Classics Club Spin #23

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Hope springs eternal. I’m attempting another Classics Club’s Spin. I rarely complete this fun reading challenge. My inner rebel rebels against being told what to read when, even thought I’m ultimately the one making the choice. I know it sounds ridiculous.

Sigh.

The plan is to post twenty books from your Classics Club list before Sunday, April 19th. On that day, the spin moderator will pick a number between 1-20 and the corresponding number on participants’ book lists is the book to read. The goal is to read and write about the book by June 1st.

I went through my bookshelves and found that I have about 13 physical books from my CC list, nine of which are included on my spin list below. I live in Connecticut and we’re on COVID-19 stay home, stay safe orders until May 20th, and I don’t think my local library will open before then. While I read digital books and can still get those through the library, I’ve been doing a lot of computer work lately and reading digital ARCs, so I’m giving my eyes a screen break for the spin.

Classics Club Spin #ccspin

Here’s my list of potentials:

  1. The Odyssey* by Homer, 8th century BC, new translation by Emily Wilson (I’m already reading this but stalled. Again. It’s a re-read and I’m not finding any comfort in re-reading these days.)
  2. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, 1869 (I read the first half years ago and was enjoying it, but put it down when work got busy and never got back to it.)
  3. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  4. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  5. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  6. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896 <–YES!
  7. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  8. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  9. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  10. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  11. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  12. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  13. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  14. The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett, 1896
  15. Goodbye to All That by Robert Graves, 1929 
  16. A Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain, 1933 
  17. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, 1943 
  18. Lord of the Flies by William Golding, 1954
  19. Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin, 1956 
  20. Ship of Fools by Katherine Anne Porter, 1962 

I’d be happy to read any of these books. At first I thought I’d repeat multiple titles to expand my list to twenty books, but I’ve been hankering to read The Country of the Pointed Firs by Sarah Orne Jewett so it is obviously weighed in that book’s favor. Fingers crossed.

BONUS! The next Dewey’s Readathon is April 25th so I plan to do a deep dive into whatever my spin read is on that day.

Are any of the above a favorite of yours? If you’re doing the spin, do we share any books in common? Part of the fun of spins is seeing what everyone has on their lists so feel free to leave a link to yours below.

10 comments

  1. Excellent list! 😉 I’m hoping you get to read Country of the Pointed Firs because it’s such a beautifully written book!

  2. Testament of Youth! Even if your calculated weighting of one book pays off for you, I still want you to read ToY asap. You can thank me later 🙂

    • My weighting paid off and I’ll be reading Pointed Firs, but I’ll definitely read ToY soon, Brona! I got a bit burnt out on WWI some years ago but ToY is one I really want to read. I was thinking some WWI and post-war books might actually be good to read now when we’re going through this pandemic. Hard time put into perspective and all.

  3. Hmmm…I’ve not heard of The Country of the Pointed Firs. I’ll have to see about adding that to TBR. Meanwhile…here’s a vote for Anna K…my first Russian author experience. Much more accessible and enjoyable than I expected. Cheers.

    • Sarah Orne Jewett was once very popular but was pushed to the side when literary tastemakers created a canon that was more virile. I think she’s due for a resurgence. Glad to hear your plug for Anna K. I do want to get back to that novel. I was enjoying it, particularly the importance of the land and working it. I’ll read that first part again when I do get to it.

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