2016 Challenges: Back to the Classics

Back to the Classics 2016 Reading Challenge
Books and Chocolate (sign up)
January - December 2016
# of Books at least six

What I Read for the Challenge:

1. A Volume of Classic Short Stories: Silent Nights. Edited by Martin Edwards. 2015. Poisoned Pen Press. 298 pages. [Source: Review copy]
2. A classic by a woman author: North and South. Elizabeth Gaskell. 1854-1855. 452 pages. [Source: Bought]
3. A fantasy, science fiction, or dystopian classic. Alas, Babylon. Pat Frank. 1959/2005. Harper Perennial Modern Classics. 323 pages. [Source: Bought]
4. A 19th Century Classic. Joan of Arc. Mark Twain. 1895/1896. 452 pages. [Source: Library] HISTORICAL (Adult)
5. A classic which has been banned or censored.  Fahrenheit 451. Ray Bradbury. 1953/1991. Del Rey. 179 pages. [Source: Bought] *This one wasn't "banned" but censored in some editions--with certain words taken out.
6. A classic which includes the name of a place in the title. The Pastures of Heaven. John Steinbeck. 1932. 207 pages. [Source: Library] [short stories]
7. A classic in translation.   Doctor Zhivago. Boris Pasternak. Translated by John Bayley. 1957. 592 pages. [Source: Library]
8. An adventure classic. The Children's Homer. Padraic Colum. 1918/1982. 256 pages. [Source: Bought]
9. A 20th Century Classic: The Fellowship of the Ring. J.R.R. Tolkien. 1954/1965. Houghton Mifflin. 423 pages. [Source: Bought]
10. Classic detective novel: Murder in the Museum. John Rowland. 1938. Poisoned Pen Press. 250 pages. [Source: Review copy]
11. Classic by a non-white author. The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar. Paul Laurence Dunbar. 290 pages. [Source: Library]
12. Re-read a classic you read in school (high school or college). The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain. 1884. 327 pages. [Source: Library]

The Categories:

1.  A 19th Century Classic - any book published between 1800 and 1899.

2.  A 20th Century Classic - any book published between 1900 and 1966. Just like last year, all books MUST have been published at least 50 years ago to qualify. The only exception is books written at least 50 years ago, but published later.

3.  A classic by a woman author. 

4.  A classic in translation.  Any book originally written published in a language other than your native language. Feel free to read the book in your language or the original language.

5.  A classic by a non-white author. Can be African-American, Asian, Latino, Native American, etc.

6.  An adventure classic - can be fiction or non-fiction. Children's classics like Treasure Island are acceptable in this category. 

7.  A fantasy, science fiction, or dystopian classic. Dystopian could include classics like 1984, and children's classics like The Hobbit are acceptable in this category also. 

8.  A classic detective novel. It must include a detective, amateur or professional. This list of books from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction is a great starting point if you're looking for ideas.

9.  A classic which includes the name of a place in the title.  It can be the name of a house, a town, a street, etc. Examples include Bleak House, Main Street, The Belly of Paris, or The Vicar of Wakefield.

10. A classic which has been banned or censored. If possible, please mention why this book was banned or censored in your review. I used this list for the possibilities:

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Stowe 
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston
Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison
Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell
The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess
Sons and Lovers, by D.H. Lawrence
Women in Love, by D.H. Lawrence

11. Re-read a classic you read in school (high school or college).  If it's a book you loved, does it stand the test of time?  If it's a book you disliked, is it any better a second time around?

12. A volume of classic short stories. This must be one complete volume, at least 8 short stories. It can be an anthology of stories by different authors, or all the stories can be by a single author. Children's stories are acceptable in this category also.

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews