Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

Classics Bingo 2016

The goal is to focus your reading on literary classics.

Read a classic that fits the description of a square. You may NOT count the same book twice for different categories in this challenge. Each book can be applied to only one square, even if it fulfills the requirements of multiple squares. All books read to mark off squares must be started & finished in 2016.

We will keep the same challenge levels as in 2015:

Level One Bingo
Four Corners: Mark off the four outside corners of the Bingo board.
Five-in-a-Row: Mark off five squares in a row. This can be done horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.

Level Two Bingo
Small Box: Mark off all the 9 inner squares of the board (including the free square), leaving blank the 16 outside border squares.

Level Three Bingo
Outside Box: Mark off all 16 of the outer squares, leaving blank the 9 inner squares.

Level Four Bingo
Blackout! Mark off all the squares of the board.

Classic Bingo 2016
Clarifications & Suggestions:

Prize Winner Squares:
★ Written by Nobel Laureate (B1): Read any book that was written by a Nobel Prize-winning author. List of Nobel Laureates
★ Winner of a Foreign Literary Prize (B5): Read any book that was awarded a literary prize of a country/region that is not the one you live in.
★ Literary Prize of Your Country or Region (O1): Read any book that was awarded a literary prize of the country or region you live in.
★ Prize-winning Female Author (O5): Read any book that was written by a female author and has won any literary prize.

References for Literary Prizes:
Goodreads
Wikipedia

Geographical Classic Squares:
Africa (B3), The Americas (N1), Asia or Oceania (O3), Europe (N5)
★ Read a classic that is either set in the given geographical area, or is written by an author native to that geographical area.

Goodreads Places: Books categorized by setting
Wikipedia: List of Novelists by Nationality

Genre Classic Squares:
★ Read a classic that has been shelved on Goodreads with the specified genre. (Look on the right side of a book’s Goodreads page for its listed genres.)

Book from Le Monde's 100 Books of the Century: (G2)
★ Wikipedia
★ ListChallenges

Classic from School: (G4), Read a classic that you read in school or should have read in school.

Challenge in List Form
To help you keep track of your own progress

B1: Written by Nobel Laureate
B2: Sci-fi or Fantasy Classic
B3: Classic of Africa
B4: Children's Classic
B5: Winner of a Foreign Literary Prize

I1: Published/Written Before 1600’s
I2: New-to-You Author
I3: Classic Play
I4: Banned Book
I5: Published in the 1700's

N1: Classic of the Americas
N2: Short Story Collection
N3: FREE SPACE
N4: Poetry Collection
N5: Classic of Europe

G1: Published in the 1600's
G2: Book from Le Monde’s 100 Books of the Century
G3: Classic Non-fiction
G4: Classic from School
G5: Published in the 1800's

O1: Literary Prize of Your Country/Region
O2: Gothic Classic
O3: Classic of Asia or Oceania
O4: Mystery or Crime Classic
O5: Prize-Winning Female Author

This challenge can be used with your other challenges. Books and authors selected here can be used to fill other challenge needs.

NOTE: Start your own thread for your challenge in this folder. This thread can be used for questions and suggestions.

Happy Reading.

This Challenge Starts January 1 2016, but the discussion thread is open so that you can begin to plan your year. Bingo does not need to be planned ahead -- you can just collect squares as you read throughout the year.

The first of the year you can also keep track of your challenge here: https://www.goodreads.com/challenges/...
Be sure to join us there too.


Happy Reading!

Popular Gothic Books: Goodreads List

Might there also be a list for the non-fiction square?

I'm looking at poetry collections...I found one that is a compilation of Emily Dickinson poems, but the book wasn't actually published until 2010...does that count?

Phil wrote: "Might there also be a list for the non-fiction square?"

I'll find at least one for you! And hopefully all of us will help to provide links -- some of these are a bit more challenging squares.

Links for Classic Nonfiction

Goodreads Popular Classic Nonfiction

The Greatest Nonfiction Books

The Electric Typewriter: 100 Best Nonfiction Books

Modern Library 100 Best Nonfiction

Susie wrote: "I'm looking at poetry collections...I found one that is a compilation of Emily Dickinson poems, but the book wasn't actually published until 2010...does that count?"

Yes, Emily Dickinson wrote her poetry before 2000

I would recommend Plagues and Peoples for non-fiction, if anyone is interested in the subject. And it's not like epidemics are a thing of the past nowadays either.

For Finns and Estonians here Waltari's "Totuus Virosta..." could be both non-fiction and a banned book. And it's short, and even funny.

Banned Books Lists

Wikipedia: List of books banned by governments

ALA: Frequently Challenged Books

Banned Books That Shaped America

Goodreads Banned Books Lists

Kathy wrote: "Yes, Emily Dickinson wrote her poetry before 2000 "

Is that even important? Last year, at least, books could be newer. Like for example a prize winner from after 2000.
For all the other categories newer books would not make sense, as they would most likely not be a classic already.

THANK YOU for the lists, Kathy!

Here are some for the century squares:
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...

Phil wrote: "Kathy wrote: "Yes, Emily Dickinson wrote her poetry before 2000 "

Is that even important? Last year, at least, books could be newer. Like for example a prize winner from after 2000..."

Not important unless a person is looking for classics only. I too used some 21st Century books for the prize winners. But classics are the main focus.

Phil wrote: "THANK YOU for the lists, Kathy!

Here are some for the century squares..."

You are welcome and thank you for the century links.

Kathy wrote: "Yes, Emily Dickinson wrote her poetry before 2000"

That's what I figured, but wanted to be sure...thanks!
Also thanks for adding more resources to peruse.

You are welcome!

In putting together my Women's Century Challenge I came across a few that could be useful for Bingo.

Ten Days in a Mad-House, Non-fiction & 1800's
Death Comes for the Archbishop, Award Winning Female Author William Dean Howells Metal 1930
The Secret Garden, Past Group Read for those catching up, and a Lewis Carroll Shelf Award Winner
Out of Africa, Past Group Read for those catching up, and can be used for Classic of Africa
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Nobel Laureate, Banned Book
Nectar in a Sieve, Classic of Asia or Oceana
The Story of My Life, Non-fiction

Those are great. Thanks Bob.

Bob wrote: "In putting together my Women's Century Challenge I came across a few that could be useful for Bingo.

Ten Days in a Mad-House, Non-fiction & 1800's"

Several great recommendations - I just read The Story of My Life last month, truly a great read and a great story

More lists for the centuries squares:

Best Books of the 17th Century
Best Books of the 18th Century
Best Books of the 19th Century

Nice additions for our lists, Thanks.

Christine, thank you for the links.

Thanks Bob for your suggestions also.

Emily wrote: "Kathy, I currently have Schindler's List which is written by an Australian author on my 2016 Old/New Challenge, I was wondering if that would make it technically count for the O3 square."

Read a classic that is either set in the given geographical area, or is written by an author native to that geographical area.


So yes.

Any time -- always glad to help if I can.

Thank you all for the suggestions and links. I can't believe Flowers in the Attic is considered a Gothic novel. LOL. I can still remember reading that in high school or maybe even younger. LOL.

King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa is a terrific novel about the Congo and has won prizes. It wouldn't be a classic though.

Classics for South Africa
http://www.southafrica.info/about/art...

Asian classics
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/bo...

Latin American Classics
http://www.bachelorsdegreeonline.com/...

Leslie wrote: "Here's a slightly different list from one earlier.

European Classics
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/..."

These are just shelvings of one user, others haven't used this shelf name. Also I don't think The Arabian Nights can be considered European.

Canadian classics
http://qwiklit.com/2013/05/25/the-gre...

Thanks for the links, Leslie.

And I really do want to read King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa

Classic plays

http://www.onlinecollegecourses.com/2...

Kathy wrote: "Thanks for the links, Leslie.

And I really do want to read King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror and Heroism in Colonial Africa"

You are welcome. I love reading books from other countries. The Canadian list and the South American list looked really good.

I started King Leopold years ago and loved it, but had to stop for a family emergency. I hope you will enjoy it.

Short stories

http://www.theguardian.com/culture/20...

I started The Interpreter of Maladies years and thought the writing was very good.

I loved Redeployment. Highly recommend that. And I loved Natasha and Other Stories as well.

I'm doing the Harvard Classics Reading Challenge this year so I may have a decent shot at this. LOL. Especially for the old books.

Tytti wrote: "Leslie wrote: "Here's a slightly different list from one earlier.

European Classics
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/..."

These are just shelvings of one user, others ..."

I didn't spend much time looking at it. To be honest, I've been disappointed with some of their lists, but I think they are posted by people like ourselves. I'll look for a better list. Thanks for looking into it!

Boy, if you can't find something to read off this, you aren't trying! :-) This page has lists for all of these I think, or close to it. Tons of great European options Tytti.

http://www.interleaves.org/~rteeter/g...

Leslie wrote: "Tons of great European options Tytti."

Thanks, but I know already know a lot of European classics that I would like to read... It's only some of the countries that are more problematic.

This challenge looks so interesting! I love classics!

Cristina wrote: "This challenge looks so interesting! I love classics!"

Great, I hope you join us.

Hmmm I think some of the tags on the goodreads lists are a bit misleading. The 1600's books for example includes Girl With a Pearl Earring, which wasn't published until 1999. The lists are very helpful in general but it will be a good idea to double check if the individual book qualifies.

Maggie wrote: "Hmmm I think some of the tags on the goodreads lists are a bit misleading. The 1600's books for example includes Girl With a Pearl Earring, which wasn't published until 1999. The lists ..."

Oh yes, some of the tags are way off. But it gives a place to start sometimes.

It's not really wrong, though, as it's set in the 17th century.

American Classics

The 10 best Latin American books of all time

25 CLASSIC CANADIAN NOVELS

Top 100 American Literature Titles

B1: Written by a Nobel Laureate - I'm assuming this doesn't necessarily have to be someone who received their Nobel Prize in Literature?

For example, Richard Feynman (1965 - Physics), Albert Einstein (1921 - Physics), James Watson (1962 - Medicine), Mikhail Gorbachev (1990 - Peace), Martin Luther King, Jr (1964 - Peace), Elie Wiesel (1986 - Peace), Al Gore Jr (2007 - Peace).

Some of the works by these authors might be a bit technical to appeal to the average reader, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who might be an exception to that rule (even reading outside my own field).

Aprilleigh wrote: "B1: Written by a Nobel Laureate - I'm assuming this doesn't necessarily have to be someone who received their Nobel Prize in Literature..."

Your assumption is correct. Lots of good choices.