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To: C19fan
War and Peace needs to be split into two books. One that is the actual story and the other that are his (half baked) ideas of philosophy.

Hamlet is a play. You need to see it, not read it.

Moby Dick is interesting if you are interesting in Living History.

Wuthering Heights is good if you like Gothic.

Animal Farm, even if you are not interested in the politics behind it is a good story and not that long.

Bleak House, I have to admit to never having read this one.

Les Miserables and Hunchback of Notre Dame are ok. Not great but not for people who like things that end on a up note. If you liked GOT you might like it.

The Great Gatsby and Ulysses are both wastes of time. Do not bother.

I would say the majority of the problem with these books is vocabulary. You need to have a large vocabulary to read these books without having to look up a word a page.

152 posted on 03/02/2022 1:50:49 PM PST by Harmless Teddy Bear (It is better to light a single flame thrower then curse the darkness. A bunch of them is better yet)
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To: Harmless Teddy Bear

I think a problem with many of these books for modern readers - especially Americans - has to do with different writing styles, too. Contemporary people can have trouble with the long sentences and sentence structures of 19th century literature.

It takes more concentration to read Dickens or Bronte, compared with a Hemingway or even with most vaunted contemporary ‘literary fiction’ - and certainly with whatever they’ve been reading in high schools in recent years.


153 posted on 03/02/2022 2:05:17 PM PST by Jamestown1630 ("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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