Classic Novels You Should Not Miss
September 1st, 2011Trying to bulk up your literary muscles? Want to impress friends with your depth of knowledge? Or maybe you are just looking for some books that have stood the test of time – so you know they must be good, right? Here are a few classic novels you might want to check out (at a library or otherwise).
If you are looking for a novel that juggles sensationalism with a frank look at human brokenness, try reading Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov. Experience the epic, dirty American tale of unlikely love between Humbert Humbert, an older European scholar, and Lolita, a young girl from America. Despite the controversial nature of the premise, Nabokov uses the tragic and disturbing love story as a backdrop for an intriguing and insightful road trip through America. Do not let the questionable subject matter deter you from reading this classic. As Nabokov himself stated, Lolita is a novel about Nabokov’s love affair with the English language, and it also is probably the best novel to read if you really take an interest in understanding American culture.
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Love the blood and guts? Do you happen to be a true crime buff? If so, then check out In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. When Capote began covering a murder story as a reporter in Kansas in the 1950s, little did he know that he was launching the true-crime genre that would obsess America for years to come. Like Lolita, In Cold Blood deals with some of the most unsavory aspects of American life and the consequences and tragedies for all involved. Told in the third person, it meticulously details the series of events leading up to the murder of an upstanding and innocent family in Kansas. It also deals with big moral questions that persist to this day. After reading this book, you may never have the same opinion about capital punishment, for example. Although the book starts out a little slow, stick with it! The payoff at the end definitely makes it worth your time.
For the anglophile, look no further than Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh. Set during World War I, Brideshead Revisited examines the lives of the Roman Catholic Marchmain family as remembered by Captain Charles Ryder. Waugh considered this novel his magnum opus, and it’s easy to see why. The compelling characters, the moral struggles they face and the darkly ironic humor all combine to make this novel an underestimated classic. While dealing with questions of morality and religion, the novel also details the decline of the British Empire. Brideshead Revisited makes excellent reading for the anglophile or those with an interest in the time period.
Any Jane Austen fans out there? Can’t get enough of her even though you have read all of her novels ten times? Look into Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell. Set just a half a century later than Austen’s novels, it deals with some of the same themes: love, marriage, family, money, feminism. Gaskell’s novels contain more male characters, however, and her plots are more concerned with the social issues of the day.
Never fear, there’s something here for science fiction fans as well. Investigate The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. What if there was life on Mars? What if an entire world existed there with its own culture and customs? This is the premise of Bradbury’s classic tale. It follows the planet as explorers from Earth discover it and use and abuse it over the years. By the end of the tale, you will wish that Mars was not just a red, dusty planet.
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Completely jumping genres and continents, discover Beneath the Wheel by Hermann Hesse. One of the strengths of Hesse’s work is the way two different characters represent each other’s philosophical opposites. People become representatives of certain ideals in his books. Hesse’s works are not for the intellectually feint-hearted, however. They are especially compelling if you are interested in the pre-war literature of Germany. Hesse himself was quite distraught over the politics of Germany long before World War I.
Some people are always children at heart. No matter what you do, maybe you just still love kid’s books. Nothing wrong with that, right? Well, if you happen to love horses, too, you should read The Black Stallion books by Walter Farley. These books will fulfill every childhood horse fantasy you ever had. The best thing about them is that it’s a series – so you can keep reading! Farley knows horses, but he also knows people, which is why these books are so enduring.
Okay, time for the heavy lifting. You want to impress your smart date, right? Everyone should read Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky, just because it will make you think like no other novel. Yes, the themes are lofty, and yes, it is long, but the characters are real and their issues are pressing. You can identify so much with the main character that you can almost understand what it must feel like to commit a murder. Disturbing and fascinating, even to this day, Crime and Punishment never fails to intrigue and captivate its readers.
Let’s go way back, back to a time of knights and chivalry and love and death. Oh, and sex. Sir Thomas Mallory’s classic 14th century tale Le Morte d’Arthur (the death of Arthur) was based on all the legends of King Arthur and his knights that had been handed down over the centuries. Surprisingly antiquated at times, and surprisingly modern at others, see for yourself how differently people used to think and write, and how similar their passions and storytelling techniques have remained over the centuries.
Well, are you ready? Some of the above novels are lighter fare, others are your meat-and-vegetables of the literary world, but no matter how you slice it, you’re bound to learn from these books. Every novel contains a new world and a new set of experiences, so just think how much you can experience from the comfort of your own couch. What are you waiting for? Head out to the library!
