Please recommend a work of "great" literature

Cafe Society
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Shocking Admission: Despite being in my mid-30s, I have never read a single book of so-called great literature–not one–and I mean everyone from Hemingway to Dickens to Poe, Austin, Faulkner, and much, much more. I could go into a long-winded explanation as to why I’m so culturally backward, but let’s just accept this embarrassing fact at face value and move on.

As I have little spare time, but growing interest, would you please help me in identifying a wonderful work of literature that a reasonably intelligent, reasonably insightful person would almost certainly enjoy? I’ve seen recent threads devoted to classic works that suck. I’m looking for something that rocks, something that really moves me, that opens my eyes, that gets me motivated to read more.

Would Wuthering Heights be a good choice? Silas Marner? A Call to Arms? These seem to be high-profile books, but what ONE book would you recommend? (Please, nothing Moby Dick in length, excuse the pun.)

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‘The Outsider’ by Albert Camus is very short but is considered one of the best philosophical novels.

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Wuthering Heights and Silas Marner are both excellent and not too long. Jane Austen would also be a good choice: try Pride and Prejudice or Emma to start with.

I would probably recommend starting with the pre-20th century stuff. Literary fiction of the last hundred years or so is much more experimental in tone.

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For my tastes, Hemingway’s “The Old Man And The Sea” would be a place to start. It’s not too long, it’s easy to whip through, and the basic story is simple. Since I read that in high school and then saw the movie version with Spencer Tracy, it was hard to see how such a simple story could be filled with so much meaning. The symbolism was something I didn’t get at the time.

Whether it’s considered “great literature” or not, for some really fun reading, try Mario Puzo’s “The Godfather.”

And with that same proviso, “Shibumi” by Trevanian is an excellent read.

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Just one, huh? I’d recommend Vladimir Nabakov’s “Lolita.”

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Cervantes’ Don Quixote.

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I’ve been a big fan of The Catcher in the Rye ever since I read it in 10th grade. Real short book. I read it in like 3 hours.

Also, I’m reading The Arabian Nights right now in my own attempt to get through some “classic” literature. “It wouldn’t be a classic if it sucked” was my reasoning. Excellent book.

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Don Quixote is a bit long, and I’m not sure if The Old Man And The Sea counts as great literature (although it’s very good and was mentioned in Hemingway’s Nobel Prize citation).

It’s hard to know what to recommend: something with a plot, something based on character, something arty, something thoughtful? From personal experience:

For something modern and clever, “The Crying Of Lot 49” by Thomas Pynchon which is very short, very smart, but also funny and with a kind of detective story plot. Some people I know found the ending a bit disappointing, but it’s the Pynchon novel it’s OK to read between meals.

For something English and cynical, “Keep The Asphidistra Flying” by George Orwell, a story about a poor bookseller in the 1930s, which is accessible, sarcastic and a cutting attack on issues of class, family and poverty, and the compromises they require.

For family-based character-driven stuff, “The Optimist’s Daughter” by Eudora Welty, a Pulitzer-winning novel about a woman coming to terms with her father’s second marriage and his death, set in the 1960s US South. Also short, moving and brilliantly written.

For real shortness, “Miss Lonelyhearts” by Nathanael West, about a cynical newspaper reporter who pretends to be a female agony aunt and develops a messiah complex, set in the prohibition era. It’s slightly experimental in the character’s weird dreams, but darkly funny and allegedly based on real case histories.

And for short stories, pathos, and quirkiness, “Winesburg Ohio” by Sherwood Anderson, a set of tales about the lonely misfits living in a midwest town, by a writer who was an influence on Hemingway and many others.

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It feels like you want to read one of those books, that you’re supposed to read, just because it seems like everyone else has read them and can quote from them and so on. I don’t mean that in a negative way, mind you. I can feel the same way and think: "Wow, everyone is talking about White Teeth and I haven’t read it. It probably is very good, and I can hopefully learn something while being entertained at the same time."*
So I go out and buy the book and read about ten pages, get bored to a comatose stage, fall a sleep, and start re-reading a Terry Pratchett book, when waking up.

However, Catcher in the rye is most certainly a great book, maybe one of the most influential of the 20th century. It’s an easy read and it’s possible for us, today, to connect to Holden Caulfield, in a way that might be harder when you’re dealing with a writer and characters from the 18th century. I never got into those Victorian novels, basically because dating among the upper class Brits 150 years is simply not interesting, for me. Hell, I can’t get a date now.

In short, my vote goes to J.D. Salinger.

*I haven’t started that one yet. Title only as an example.

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I always enjoyed the insanity of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. It’s only a couple hundred pages at most, and it questions how “civilized” humans really are, if presented with a culture absent of authority.

I never saw the '63 movie, but I liked the '90 one. I should probably try the original.

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A couple years, while doing a factchecking job for a textbook publisher, I came across this list of Nobel Prize winners.

Whenever I’m stumped for a book, I dig one of these out from the public library. I’ve never been disappointed (maybe because I’ve avoided Buck, Steinbeck, and Hemingway), and along the way I’ve discovered some books that have become permanent fixtures in my life library. These are books that have stood the test of time. Some of my favorite discoveries in this process:

Halldor Laxness
Sigrid Undset
Par Lagerkvist
Knut Hamsun

I can recommend any title by any of these authors unreservedly.

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For really classic literature, I started in on epics. The Ramayana was one of those “wow, why didn’t I read this sooner?” books. And of course, we just can’t discuss epics without Homer! I much prefer the Odyssey to the Iliad. If the Odyssey is a bit long for you right now, try some Greek comedy instead; Aristophanes’ Lysistrata. I was amazed that a play so old was still funny.

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I just wanted to second one of Zenster’s suggestions - Jane Eyre.

It’s a wonderful book, every time I read it I can’t put it down until I’ve finished it. I even keep spare copies of it at my mother and grandmother’s houses, just in case something should happen to mine!

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Welcome aboard(s), TJay. Thanks for the backup on “Jane Eyre.” It is a moving work that highlights so much of what was wrong about the lack of women’s rights in centuries past.

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Cyrano de Bergerac

Frankenstein

King Lear

Moby Dick

The Jungle Book

The Three Musketeers

Red Storm Rising … wait not a classic …yet

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I third Jane Eyre. It’s remarkable how easy it is to get into, understand, and enjoy, especially as it’s so old.

(Please no “If you think that’s old…” corrections. ;))

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Thank you, all. Upon reflection, I have read a couple of “great” works. One was 1984, when I was a high school kid. I largely missed the allegory.

A more recent one was a short story by Guy de Maupassant, whom I somehow stumbled upon and managed to finish thanks to his brilliance and his work’s agreeable length.

Zenster, your breathtaking descriptions are such that I wonder whether I should be reading more of your posts instead.
Great job.

The Gaspode is correct: I want to read them because everyone says they’re classics.

Frankly, I feel like an ignorant savage compared to many, many posters in this forum. I know nothing about literature and feel overwhelmed at how much there is and how little time I have in reading the best.

I think I’ll start with either Jane Eyre or something by W. Somerset Maugham. I’ve heard of both authors many times. Another name that rings a bell was that chap G.K. Chesterton. Hate to say, I like the ring of his name. What works was he known for?

Lissener, I haven’t even HEARD of:

Halldor Laxness
Sigrid Undset
Par Lagerkvist
Knut Hamsun

[BTW, I’ve also read an excerpt of a book by John Updike. Quite witty and incisive. I enjoyed it.]

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As far as 20th century “great” works, I think everyone should at least give a look at:

“Animal Farm” by George Orwell. This one is short and sweet, but very powerful, very clever.

“Slaughterhouse Five” by Kurt Vonnegut. A stunning look at war.

“Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley.

“All Quiet On The Western Front” by…the author’s name escapes me at the moment.

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I love to read, but have a hard time sticking with a book if it doesn’t seem to be something I can relate to.

Anyway, I noticed nobody recommended Steinbeck…After a visit to Monterey, I picked up “Cannery Row” then, went on to “Sweet Thursday”, “The Grapes of Wrath”, “East of Eden” and the non-fiction, “Travels with Charlie”. I found these books to be well written and absorbing. His writing is thought provoking and has themes that are relevant today. The only book of his I haven’t read recently is “Of Mice and Men”. I read that in high school…Now that’s a depressing book.

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Erich Maria Remarque. Great book.

I vote for Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Excellent psychological novel.