Yes. The book has a plot, and an interesting one at that, revolving around a murder and the subsequent trial. But it also has long portions of philosophical discussion, particularly the conversations between Alyosha and Ivan.
A few of these I read, but I read them so long ago (for example, when I was forced to read them in high school) that I don't really remember much about them. So on one level, yes I did actually read them, but on another, I don't necessarily know that it really counts, since I would not be able to have any kind of coherent discussion about them. I've never read LOTR and have no intention of doing so. I probably will never read Crime and Punishment, Jane Eyre, or A Passage to India.
Lord of the Rings is one of those rare examples (in my opinion) where the movies are actually (much?) better than books. But the question is also what would become of movies if the director would be somebody else. Jackson really did an amazing job, that's why LOTR trilogy won 17 out of 30 Academy Awards nominations. I read LOTR 4-5 years ago, but I plan to do re-read them, just to see if I was too young the first time (I was around 15...), although I doubt that. Hmm... I read Jane Eyre and Catcher in the Rye and plan to read Pride and Prejudice in the near future. Jane Eyre has some of the best descriptions I have ever read. The sceneries, scenes and emotions are really well described, although sometimes the descriptions are too long in my opinion. As for the story, I thought it would be more boring, it's actually quite interesting and there is also a good plot twist on the second half of the book. That's not a spoiler right? :/ I too got really tired of Holden in Catcher in the Rye like someone above said, but we had to read that for our final exams at the end of high school. When we started doing the reviews, synopsis and analysis with our teacher, then we actually saw the true characteristics of Holden and his views over the world. Some of the social problems that author critisized in the book when he wrote it (published 1951) are still present now, in the year 2014. And that's quite fascinating if you ask me.
Years ago, while living in a condo unit, I found hundreds of these classics in the unit dumpster. I couldn't help myself. I crawled in and salvaged as many as I could. I had a neighbor drive by and shout at me, "I know things are tough, I just didn't realize how so".
I'm sure all three of them are. It's just that I have so very much to read in my TBR pile, and I will never be able to read all of the books out there that are worth reading.
Yeah, I know how that feels. My to-read pile has grown immense, and I add to it faster than I can read. If you like audio books, Jane Eyre can be had for around 2 bucks on Audible. I do a fair amount of driving from time to time and audio books make the trips seem to go faster.
This is such a sad thought. I hate the thought of throwing away books -- seems sad they didn't give them to a used bookstore or library. I have had the experience, though of a bookstore rejecting books I've offered, and I never know what to do with them. I hate to admit that I have tossed a couple in the garbage, but it pains me to do so.
I've never gotten into audio books. I listened to a couple, many years ago, and thought they were fine. These days, I don't have lots of driving time where I'm alone in the car. I might consider it, though, the next time my life circumstances give me a lot of solitary driving.
I tried reading the Hobbit. Maybe I just have a rotten copy that turns me off - the print is so small - does that ever stop you from reading a book - rotten font? Some of the writing however, is positively brilliant -
Well, I might give it a go. These days I download - I know as a writer I really shouldn't, but I'd go bankrupt if I bought every book I ever wanted to read (and being in Prague, it's not like the library is much good - I don't speak Czech). That's my excuse anyway. Anyway, I'd probably download for free so it's all right if it ends up being boring lol. Are the philosophical discussions important? Can I skip them? @peachalulu - ooh you remind me of a Tolkien quote, here: “All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.” – JRR Tolkien
The book is in the public domain, so you can probably get it from Project Gutenberg. The philosophical discussions can be skipped without hurting the plot, but they're part of what makes the book great
I note that Moby Dick is mentioned in the OP. That's a great book, and one I recommend to people from time to time.
Sadly, as my daughter turned 12, I no longer read to her. Over the course of 11 some years, I read to her almost every day. Starting with Sam's Ball and progressing through dozens of the children's classics, the HP series, Eragon, The Alex Rider series, and just too many to name. It was a great way for me to get into books I otherwise, never would have read. We tried LOTR at least twice at different ages and both agreed it just didn't do it for us. There is a standing joke at house that if my daughter could learn Russian she would be allowed to read Crime and Punishment, which she got into her head she wanted to read.
Tolkien has some amazing poems in his works. I especially liked the Song of Durin, which Gimili sings druing travel through Moria in The Fellowship of the Ring. It's a bit longer though... Here is link to the poem if anybody is interested: http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Song_of_Durin
I recently read that William F. Buckley didn't read Moby Dick until he was in his 50s. That's, when you think about it, really quite astounding. The book has been on my 'to-read' this for some time now, I might buy it some time and take the plunge.
Am I the only one who read 1984 and came out of it traumatized? Anyway, the only one on the list I've been considering other than that is War and Peace... is it worth an attempt? I tried Atlas Shrugged and lost interest halfway through, but I'm still definitely capable of tackling monster books.
^Certainly not. I read Nineteen Eighty-Four when I was 16, and I'm still not completely over the experience. It scared me senseless. Oh, I never said how many of the books in that list I have read. I've read 8 of them. Haha.
It's such a good book, Lemex. Some people get hung up on the whaling chapters, which you can actually skip without losing any of the story if you are so inclined.
For those of you who liked 1984, you might like Gary Steyngart's Super Sad True Love Story. It's got some similar elements, in a contemporary near-future setting.
Just one. I've dipped into a couple of others with intentions of finishing them at some point. Others I have no interest in checking out any time soon. I gave up on Tolkien and Jane Eyre.
