Classics: 62 Great Books from The Iliad; Midnight's Children - Softcover

Jane Gleeson-White

Softcover

ISBN 10: 174166473X ISBN 13: 9781741664737

Publisher: Random House Australia, 2008

Synopsis

From J.K. Rowling's love of Jane Austen to J.M. Coetzee, whose "top 10" includes Cervantes and Samuel Beckett, this irresistible companion for all passionate readers explores why "the canon" is for everyone "What makes a classic? For me, it's a book I can't imagine having lived without; a truthful, wholly imagined world, in astonishing language, by a writer unafraid to probe those things that scare us and scar us and make us human." --Charlotte Wood, author, The Submerged Cathedral Mark Twain defined a literary classic as "something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read." But what was true in the 19th century doesn't hold true today. In our uncertain modern times, not only do books considered classics still fill the shelves of many bookshops, but these books continue to exert a powerful influence on contemporary culture--some in obvious ways, such as the film and television adaptations of the works of Homer, Jane Austen, George Eliot, Charles Dickens, and Henry James; other in less obvious ways, through their enduring impact on fellow writers, artists, and musicians. Offering many great contemporary authors' lists of their favorite classics, this accessible, impassioned, and inspiring guide to the great books of the past and why they still matter will be eagerly embraced and discussed by passionate and grateful readers.

About this title

Synopsis:

'What makes a classic? For me, it's a book I can't imagine having lived without; a truthful, wholly imagined world, in astonishing language, by a writer unafraid to probe those things that scare us and scar us and make us human' - Charlotte Wood, author of The Submerged Cathedral, in CLASSICS Mark Twain defined a literary classic as 'something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read'. But what was true in the nineteenth century doesn't hold today. In our uncertain modern times, not only do books considered classics still fill the shelves of many bookshops, but these books continue to exert a powerful influence on contemporary culture - some in obvious ways, such as the film and television adaptations of of the works of Homer, Jane Austen, George Eliot, Charles Dickens and Henry James; other in less obvious ways, through their enduring impact on fellow writers, artists and musicians.When Jane Gleeson-White wrote an article on classic books for Good Reading magazine, she was amazed at the response it elicited: students, teachers and reading groups were hungering for recommendations from 'the canon', the list of classic texts that until quite recently was compulsory reading in Australian schools.

The result is this beautiful book on why the greatest works of literature matter, and what they can give us today. As well, the book contains many great contemporary authors' lists of their favourite classics - from J.K. Rowling, who loves Jane Austen, to J.M. Coetzee, whose 'top ten' includes Cervantes and Samuel Beckett. CLASSICS is an accessible, impassioned and inspiring guide to the great books of the past, and will be eagerly embraced and discussed by passionate and grateful readers.

About the Author:

Jane Gleeson-White is a freelance book editor, writer, and reviewer.

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House Australia
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 174166473X
• ISBN 13: 9781741664737
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416