Five Books For People Who Think Classics Are Stuffy, free edition
They’re not! Or at least these ones aren’t.
Welcome to the first ever edition of Five Books For, a newsletter for people who love great stories. I’m so happy you’re here.
I don’t know about you, but this time of year always gives me a kind of happy anticipation which I think is related to the shifting season and the memories of getting ready to go back to school as a little kid. As much as I loved the summer holidays, I also loved school, and there was always a lot of excitement around buying new stationery and a new lunchbox. So I thought we would celebrate that back to school feeling with some literary classics - it’s possible you might even have studied some of them in school, in which case I hope you have good memories of them. I know a lot of people find classics to be hard work and my aim with these recommendations is to find at least one which will feel joyful for you - they are all fun or gripping or engaging in some way and of course they’re all great stories.
Let’s dive in!
Diary Of A Nobody by George and Weedon Grossman
“I never was so immensely tickled by anything I had ever said before. I actually woke up twice during the night, and laughed till the bed shook.”
I’m a little surprised that this book isn’t better known; I think it’s probably the unstuffiest of unstuffy classics. Originally published in serialised form in Punch, the famous humour magazine of the Victorian era, it was written by two brothers which I think is really interesting - it’s relatively unusual for a book to have two authors even these days.
So what’s it about? In diary form, it tells the story of Charles Pooter and his family and the various mishaps that befall them as they try to navigate their social milieu in Victorian England. Most of the humour arises from the fact that Mr. Pooter is a rather pompous and snobbish, but you can’t help but root for him as the diary progresses and he tries desperately to help his wayward son settle into a reliable job and marriage while simultaneously attempting to improve his social standing. You could think of it as a Bridget Jones’ Diary for the Victorian age, but with less calorie counting and romantic angst.
What’s great about it? It’s very funny, a little silly and a very easy read. It’s also easy to dip in and out of because of the nature of the diary format and because it’s nice and lighthearted, which means you’re not drawn to compulsively find out what happens next the way you might be with a thriller. It’s also a great piece of literary history in the sense that it’s one of the first books to have established a genre of comical writing about middle class aspirations which I think is pretty cool.
Give it a try if: you’ll be reading somewhere you don’t mind laughing out loud; you love diary-style novels; you enjoyed Bridget Jones’ Diary; you want something that’s both easy to read and easy to dip in and out of; you want to try something Victorian but not gloomy and full of street urchins.
Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
“Family need not be defined merely as those with whom we share blood, but as those for whom we would give our blood.”
My Grandad was a huge Dickens fan and was the person who first introduced me to Dickens as an author. Unfortunately the first Dickens novel I read as a teenager was Great Expectations and since I’m not generally a person who loves bleak stories with sad endings, however well they might be written, I didn’t manage to read any other Dickens novels until I decided to try again with Nicholas Nickleby a couple of years ago. It was worth the wait. I listened to the audiobook and found myself so immersed in the story that I was soon baking extra cookies in order to have more listening time (for me, most audiobook listening takes place in the kitchen). It’s such a great story, full of dastardly plots, evil schemings, brilliantly-named characters and lots of comedy.
Side note: the version I listened to is narrated by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, my favourite audiobook narrator - he is an incredible actor and really brings whichever story he’s narrating vividly to life. It’s from the Audible Dickens Collection.
So what’s it about? Nicholas becomes responsible for providing for his mother and sister after his father’s untimely death, forcing them to leave Devonshire for London in order to seek the support of Nicholas’ Uncle Ralph. Unfortunately Uncle Ralph is a deeply unpleasant and ruthless man who cares only for money and takes against Nicholas on sight, setting in motion a sequence of events which mean Nicholas must escape a multitude of unpleasant situations and stand up for those less fortunate while overcoming the schemes of his various opponents to find his way to a happy ending. We travel along with Nicholas as he liberates abused school children, rescues his best friend, outwits his enemies, joins a troupe of eccentric travelling actors and finally finds himself back in London saving his family and finding love.
What’s great about it? I think the thing that surprised me the most about Nickleby is how funny it is - I often found myself laughing out loud, which was unexpected. I really cared about the characters, which is quite an achievement given that there are so many of them, with even relatively minor characters fully fleshed out. Most of all though, Dickens’ plotting is incredible; there are so many twists and turns and unexpected surprises throughout the book.
Give it a try if: you like books that deal with themes of good and evil; you like a lovable hero; you like books with happy endings; you like books that make you laugh; you love intricate plotting; you love great audiobooks; you love a good twist.
Breakfast At Tiffany’s by Truman Capote
“No matter where you run, you just end up running into yourself.”
Heads up: the book of Breakfast At Tiffany’s is very different to the movie version, so if you loved (or hated!) the movie it’s worth knowing not to expect the exact same story from the book. I first read the book as a teenager and when I saw the film a couple of decades later I thought that perhaps I’d remembered it wrong but no, it really is just very different. There’s no love story in the book, which I think makes Holly a much more compelling character in her own right and shifts the focus of the story onto more interesting things rather than setting her up as a manic pixie dream girl whose main function is as a love interest.
So what’s it about? Set in the 1940s, Breakfast tells the story of the friendship between the narrator and Holly Golightly, who live in the same brownstone in New York City. Holly is young and beautiful and survives financially on the gifts and favours of the wealthy men she meets when out socialising in the evenings. The narrator gradually finds out more about Holly’s past and her plans for the future but there is a sense of unpredictability and mystery to her which is echoed in the ending of the book.
What’s great about it? Breakfast is a great entry point into classics if you’ve previously found them boring, not only because it’s short (a novella rather than a whole novel) but also because the prose is so beautiful. The length and style of the book also make it an easy read which is sometimes exactly what you need. I also like the fact that the narrator remains unnamed throughout - I think that’s a difficult trick to pull off and Capote does it really well.
Give it a try if: you love books about New York City, or with a strong sense of place; you like characters who are interesting and a little unconventional; you love beautiful writing; you enjoy an ending which has some mystery.
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
“I suppose sooner or later in the life of everyone comes a moment of trial. We all of us have our particular devil who rides us and torments us, and we must give battle in the end.”
Another book with an unnamed narrator, Rebecca is a classic for a reason; it has one of the best first lines of all time, a sinister housekeeper, a grand ancestral home, a spectacular coastal location and a visceral sense of dread as the story progresses. It continues the Gothic fiction tradition of the late 1800s but brings it squarely into the 20th century both in terms of the 1930s setting and in sensibility.
So what’s it about? Rebecca is the story of a second marriage that is haunted by the first. Our unnamed narrator, a naive young woman with very little confidence, meets the rich and debonair widower Maxim de Winter while working as a lady’s companion in Monte Carlo and they fall in love and marry quickly. However, when they return to Manderley, Maxim’s ancestral home in Cornwall, the second Mrs. de Winter finds that Rebecca still exerts a palpable influence over the household even after her death.
What’s great about it? Rebecca is an adept exploration of power - who has it, how they wield it, how those dynamics can shift as we step into our own power - and jealousy, as well as a coming-of-age story, albeit not in the sense we often think of them. There’s a mystery at the core of it which is satisfyingly resolved and explores the question of how much our own perceptions affect our understanding of events. These themes cut across various relationships in the novel and du Maurier deftly weaves them throughout the narrative. It’s really gripping, so a great choice when you’re looking for something pacy and while it’s an easy read it still has plenty of depth.
Give it a try if: you love gothic fiction; you’re fascinated by power dynamics; you’re curious about the psychology of relationships; you want something thrilling but still substantive.
Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
“You must learn some of my philosophy. Think only of the past as its remembrance gives you pleasure.”
Surely one of the most famous classics, used as a basis for inspiration or modern retelling in everything from Bridgerton, to Bridget Jones’ Diary, to Pride And Prejudice And Zombies, Pride & Prejudice is most often described as a love story; I would contend that there’s much more to this book than just that - although the love stories in it are very satisfying.
So what’s it about? The novel follows the fortunes of Elizabeth Bennet as she finds herself attracted first to one man and then realising that her first impressions of another were gravely mistaken and that she has thrown away her opportunity for love through her own stubbornness. Of course, there is eventually a happy ending but there are many twists and turns along the way and they follow a much more circuitous and interesting path than the simple formula of most modern rom-coms.
Pride also explores the meaning of marriage and family and takes a scathing look at how wealth and class prove limiting, especially for women. Although the attachment between Elizabeth and Darcy is at the core of the novel, we see various other relationships form and break apart throughout the novel and Charlotte’s story in particular always strikes me as being especially sad, even though at the time the solution she finds is high pragmatic and, in a way, empowering - at least by the standards of the time. One of the really satisfying aspects of the book is how Elizabeth and Darcy in particular learn and grow throughout it; Austen creates a really compelling development arc for them which is beautifully wrought without veering into navel-gazing or cliché.
What’s great about it? Pride is rightly famous for its love stories, especially Elizabeth and Darcy’s, but for me the unsung hero of the novel is its wit - if you have ever seen the 1990s BBC adaptation of this then you will be familiar with the humour of it already but if you've never seen or read it before then you’re in for a treat. Yes, the subject matter can be serious and there’s plenty of drama but the humour woven throughout (much of it provided by Mrs. Bennet) lightens it considerably.
Give it a try if: you like a good comedy of manners; you enjoy witty writing; you love a love story; you love seeing characters really grow and learn from their experiences; you enjoyed watching Bridgerton but blushed at all the sex.
Thanks for reading!
I hope you find at least one book here you’d like to try. If you have thoughts on any of these recommendations I would love to hear them! You can email me directly by replying to this email. I would especially love to know which other classics you’d add to this list - what have I missed? Are there any you think I’m wrong about?
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Happy reading,
Kate