Rose in BC Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I want to read a classic (I've got more on my list) and have these two on my mind? Any suggestions as to which one first? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyJoy Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I'd start with Jane Eyre. It is one of my all-time favorites and easy to get into. I've started War and Peace several times, but haven't gotten very far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 (edited) Whoa, Nellie. :001_smile: Those are totally different sorts of books. IS this your first 'classic'? What do you like? Are you looking for British lit or Russian lit in particular? Classics with some romance? History? What do you like? Start with what you like and a time period which interests you. If you are thinking about Brit Gothic lit (Jane Eyre), I might start with something more simple like Rebecca. Not that Jane Eyre is difficult, but...R is easier. The Brontes are a step up. Imo. If you are thinking about Russian historical fiction, I might start with Dr Zhivago. War and Peace is a big chunk o' lit. What do you like? Edited January 24, 2010 by LibraryLover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melenie Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Jane Eyre! It is a all time favorite of mine as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose in BC Posted January 24, 2010 Author Share Posted January 24, 2010 Whoa, Nellie. :001_smile: Those are totally different sorts of books. IS this your first 'classic'? What do you like? Are you looking for British lit or Russian lit in particular? Classics with some romance? History? What do you like? Start with what you like and a time period which interests you. If you are thinking about Brit Gothic lit (Jane Eyre), I might start with something more simple like Rebecca. Not that Jane Eyre is difficult, but...R is easier. The Brontes are a step up. Imo. If you are thinking about Russian historical fiction, I might start with Dr Zhivago. War and Peace is a big chunk o' lit. What do you like? No it's not my first. I'm working through a stack of books I've always meant to read and haven't got around to it. I've read Anna Karenina by Tolstoy and enjoyed it so I'm sure I would like War and Peace. I've read Austen and Dickens etc. I recognize they're different, just getting people's opinions. BTW I'm more inclined to historical than romantic although I love Jane Austen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I haven't read War and Peace, but I really liked Jane Eyre! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 No it's not my first. I'm working through a stack of books I've always meant to read and haven't got around to it. I've read Anna Karenina by Tolstoy and enjoyed it so I'm sure I would like War and Peace. I've read Austen and Dickens etc. I recognize they're different, just getting people's opinions. BTW I'm more inclined to historical than romantic although I love Jane Austen. Then either one. Jane will be a quicker read, and War & Peace a longer one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cathmom Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I just read Jane Eyre for the first time and I LOVED IT!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrganicAnn Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I didn't love Jane Eyre as many do, but I'd probably pick it over War and Peace since it is shorter. Of course if War and Peace was published under its original title "War what is it good for?" (huh absolutely nothing) who knows if it would have been such a classic. [seinfeld reference for those who are confused] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in WI Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I've read and loved both ... but for entirely different reasons. I'd start with Jane Eyre. It's a much easier story. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swimmermom3 Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Rose, if you choose War and Peace, check out this thread in the High School Forum. Enjoy! Either way, you can't go wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vida Winter Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Another vote for Jane Eyre (a favorite of mine) but I have not read War and Peace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedgehogs4 Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 hands down, jane eyre. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Just grab whichever one you feel like next time you have an hour to spend reading. Seriously. It doesn't matter which one you read first, as long as you find something to enjoy, interest and/or challenge you in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suzf242 Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I'll vote War and Peace. Jane Eyre was too depressing for me. Take care. Suzanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose in BC Posted January 24, 2010 Author Share Posted January 24, 2010 Thanks for all the comments. I have developed this problem. I have so many books I want to read that sometimes I don't know where to start. I want to read both War and Peace and Jane Eyre and a gazillion other titles but lately I have been overwhelmed with the decision over what to read. I might add this is a problem only with novels I read for pleasure. I have several non-fiction titles on the go most of the time. I'm going to sit down with both books right now and make a decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 No it's not my first. I'm working through a stack of books I've always meant to read and haven't got around to it. I've read Anna Karenina by Tolstoy and enjoyed it so I'm sure I would like War and Peace. I've read Austen and Dickens etc. I recognize they're different, just getting people's opinions. BTW I'm more inclined to historical than romantic although I love Jane Austen. I've read both. Right now? I would read Jane Eyre. You've read Tolstoy but it sounds like you've never read the Brontes (because you mention Austen and they are TOTALLY different than Austen). I would go with the author I had not read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 (edited) I've read both. Right now? I would read Jane Eyre. You've read Tolstoy but it sounds like you've never read the Brontes (because you mention Austen and they are TOTALLY different than Austen). I would go with the author I had not read. Good point. Brontes/Austen. Totally different. The Brontes are depressing (someone said that in the thread). Their young lives were filled with the death of loved ones from the get-go (mother, dear sisters). Edited January 24, 2010 by LibraryLover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 I've never read War and Peace, but I LOVE Jane Erye! It was the first classic I read in high school. I was just drawn into it. It's wonderful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Good point. Brontes/Austen. Totally different. The Brontes are depressing (someone said that in the thread). Their young lives were filled with the death of loved ones from the get-go (mother, dear sisters). I don't know that I ever found the Brontes "depressing." Hm. I think their heroines do face a lot of death but so do many heroines of the era (including some of Austen's heroines-Emma and Anne are both motherless, Mr. Dashwood's death has led to the situation of the Dashwood ladies). I think the Brontes are a bit over the top at times but that was kind of their thing. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Over-the-top? Nobody get mad, but the Brontes are drama queens and they wouldn't know a decent partner if they crashed into one on the moors. ;) I don't know that I ever found the Brontes "depressing." Hm. I think their heroines do face a lot of death but so do many heroines of the era (including some of Austen's heroines-Emma and Anne are both motherless, Mr. Dashwood's death has led to the situation of the Dashwood ladies). I think the Brontes are a bit over the top at times but that was kind of their thing. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Over-the-top? Nobody get mad, but the Brontes are drama queens and they wouldn't know a decent partner if they crashed into one on the moors. ;) I think most people, including them, would agree that they are drama queens. When I read Sense and Sensibility I'm thinking of the Brontes every time Marianne talks. :lol: I think their idea of a good man and mine are very different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Already Gone Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 Read both, and I have to go with Jane Eyre.War and Peace is different from Anna Karenina; LOTS more historical analysis, philosophical digressions, etc. I recently "reread" it and I have to tell you, I skipped almost everything except the parts that had actual real people talking to each other, and it was over very, very quickly. I'm not saying not to read it, but I wouldn't expect it to be the same as AK (and if we're talking depressing, JE is considerably less so than AK, so that shouldn't pose any problems). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 My 16yo, 14yo, and I all finished reading Jane Eyre for the first (and definitely the ONLY) time yesterday. It was awful. Bronte's idea of a good man is extremely far from mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 24, 2010 Share Posted January 24, 2010 My 16yo, 14yo, and I all finished reading Jane Eyre for the first (and definitely the ONLY) time yesterday. It was awful. Bronte's idea of a good man is extremely far from mine. My teen dd pretty much detests Jane Eyre. I think my enthusiasm spoiled it for her. ;) She just couldn't relate to the 'coming of age' theme. I told her that if she had read it when it first came out, she'd have read it secretly, it was so shocking; a 'good mother' would not have allowed it. To tell the truth , I like the Bronte stories as much for the Bronte sisters themselves. They were interesting women, as was the era in which they lived/wrote. If one isn't interested in the social class structure / illicit- love- in -the- Victorian -era ...well...it's not all that interesting, I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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