posted 30th November 2023
These classic fiction books are not only entertaining, but each one also carries a powerful, thought-provoking message. We have also carefully selected from several authors, each with a unique writing style and perspective. We hope you will enjoy reading our selection of classic works of fiction for your reading pleasure.
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1. War and Peace
War and Peace, set in Russia in the early 1800s, combines masterful fiction and thoroughly researched history. While most of the characters are fictional, War and Peace even includes a cameo role by Napoleon himself. Cameo is a vital mention because Tolstoy revolutionised literary fiction so that, at times, the novel's perspective is cinematic, despite the book preceding the age of cinema. Most of the story revolves around the lives of several aristocratic Russian families and their roles in the defence of Imperial Russia. Each central character is vividly portrayed. The plot fluctuates between their strengths and flaws: This is not least because of the flurry of events the characters experience, from false to true love, matters of conscience and the harsh realities of war. Another classic by Tolstoy to consider is Ana Karenina, which, some argue, is as great as War and Peace.
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2. The Catcher in the Rye
Number 2 is The Catcher in the Rye by American author JD Salinger. The novel was first published in 1951. The story follows the life of Holden Caulfield, the main protagonist, on the cusp of adulthood. The challenges a struggling teen faces are laid bare as he leaves his age of innocence and faces expulsion from school. The angry Holden seeks solace in the bright lights of New York. Can he find such relief, or will the complexities of what is going on in his mind and body bar him from being the happy young man he needs to be? The novel has been praised for delving deep into the psyche of the protagonist and has achieved accolades for its portrayal of a troubled teen.
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3. To Kill a Mockingbird
Number 3 is the classic American novel, To Kill a Mocking Bird, by Harper Lee and published in 1960. This story is told through the eyes of Jean Louise Finch, the young daughter of a respectable and conscientious lawyer, who is nicknamed Atticus, in the small southern US town of Maycomb, Alabama. Atticus finds himself caught up in a racist dirty tricks campaign and subsequent trial against an individual he defends in the town. Not only does the novel tackle racism, but also deftly deals with how seemingly reclusive people can be demonised for not following social norms or not being seen and the subsequent myths about them that can develop. The novel is a "must-read" for an insight into the rural conservatism of small-town America in the first part of the twentieth century and how dangerous in-built prejudices can threaten the lives of innocent individuals.
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4. All Quiet on the Western Front
Number 4 was written by the German author Erich Maria Remarque and is All Quiet on the Western Front. This novel was published in 1929, and what is especially sad is that its powerful message by a German World War I veteran about the horrors and stupidity of war failed to prevent a later world conflict from emerging from his homeland. Indeed, Hitler's Nazi regime went as far as to ban the book in Germany. The novel focuses on the life of the young Paul Bäumer, who gets caught up in the initial jingoism, patriotism and romanticism of war. However, reality soon bites in the form of horrific trench warfare in which Bäumer tragically loses close friends, comrades, and his mental balance and sense of self.
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5. Mrs Dalloway
Mrs Dalloway, published by English novelist Virginia Woolf in 1925, is at number 5. This artfully crafted novel, set in one day, delves into the psychology of the main protagonist Clarissa Dalloway. Mrs Dalloway retreats into the rituals of being an upper-class hostess from her true feelings of inner passion. The novel also explores the psychological consequences of World War I. The story highlights people hiding behind social facades to conceal their true darker inner thoughts. References to the author and this particular novel are in the movie, The Hours, which we would also recommend, not least for the brilliant acting by Meryl Streep and the beautiful soundtrack composed by Philip Glass. Another personal favourite of ours by Woolf is the novel Orlando, which completely contrasts with Mrs Dalloway.
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6. David Copperfield
How could we not consider a work by Charles Dickens for our list? At number 6 is David Copperfield, our favourite work written by the English literary icon. The book is semi-autobiographical and tells much about the great author's life in nineteenth-century England. From a tragic beginning, through workhouses and the brutal nineteenth-century school system, follow the young David as he negotiates through life's many travails, obstructed by grim and devious characters but aided at other times by good friends and family. This heartwarming novel is masterful at bringing to life such a vast array of vivid characters in David's life who seem to encompass all of the social classes of the day. The question is, what will become of David once he is a fully-fledged man? Another highly acclaimed novel to consider by Dickens is Great Expectations.
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7. 1984
At number 7 is another work by an English author, George Orwell. The book entered the list just ahead of Orwell's other well-known novel, Animal Farm. It is Nineteen Eighty-Four. This dystopian novel focuses on Winston Smith, a small-time worker for the Party, representing the totalitarian government of Oceania that Big Brother heads. Winston gradually yearns for something more human than the restrictive environment of the Ministry of Truth where he works. He finds refuge in the form of a woman called Julia. They maintain a dangerous liaison in the proletarian area. Whether Winston can keep the secret or not is there to read! The influence of this book on our society today is profound. It serves as a constant warning of what happens under totalitarian regimes.
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8. Pride and Prejudice
The English Georgian classic Pride and Prejudice is number 8 on our list. Penned by the great writer Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice is an elegant analysis of the Georgian middle and upper classes and the barriers that lack of breeding or fortune could bring to the prospects of suitors for marriage. The novel delves into the lives of the Bennett sisters. They have an overly ambitious mother in terms of seeking suitors. This contrasts with the Bennett father, a lovable country squire who is more relaxed. The novel follows the protagonist, Elizabeth Bennett, who, while considered to be well-bred and of a "good" family, perhaps lacks finances. She enters the Georgian minefield of etiquette, chauvinism, patriarchy, social snobbery, and young, handsome upper-class men of property, passions, and love. The question is, will she find true love despite all of the bizarre societal obstacles thrown at her and what will become of her dear Bennett sisters?
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9. Sunset Song
This book, at number 9, might be considered a wild card candidate on the list, but it deserves more worthy attention than it gets. Written by Lewis Grassic Gibbon, a Scottish author, Sunset Song is the first of a trilogy entitled A Scots Quair and is considered the best of the set. The novel is acceptable to read as a stand-alone. It is unique in that Gibbon cleverly narrates the story in a halfway-house compromise between the particular Scots dialect and English to make it accessible to the reader without removing authenticity — a delicate balancing act. The novel, set in the early 1900s, follows the harsh life of Chris, a Farmer's wife based in the rugged but beautiful landscape of northeastern Scotland, where lairds, manses, kirks, stone circles and rural poverty abound. The novel contains themes such as the impact on the rural domestic life of World War I, incest, female self-determination and other in's and outs of an often grim life for a woman living as part of a tough northeastern Scottish rural community.
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10. Ulysses
Last but by no means least at number 10 is Ulysses by Irish writer James Joyce. This tome is a known challenge for the reader. The reason for this is the length and how the novel is narrated. The book is an example of modernist literature, and Joyce uses a technique called "Stream of consciousness", which is thought to have inspired Virginia Woolf with Mrs Dalloway. The relative inaccessibility is why we have put the novel at number ten rather than closer to the top of the list. However, it would appeal to those who like a challenge. Although the book was first published in 1922, it is set in the Dublin of 1904. The novel's plot is loosely based on the ancient Greek text Ulysses. The main protagonist is Stephen Dedalus, a schoolteacher who unusually lives in a Martello tower. Dedalus' character also features in another novel by Joyce called Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, which we recommend.