Saturday, April 4, 2015

Classics Spin #9


Time for another Classics Spin!  I haven't participated in a long time, since I was in a blogging slump last year.  But I'm back on track and ready to have a random number select the next book from my Classics Club List.

I'm down to my last 20 books, so this was the easiest Spin list to compile so far -- I just split them into four categories.  Hopefully, I won't get #20, The Eustace Diamonds, because I still haven't finished Phineas Finn which precedes it in the Pallisers series.  Some of these are books that I've been putting off for a really long time.  Fingers crossed, I'll be pleasantly surprised by the selection.

Five Classics I really want to read:

1.  Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis
2.  Shadows on the Rock by Willa Cather
3.  Main Street by Sinclair Lewis
4.  A Dance to the Music of Time (1st Movement) by Anthony Powell
5.  Twilight Sleep by Edith Wharton

Five Victorians:

6.  Armadale by Wilkie Collins
7.  No Name by Wilkie Collins
8.  Mary Barton by Elizabeth Gaskell
9.  Sylvia's Lovers by Elizabeth Gaskell
10.  New Grub Street by George Gissing

Five classics I keep putting off:

11.  The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens
12.  The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy
13.  The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
14.  The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
15.  Lark Rise to Candleford by Flora Thompson

The other five:

16. One of Ours by Willa Cather
17. The Man in the Iron Mask by Alexandre Dumas
18. The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford
19. The Four Feathers by A. E. W. Mason
20. The Eustace Diamonds by Anthony Trollope

Anyone else participating in the Spin?  Are any of these books on your list?  And which ones should I be hoping for -- or dreading?

Updated:  The magic spin number was 2!!  So I'll be reading Shadows on the Rock by Willa Cather.  I'm very happy with my spin selections and I look forward to reading and posting about it.  Look for my review on May 15. 

19 comments:

  1. I can certainly understand putting off Thomas Hardy and Henry James. Willa Cather and Edith Wharton are two of my favourite authors.

    You got in just under the wire! I hope you have a fantastic spin!

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    1. I have mixed feelings about Hardy, though some people love him. I'm definitely afraid of Henry James, and Portrait of a Lady is LONG. Crossing my fingers for Cather or Wharton!

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  2. Like you, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is one I will delay, if at all possible! I was unaware of many of these titles! Thanks for sharing! Here's to tomorrow's spin! :)

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    1. I've met people who loved and hated Hunchback. I've never read any Hugo -- at least it's not as long as Les Miserables!

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  3. Good luck. I love both Armadale and No Name, so I would be hoping for one of those, but there are some other great books on your list too. I'm reading The Eustace Diamonds now and really enjoying it so far, but I understand why you don't want to get that one yet!

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    1. I've just started Phineas Finn for my Trollope celebration, so if I get Eustace, I'll have to make reading it a priority so I can finish both by May 15. I'd love Collins but they are all so long!

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  4. Only 20 books to go with your CC challenge - that deserves a big bravo!

    If you get the Wharton you may also like to join in my Wharton Review in May:-)

    I loved my first first Cather last year & can't wait to read more of her stuff.

    Hope this spin helps you out of your blogging slump too.

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    1. I'm definitely in for your Wharton Review, whether or not it's my spin pick!

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  5. I'm curious. Since you are down to your last 20 books, does this mean you can no longer do any more Spins since you will have less than 20 books??

    Good luck for tomorrows Spin Number.

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    1. I've been thinking about that too. I have seen other Classics Club participants who are just repeating books within the list to get to 20 selections. Unless I finish all 20 before the next Spin, and make up a whole new list - ha!

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  6. When you say you only have 20 left, do you mean that you have no other books you want to read or did you make a list of more than twenty classics and have already whittled it down a bit? Here is my list. Anne's 20 Classics for spin

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    1. I started with 75 classics almost three years ago, and I've read all but 20! I'm right on track to finish on time in 2017 -- already thinking about another list when I finish it.

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  7. WILLA! My book club just discussed My Antonia - the author is quite interesting, hope you enjoy this book.

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    1. I got #2, Shadows on the Rock, so I'm looking forward to it. I've loved most of what I've read by Cather so far.

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  8. I haven't read Shadows on the Rock yet, but Willa Cather is one of my favorite authors. Enjoy!

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  9. Shadows on the Rock is probably my favorite book so far this year. I found it absolutely brilliant. Great spin!

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  10. I had to read Phineas Finn for a class I took recently and LOVED it. I then bought a bunch of the Palliser series to read, but I haven't gotten to them yet. I really should put together a Classics Club spin list; great idea!

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  11. I want to read Shadows on the Rock, too. There are still one or two Willa Cather novels I haven't read. One of my favourite writers, do review it if you read it.

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