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Spark notes is the same as Cliff's Notes except it's online () and for free, you don't have to go buy the book (although they are available if you want them at pretty much any bookstore). I've yet to run into any classic titles that didn't have a spark note. They have a whole section just for Shakespeare as well, if you're wanting to read any of that.

Welcome to our group Heather! I agree with Alexandria and Alana. I need some kind of notes when I read the classics. Usually I like to get a book with notes and commentary as part of it. I try to get my books at the library if I can. I have never used sparknotes, but I have used cliff's notes before. I hope you enjoy reading the classics with us.

Cianna wrote: "Rachael wrote: "Cianna wrote: "Hi, my name is Cianna. I am 32 years old and I absolutely love reading. Most of the classics are on my to-read list but I just haven't cracked open most of them! I..."

I teach in a British school in Madrid, Spain. I used to teach in England before moving here a couple of years ago. What about you?

"Classics: Books that everyone wants to have read, but no one want to actually read." this made me laugh! Michelle and Dolores - I'm exactly the same! Hi to all the other new members!

This is a welcome to all members, new and old, who have not yet commented on this welcome thread. We do appreciate you as members even if all you want to do at first is just sit back and read and observe for awhile and take it all in. Feel free to participate as much or as little as you want. Happy reading to all!!!

Howdy peoples, I love to read but not many of my friends read so I'm hoping to find some suggested reading here. My favourite 'classic' is To Kill a Mocking Bird. I'd strongly recommend the book 'Jasper Jones' to any Mocking Bird fans aswell

Love 'To Kill a Mockingbird!', never heard of Jasper Jones before, but I have just added it to my 'to-reads' - thanks Mark!

Hey all, My names Abbie I'm new here! My favorite currently read classic (if it comes under that category - i think it does) is "Brave New World." I am delighted to see that this months read is 1984! Definitely one i have wanted to read for a long time!

I'm new here as well. I'm really a big fan of the Chick lit genre, 'cause it's easy reading. You don't have to concentrate all that much and they are really entertaining.
But my plan is to start reading the classics. I've often tried but I've always had a hard time concentrating because of the old language, but maybe if I HAVE to read for a bookclub I can get through.

Hey all. My name is Kelly. I have a goal of reading the major classics and I knew I had to join when I saw you were reading 1984! I can't wait to start.

Hello everyone am Stefanos am a university student and i am reading books the past two years. I read a couple of books a week and now am a huge sherlock holmes stories fan.Nice to meet you and i hope we get along

Hey, I'm Caroline. I'm 17 and I like reading and I have a lot more time to do it since I graduated high school. I want to get into reading the classics more because I feel like public school hasn't shown me all the classics I'd like to read. And then I saw that you guys were reading 1984 which I just finish so i had to join haha.

Rachael wrote: "Cianna wrote: "Rachael wrote: "Cianna wrote: "Hi, my name is Cianna. I am 32 years old and I absolutely love reading. Most of the classics are on my to-read list but I just haven't cracked open m..."

That is excellent! I teach in Washington state, US. I moved here one year ago from Michigan, US. :)

Caroline wrote: "Hey, I'm Caroline. I'm 17 and I like reading and I have a lot more time to do it since I graduated high school. I want to get into reading the classics more because I feel like public school hasn..."

Its been a couple of years since Ive really read them and look forward to reading them again. I love to educate myself

Hi, my name is Liz. I have 3 adult children and 3 grandchildren aged 20, 10 and 5 and am expecting my first great-grandchild around Christmas. I live in the Pacific NW in Washington state where it rains a lot. My favorite hobby is reading in front of the fire. I am always looking for new books to read on my Kindle and I often end up rereading old favorites, including classics. I just finished reading The Complete Works of Charles Dickens. My oldest son, who is 43, just finished reading 1984 for a college computer class and somehow or other I realized I had completely escaped reading this one though I have read Animal Farm. What fun!

Hi Liz! I spend my early years in the Pacific Northwest and always have a heart for it, so nice to see someone else from up that way! Wow, complete Charles Dickens? How long did that take you? I am not sure I'm that ambitious but over the course of my life I may end up reading all of his works. I just think I have to read one and then something much easier in between. Kudos to you!

Hey everybody,

I'm a university student and guitarist and have recently begun to read more during my 6-month euro trip (I live in Melbourne, Australia) I'm not well read to be honest so classics seems to be a good place to start (as they're classics for a reason, right?).

Favourite book at the moment: A clockwork orange.
Nice to meet you all :)

Marc

Hi all! Marc, I love 'A Clockwork Orange' - great book. think the film's brilliant too - have you seen it? Whereabouts are you travelling on your trip?

Alexandria wrote: "Caroline wrote: "Hey, I'm Caroline. I'm 17 and I like reading and I have a lot more time to do it since I graduated high school. I want to get into reading the classics more because I feel like p..."

yeah i feel like public school does a pretty good job of introducing us to the most historical ones but really there's only so much time. but now the really question for me is what's the definitive of a classic, and if its really a good book or if it was just revolutionary for its time.

Rachael wrote: "Hi all! Marc, I love 'A Clockwork Orange' - great book. think the film's brilliant too - have you seen it? Whereabouts are you travelling on your trip?"<

I just bought that book (for 2$ i can be a sport) but i've only seen the movie. i hear there's way more in the book c:

Hi, I'm Laura :) I'm a bunny-owning theatre actress-turning nutritionist who reads Virginia Woolf and the like to escape topics like microbiology! I've always preferred classics and I'm so happy to discover this group. I look forward to future discussions!

Welcome new members to our group: Mark, Abbie, Sarah, Kelly, Stefanos, Caroline, Liz, Marc, Laura, Ian. I hope you enjoy our classics group. I do read all comments and look forward to discussions this month of 1984.

Abigail wrote: "Hey all, My names Abbie I'm new here! My favorite currently read classic (if it comes under that category - i think it does) is "Brave New World." I am delighted to see that this months read is 19..."

Abbie, Brave New World is definitely a classic. It is one of our past reads. Check out the Past reads folders.

Sarah wrote: "I'm new here as well. I'm really a big fan of the Chick lit genre, 'cause it's easy reading... I've often tried but I've always had a hard time concentrating because of the old language..."

Hi Sarah, Welcome to the group.

The easy reading of the "chick lit" genre, though probably entertaining, doesn't present much opportunity for you to expand your vocabulary and mind. I mean that very kindly. :)

Years ago, the vocabulary and the writing was also my biggest challenge - I despised English class in school and, because of that, did not take advantage of the vast amount of great literature there is until I was older.

As a recommendation to help you, I suggest picking up a couple of older dictionaries. There are many reprints and free digital versions of Webster's 1828 dictionary. I personally picked up an old copy of "The New Century Dictionary", which helped me tremendously when plodding through the classics in my younger days.

Another recommendation I have for you is to start reading the classics in somewhat of a timeline method. What I mean by that is, start with something more recent - such as this month's read, "1984" - and work your way backward in time. Generally speaking, the language and vocabulary will typically be more difficult the older the book. As you work in this manner, using your dictionary along the way, you'll find that the reading will become much more enjoyable and easy for you as you complete each novel. Before long you'll find that you don't resort to the dictionary as often as you did in the beginning.

A suggested reading list might look like this:

1. 1984, by George Orwell (1949)
2. The Hobbit, by J. R. R Tolkien (1937)
3. The Valley of Fear (a Sherlock Holmes novel), by Arthur Conan Doyle (1915)
4. The Four Feathers, by A. E. W. Mason (1902)
5. Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson (1883)
6. The Moonstone, by Wilkie Collins (1868)
7. Barchester Towers, by Anthony Trollope (1857)
8. Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë (1847)
9. Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens (1838)
10. Ivanhoe, by Sir Walter Scott (1820)
11. Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen (1813)

These are just suggestions, but you get the idea.

Sticking to the reading once you've started will be challenging at first, but you'll look back years later and be glad you had that dictionary and put in the effort. :)

I hope this is helpful.

Regards

Hey, my name is Kelly and I am just starting high school this September. I absolutely love reading, and am shocked that I didn't discover the idea of online reading groups earlier. I look forward to getting to know you all, and expanding my reading on the classics!

Good evening everyone!
I'm very excited about joining this group. I love classic literature and have been looking for a group to share in that appreciation. I look forward to reading with you all!

Rachel

Hi all, my name is Camila, from Indonesia. I joined this group because I really love to read classic books. Sadly, I'm still working to learn to read classic books in English version.. :( but I'm practicing! :D If someone have a recommendation of a good classic novels, I'll be so thankful.. :) Still, I have so many questions to discuss about classic books.. Thank you and have a nice day to anyone that read this! :D

Camila wrote: "Hi all, my name is Camila, from Indonesia. I joined this group because I really love to read classic books. Sadly, I'm still working to learn to read classic books in English version.. :( but I'm p..."

Hello, Camila, nice to have you join our group! It's always nice to have a perspective from another part of the world, especially when reading the classics. Rick posted a series of suggestions a few posts back for another reader in the same situation, having English as a second language. Check out his post, I think you might find it helpful for yourself as well. Looking forward to seeing your perspective on the classics! :)

Hey! My name's Manu and I've been reading quite a few classics lately. I'm hoping it'll be fun to discuss the books I read :)
I'm in college so I end up taking a long time to finish a book. I hope joining this group will keep me on my toe :)

Hey everyone! My name is Janine and I'm an American Studies major from Germany. I hope to finish my master's thesis this year. It's actually not about classic American literature but about Star Trek. :-) But of course I've read a lot of the classics but still not nearly as many as I've wanted to! And since I'll soon be leaving the academic environment and therefore the people I usually discuss these kinds of books with on a daily basis, I thought Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ and this group might be a good way to keep up my reading!

Alana wrote: "Dolores wrote: "Welcome to the group Michelle! That is the same reason that I actually started this group with Jenn. I always intended to read the classics. I read some in school, but never got aro..."

Yes, I was thinking of that Twainism too. The bummer about that is that most Classics I've read have been really great books! We should want to read them! But they are a bit heavier and more intimidating than my usual fare. I say most only because I can't stand Dickens ;)

Good, I'm not the only person who doesn't care for Dickens. Well, that's not entirely true. Some of his works are excellent (A Tale of Two Cities and A Christmas Carol) but I've tried to read some of the others and oy, just so long and so wordy! Then again, I haven't tried him in probably three or four years, so maybe I should give it another go since I'm out of college and in a new life stage so maybe I would understand more of it.

Thanks for this Rick! :)

I'll definitely try that. I never thought of that myself, but it's a really good idea. I have many times tried to read Pride and Prejudice and Wuthering Hights, but never got any futher than page 20-25. So maybe this is the way to do it.

I think I'll try to find 1984 in danish, just to make it a little more easy for myself. :)

Alana wrote: "Hi Liz! I spend my early years in the Pacific Northwest and always have a heart for it, so nice to see someone else from up that way! Wow, complete Charles Dickens? How long did that take you? I am..."

It took over a year LOL. Some stories went faster than others because I was not really fond of all of them but it was something that I really wanted to do. I have also read the complete works of Twain,Austen, Poe, Alcott and Jules Verne. I read other stuff at the same time. I usually have 3 or 4 books going at a time, some on Kindle, some on Audio Books and some hard print. As with all authors, some stories are better than others. Right now, I am also reading the Anne Golon series of Angelique for the 6th or 7th time. I love it because it is so rich in historical events of the time.

Hi, I'm Dimitra, a high school senior. I've been reading classics ever since I found my mom's copy of Vanity Fair when I was twelve. I've always been the happiest when I take time to read something every once in a while.

Liz, that's an impressive accomplishment and it sounds like a fun way to read. Poe is the only one I've ever been compelled to read all the way through.

hi, i'm jordan, i'm 15 and i live in london. i like to read the classics because i think it would be a shame to not read, and the way i see it is that if these books are considered classics then they must be good.
i look forward to reading 1984, i've been meaning to do so for a while now.

Hi! My name is Tina. I read pretty much whatever I get my hands on. I majored in English Literature and since leaving school I've missed discussing books with people so I joined this group.

I just bought that book (f..."

Rachael wrote: "Hi all! Marc, I love 'A Clockwork Orange' - great book. think the film's brilliant too - have you seen it? Whereabouts are you travelling on your trip?"

Hi Rachel and Calorine,

I love the movie, one of my favourites - Kubrik is a genius (also see the Shining if you haven't). I'm travelling as much as Europe as I can: so far Italy, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Spain, Hungary, England, France and now Germany.

Just finished Fight Club which I really enjoyed as well (and the movie is also awesome). I'm going to read Life of Pi and then finish 1984!

Liz wrote: "Alana wrote: "Hi Liz! I spend my early years in the Pacific Northwest and always have a heart for it, so nice to see someone else from up that way! Wow, complete Charles Dickens? How long did that ..."

You sound like me.... I think I have something like 12 books in my currently reading list. I need an audiobook for my car, an audiobook for when doing stuff around the house, all manner of regular books so I can read depending on my mood (i.e. a classic that I might schedule a chapter or two a day, plus a light comedy, plus just a current fiction), as well as various practical books ( like Dave Ramsey or the one I'm reading currently to learn about the scary world of couponing). I feel I don't have to get stuck reading something I'm just not into on a given day when I do it that way. Downside is it can take me longer to get through everything....

Sarah wrote: "I think I'll try to find 1984 in danish, just to make it a little more easy for myself."

I would imagine you have an advantage there with the writings of Andersen and Kierkegaard. :D

I always have nagging doubts in my mind when reading classics translated to English from the French and Russian - what nuances do I miss? I've been toying with the idea of learning French so that I could read Alexandre Dumas, Victor Hugo, and Jules Verne in the original. Time is always the issue, of course.

Hi everyone! My name is Jasmine and I like to read classic literature. I'm also a great fan of authors like Jane Austen and Jules Verne.

Hi boys and girls. I'm Rusalka, from Canberra in Australia.
I am going to be a little bit of an observer for a while I will admit, as I have another reading project under way. But I miss my classics and have an ever growing pile, so if you guys start reading something on this list, I am sure I will be whisked away with you.
Love that you're reading 1984 at the moment, one of my all time favourites. Look forward to the group!

Hi, everyone. I am Listra from the other part of the world. I love classics and I blog about it. My favourite authors are Will Shakespeare, Conan Doyle, and John Milton. Can't get Monte Cristo and Phantom of the Opera out of my mind. Looking forward to anything in the group.

Alana wrote: "Good, I'm not the only person who doesn't care for Dickens. Well, that's not entirely true. Some of his works are excellent (A Tale of Two Cities and A Christmas Carol) but I've tried to read some ..."

SO WORDY. I tried to read Great Expectations once...

No, I can't get into Dickens either - we had to read something of his in college and I gave up even for that! I've tried since and still find it just too....I don't know that I can say it any better than wordy! I'd be willing to try once more, but so far he definitely hasn't won me over!

Hi everyone! I'm Regina from Philippines. I do love classics since my college days. And I'm expanding my list full of classic books to read. My favorite authors are Gustave Flaubert (though I'm a fan of French literature), Jane Austen, Leo Tolstoy and may more. I'm also into reading Pulitzer and banned books :)

I look forward to your discussions and to gain friends in this group :D

Hello,

My name is Corine and I live in The Netherlands. I have always loved to read. I read Dutch and English literature. I'm in a bookclub, but my fellow members aren't very fond of classics ....
Currently I study Psychology and Social Work (both parttime).

Hi I'm new to the group. The reason I joined this group is because I want to add some more classics to my reading list. I have read many of them in high school and collage but I have forgotten some of them or have never read some of them and would like to. I'm a retired preschool teacher of 25 years. I have read many children's books to the little ones so I have a large grouping of those books that I am familiar with. I put off reading for a number of years but found out it was because I couldn't see the print that good and I got discouraged. My husband bought me a Kindle Fire for Christmas and now I'm reading everything I can get my hands on. I also got some new reading glasses so I'm good to go again. I'm looking forward to making some new frieds and reading more great books from the past. Oh, my name is Judy and I'm retired and an at home mom to one sweet Kitty, Ms Tessa. I have three grown children and a I have eight grandchildren,some are mine and three are my husbands. I have always wanted to write books but never did much about that. It's on my bucket list though. So we'll see.

Hello, new group! I'm hiding from the triple digit heat and found this lovely place. My name is Teresa, and I read a little bit of just about everything. Guess it helps that I am also an English teacher. :)

I've read quite of few classics, but there are so many "new to me" works, that I feel I'll never run out of wonderful new friends.