BBC Believes You Only Read 6 of These Books...

[stephanier.1765]

BBC Believes You Only Read 6 of These Books...

 

Embarrassingly, I've only read 61 of these books so not long ago I decided to read the missing 39. However, right now I am reading Notes from a Small Island and having a hard time getting through it. I don't think I'm made for reading non-fiction. The writer is funny and engaging but still I find myself looking away and daydreaming rather than reading. I think right now sheer stubborness will be the only thing that will get me through it.

 

On the other hand, I thought One Hundred Years of Solitude was well worth the read and I'm glad I took the time to do so.

 

Any books on this list that you've had a hard time finishing? Forewarned is forearmed, ya know.  :D

[SKL]

I've seen that on facebook.  I've read over a third of them.  While some of them are great books in the timeless sense, others are just fads and some of them are geographically popular.  So I don't feel badly about not having read most of them, nor will I recommend that my daughters use that as their guide to good reading.

 

I don't think I ever failed to finish a book I started on that list.  However, there are a number which I read from cover to cover and now barely remember what the theme was, let alone details.... 

[carriede]

I've read 20. Lots to add to my list!

 

How official is this though...? They listed Hamlet and the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe twice when included in their related collections.

[Kathryn]

42 that I remember. The rest that I care to read, I have on my shelves but have never gotten around to. There were quite a few that I have no interest in.

[poppy]

What an amazing set of books..... plus, inexplicably, The Da Vinci Code. And The Time Traveller's Wife (why not any random Jodi Picolet instead?)   I'm a little skeptical about The Five People You Meet in Heaven too.

[stephanier.1765]

I've read 20. Lots to add to my list!

 

How official is this though...? They listed Hamlet and the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe twice when included in their related collections.

 

LOL Not very official, I'm sure. I'm making it a personal challenge but I may have gotten in over my head. Some of the books I haven't read I skipped in the past because I wasn't interested so now I guess I'll give them a go....or maybe not. I hate when a book takes the joy of reading away.

[Pink and Green Mom]

I have read 29.  I never read any of the books geared towards children - my childhood consisted of Little House on the Prairie, Nancy Drew, and Judy Blume.

 

 

[Night Elf]

I'm not well read at all. I've only read 21 of those books and there are many I don't care to read. Many I've never heard of before. Well, at least I've beat the BBC's idea.

[Spryte]

Fun!  69 here, and now I have a summer reading list.  

 

Can't believe Shadow of the Wind was on the list... Loved that book.  

[Laura Corin]

61 read here too.  

 

L

[Laura Corin]

BBC Believes You Only Read 6 of These Books...

 

Embarrassingly, I've only read 61 of these books so not long ago I decided to read the missing 39. However, right now I am reading Notes from a Small Island and having a hard time getting through it. I don't think I'm made for reading non-fiction. The writer is funny and engaging but still I find myself looking away and daydreaming rather than reading. I think right now sheer stubborness will be the only thing that will get me through it.

 

On the other hand, I thought One Hundred Years of Solitude was well worth the read and I'm glad I took the time to do so.

 

Any books on this list that you've had a hard time finishing? Forewarned is forearmed, ya know.  :D

 

I didn't make it through the Tolkiens....  And I have read one Hardy, but not the ones on the list. One was enough.

 

L

[Pawz4me]

I've read 28 of them in full, and quite a few others in part.

 

I too question some on the list, and why they left some others off.  All in all it seems rather random to me.

[BrookValley.]

Almost 50. I couldn't finish Life of Pi.

 

There are several on my to-read list, but also several I have no interest in.

[shawthorne44]

Jane Austen is well represented.

I am surprised I was only a 43.  

But, I know I read more than 6 of those for English classes in High School or college.  

[ElizabethB]

51. Some of them seem a bit random.

[Slache]

I was only forced to read 4 of those in school, which could be where the average "6" comes from. Asking a homeschool forum shouldn't give you an accurate representation of what most people have read. I know that's not the reason you posted it, but that explains the difference between the 6 and the 61.

[bettyandbob]

I didn't make it through the Tolkiens....  And I have read one Hardy, but not the ones on the list. One was enough.

 

L

 

So glad to hear someone else doesn't enjoy Tolkien.

[MysteryJen]

That was a really interesting and random list. I have read 74. 

 

But two Thomas Hardys? Three Jane Austens?

 

I have read one of each. Enough for me!

 

And no Da Vinci Code here. Life is too short.

[PrincessMommy]

I got 23.  But, honestly, I hate these types of lists.  Who decides these things??

 

There are some on the list I don't plan to ever read such as  "The Lovely Bones" & "The Great Gatsby" for example.  So, I don't feel bad that I'm on the lower side of things.   Why only some of Austen & Tolstoy''s works?  No fair, I read "Brother's Karamazov" which is not on the list.  Makes no sense.

 

I've read "Moby Dick".  I'd like to know why it's on the list other than the fact that it's old.  More than 1/2 of the book is outdated science information (Whale phrenology anyone???) .  That's a couple months of reading I'll never get back.  Ugh.    How about "Portrait of a Lady" - read that - it's old - and awful.  LOL   What about "Don Quixote"??? - it's old - and awesome!!  It's withstood the test of time much longer than several others on the list.  speaking of which,  "The Davinci Code"??!!  What the heck??   It's pulp fiction.  Why don't we add a Barbara Cartland book too then??

[redsquirrel]

I've read half. Many that I haven't read, I chose not to read, and don't plan change that.

 

But all of the books on this list that I have read I liked very much.

[SKL]

Yes let me save you from wasting time.  The Great Gatsby is one of the worst books ever written.  That's not just my opinion.  Its a fact.  I wouldn't even be willing to line my cat's litter box with it.

 

LOL, I am glad I wasn't the only one who thought that book was waaaaaaaay overrated.

 

The Color Purple is also just not great literature.  In terms of quality of writing it rather sucks.

 

[Pink and Green Mom]

I got 23.  But, honestly, I hate these types of lists.  Who decides these things??

 

There are some on the list I don't plan to ever read such as  "The Lovely Bones" & "The Great Gatsby" for example.  So, I don't feel bad that I'm on the lower side of things.   Why only some of Austen & Tolstoy''s works?  No fair, I read "Brother's Karamazov" which is not on the list.  Makes no sense.

 

I've read "Moby Dick".  I'd like to know why it's on the list other than the fact that it's old.  More than 1/2 of the book is outdated science information (Whale phrenology anyone???) .  That's a couple months of reading I'll never get back.  Ugh.    How about "Portrait of a Lady" - read that - it's old - and awful.  LOL   What about "Don Quixote"??? - it's old - and awesome!!  It's withstood the test of time much longer than several others on the list.  speaking of which,  "The Davinci Code"??!!  What the heck??   It's pulp fiction.  Why don't we add a Barbara Cartland book too then??

 

I have to LOL because I wrote on another thread about how Brother's Karamazov turned me off of reading for years.  And I didn't even get past the second chapter :lol:

 

And I thought Lovely Bones was horrible.

 

Don't forget Bridget Jones was on there, too.  Although I found that book hysterical when I was in my 20s.

[Ewe Mama]

I've read 51 of them, most of those from my college days as a lit major. I find this to be a rather strange compilation of novels.

[Lady Florida.]

I've seen that on facebook. If I remember correctly from when I took it, I read just a few over half. Some of the ones I haven't read are on my TBR list, but others are ones I have no interest in and don't plan to read. It's an odd combination of classics, current literature, and popular books that really aren't very good. The DaVinci Code (read) and The Five People You Meet in Heaven (didn't and don't plan to) are not books I'd put on a list of must-reads. Also, it's odd how some series count as only one book.

[Guest]

I hated Wuthering Heights. I'm sorry, but there were too many Catherines and I lost the thread of it weeks before I gave up.

 

Also, I have never read the book, but I detest Alice in Wonderland. I know it's supposedly loaded with satire and symbolism, but that story...I just despise it.

[Seasider]

34, with three false starts plus one that I firmly decided not to finish.

 

I though it quite an eclectic list and noticed the redundancy.

[dirty ethel rackham]

I read 26.  There are several I hope to get to, several I started, but found interminably boring and decided that watching grass grow was a better use of my time (and more enjoyable) and and some that I really don't have a strong desire to read.  I do read a lot, but apparently, none of it is worthwhile to the fancy schmancy list makers.  How's that for a snarky answer - kind of tells you what kind of mood I am in today. 

[Mrs Mungo]

I've read 72, but I agree that this is a pretty weird selection. Plus, it has stuff like the Narnia series *plus* The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe? Where did this list come from? I also agree there are some books on the list that I don't think are worth reading. I *also* agree that The Brothers Karamazov is better than Crime and Punishment.

[Mommy22alyns]

I've read 29.  Some seemed random and not "worth" being on any sort of list like that.  Really, Bridget Jones' Diary?  I also couldn't finish The Lovely Bones.  *shudder*

[BarbecueMom]

I was only forced to read 4 of those in school, which could be where the average "6" comes from. Asking a homeschool forum shouldn't give you an accurate representation of what most people have read. I know that's not the reason you posted it, but that explains the difference between the 6 and the 61.

That's two more than I had to read in school. We read Jane Eyre and To Kill a Mockingbird at the same time in 10th grade honors English, half the class on each book. And my 7th grade gifted class read Animal Farm. That's it. I've read 21 on my own.

 

I never knew how awful my high school education was until I started hanging out here. It's embarrassing.

[*Lulu*]

I've read start to finish 30 of the list.

 

I've started and discarded another 26.

 

The only one I feel guilty for tossing aside is the Melville. (And that is only because of SpyCar's insistence that it is worthy of reading. :P )

[SailorMom]

I got 64 - if you don't count the ones I started, hated, and stopped reading - lol....

[*Lulu*]

I've read 29. Some seemed random and not "worth" being on any sort of list like that. Really, Bridget Jones' Diary? I also couldn't finish The Lovely Bones. *shudder*

I know. There were about a dozen of those I never even picked up because they didn't appeal to me.

 

And because I have a stubborn streak and refuse to read something just because Oprah tells me to.

[LibraryLover]

My score is 72.

 

I didn't bother with Lovely Bones given what I heard about it here.  With shame, I will admit I have read Dan Brown novels. ;)  I also agree with SheepMama that it's an 'interesting' compilation. I do think Brown was included because it is one of the top 5 best selling/most read books of all time. I think the list is Bible, Harry Potter, Da Vinci Code...and ?  Must go research.

 

There are some I should have read, and many I read in high school and college. There are several I've read more than once.

 

When I was 15, I thought Jude the Obscure was brilliant. ;) When I reread later in life, it wasn't as good as I remembered, but I still liked it.

[Jean in Newcastle]

56.  It was originally higher but then I realized that a couple of them I had never read but had seen the movie so I went back and unmarked them.  But on the other hand there were a couple that I couldn't remember if I read or not so I didn't mark them as read.  I'm familiar with the author and the plot but is that just a basic cultural literacy or did I read those in my forgotten youth?!

[Farrar]

IIRC, the reason for the weirdness of the list is that these were the top selling books over some longish period of time in the UK.  Again, IIRC, an article or story ran on BBC postulating that just because people were buying these books didn't mean they were reading them and they estimated that many people might not have read more than a few.  Thus an internet book meme was born.

 

I haven't seen it in a couple of years, but I think my number was like 70-something.

[Guest]

That's two more than I had to read in school. We read Jane Eyre and To Kill a Mockingbird at the same time in 10th grade honors English, half the class on each book. And my 7th grade gifted class read Animal Farm. That's it. I've read 21 on my own.

 

I never knew how awful my high school education was until I started hanging out here. It's embarrassing.

This is exactly what I thought the first time I saw this list (a few years ago.) one of my friends had read something like thirty, most of which were during high school or college. A few she read in French in high school. Made me think...wow, what a crappy Lit program we had at my high school!

[Reefgazer]

I've only read 22.  I also read a Thomas Hardy, but not Tess; I read The Return Of The Native and loved it!  Not crazy about Tolkien, either....

I didn't make it through the Tolkiens....  And I have read one Hardy, but not the ones on the list. One was enough.

 

L

 

[6packofun]

How official is this though...?

 

What makes a book list official?  LOL  I've read 49, seen the movies and/or started at least a dozen others (and may or may not ever read or finish).  I just recently finished The Secret History and thought it was one of the more pretentious reads of my life.  :P  So I take every single book list with a huge salt crystal.

 

[Seasider]

56. It was originally higher but then I realized that a couple of them I had never read but had seen the movie so I went back and unmarked them. But on the other hand there were a couple that I couldn't remember if I read or not so I didn't mark them as read. I'm familiar with the author and the plot but is that just a basic cultural literacy or did I read those in my forgotten youth?!

Hey, when I was doing it I also thought about having seen movies of these stories.

 

Maybe we should see how many we could click if we pretended it was scoring our film viewing.

[Hannah]

41 here - and much to dh and dd's dismay, I'm not a Tolkien fan either.

[SKL]

That's interesting, the different requirements that middle/high schools assigned.  We had to read a lot of Shakespeare and other comparable stuff, plus we had to choose a number of books from a list that included the Bronte sisters, Dickens, the Bible, and others along those lines.  I loved that part of my education.  :)  I should note that this was a public school.

 

And I just noticed that they left Mark Twain off the list.  WTH?

 

As for movies - I saw some which convinced me to NOT read the books.  For example, the Da Vinci Code.  What a waste.

[bluemongoose]

I have read 38 of them. I read constantly though, just not ones on that list.

[Lady Florida.]

That's two more than I had to read in school. We read Jane Eyre and To Kill a Mockingbird at the same time in 10th grade honors English, half the class on each book. And my 7th grade gifted class read Animal Farm. That's it. I've read 21 on my own.

 

I never knew how awful my high school education was until I started hanging out here. It's embarrassing.

 

Yes! In addition to the popular books, I read most of the classics on that list on my own. When I hear or read about the classics people read in school I realize just how few we were required to read. 

[Mrs Mungo]

FWIW, I am amazed at some of the books that people hated. I guess I am just a giant book slut. There are very few books on that list that I've read that I would say that I hated or even disliked. I find the Bridget Jones books to be laugh out loud hilarious, Tolkien is amazing, Rebecca is one of my favorites, Gatsby is one that I think really speaks to the modern decadence class, Atwood is one of my favorite authors, Atonement is heartbreaking, etc. Ulysses is the one book that I have read that I don't really care for. I don't plan to read The Five People You Meet in Heaven.

 

 

 

As for movies - I saw some which convinced me to NOT read the books.  For example, the Da Vinci Code.  What a waste.

 

It's a list from the BBC, why is that surprising? 

 

 

[Seasider]

I couldn't resist. I've seen film versions of 39.

[LibraryLover]

FWIW, I am amazed at some of the books that people hated. I guess I am just a giant book slut. There are very few books on that list that I've read that I would say that I hated or even disliked. I find the Bridget Jones books to be laugh out loud hilarious, Tolkien is amazing, Rebecca is one of my favorites, Gatsby is one that I think really speaks to the modern decadence class, Atwood is one of my favorite authors, Atonement is heartbreaking, etc. Ulysses is the one book that I have read that I don't really care for. I don't plan to read The Five People You Meet in Heaven.

 

 

 

 

:) Count me in. All that. I lost dang points because I didn't read 5 People, or Lovely Bones.  Like I said, I have read Dan Brown. ;)  But I love knowing other people adore works like Grapes of Wrath etc  *and* The Devil Wears Prada &  Bridget Jones etc  ;)

 

When one is into book porn,  this is what happens. lol

[Guest]

FWIW, I am amazed at some of the books that people hated. I guess I am just a giant book slut. There are very few books on that list that I've read that I would say that I hated or even disliked. I find the Bridget Jones books to be laugh out loud hilarious, Tolkien is amazing, Rebecca is one of my favorites, Gatsby is one that I think really speaks to the modern decadence class, Atwood is one of my favorite authors, Atonement is heartbreaking, etc. Ulysses is the one book that I have read that I don't really care for. I don't plan to read The Five People You Meet in Heaven.

 

 

It's a list from the BBC, why is that surprising?

But, Mrs. Mungo, you are especially brilliant!

[Slache]

That's two more than I had to read in school. We read Jane Eyre and To Kill a Mockingbird at the same time in 10th grade honors English, half the class on each book. And my 7th grade gifted class read Animal Farm. That's it. I've read 21 on my own.

 

I never knew how awful my high school education was until I started hanging out here. It's embarrassing.

I totally agree. It's ridiculous how terrible the education is of most of today's youth. I can't believe how much I've learned as an adult that is so important to function as an individual. History, Government, Geography. It's horrid. I know adults in their 20's that graduated high school that can't read.

 

In the beginning of my senior year my school changed their policy and decided not to take any of the credits from my first high school and I was given the opportunity tho challenge every credit I needed to graduate including classes I had not yet taken. I got 80% or higher on every test, because while I may not have learned anything in Science they made darn sure I knew how to pass a test.

[Catwoman]

I have read the majority of them, but I don't feel as though my life would be lacking if I hadn't.

 

Actually, it just made me think that maybe I need to get out more often... ;)