Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Back to the Classics Challenge 2021

I have read about a few people finding classics and older books very enlightening this last year through this pandemic. I'm taking that to heart and I'm joining Karen's, from Books and Chocolate, classics challenge. This will be her 8th year hosting! I know the pandemic is still not going away any time soon, at least for the first half of 2021. So bring on the classics. I have so many I've been meaning to get to...

If you complete the challenge there's even a chance at a 30$ gift card at the end! Check out her website for all the rules. 

If you're new to the challenge, here's how it works:

  • Complete six categories, and you'll get one entry in the drawing; 
  • Complete nine categories, and you'll get two entries in the drawing; 
  • Complete all twelve categories, and you'll get three entries in the drawing

Without further ado, here are the categories for 2021: 

1. A 19th century classic: any book first published from 1800 to 1899
  • War & Peace by Leo Tolstoy

2. A 20th century classic: any book first published from 1900 to 1971. All books must have been published at least 50 years ago; the only exceptions are books which were written by 1971 and posthumously published.
  • Go Tell It on a Mountain by James Baldwin

3. A classic by a woman author.
  • The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

4. A classic in translation, meaning any book first published in a language that is not your primary language. You may read it in translation or in its original language, if you prefer. 
  • The Master & Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

5. A classic by BIPOC author; that is, a non-white author.
  • Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick: Stories from the Harlem Renaissance by Zora Neale Hurston
  • Dust Tracks on a Road: An Autiobiography by Zora Neale Hurston

6. A classic by a new-to-you author, i.e., an author whose work you have never read.
  • A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
7. New-to-you classic by a favorite author -- a new book by an author whose works you have already read. 
  • Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell

8. A classic about an animal, or with an animal in the title. The animal can be real or metaphorical. (i.e., To Kill a Mockingbird).
  • Black Beauty by Anna Sewell

9. A children's classic. 
  • The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
  • The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
  • Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin

10. A humorous or satirical classic.
  • Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
  • Slaughter-house Five by Kurt Vonnegut
  • Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

11. A travel or adventure classic (fiction or non-fiction). It can be a travelogue or a classic in which the main character travels or has an adventure. 
  • Gulliver's Travels by Jonathon Swift
  • The Kon-Tiki Expedition by Thor Heyerdahl

12. A classic play. Plays will only count in this category.
  • A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry

These are just a few ideas that I researched out and some I have in my lonely kindle shelves! I'm looking forward to it! 


9 comments:

  1. Good luck! We've a few in common, including Baldwin's title. Best of luck with War and Peace: I read it at the close of 2019 and it's still heavy on my mind.

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    1. Thank you! You too. I started War and Peace a couple of years ago but haven't picked it back up but this year is the year!

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  2. You have some great choices on your plate: Wind in the Willows and The Secret Garden are my favs. Don Quixote is also a favorite. If you do decide on it, don't get frustrated. It may seem like you are reading in circles, but look at it like every little chapter is a new story. Many readers also find it difficult because DQ is mean and his sidekick is innocent. But just remember it is satire, and frankly, Sancho Panza can hold his own. :)

    Also A Room of One's Own is excellent! So is War & Peace.

    So good luck!!

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    1. I've been wanting to get to Wind in the Willows for awhile now. Secret Garden was a favorite as a kid and I loved the movie they made a long time ago as well. I'm looking forward to it as an adult. Don Quixote has been on my list for awhile. Looking forward to finally reading it this year!

      Good luck to you too!

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  3. I've been meaning to join The Classics Club for ages. This would give me some motivation to join that and actually read some of the books I choose. I'll have to look at this challenge. Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Love the challenge and your choices! Zora Neal Huston is one I always wanted to read more of (haven't read her since college) so I look forward to seeing what you think.

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    1. I read her Eyes Were Watching God a few years ago and have been meaning to get to her nonfiction essays and folk stories for along time now. I'm so happy she's been rediscovered and getting the love she deserved when she was alive.

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  5. What a great selection of books! I enjoyed Black Beauty, especially the narrative perspective from a horse! I went horse-back riding soon after reading it during a family vacation and it gave me a lot more admiration and respect for the horse! Wives and Daughters is on my list as well! And I adored The Wind in the Willows. I would suggest finding a copy with darling illustrations as they definitely add to the whimsical charm of that book.The Secret Garden is a favorite. I read A Little Princess last month and was reminded how much I love Frances Hodgson Burnett. Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm is a classic I would like to get to at some point!

    Here is my Back to Classics list, if interested!
    https://elle-alice.blogspot.com/2021/01/back-to-classics-2021-challenge.html

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    1. Thanks for visiting! I look forward to reading Black Beauty. I had no idea it was from the perspective of the horse. I'm even more excited.

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