Genre: Classics

A classic stands the test of time. The work is usually considered to be a representation of the period in which it was written; and the work merits lasting recognition. In other words, if the book was published in the recent past, the work is not a classic.

A classic has a certain universal appeal. Great works of literature touch us to our very core beings–partly because they integrate themes that are understood by readers from a wide range of backgrounds and levels of experience. Themes of love, hate, death, life, and faith touch upon some of our most basic emotional responses.

Although the term is often associated with the Western canon, it can be applied to works of literature from all traditions, such as the Chinese classics or the Indian Vedas.

Pinocchio

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Le avventure di Pinocchio. Storia di un burattino
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Puffin Books
1883
eBook
262
Italian
Gioia Fiammenghi
May 30, 2023 May 30, 2023
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A timeless classic to be read over and over.

This is the story of Pinocchio, filled with harrowing yet inspiring adventures. Carved by a poor man named Geppetto, Pinocchio is a wooden puppet that comes to life. He soon leaves his maker and commences a journey of misadventures.

Pinocchio has a good heart, but he is disobedient and lazy and often has poor judgment. And when he lies, Pinocchio's nose grows longer! Follow this mischievous puppet as he goes to the "Field of Miracles", where he plants gold coins to try to make his wealth grow. Thrill as he is pursued by assassins. And marvel as he becomes the unwitting star of a circus show and lives a life of ease in the "Land of Boobies," where boys can play all day and never have to go to school. Of course, Pinocchio gets into trouble along the way.

From the villainous Cat and Fox, who try to steal his gold coins, to the gigantic Dogfish, a terrifying sea monster that swallows him, Pinocchio encounters menacing characters who often lead him to trouble. But Pinocchio also befriends a good Fairy who loves him and wants to help him escape his misfortunes. She even promises the puppet that if he learns to be good, to study, and to work hard, he will become a real boy. Can Pinocchio turn his life around? And will he ever see his "papa," Geppetto again?

About the book

The actual book name should be: The adventures of Pinocchio. A Puppet’s story.

Everyone has seen the movie right? (well I hadn’t seen it until this year) so everyone knows what it’s about. The adventures of a puppet who wants to become a child.

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Howl’s Moving Castle

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Howl’s Moving Castle
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, Book # 1
Greenwillow Books
April 1, 1986
eBook
308
Inglese
May 25, 2023 May 29, 2023
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Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the Wizard Howl's castle. To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there's far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.

In this giant jigsaw puzzle of a fantasy, people and things are never quite what they seem. Destinies are intertwined, identities exchanged, lovers confused. The Witch has placed a spell on Howl. Does the clue to breaking it lie in a famous poem? And what will happen to Sophie Hatter when she enters Howl's castle?

About the book

Sophie is the eldest of three girls who works in a hat shop. According to a legend she is the unluckiest because she is the first of three. One day Howl’s moving castle appears in the city and Howl is said to eat the girls who are alone for a walk in the evening. But Sophie will find herself right in the castle when the witch of the moors will cast a spell on her.

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Anna Karénina

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Анна Каренина
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Shandon Classics
1878
eBook
904
Russian
Constance Garnett
April 1, 2023 May 25, 2023
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Acclaimed by many as the world's greatest novel, Anna Karenina provides a vast panorama of contemporary life in Russia and of humanity in general. In it Tolstoy uses his intense imaginative insight to create some of the most memorable characters in literature. Anna is a sophisticated woman who abandons her empty existence as the wife of Karenin and turns to Count Vronsky to fulfil her passionate nature - with tragic consequences. Levin is a reflection of Tolstoy himself, often expressing the author's own views and convictions.

Throughout, Tolstoy points no moral, merely inviting us not to judge but to watch. As Rosemary Edmonds comments, 'He leaves the shifting patterns of the kaleidoscope to bring home the meaning of the brooding words following the title, 'Vengeance is mine, and I will repay.

About the book

Leo Tolstoy’s novel “Anna Karénina” follows the story of two families and focuses on the love affairs of the characters. The book explores the “double standard” of society at the time and the strict morals women were forced to follow.

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Mrs. Dalloway

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Mrs. Dalloway
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Mariner Books
May 14, 1925
eBook
204
English
May 11, 2023 May 22, 2023
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Mrs. Dalloway chronicles a June day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway–a day that is taken up with running minor errands in preparation for a party and that is punctuated, toward the end, by the suicide of a young man she has never met. In giving an apparently ordinary day such immense resonance and significance–infusing it with the elemental conflict between death and life–Virginia Woolf triumphantly discovers her distinctive style as a novelist.

Originally published in 1925, Mrs. Dalloway is Woolf’s first complete rendering of what she described as the “luminous envelope” of consciousness: a dazzling display of the mind’s inside as it plays over the brilliant surface and darker depths of reality.

About the book

I have absolutely no idea. Really. I read this book with the Fable book club and yes, honestly I always wanted to read it and so I took the opportunity because I think I would have never read it alone. But I found it so boring that I couldn’t pay attention to the plot.

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The Secret Garden

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The Secret Garden
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HarperCollins
1911
Paperback
358
English
May 3, 2023 May 10, 2023
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When orphaned Mary Lennox comes to live at her uncle's great house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds it full of secrets. The mansion has nearly one hundred rooms, and her uncle keeps himself locked up. And at night, she hears the sound of crying down one of the long corridors.

The gardens surrounding the large property are Mary's only escape. Then, Mary discovers a secret garden, surrounded by walls and locked with a missing key. One day, with the help of two unexpected companions, she discovers a way in. Is everything in the garden dead, or can Mary bring it back to life?

About the book

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett is a children’s book that tells the story of Mary, an orphan girl who goes to live with her uncle in England. Mary discovers a secret garden which she tends to together with a servant’s brother and her ailing cousin. The book deals with the theme of illness and healing, but also with the cultural diversity and nature that she always tries to survive.

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