Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) discussion

If you have a question that you want answered, but you're unsure where to ask, here's the place!

Need help with Goodreads features? Need Technical advice on issues using Goodreads? Navigating our group? Reminders of how things work? Queries about book editions? Ask away! We will do our best to find answers for you.

Hi! I was just wondering what happened to all of the author sections? Like there used to be sections for Jane Austen and maybe Poe, several others (of course i cant think of them now). Did those sections get retired? I kinda liked that. Wondering where i can join conversation about those books that are not current reads of the yeR... or does the group get refreahed every year? Thanks!

The author sections were eliminated and the books were placed in the appropriate time slot...so the Austen books were moved to
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

All threads remain open, so you can comment on any book that has been read either as a group or in a buddy read. The easiest way to find the book you are looking for is to go to the folder, click on the word "topics" at the far left and the books will be listed alphabetically.

Hope this was helpful, April. Happy reading.

Question- how exactly does a book become a "classic"? Since the future classics challenge, i have been wondering what books actually classify as classics in the "new" category, or whatever is beyond that. How does Goodreads come to define its classics, because some are labelled and i think, some are not. ??
Thanks

Classics are defined differently in different contexts, April, but I think most people would agree that the classics are books that have endured over a long period of time, still have a readership, and/or contain themes that remain relevant. In this group, for reading purposes, we consider any book written before 2006 to qualify--a very low bar. In truth, not even every book written in antiquity is a classic, and you can no doubt find arguments all over GR and the internet at large over what constitutes a true "classic".

For the future classics challenge, you are just being asked to choose a book written after 2005 that you think people will still be reading in 2050. It is subjective, so you cannot pick the wrong book.

What is this group mainly used for?
Recommendations, reviewing requests?
I am not sure as I am a few days new to this group and haven't seen anything specific and just wanted to make sure.

We read the classics and discuss them. The point is to Catch up on Classics.

Right now we are reading and discussing the four books you can see on the front page.

Ongo discussion is here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...

So what is a "classic"? Yes, we sometime spend time discussing that too.... In practice we simply vote on what to read next.

If you want to join quickly, try this October short story The Invisible Girl by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. Discussion here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

~sarah~ wrote: "What is this group mainly used for?
Recommendations, reviewing requests?
I am not sure as I am a few days new to this group and haven't seen anything specific and just wanted to make sure."

As J_BlueFlower said, this group is for reading and discussing classic books.

~sarah~ wrote: "What is this group mainly used for?
Recommendations, reviewing requests?
I am not sure as I am a few days new to this group and haven't seen anything specific and just wanted to make sure."

And just to add, there seem to be three varied ways to interact with members. All are optional, you can choose what you'd like to participate in.

1. Monthly polls for pre-1905 (Old), post-1905 (New), and short stories. There's also a quarterly poll for long reads. And these books are discussed as we read them.
Current Nominations
Polls
Current Group Discussion

2. Buddy reads. Mostly books that didn't win a poll but have a small group of very interested members who want to read it. You can suggest a book or an author for those.

3. Challenges. There is a BINGO that starts new each year, and a set of challenges (around 15, sometimes more) that you can choose to try. I see these as motivational.

~sarah~ wrote: "What is this group mainly used for?
Recommendations, reviewing requests?
I am not sure as I am a few days new to this group and haven't seen anything specific and just wanted to make sure."

I'd add that some of us are pretty active commenting on each other's Buffet and Personal Challenge pages. We discuss what we've read, how we rated it, and give each other suggestions of books and authors. You may find a "group" that suits you by reading and commenting on the posts of books that interest you, if you want that type of interaction. This group can be as much or as little as you want, folks are quite friendly, I think.

How do I put books into a reading challenge more efficiently?
I've been confused about this for while, but nobody I know uses Goodreads, so I can't ask anyone

To fill in the BINGO and challenges I try to use books that I already own along with the books that come up over the year in this group. You can decide as you go, with all of them except Challenge #1, the purpose of which is to read books that have been sitting on your to-read list that you seem to never get to. ;-)

You can create a Personal Page, which I have found convenient to keep track better. This is mine.

When the new challenges and BINGO for 2026 are announced in December this year, you will be able to create a new page off of them.

Does that help?

In case what you are asking is how to physically put the book in the challenge, there is a button above the comment box that says "add book/author". If you click on that another box will pop up where you can enter the name of the book (or author), make a selection and add it to your challenge.

Example: Sylvia's Lovers by Elizabeth Gaskell.

This might not be what you are asking at all, but in case it was, I wanted to answer.

I can't seem to find December Reading plans topic. Can someone tell me where it is?

Sam wrote: "I can't seem to find December Reading plans topic. Can someone tell me where it is?"

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Katy wrote: "Sam wrote: "I can't seem to find December Reading plans topic. Can someone tell me where it is?"

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/..."

Thanks Katy!

Hi Katy, where do I find the thread for The Stories of John Cheever?

Terry wrote: "Hi Katy, where do I find the thread for The Stories of John Cheever?"

In the buddy read folder:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Thanks, Katy — found it!

Searching again. Where can I find the thread for Kew Gardens?

Kew Gardens is our January 2026 short story read so the thread will not open until the 1st. Here is the link to the thread though: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Thanks, Katy! No wonder I couldn’t find it. I guess I got ahead of the game. 😊

Terry wrote: "Thanks, Katy! No wonder I couldn’t find it. I guess I got ahead of the game. 😊"

It's nice that you are excited for the January story!

Please, ask a moderator before starting a new thread. We can point you to a thread that is appropriate for your post, or if we think a new thread is needed we will start one.