It’s been a while since I participated in a spin – I’ve had so many other books on my plate (book club, currently reading, plans, etc.) and so many of the remaining books on my Classics Club list are on the long side. But when I saw the one pop up, I thought, “why not?” The next couple book clubs are short (The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight) and I’m conveniently ignoring the very long list of currently reading books, some of which, truthfully, I’ve been willfully ignoring for some time.
- Homer: The Odyssey (Greece, c. 8th century BCE)*
- Carson, Anne, translator: An Oresteia (Greece, 5th century BCE)
- Virgil: The Aeneid [Aeneis] (Rome, 29-19 BCE)
- Anonymous: Njal’s Saga (Iceland, 13th century)
- Camões, Luís Vaz de: The Lusiads (Portugal, 1572)
- Radcliffe, Ann: The Italian (England, 1797)
- Dickens, Charles: Bleak House (England, 1853)
- Hugo, Victor: Les Misérables (France, 1862)
- Gaskell, Elizabeth: Wives and Daughters (England, 1865)
- Eliot, George: Middlemarch (England, 1871-72)
- James, Henry: The Turn of the Screw and Other Short Fiction (U.S., 1878-1908)‡
- Tolstoy, Leo: The Death of Ivan Ilyich and Other Stories (Russia, 1886-1912)§
- Lawrence, D.H.: Sons and Lovers (England, 1913)
- Faulkner, William: The Sound and the Fury (U.S., 1929)
- Bromfield, Louis: The Farm (U.S.-Ohio, 1933)
- Steinbeck, John: East of Eden (U.S., 1952)
- Baldwin, James: Go Tell It on the Mountain (U.S., 1953)
- Cortázar, Julio: Hopscotch [Rayuela] (Argentina, 1963)
- Morrison, Toni: Beloved (U.S., 1987)
- Bolaño, Roberto: 2666 (Chile, 2004)
So…yeah, some real door stoppers here. Oddly enough though, I’ve started reading more long books in the past few years, and although they do take more time to read, when you get the right book it can be truly enjoyable–or at least a massive sense of accomplishment (or both). So I might just be hoping for Wives and Daughters or Bleak House or Middlemarch instead of the much shorty trilogy of plays in An Oresteia or the sub-300 pages of The Lusiads or Go Tell It on the Mountain.
Now just to wait to see what gets selected. And maybe finish one of those books I’ve been ignoring in the meantime….
Simpler Pastimes 
There’s some pretty heavy stuff on your list! I’ve decided Henry James is not my favorite, but I do remember loving The Turn of the Screw.
If I had to pick one book I hope I don’t get, the James title would be it! I’ve read both Daisy Miller and Turn of the Screw before and while they’re not too bad, I find his writing very slow reading (at least for me).
Good luck, I admire the quantity of chunksters!
Thanks, Jane! That’s actually the problem with my remaining list now, so many of the books ARE really long. But I’m looking forward to most of them regardless, I just know that they will take the time they take.
Those are all great reads though! Well, I don’t know about the Bolaño, but anybody who can title a book “A little lumpen novelita” is OK by me. Happy spinning!
Thanks, Jean! Reputationally, I know they are all good/great – and I really should pick some of them up sooner than later. I’m even looking forward to eventually getting back to the Bolaño which I once started but it got put aside for more pressing reads (i.e., library due dates) and never returned to. If only I stopped getting distracted by other things–but that’s why I like the spins; they keep me on track! 🙂
Oh you spun The Oresteia! It’s just wonderful! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! I spun Bleak House which is on your list as well. And you’ve reminded me that I want to re-read Middlemarch soon as well. So many great books!
I know how much you love the Greek plays, Cleo. I’m hoping I’ll enjoy it as well. Enjoy Bleak House – I’ve been thinking about/wanting to read it for years, but not ever getting around to it. One of these days!