tony.

It’s a book about as long as you can imagine.

Thank you so much Rita, you are so kind. Wodehouse really is one of a kind. It's a pleasure making your acquaintance. 😃❤️🙏

They did a stupendous job of Jeeves and Wooster. I don't know of any other author that can weave words the way that Wodehouse does.

Noooo! Too sad!

@yvonnehayton, I remember an uncle of mine have me a Christmas present of Black Beauty when I was ten years old (just because I had a pony) ! The result was nightmares 😔 Do you know, I never finished that book. Hence my reluctance regarding two other books I've always eyed to read but cannot: (1) Moby Dick; (2) Agnes Grey..... because of animal crue!ty.

I totally agree.

Oh please do, you will love it. Regards.

Hi Sylvia! Than you so much for taking the time to comment, I'm very grateful for it and equally delighted to meet someone with your enthusiasm for literature. Do you have any favourite works or authors?

Thank you sooo much sillig1 for this really kind comment. Pleased that you liked the Three Musketeers. It's one of my favourite books. Dumas is amazing. Thank you for subscribing too and for being so encouraging and positive about this little channel. Looking forwards to hearing more of your thoughts.😀

@@tristanandtheclassics6538 I've read The Count of Monte Cristo, can't wait for this one!

I hope you already have the following books because you will need them. I am reading Vicomte de bragelonne right now😊

Do read the Jeeves and Wooster stories. I won't spoil it, but the end of _The Code of the Woosters_ leaves everyone who reads it open mouthed. Read them in chronological order, though, as there are recurrent characters and call-backs to past incidents in later stories.

It is a remarkable book. With one of my favourite endings, too.

Yes, it's a crime that 1984 was not on the list. THATs a compelling read.

Hope you enjoy it! Let me know your thoughts. 😀👍

Give The Mysterious Island a read.

It's amazing isn't it?! I must admit, that I'm particularly delighted that someone your age is taking the time to read the classics. It immediately says to me that you are not content to follow a crowd and that you have a sense of the artistry of life. Bravo!

@@tristanandtheclassics6538 Recently found your channel. Love it as much as Benjamin McElvoy. Both of you are enthusiastic and have so much knowledge and understanding of literature it’s a feast listening to you both. Thank you so much for all your content.