Classics, they’re wonderful aren’t they? A group of books that everyone should read and enjoy and anyone who doesn’t love these classics is completely and utterly wrong; a literary buffoon in fact!
Or perhaps not; I cannot get to grips with anything written by Charles Dickens, I just dislike his writing style and believe me I have tried to love it. I have the most beautiful set of vintage hardbacks but I cannot bring myself to get past the first 5 pages of any of them. If I were one of Fahrenheit 451’s Firemen, I’d aim for all of Chas’ works first of all. And no I’m not sorry, not one bit!
We asked which classics you would burn if you were in Fahrenheit 451 and these are your top 25.
Fifty Shades of Grey – E.L James
Did I miss the memo? Since when has Fifty Shades been a classic? It seems that enough of you raised it to classic status for it to top our poll when you voted to set it aflame.
David Copperfield – Charles Dickens
I am so pleased I am not the only one who finds Mr Dickens really blummin’ difficult to read.
Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
Jane Austen’s untouchable novel burned? I’d have probably stood by as well. How bad am I?
Harry Potter – J.K Rowling
I suppose we could consider HP a classic in the making. This one I would have saved.
The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald
So many of you saying just how boring this novel was; I think I might leave this as a forever TBR title.
Catcher in the Rye – J.D Salinger
This is another title that flummoxed a good number of you. Not the story itself, just the fact that it is considered a classic.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn – Betty Smith
Seven of you wanted to see this particular tree go up in flames.
Wuthering Heights – Emily Brontë
It seems that not all of you want to be Cathy and would prefer it if Heathcliff had just walked on by.
Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck
I enjoyed this book but as it is a school staple I can understand people’s dislike of this great classic.
A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens
Our final featured title is another I wholeheartedly agree with. Sorry Dickens aficionados.
And here to finish of the top 25 are the next fifteen titles that you would use as kindling.
Middlemarch – George Eliot
LotR – J.R.R Tolkien
Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy
Gone With the Wind – Margaret Mitchell
1984 – George Orwell
To Kill A Mockingbird – Harper Lee
Ulysses – James Joyce
Last of the Mohicans – James Fenimore Cooper
War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy
Lord of the Flies – William Golding
Catch 22 – Joseph Heller
Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov
Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy
Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain
Childhood’s End – Arthur C. Clarke
Of course we would never condone the burning of a single book but sometimes it’s nice to pretend.
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‘The Old Man and the Sea’ by Hemingway didn’t make the list? I fell asleep reading it and it didn’t help it was a compulsory read at high school. Many on the list I would save.
I could never imagine burning Dickens! His writing is so witty and pithy and his characters so interesting. Admittedly, his books are l o n g. But you have to remember that they were originally serialized so they did spin out a bit. Anyway, I just have to cast my vote for LOVING Dickens!
What is wrong with people?? I love The Great Gatsby. How do people find the Great Gatsby boring? !984, The Lord of the Flies, Of Mice and Men, To Kill A Mockingbird, and The Catcher In the Rye are all some of my all time favorite books. Plus, I grew up reading and absolutely LOVING the Harry Potter books so I am saddened to see them on this list. I can see why War and Peace and some Dickens novels are on there because they are LONG but theyre great as well
People want to burn “The Lord of the Rings?!” To each his own, I guess.