Jillian at A Room of One’s Own has started The Classics Club. Many of you know that I am working my way through the 1001 books you must read before you die. As you can imagine, this list includes many classics. Jillian’s challenge is to read a list of classics over the next five years. And you get to select your own classics. Below you will find my list of 50 classics that I would like to read over the next half decade. 50 is the minimum for the challenge, but you can commit yourself to reading many more if you want. I wanted to leave room for contemporary novels. The goal is to read the classics on your list and to blog about them. You can combine this challenge with other challenges. If you would like to check out the challenge and to read all of the rules (I didn’t include them all, but don’t worry, they aren’t extensive or too restrictive) please visit her site. Hopefully I will finish this list early so I can create another list of 50. I still have a ton of books to go before completely the 1001.
Without further ado, here’s the list:
Jane Austen:
Emma
Mansfield Park
Northanger Abbey
Persuasion
Sense and Sensibility
Albert Camus:
The Outsider
The Plague
The Rebel
James Fenimore Cooper:
Last of the Mohicans
Daniel Defoe:
Robinson Crusoe
Roxana
Moll Flanders
Charles Dickens:
Barnaby Rudge
Bleak House
A Christmas Carol
David Copperfield
Great Expectations
Hard Times
Martin Chuzzlewit
Our Mutual Friend
A Tale of Two Cities
Arthur Conan Doyle:
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
The Hound of the Baskervilles
George Eliot:
Adam Bede
Daniel Deronda
The Mill on the Floss
Henry Fielding:
Amelia
Joseph Andrews
Tom Jones
Gustave Flaubert:
Madame Bovary
Thomas Hardy:
Far from the Madding Crowd
The Hand of Ethelberta
Jude the Obscure
The Mayor of Casterbridge
Tess of the D’Urbervilles
The Woodlanders
Joseph Heller:
Catch 22
John Steinbeck:
The Grapes of Wrath
Of Mice and Men
Robert Louis Stevenson
The Masters of Ballantrae
Kidnapped
Jonathan Swift:
Gulliver’s Travels
A Modest Proposal
A Tale of a Tub
Anthony Trollope:
He Knew He Was Right
The Last Chronicle of Barset
Phineas Finn
Castle Richmond
Edith Wharton:
The House of Mirth
The Age of Innocence
50 Year Project 
Good Luck! I read Wharton’s ‘Ethan Frome’ this year and planning a couple of Dicken’s and for sure a few other classics, though in my own meandering, random, connecting way. 1001, now that’s a real challenge.
I loved Ethan Frome. I’m looking forward to the other two Wharton books on my list. Thanks for the luck. Happy reading to you as well!
That is an impressive list! I’m 3/4 of the way through Mme Bovary, can’t quite motivate myself to finish it. Maybe I should try hard, then I can tick off one book… How sad that I’ve read none of the classics – and I LOVE reading! 🙂
The only thing that matters is that you love reading. What you read doesn’t matter. As a reader, I’m happy when I hear that others love to read as well. It is a gift that I adore and could not live without.
Wow–that is quite a list…..I am overwhelmed!!! 🙂
I’m a little overwhelmed myself…but in a fun way.
wow can’t believe I’ve actually read some of these…! lol
I hope you liked them!
hah yup!! except the ones I had to read for school – you “hate to” hate things school make you do!! lol
WOW! This is a nice list… I check for myself, I read 27 books among them, but I haven’t read these writers yet, Anthony Trollope, Edith Wharton, Robert Louis Stevenson (but some of his poesm) and Joseph Heller, Henry Fielding… Thank you dear TBM, you are a very nice reader, I wish you to have a nice and enjoyable reading time, with my love, nia
Out of your list, Trollope and Fielding are authors I haven’t read at all. I’m looking forward to finding out about their writing style. Hopefully you remember some of the 27 you have read so we can talk about them when I finish them. Thanks Nia!
Yes, we can talk but it’s been many years ago… I can’t believe this… Camus is much more near past… but the others… By the way I noticed that Emma was in the BBC… a television series, I think it is based on the novel, next time it would be nice to catch it. Have a nice evening, with my love, nia
Sending you encouragement in this impressive challenge. I have read some of these and I am sure you will enjoy the old classics. There is so much knowledge about people and circumstances that provide the reader with great lessons that can be learned and appreciated. Good Luck
BE ENCOURAGED! BE BLESSED!
Thanks! I can use all the encouragement I can get. I love reading the classics. These authors remind me why I love to read. And I love learning about the culture, customs, and people of bygone days. Thanks for you well wishes.
Awesome list!! I can’t wait to see what you think of all those Austens! And A Tale of Two Cities, especially. 🙂
I’m hoping to tackle the Austens after I complete my personal Dickens challenge. Thanks for hosting the challenge. It will be fun to follow everyone and their progress.
I really love the idea for this, but I’m such a sucky Classic’s reader. I can’t seem to get into them. I should probably try again though.
I think this challenge would be horrible for non-classic lovers. I really enjoy them, but I can see why others don’t. If you give them another whirl I hope you enjoy them more. If not, I wouldn’t feel bad about it. There are so many good books out there.
Sounds like an amazing concept to me!
It should be fun to discuss the classics with others.
wow! I’m so amazed with you…good luck..
That’s hard for me. and classic makes it more harder..
with 10001 books, I think will going to break my eye glasses. hehe 😛
you’re so amazing.. I admire your passion with, not everybody can do that.. 😀
I wonder how much my contacts prescription will change by the time I finish. The other day I mentioned that I might need reading glasses since I was squinting. Thanks for the kind words and encouragement. It always helps!
You’ve got some great ones on your list!
I hope so!
I’m very impressed by you tackling all that Hardy and Trollope. I think my list would have some easier novels in it, but this is certainly a challenge!
I haven’t read any Trollope yet. I read Hardy last summer and fell in love with his writing. I hope that continues. I do love a good challenge.
I wish you all the best with it and will watch with interest!
Thanks! I’ll need lots of tea to get through them all 😉
A great list! Looks like I would have a lot of work to do if this were my list! 50 years…wow…I would be very old by then.
I will be old too when I complete all of my challenges. But I’m hoping my challenges will enrich my life.
I ‘m surprsied I have read many but some I still want to read and some I’m sure I will never read. I guess you will be occupied as many are chunksters.
I really would like to read The Grapes of Wrath this year. And The House of Nirth. Maybe we can do a readalong later
That would be great. The Grapes of Wrath is one of my favorite books. I love his writing. I haven’t read The House of Mirth yet. Maybe this summer we can discuss a readalong. It is always fun to hear from others who are reading the same work. I love discussing.
We will have the opportunity next month with Coventry, I hope. 🙂
Yes!
I hope you enjoy these. I look forward to reading your thoughts including on the books that overlap on our lists. It’s a wonderful selection you have here.
Thanks! I’m also looking forward to reading your reviews and thoughts on your list. It will be loads of fun. Happy reading and good luck!
This sounds very exciting… Maybe I’ll do this at another time in my life. Right now, I’m just trying to get through the 123 books I have left on my book shelves that I haven’t read.
Many of the books listed above are on my shelves. I’m also trying to read more of the books I own. Good luck and enjoy your 123!
Have read quite a few from that list! Might need to reread some. Can’t seem to stick with a book without getting distracted these days!
Sometimes it is hard to find the time to read. I’ve haven’t been that great of a reader this week. I better get busy. Good luck to you!
Great selection!
Thanks!
Good luck! I love to read, and I just recently revisited a couple of books I enjoyed in high school. Your list makes me want to reread all the Jane Austen novels I read in college. I just may start this weekend!
I love Austen. I’m looking forward to reading those. Happy reading!
This is a great list. I’ve read some of them, but still have many to go. Good luck with your list. 🙂
Thanks Robin! I’ve started the first one so you are ahead of me. Have a great weekend!
Great titles, is there a time limit to this challenge? I seem to recall you mentioning half-decade – 5 years you mean? Interesting, maybe we should think about joining.
You are correct, you have 5 years to read at least 50 classics. And you get to select your own classics which is pretty cool. I hope you join. It will be fun!