Top 10 Tuesday: All Time Favorite Classics

Top 10 Tuesday is a weekly event hosted by the bloggers over at The Broke and the Bookish. Each week, there’s a different theme to write a top 10 list about. This week’s theme was to pick a TV-themed topic. Since I just came from DragonCon, I thought I’d share my Top 10 Genre TV shows, which feature supernatural, sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and superhero elements. Also, I’m going to apologize for the lack of photos this week, I’m writing my post pretty late in the day and figured expedience in getting it up may be better…

1. Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen

   

    

    

    

   One of my all time favorite novels. I just love the witty reparte between Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy. I love that she rejects him at least once (he deserved it), and I love the humor behind the characters of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. A brilliant piece of literature.

2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

   

   The story of erstwhile orphan Jane, who deserves none of what befalls her, I always loved this novel. The love that is lost and found, and the fact that such hardship can eventually lead to joy are redeeming themes in this novel. The only parts I dislike are the weird supernatural-y ones.

3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

   

   Not a popular choice, I still have a special place in my heart for Emily Bronte’s story of a gypsy boy brought home by Mr. Earnshaw to be raised with his children. The gothic setting, the extraordinarily unlikeable characters, and the telling of a story as a flashback from someone completely uninvolved in the drama all make this tragic love story perfect.

4. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway

   

   I didn’t think I liked Hemingway until I read this novel. The story of a group of expats after WWI is told beautifully in Hemingway’s sparse prose. The disillusionment of the Lost Generation is potent, as are the characters of Jake and Brett, who is trying to fill the voids in her life with empty pursuits like sex and alcohol. Jake tragically wants her, but literally cannot have her. It does read like a screenplay, but all the tensions and emotions do simmer under the surface.

5. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

    

   One of the most tragic stories I’ve ever read, it’s a story of so many people trying to be someone different. I love the themes that run through the book, and the detached narrator only adds to the disillusionment. Beautiful, tragic novel.

6. Tender is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald

   

   Another beautifully tragic novel from Fitzgerald. This novel tells the story of the breakdown of a marriage between a therapist and his patient, who were obviously doomed from the start. One of my favorite novels I read in my college American Lit class.

7. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

   

   I seem to really have a thing for tragic novels, but this is one of my favorite novels. Anna is arguably one of my least favorite characters in the novel, but I love the complexity of Tolstoy’s writing. In what most people remember as a story of infidelity, there are also political and religious themes worked throughout, including commentary on the roles of women in Tolstoy’s society.

8. Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen

   

   Another favorite from Austen, I mainly like this one because I wrote one of my favorite college papers about Willoughby’s letter to Marianne. The love story is decent too.

9. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

   

   I initially read this novel because I loved the musical so much. I still love the musical, but the book is a whole different animal. It’s a great interlocking portrait of many different folks during a student uprising in Paris. It’s also the redemptive story of Jean Valjean as he comes to faith in God and learns to love while raising a little girl he vowed to care for to her dying mother. It also covers politics, religion, classism, and many other themes in its sweeping epic.

10. Much Ado About Nothing by Shakespeare

    

    My hands down favorite Shakespeare play. It’s funny, it’s sweet (mostly), and the witty flirting between Benedick and Beatrice always makes me laugh out loud. If you haven’t seen the Joss Whedon movie version, you should definitely check it out.

11. War & Peace by Leo Tolstoy

    

    Another epic novel, it follows Russian families as they cope during the Napoleonic wars and the French invasion of Russia. Their stories are entwined with historical fact, making for a sweeping epic novel well worth the investment of your time.

 

What genre did you choose for your Top 10 Tuesday? What are your favorite classics? Let me know in the comments.