Guest mormonmusic Posted October 19, 2011 Report Posted October 19, 2011 I find that very interesting. Do you remember where you found the study?Actually, I've read and heard so many studies over the last few years I don't actually remember. Quote
annewandering Posted October 20, 2011 Report Posted October 20, 2011 I have not seen the movie "The Lovely Bones". Was it a tear jerker? Asimov is one of my favorites. Such a great classic sf writer. I love the little leadins and followups he does on so many short stories, like in his Complete Works. His autobiography was interesting and humorous in many places. Enjoyable reading! My favorite now is serial killer books by women. Kay Hooper, Iris Johansen etc. I like Clancy and Custler for male writers. Have you noticed how different male and female writers write? I hadnt till I realized almost all my favorite writers are women. Quote
JudoMinja Posted October 20, 2011 Report Posted October 20, 2011 I've read 27 of them, and several are on my list of books I plan to read. A number of them are also on my list of "DO NOT READ" lol, but most of those are just because I don't like the particular author. Quote
annewandering Posted October 20, 2011 Report Posted October 20, 2011 A lot of those are on my never want to read books too! It is really puzzling who they got the list from. My 'favorite books' just doesnt sound right unless its literature teachers they asked who felt obligated to list what they thought were the great books! If it were asked of the general public I have a strong feeling there would be more authors off the best sellers lists such as James Patterson and Nora Roberts. (both of whom, I do like to read) Quote
Backroads Posted October 20, 2011 Author Report Posted October 20, 2011 I have not seen the movie "The Lovely Bones". Was it a tear jerker?Asimov is one of my favorites. Such a great classic sf writer. I love the little leadins and followups he does on so many short stories, like in his Complete Works. His autobiography was interesting and humorous in many places. Enjoyable reading! My favorite now is serial killer books by women. Kay Hooper, Iris Johansen etc. I like Clancy and Custler for male writers. Have you noticed how different male and female writers write? I hadnt till I realized almost all my favorite writers are women. I quite liked it. It had its differences, but it was a well-made film and I did cry! Quote
annewandering Posted October 21, 2011 Report Posted October 21, 2011 The book put me in tears a number of times. Wonder if netflix has the movie. going to check it out. :) Quote
JudoMinja Posted October 21, 2011 Report Posted October 21, 2011 A lot of those are on my never want to read books too!Yeah, all of the Jane Austen books are ones I don't want to read, largely because I had to read "Pride and Prejudice" for class and couldn't stand it. I know a lot of people like it and thought it was great or it wouldn't have been required to read, but I was so glad I never had to read any more of her books. It was extremely boring to me as after reading the first couple chapters I already knew how the book was going to end. Maybe it's because I like mysteries and crime-solvers.... but it seemed very plain and very simple.My reading tends to cover "authors" more than it does "books". I end up picking particular authors who's writing style I like and then reading everything by that particular author. Several of the authors I like are on the list- Shakespeare, C.S. Lewis, J.K. Rowling, Charles Dickens, J.R.R. Tolkein... But then there are also a number of authors who have written things I really enjoy who didn't make the list at all- some of them I'm surprised. For instance- Michael Crichton, Carl Sagan, Jack London, Edgar Allen Poe...Some of the authors that have made my personal favorites though, I can understand why they don't appear listed at all. They aren't necessarily "classic" material, though some of them I think might end up being considered such in the future. :) Quote
annewandering Posted October 21, 2011 Report Posted October 21, 2011 I do not think classic is necessary to be good and readable. Most of the books I read are not classics and never will be. Yet many of them are educational, well written and enjoyable. Probably the closest to classic would be the Tony Hillerman books. While they are mysteries they are more about the culture of the Navajo people both past and present. The author, not Navajo, was well respected by them which is, no doubt, why they allowed him to learn so much about their beliefs. He is very respectful of them in his books. Quote
Backroads Posted October 22, 2011 Author Report Posted October 22, 2011 I do not think classic is necessary to be good and readable. Most of the books I read are not classics and never will be. Yet many of them are educational, well written and enjoyable. Probably the closest to classic would be the Tony Hillerman books. While they are mysteries they are more about the culture of the Navajo people both past and present. The author, not Navajo, was well respected by them which is, no doubt, why they allowed him to learn so much about their beliefs. He is very respectful of them in his books.I agree. I will admit that I am in the zone that believes if a book has achieved "classic" status, it probably has for a reason and there is a chance I would enjoy it. But just because something isn't on some English teacher's classic list doesn't mean it's not good. Quote
annewandering Posted October 22, 2011 Report Posted October 22, 2011 I agree. I will admit that I am in the zone that believes if a book has achieved "classic" status, it probably has for a reason and there is a chance I would enjoy it. But just because something isn't on some English teacher's classic list doesn't mean it's not good.I think sometimes a book is put on the Classic list because it was written well even if not interesting. Some are there because they address some social issue important to the time perhaps breaking ground for social change. Sadly some are there because they are intellectually pretentious. I remember a truly horrible book we had to read in english 101. Steppenwolf I think. I still remember the boxes which were metaphors for something obscure. Arg. lol. Quote
Argentina84 Posted October 23, 2011 Report Posted October 23, 2011 1 Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen 2 The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien 4 Harry Potter series – JK Rowling (all) 6 The Bible 7 Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte 11 Little Women – Louisa M Alcott 22 The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald 29 Alice in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll 34 Emma – Jane Austen 35 Persuasion – Jane Austen 36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – CS Lewis 41 Animal Farm – George Orwell 42 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown 54 Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen 68 Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding 73 The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett 89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 92 The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint-Exupery 98 Hamlet – William Shakespeare That makes 19 of them. And I'm reading Jane Eyre atm. :) Thanks for sharing the list! I will use it as a guide to read all the classics. :) Quote
sister_in_faith Posted November 2, 2011 Report Posted November 2, 2011 Great Expectations = least favorite book ever. In honors english one year we read this book, over and over, and over and over, and over and over and over and over again. Then we read it again. I seriously don't know how many times we read it, that that is all we did all year. Made me hate this book with a passion. Ugh. I've read 17 on the list. Quote
sister_in_faith Posted November 2, 2011 Report Posted November 2, 2011 The BBC production of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle = flippin awesome. Quote
Backroads Posted November 3, 2011 Author Report Posted November 3, 2011 Great Expectations = least favorite book ever.In honors english one year we read this book, over and over, and over and over, and over and over and over and over again. Then we read it again. I seriously don't know how many times we read it, that that is all we did all year. Made me hate this book with a passion.Ugh.I've read 17 on the list.recently read it... after a warning not to. SOOOOOO boring....I am currently reading Anna Karanina and it's really quite good. Quote
imon Posted November 13, 2011 Report Posted November 13, 2011 I guess I must be about average because I could only count 7 that I read from cover to cover. I have read parts or started to read at least another half dozen or so from the list, but they were too boring to finish. Someone should come up with an essential Mormon Book list. I bet I would do much better on that. Quote
pam Posted November 13, 2011 Report Posted November 13, 2011 I guess I must be about average because I could only count 7 that I read from cover to cover. I have read parts or started to read at least another half dozen or so from the list, but they were too boring to finish.Someone should come up with an essential Mormon Book list. I bet I would do much better on that. I'd like that because then it would give me some suggestions of books to read. So I think we should assign you to put one together. Quote
NeuroTypical Posted November 13, 2011 Report Posted November 13, 2011 I've read 25 of them, maybe a dozen of them out loud to my kids. It made me reflect - I sure have read a lot of crap that isn't on anyone's 'favorite book' list! Quote
pam Posted November 13, 2011 Report Posted November 13, 2011 I've read 25 of them, maybe a dozen of them out loud to my kids.It made me reflect - I sure have read a lot of crap that isn't on anyone's 'favorite book' list! I'm with you LM. I have read so many books. They just happen to not be on this list. Quote
Backroads Posted November 14, 2011 Author Report Posted November 14, 2011 I guess I must be about average because I could only count 7 that I read from cover to cover. I have read parts or started to read at least another half dozen or so from the list, but they were too boring to finish.Someone should come up with an essential Mormon Book list. I bet I would do much better on that.I'd fail because I don't really like Gerald N Lund or Anita Stansfield.Perhaps we should all come up with our own favorite book lists and compare? Quote
KCGrant Posted November 16, 2011 Report Posted November 16, 2011 Being an English major, I've read a significant number of them. But I've been disappointed at my children's reading lists in school. So many of the classics aren't on them and instead have been replaced by popular fiction that the schools know the kids will be interested in. I'd rather have my daughter reading Rebecca or Tess of the D'urbervilles than Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen. Quote
Backroads Posted November 16, 2011 Author Report Posted November 16, 2011 Amen to KCGrant. At the risk of offending some people here, why is stuff like "The Hunter Games" being studied by high school students? They have an elementary reading level! Quote
annewandering Posted November 16, 2011 Report Posted November 16, 2011 Amen to KCGrant.At the risk of offending some people here, why is stuff like "The Hunter Games" being studied by high school students? They have an elementary reading level!Because they have students who can not read past that level. Quote
Backroads Posted November 16, 2011 Author Report Posted November 16, 2011 Because they have students who can not read past that level.It's funny/sad because it's true!Yeah, my 17-year-old Brother-in-law said his high school English class was indeed studying "The Hunger Games." Quote
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