Group Check-In #23: April 2017

~ Adam Burgess
What is this? Click to find out.

Hi Clubbers! How’s the reading going? Check in with the group below!

Tell us about your project — or you! Introduce yourself. Chat.

Tell us what you’ve read, how you’re feeling about your progress, how much you love the classics or the community — any struggles, a favorite read so far. Really, whatever you feel like sharing!

Some people prefer writing an update at their own blog and linking it here in the comments. That’s fine, too.

Feel free to respond to one another in the comments below — ask questions, visit each other, tell us you are new to the club, planning to join the club — etc. This is a meet and greet.

If you’re having trouble with your list and need encouragement, say that! That’s understandable. We want new classics readers to join us, so there’s nothing wrong with arriving to this thread with all of the newness showing!

(Please also note the “check-in” feature here is entirely voluntarily, intended for those who like weighing in with others in the group, and having a periodic place to reflect upon goals for the club. For some this feature would feel like an unwanted intrusion. Silent participation in this group is of course welcome!)

Thanks for all of your enthusiasm about this project!

New? Introduce yourself to the group on Twitter using hashtag #ccintroductions @ourclassicsclub. You can also introduce yourself here at the blog. 🙂

Twitter hashtag for reading check-ins: #ccreadingupdate

Note that if you’re on Twitter, you can also tweet your latest classic book reviews to the group using hashtag #ccbookreviews.

35 thoughts on “Group Check-In #23: April 2017”

  1. Hello bookworms, this is anu upadhyayula. Am new to this club and to reading classics as well 🙂 I’d love to drown myself in the Collins classics. Please help me get hooked on to it.

    Like

    Reply

  2. I just reviewed my latest read on the list, The Joy Luck Club! I wasn’t completely sure whether it could be included in the classics since it was only written 28 years ago, but I feel like it’s a modern classic…I hope? Either way I included it on my original list last year and loved it so much I’m going to keep it on the list! I wrote my review here: https://greengablesstateofmind.com/2017/05/14/make-america-read-again-california/

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. How is reading the Qur’an?, difficult?, as you expected (or totally different?) I’m a christian for which the Bible is more than just a book, but both Bible and Qur’an, can be read by many and any because of their value in themselves.

      Like

      Reply

      1. I would say it is definitely a difficult read, especially since it is not organized according to any clear scheme (except the chapters are longest to shortest, more or less). Familiarity with the Bible certainly helps, since the author riffs on a number of different Biblical stories and characters, but they have been filtered through various paraphrases and reimaginings by the time they reached Muhammad. (The post I wrote after reading the Qur’an touches on some of this: https://vogliodio.wordpress.com/2017/05/13/a-personal-canon/ ) I have told most people that if you started any where in the Qur’an and read about 10 pages, you probably have the gist of it (a bit of a exaggeration, but not too far off). This is different from the Bible, where each of the books has a (more or less) clear genre, and can be read as a unit (clear examples being Genesis, the Song of Songs, Jonah, any of the Gospels).

        If you start reading more literature of the Middle East though, it would certainly make sense to see the Qur’an up close!

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

  4. I’m really enjoying my reading for The Classics Club! I finished my Spin book but haven’t reviewed it yet. When I put together my list of 50 books, I included a lot of books I’ve been wanting to read and already own, so it’s been fun reading for me. I’m finally giving myself time to read them.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  5. Hi everyone. I’m quite happy with my progress, and actually I’m also reading other classics that were not on my 50 list! My current big subproject is to listen to all the books on Sherlock Holmes, chronologically, and all narrated by the awesome Simon Prebble. Just finished The Memoirs of SH yesterday, so starting now The Hound of the Baskervilles.
    Currently reading My Cousin Rachel. we’ll soon start my spin: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

  6. My spin read is Oliver Twist. I’m hoping to finish it on time. I’m about 60% through it. I keep getting distracted by other books. (When am I not a distracted reader?!) My current distraction is Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe series. I love Archie and Nero 😉 But I am also quite happy with my other classics club read–the KJV Reformation Study Bible.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

  7. I’ve started my spin book Lorna Doone and so far…hmm! Well, so far I’m not sure! I am sure, however that I’m going to struggle to finsih and review it on time – what’s the punishment? I don’t mind if it’s prison (nice and peaceful – should get plenty of reading done) but I’m hoping it’s not a chocolate ban! To cheer myself up, I’m also reading, listening to rather, The Valley of Fear narrated by Stephen Fry – ahh, now that’s more like it!

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply

    1. I remember struggling through Lorna Doone. I do remember one movie adaptation I liked of it. But I seem to remember liking some of the book at least. But the beginning is really slow and sluggish.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. I must admit I nearly abandoned it last night – I’m about a quarter of the way through and I swear nothing has happened yet! However, I decided to read on so it’s good to know that the beginning is the worst…

        Like

        Reply

  8. I’m still trying to finish up the March selection for the Classic Book-a-Month Club (#CBAM2017), Edith Wharton’s House of Mirth. I haven’t been able to get into it, which is why I’m so far behind. April’s book is Fitzgerald’s Tender is the Night, though, a personal favorite; so I’ll be fine finishing that before end of April. 🙂

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply

    1. I’ve read only one Edith Wharton and liked it, Glimpses of the Moon. And for my Classics Club list, I’ve chosen The Age of Innocence. I wonder if she is one of these authors with disparity in the quality of her books. I’m intrigued by more Fitzgerald’s novels, aside his Gatsby. Gatsby is a hard novel for me. I can’t appreciate it in full, because the content truly disconcert me.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. You MUST read The House of Mirth. It is magnificent. I have read The Age of Innocence and like that one as well, so it’s also an excellent choice. But *whispers* THE HOUSE OF MIRTH. (I forgot to whisper.) 😉

        Liked by 3 people

        Reply

        1. Jilian, this is exactly what I love about this Club and its members. Reading will not be this amazing without others leading us to the titles they love, and without these conversations. (I forgot to ask if one could modify or alter the list, but Rob says he did change or shuffled titles, so I may do the same, ahem). I’m swooping The Age of Innocence for The House of Mirth. And thanks for the shout out! I mean, for that soft whisper, ha!

          Like

          Reply

          1. You can definitely switch up your list, Silvia! Throughout the five years. That’s the BEST part of the club. (Except the books and people. And the Twitter feed. And Adam. He is excellent.)
            People change as they read, and so do their tastes. 🙂 I’m really glad you’ll try The House of Mirth! I can’t wait to hear what you think. 😀

            Like

            Reply

            1. Yay! (I can alter the list)
              And, who’s Adam? (Must know). I’m not much at Twitter, but that may change too (says she while open twitter tab), ha ha ha. I’d say my taste has stretched to reach places I didn’t know they existed.

              Like

  9. I have joined recently and things are looking good. I have read Candide and it was great. I’m also reading Brothers Karamazov and it’s better than I anticipated. I am very excited about this classics club, I love the classics and the reviews by others.

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply

  10. I completed my five years at the end of last month, and I’ve just written out another list for the next five years. I didn’t think I’d be blogging this long, let alone actually completing the list, so it was a nice little milestone to hit.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

  13. I just finished my Classics Club Spin book, Tales of the South Pacific by James Michener. It was torturous to read and to complete but in some ways eye-opening, too. I have several relatives who fought in the Pacific theater during WWII and none of them talked about the waiting and idle time they had while they waited for battles with the Japanese. I don’t think soldiers in the European theater had the same issues of having to sit around and wait. This book really highlighted how very little of the time was spent fighting. I don’t recommend this book to other readers and I am determined to go back and look at other books on my Classics list to see if I need to clean it up a bit.
    Tales of the South Pacific

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply

Comments are set for 50 per page, with the newest comment at the front of the line. Feel free to explore and chat! :-)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.