Named “the greatest American novel you’ve never heard of” by The New Yorker, John Williams’ “Stoner'' certainly earns that distinction with a simple, beautifully woven story about a Midwestern English professor living a remarkably unremarkable life.
All tagged classics
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings – Maya Angelou
This is a classic for a reason. Nothing I say about this novel will diminish its relevance, but I must be honest with myself and others when I say that I didn’t really enjoy it.
James – Percival Everett
Expectation: A straight-forward re-imagining of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”
Reality: A dark, engaging story that builds on the source material and delivers a highly entertaining read more attune to our modern sensibilities.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain
Expectation: To be wowed by this stalwart of American literature.
Reality: A bit let down, and not just because of the terrible racism. Essentially this is a story of vignettes with a very loose plot.
The Lottery and Other Stories – Shirley Jackson
Expectation: An assortment of psychological thrillers buoyed by the author’s famous short story, “The Lottery.”
Reality: While each story has elements of intrigue, this was a rather boring outing. If you’re interested in “The Lottery,” skip the full collection and seek it out as a standalone.
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry – Mildred D. Taylor
Expectation: A heavy-handed young adult classic that prioritizes hijinks over meaningful character development and scenario exploration.
Reality: Thoughtful and engrossing, the story had me hooked from the first chapter. This is a fantastic historical fiction introduction to America’s racial injustices.
Go Tell It On the Mountain – James Baldwin
Expectation: A semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story.
Reality: A religious-soaked, multi-layered family drama.
One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel García Márquez
Expectation: An immersive story about one family’s experiences navigating the shifting social and political changes of a fictional Latin American village.
Reality: Some of the narrative choices — structure and naming of characters, mainly — made this difficult to follow, but the beauty of Gabriel García Márquez’s prose still shone through.
Our Town – Thornton Wilder
Expectation: Honestly, I had no idea what to expect having somehow missed all productions and required readings of this classic play for more than 40 years.
Reality: It’s easy to interpret Wilder’s words as cursory but that’s a lazy examination of the masterful story he told here.
And Then There Were None – Agatha Christie
Expectation: A classic whodunit of misdirection, mystery and murder.
Reality: An expertly plotted slow burn that holds up nearly 100 years after its publication.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time – Mark Haddon
Expectation: A light-hearted English mystery.
Reality: Darker than expected with a somewhat problematic undertone.
A Single Man – Christopher Isherwood
Expectation: A queer classic focused on a middle aged man trying to find connection with one of his students.
Reality: The day-in-the-life structure is as tedious as it is engrossing, but this rightly deserves to be in the canon of exceptional queer literature.
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest – Ken Kesey
Expectation: A classic retelling of David and Goliath but set in a mental institution in the 1960s.
Reality: It has not aged well, and I barely finished it.
Gone With the Wind – Margaret Mitchell
Expectation: An immersive and exceptional story about a dark period of American history.
Reality: Needlessly long and a little boring, I was completely turned off by Scarlett and Rhett and struggled to see why the characters are so popular.
“The Glass Menagerie” and the Other Classics I Read This Year
My scope of what is deemed a “classic” has shifted over the years, and it has made diving into the back catalog of literature a lot more fun. Today, I view a classic as any novel published three decades ago that has developed a legacy. The classics I read this year - about 10 percent of my total reading - spanned the genres of science fiction, young adult and literary fiction by some authors well-known and lesser so.
Replay – Ken Grimwood
Expectation: An exploration of second chances and following your passion.
Reality: A completely underrated, highly influential novel that introduces a wealth of ideas about regret and happiness.
The Halloween Tree – Ray Bradbury
Expectation: A nostalgia-fueled story of what Halloween was like for kids in the 1970s and 1980s.
Reality: A little convoluted, but ultimately an entertaining and family friendly spooky story.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle – Shirley Jackson
Expectation: An American gothic ghost story set in a small town with evil both real and imagined.
Reality: More mysterious than supernatural, the author keeps readers engaged but the payoff wasn’t there in the end.
Maurice – E.M. Forster
Expectation: Stodgy and stiff British literature from a bygone era.
Reality: Remarkably relatable for queer readers, there are elements that still feel dated, but the overall experience is rewarding.
The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho
Expectation: To be wowed by this modern classic.
Reality: Even at its slim length, I found it to be an exercise in repetition and tedium.