Classics Without All the Class discussion

Tell us who you are!
Name:
Where you are from:
Favorite books/author/genre:
Why you're here:
And taking a question from the Pivot questionnaire -What is your favorite sound?

If you think you might have posted beforehand now don't see your entry, check one of our previous month's intro threads. :)

Hi!

Name: Jenny
Where you are from: Michigan :)
Favorite books/author/genre: My favorite genres are scifi and fantasy but I do enjoy most genres.
Why you're here: I love reading classics and being in a group motivates me to do so.
What is your favorite sound: That's hard! I do love the sound of lakes (being from Michigan we have a lot of them).

Name: Ashley
Where are you from: Ontario
Favorite books/author/genre: Jane Eyre, F Scott Fitzgerald and John Green, classics!
Why you are here: I was looking for a fun classics group and this one certainly fits the bill
What is your favorite sound: I love the sound of a brown paper bag being opened and closed. This is probably linked to my love of baked goods that typically come out of them.

Name: Karen
Where you are from: Colorado but I'm living in New Orleans, Louisiana
Favorite books/author/genre: I love almost anything mystery/thriller, Jane Austen
Why you're here: I have missed reading many of the classics and wanted a fun environment to try again!
And taking a question from the Pivot questionnaire -What is your favorite sound? I love the sound of rain. It's soothing and always make me want to curl up with a book or take a nap.

Name:Katie
Where you are from:Iowa
Favorite books/author/genre: I like scifi a lot, but I really love any genre as long as it's a great story.
Why you're here:Just trying to find a community to read with and this one looks inviting.
And taking a question from the Pivot questionnaire -What is your favorite sound? Uhh the sound of silence at the moment, but it depends on my mood.

Welcome, Ladies! This sounds like the ideal group for you! Feel free to participate in our discussions, start up discussions, and play some games. We also are on Facebook, twitter, and iTunes. We have a lot of good stuff to offer here.

Name: Maureen
Where you are from: Seattle WA
Favorite books/author/genre: Right Now Bleak House/Charles Dickens/Classic - but I do enjoy most genres.
Why you're here: Open my reading horizons!!
And taking a question from the Pivot questionnaire -What is your favorite sound? Waves breaking on the shore...I grew up in San Francisco and the sound of the ocean is part of who I am.

Hi Maureen! i agree with u. I have an app on my phone that plays sounds of the ocean!

it must be nice to hear it for real though :)

Name: Alex M.
Where you are from: DFW, USA
Favorite books/author/genre: My favorite author is Octavia Butler. She's sci-fi. Otherwise I love sci-fi/fantasy, YA or adult, and historical fiction more than the rest.
Why you're here: Reading suggestions, find new authors, wanted to join some kind of book club.

Hi, Alex. we have some sci fi choices for our June poll.

Welcome!

I'm Hunter, I'm from Michigan, and my favorite book is memoirs of a geisha. I'm obsessed with the books 'you must read before you die', and I'm here to discover some new books and meet people who love reading as much as I do =) I don't really have a favorite sound, but I live on the campus of the University of Toledo so I'm pretty used to police sirens! Lol

Hello, my name is Francie. My home right now is Georgia, but I've lived all over (my dad was in the Air Force). I have always wanted to read through the classics and have read quite a few, but want to go further. I read all genres and I don't really have a favorite, but if I had to choose, Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier has always been a favorite and, of course, who doesn't love Wuthering Heights. My favorite sound is the purring of my cat when she lays next to or on top of me. Look forward to all the reading and discussions.

Hello Hunter and Francie! Welcome to our book club!

hello, Morgan! Welcome!

Hi,
I am Anu Lal. I am from India. Lecturing at the College of Applied Science in English is my day job. Writing and reading books is my dream job.

My favorite writers are Paulo Coelho, Milan Kundera, Richard Bach, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, James Patterson, Sidney Sheldon, Ken Follett, Salman Rushdie, Walt Whitman, Fernando Pessoa, Carlos Castaneda, Charles Dickens, Carl G. Jung, Nikos Kazantzakis, J.K. Rowling, Stephanie Mayer and on.

My favourite books are all the books by these writers and some other books such as The Hunger Games, The Catcher in the Rye, Seize the Night, The Good Earth, and The Brave New World (although I read it a long time ago and in danger of apparently losing whatever memory I retained. This is the book I plan to re-read soon)

I am here because I love books and my best friend Sarath, knows this. He was kind enough to invite me into this group.

My fav sound is the sound of flipping pages of books.

Hello everyone!

Name: Jill Saunders

Where you are from: Salt Lake City, Utah

Favorite books: Jane Eyre, Catcher in the Rye, Peter Pan (in that order)

Favorite authors: Jerry Spinelli, Shannon Hale, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, Ray Bradbury, Robin McKinley, J.D. Salinger, Thomas Hardy, J.R.R. Tolkien, Roald Dahl, Annie Dillard, Robert Johnson (not in that order)

Favorite genre: Classics, YA, Fantasy/Scifi, Creative Nonfiction, Nonfiction

Why you're here: This is the second GR group I've joined. I love reading for book groups and am slightly too chicken to show up to a non-virtual one, so here I am.

I joined the Lovers of Paranormal group a couple of weeks ago because I enjoy Scifi/Fantasy YA, but there are a lot of self-promoting authors on there. I need something more suited for my love of the tried and true classics and a group of people who talk more about reading than the book they just wrote and self-published. (Though don't get me wrong, I love writing too.)

Favorite sound: There were so many good ones in the comments already made--crunching fall leaves, the ocean, kitties purring. It's hard to pick. I also love a crackling fire, windchimes, and someone laughing so hard they are probably hurting themselves. I'm going to have to side with Karen and say the rain, though, with maybe with a little bit of distant thunder mixed in.

I could cheat and say the sound of a kitty purring on my lap while I sit in front of a crackling fire listening to the melody of my wind chimes as they clang about in the gentle wind of a soft thunderstorm. But I'll still with rain. ;)

Hi everyone, my name is Margaret but since there is another Margaret already in the group reading Anna Karenina, I would like my name to appear as Margaretdc if that's possible.

Where am I from: I'm from the Maryland suburbs right outside of Washington DC

Favorite Books: Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Les Miserable, The Great Gatsby ... I'm sure I could think of 100 more if you give me enough time

Favorite Genre: Classic Lit, Biographies and Nonfiction.

Why am I here: Because I love to read but around here most book club members are significantly older than me and don't read the classics. Additionally, a viral group also gives me the freedom in my schedule to check in when I can :-)

Favorite sound: Definitely the sounds that I can associate with the Eastern Shore in MD&DE (particularly the sounds of the ocean at night on Assateague Island)For me this is heaven.

Hi!!! My name is Stephanie and I am from Long Beach, CA. My favorite books are too many to count, but I love 1984, Sirens of Titan, Everything is Illuminated and Ender's Game. I am currently reading Pulp by Bukowski which I am very into. I love dystopian type novels and am trying to read as many books as I can get my hands on. I'm here to try to find more books!! I love recommendations and want to get tips from everyone on what books to read.

My favorite sound is a heartbeat (preferably of someone I love).

Hi, my name is Ian and I grew up just outside of Long Beach, CA. I'm an avid reader of crime novels and am a huge fan of anything written by John Grisham and Dennis Lehane. My favorite classic novels are Of Mice and Men and Great Expectations. I've joined this club to broaden my literary horizons. I know that there are thousands of books that I haven't read and I am looking forward to new suggestions from other members. My favorite sound is that of the waves crashing against the beach and the sea birds flying across the sky. That is my personal nirvana.

Hi everyone,
my name is Nina from Germany and I have been in the group since February, but I haven't been an active member. I am here because one goal of my new years resolutions were to start reading classics! It all started when I saw "Alice in Wonderland" and thought it was a shame I never actually read the book. So I bought a couple of classics and found goodreads and this group. I don't really have favorite books/authors/genres. Some of the books I love are the Harry Potter books, The Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda, A live without limits by Chrissie Wellington, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (the first classic I read outside of school), and also some books by German authors.
My favorite sounds are raindrops during a summer rain.

Hello,
My name is Daniela and I'm currently residing in New York. My favorite novel is "White Fang" because it has to be what sparked my love of reading. I just joined the group and I hope I'll be recommended a lot of good books. I'm usually open to different genres as long as it keeps my interest, I'm currently into dystopian themed books. My favorite sounds would have to be instrumentals, it doesn't need to be any music just notes and I'm good.

Dani wrote: "Hello,
My name is Daniela and I'm currently residing in New York. My favorite novel is "White Fang" because it has to be what sparked my love of reading. I just joined the group and I hope I'll be ..."

Hey Dani,
Lucky for you we start Brave New World on the 1st!

Hi, Im Jan....and I....am a bookworm...Very excited to join your group. I live in Central California. It would be hard to name a favorite book because I have so many favorites! Thanks Karen for the invitation to join...Im charging the Nook as we speak :)

Jan wrote: "Hi, Im Jan....and I....am a bookworm...Very excited to join your group. I live in Central California. It would be hard to name a favorite book because I have so many favorites! Thanks Karen for the..."

Welcome to the club. We start Brave New World in April and Anna Karenina in June. Be sure to check around the forums and we have some polls. :)

Name: Sasha Newborn/Birdie Newborn (since 1995)
Where you are from: California now
Favorite books/author/genre: neglected classics
Why you're here: I've been editing and publishing classics and off-the-reading-list titles that I was too busy getting a college education to get to: I Ching, Tolstoy, E.B. Browning, Mary Shelley. You can see my list at www.bandannabooks.com. Comments welcome.
And taking a question from the Pivot questionnaire -What is your favorite sound? Those precious moments after the loud music stops.

Hi Sasha! enjoy our club! :)

Name: Natalie
Where from: Illinois (not chicago!)
Favorite books/author/ genre: I'd like to say that I like most genres, but I do have a special place in my heart for romance. Other than that, picking a favorite author or book is like trying to choose a favorite child in my opinion.
Why I'm here: Outside of my classes I'd like to become a more well rounded reader and start reading the classics on my own, and yet not alone.
My favorite sound: The entire song "Unchained Melody" by the Righteous Brothers.

hi Natalie. you worded it perfectly. reading the classics on our own yet not alone :)

Name: Emilie
Where from: Belgium
Favorite books/author/genre: I like a lot of genres but my favourite writer when i was in high school was Jane Austen but last book i've enjoyed very much were The Road. So I can't name a favourite genre.
Why I'm here: i want to read more classics and through this group I can get started on that.
My favourite sound: after a long winter you wake up early in the morning and for the first time in months you here the birds outside. You know spring is coming!

Name: Jurgen
Where you are from: Netherlands
Favorite books/author/genre: Mostly (modern) literature and thrillers.
Why you're here: I want to read more classic literature and this seems to me the way to get started.
What is your favorite sound? The sound of a newspaper.

Hi! Very excited about starting with this group and just this morning got my copy of a Brave New World.

Name: Kathy
Where you are from: Currently living in Florida
Favorite books/author/genre: I jump all over genre-wise; reading biography, historical fiction, urban fantasy, sci-fi, and of course classics just to name a few.
Why you're here: I recently realized there was a lot of good fiction that I had stopped reading because it was not "current". When I was a kid my goal was to read through the library and I though this might be a good start:)
And taking a question from the Pivot questionnaire -What is your favorite sound? I could be very elitist and say "the sound of silence" but who would I be kidding. My favorite sound is the sound of a page turning in my book (okay I also use an ereader, but in my mind it makes that sound).

Name: Rachel
Where you are from: Texas at the moment
Favorite books/author/genre: Classics! Especially Dickens, Hardy, Wharton, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and Nabakov. I also love Huxley, Salinger and Solzhenitsyn.
Why you're here: Need a break from grad. school reading and I love the classics. This seems like a non-intimidating forum in which to discuss them.
What is your favorite sound? An interesting question...I have to go with the warming up of an orchestra before a performance.

Hi, my name is Patricia :)
I am from Hong Kong

My favourite books/author/genre: I like classics, but mostly modern lit. I am also into mystery, crime and fantasy series. Right now, my favourite books are The Book Thief and To Kill a Mockingbird. Favourite authors include John Green, Sylvia Plath...for now. There are still a lot of authors and books I am dying to explore!

Why I am here: I am hoping to find a book club to discuss literature and books. I am dying to learn more about literature, so I am hoping to learn more about it here :) So I am here for interest and passion :)

Favourite sound: well...I like the sound of guitar and piano. But sometimes, I prefer the sound of silence. I like the feeling of serenity when there is not much noise.

Name: Manu
Where you are from: India
Favorite books/author/genre: Suspense/modern classics/Osho/Bertrand Russell/Psycho thrillers/Philosophy/Historical fiction/Daniel silva books/Ayn Rand ...anything just can not tolerate romantic novels with too much waiting game and tragedy because in my opinion a love story can not be more than 200 pages.
Why you're here: Just to find some good books via some good reading people.
And taking a question from the Pivot questionnaire -What is your favorite sound?
On the dusty earth drum,
Beats the falling rain.
Now a whispering murmur,
Now a louder strain....
Sound of rain....sound of life.
...and the voice of my sweet heart..

welcome all our newest peeps! I find since joining, I am on here more than any other social network :)

Hi everyine

Hi everyone :)

My name is Elizabeth. I'm from Illinois but have lived in Hawaii for school for he past 3 yrs. I'll graduate in two weeks. Here bc I'm 24 and have developed a recent craving to almost fall into the beauty that is literate rather than bs my way through an English class and batting with being forced to read and this hating the books. My favorite sound is when digs have dreams and whine and move in their sleep.

welcome, Elizabeth!

Oops. My favorite book thus far is Frankenstein. My favorite genre is a tie between fantasy and non fiction. Favorite author is Poe, hands down.

My name is Becky, I live in Iowa. Grew up in West-Central IL, went to school in Chicago. The reading of my youth included many classics, thanks to a junior high school teacher who knew that I was an avid reader, but could see that I was reading mostly crap. One day he dumped this big box full of used paperbacks he had collected from a used book dealer in town, all classics, and resold them for 25 cents each. (You could keep the book, or sell it back for $0.25, or trade it for another book). When I approached the table, he picked up a copy of Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge, and said, "read this, I think you will really like it". I did, and read many classics after that. So I guess that my answer to the "why am I here" question would be, because of my 8th grade English teacher!

Favorite author: Thomas Hardy remains my favorite classic author, for the bulk of his work. But my single favorite classic book will always be Jane Eyre. Can't say that I have a single favorite genre, though the classics I recall most fondly tend to be the romantic-but-tragic morality tales.

I am now a history buff and 95% of what I read is nonfiction, but when I do pick up a novel, it is usually a classic, and is often chosen because it was written in or influenced the era I am reading about. My current NF book What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848 includes much history of the abolitionist movement in America, and the roles played by men such as Lyman Beecher (father of Harriet Beecher-Stowe. So my next book will be a re-read of Uncle Tom's Cabin, followed by a book about the author: Mightier than the Sword: Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Battle for America, by David S. Reynolds.

Favorite sound: I love laughter. I love the commercial that starts with a baby laughing and ends with the laughter of an old man....darned if I can remember what it is selling, but I love the sound track.

I look forward to following the discussions here.

Hi I'm Dawn. I'm a lit graduate. I love victorian sensation fiction and am working my way through as many as possible. Wilkie Collins and Mary Braddon really hit the spot for me.
I also love gothic and very long epic stories. Ie, Dumas, Cervantes, Tolstoy or Radcliffe. I like to feel I have lived a life by the time I have finished.

Name: Rachel
Where you are from: Delaware
Favorite books/author/genre: I love to read mysteries, but I also enjoy reading other genres!
Why you're here: To read more classics and have FUN :)
What is your favorite sound? I love hearing the bird songs in the morning.

hello to Becky! Dawn! Rachel! feel free to play some games with us, vote in our polls, and discuss some books :)

Name: Wes
Where you are from: DE, recently WI

Favorites: Classic lit, modernism, 20th century, short stories

Why you're here: I recently came back to visiting goodreads and am only now realizing how great it is. Lots of the upcoming books in this group are on my to-read list, and I'm interested in having discussions about them.

What is your favorite sound? walking in the woods during summertime

hellloooo Wes!

Hello all!
My name is Carina and I live in rural southern Colorado!
I'm excited to have joined this club, as it's my first one and I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes! There aren't any established book clubs here in town, so I thought I might try it here!
My favorite sound? Hmm..great question! I'd have to say...my favorite sound is the variety of sounds my students make when they have an "ah-ha" moment :) It's truly making me smile thinking of it right now!
I'm looking forward to the journey!

Hi Carina! I like your enthusiasm. We look forward to taking this journey with you! Enjoy!!!

Name: Nicky Junge
Where you are from: From Colorado, but living in England.
Favorite books/author/genre: My favorite genre is usually fantasy/action/adventure/scifi, although I do like classics and general/historical fiction as well. One of my favorite books is 1984 by Orwell, but as for an author I like David Eddings and George R.R. Martin.
Why you're here: To expand my reading choices and sometimes take part in discussions, depending on how much time my son gives me.
My favorite sound: Hmm...running water or forest sounds I suppose. But my all time favorite is the little sigh my 2 year old emits when hugging me.

Hello everyone! I'm Ann from the Netherlands!Like everyone else I'm also excited to have joined the book club :) I'm looking forward to the "Brave New World" read along and hope for some interesting discussions.