14 Classic Books That I Loved

Mike talks about the other side of classic books with 14 of them that he loved.
Want to send Mike something? You can do so to the below address:
Mike K.
15201 Mason Rd
Suite 169
Cypress, TX 77433
Support Mike on Patreon: / mikesbookreviews
Join Mike's server on Discord / discord
Visit Mike's Amazon Wishlist: amzn.to/2zpHooW
Follow Mike on Goodreads: / mikesbookreviews
Follow Mike on Twitter: / zepp1978
Like Mike's Book Reviews on Facebook / mikesbookreviews
Follow Mike on Instagram / zepp1978
Follow Mike on TikTok / zepp1978
------------------------------------------------------
Theme music provided by Infraction
/ @infraction
Music used: Epic (No Copyright Music)
infractionroyaltyfreemusic.ba...
Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0(CC BY 3.0)
creativecommons.org/licenses/...
------------------------------------------------------
0:00 Introduction and Sensitive Content Warning
2:11 14 Classics I Love
#MikesBookReviews #ClassicBooks #ClassicLiterature

[@mikesbookreviews]

Hey bookworms and literary classic lovers! After talking about a handful of classics I didn't care for, I thought it was only appropriate to discuss the greater majority of classics I did love. There are some "controversial" picks on here, so I've included the time stamps in the description if you'd prefer not to hear me gush about a particular book you find insensitive. I hope that helps! Thanks for watching.

[@elizabethgardner6832]

I would never tell anyone to not read a book, but I do hope that Gone With the Wind and Huck Finn aren't the only books you've read about the antebellum South. I've been thinking a lot lately of "A Danger of A Single Story." www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story?language=en Let me know if you've read books told from the perspective of enslaved people. Have you read Kindred by Octavia Butler? It involves time travel so you might like it. My husband has many of her science fiction books, so I'm looking forward to reading those also. I've not read the following yet but am interested in learning more about our history: www.thoughtco.com/classic-slave-narratives-1773984

[@user-tv3mc5tr9b]

You didn't put them in the description I think haha

[@NoMoreDogma]

@@elizabethgardner6832 - just can’t help yourself

[@MediaFaust]

For some more reference material on "revenge books" I suggest the Icelandic saga called "Niall's Saga". It's a pretty epic "novel" written some time during the 1200s that tends to broaden people's horizon. PS -- it's an interesting part of the Mary Shelley's story that she was the daughter of William Godwin (of anarchism fame) and Mary Woolstonecraft (of feminism fame).

[@gabyocampo94]

There are no time stamps though 😥

[@roberte.2114]

Book banning is dangerous. When you allow a government to ban a certain book, you essentially allow them to ban ANY book, and it’s only a matter of time until they ban all books. Also on a side note: Dracula is effing amazing.

[@mikesbookreviews]

From your lips to gods ears. We need to get back to not only talking to one another, but also listening.

[@christianmagrum3282]

It’s the same with words that are spoken if you allow someone to tell you what you are allowed to say then they can change the world

[@MaxCadyS]

I'm ok with banning books. There's children's books promoting some pretty horrible things (don't wanna name them here for the channel's sake). Some shouldn't have been published in the first place.

[@EndlessLaymon]

@@MaxCadyS Nobody should destroy ones art because said persons personal bias.

[@LuxVi7]

@@MaxCadyS here’s the thing, you have the liberty to pick any book you like, you read what you want. I don’t want a group of offended people nor the government to tell me what I can read and what I cannot.

[@rachmusic9873]

Count of Monte Christo is the best revenge story of all-time. There is no question about this. Fact

[@turtleanton6539]

Yuuup

[@NathanGull]

My Dad got me to read it. Said it was the best book he had ever read. It is pretty close to my top read.

[@eymophilia4952]

And was written in 1844.

[@mikesbookreviews]

I will 100% agree.

[@becomingabookworm]

Indeed!

[@joshknoll5172]

When reading a book, one has to always remember the time when it was written and take that into account. We should not ban or dismiss a book because of ideas we now consider problematic in 2020.

[@shawngillogly6873]

Nor should we believe that 2020 is somehow more enlightened about human nature and deprivation than people who lived in real poverty and cruelty.

[@TiffWaffles]

What about the books that are pushing harmful ideologies like the suppression of women, the condoning of the African Slave Trade (or even the White Slavery that was prevalent in the time of the Ottoman Empire)... Or books that were published in the medieval ages that pushes for the ethnic cleanse of non-Christians? Sure, we can say that the mindset of these authors don't line up with the thoughts of the 21st century, but it doesn't mean that these books deserve to remain in publication just because of their age and the author who penned such disgusting things.

[@hpsmash77]

@@TiffWaffles absolutely tho I do think they should be archived for the sake of history other than that, remove them from publication all you want

[@st.ambroseofbierce8980]

If anything, we are significantly less enlightened.

[@Exnavyjay]

Your right, slippery slope!

[@killbotprime]

I don't know about the rest of you fine folks, but I honestly don't care whether Mike likes or dislikes any particular book. What I love about Mike and why I come here is that he can articulate a nicely rational explanation for why he did or did not like the thing, and he does it objectively. That's so rare today it's godrotting superpower! So thanks Mike, for being cool like that.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Thanks so much for saying so. I do appreciate it.

[@Hollis_has_questions]

I completely agree. First time here; it won’t be the last.

[@tiananesbitt7156]

@@mikesbookreviews Reading Shelley now! Absolutely better than Jackson!

[@BaldBookTuber]

Linkin Park shirt is fire

[@mikesbookreviews]

I'm just about out of rock shirts ha ha

[@nicktankard1244]

@@mikesbookreviews time to buy some more :)

[@Luke_Radiosmash]

Don't be afraid to talk about classics!! Just because a group of elite, self-important academics enjoy cutting down real artists because they can't create anything themselves doesn't mean that normal, intelligent, adults, who understand context and nuance can't keep having important conversations.

[@antoniorebelo8949]

please do the “books that made me cry”, that’ll be fun!

[@NathanGull]

I second this! Would be a really interesting vid.

[@mikesbookreviews]

It'll happen, for sure.

[@2talldwarfs]

Ohh awesome ... i was thinking about doing this too 😉

[@izz61864]

Where the Red Fern Grows has to be on there. Unless Mike hasn’t read it, of course.

[@BenLaSoul908]

And books that actually made you LOL

[@jonathankennedy7291]

FINE, I'll read Dune, Mike. You wore me down.

[@locutusdborg126]

I just read it so you don't have to. Just tell people it is about sand and spice.

[@mikesbookreviews]

My work here is done.

[@NathanGull]

I have tried, but I will try again!

[@mBulk11]

Reading the Count of Monte Cristo for the first time now. What a treat it has been.

[@MissTasseled]

I personally agree that Scarlet O'Hara is a finely crafted, complex character, who is bratty and entitled, but is also incredibly persevering. She has will and strength, and loyalty that are impossible not to admire, while you also kind of hate her childish desire for things that she can't have and constant attempts at being the center of attention. The romance is also not a sugary soap opera, but a great exploration of the big and small mistakes people make every day. One of my favorite books.

[@Jess-kx7cg]

I really appreciate you voicing your opinion despite the whole “cancel culture” bs. Your the first booktuber I’ve come across that doesn’t dismiss a book bc of modern day controversy and I’m just like ugh FINALLY 🙌🏽

[@mikesbookreviews]

I try to keep the focus on just the books. Thanks for watching!

[@jayt9608]

Geeks and Gamers is also opposed to book banning, but their focal points are elsewhere.

[@TiffWaffles]

I don't understand cancel culture when it comes to booktubers who are discussing controversial books. Unless it is something bad like condoning books written and/or endorsed by figures like Hitler and his Nazis... I mean... the hate that people who like Mark Twain's work (which I think has a message of anti-racism and anti-slavery?) is just baffling to me. With the first, I'd understand the cancel culture but the second... let people read what they want to and say whatever they want about it.

[@mitchbray6637]

The Time Machine and 1984 are also two of my favorite. They make wonder "Where we headed as a race?" "Where are we going?" Awesome, awesome reads.

[@briangallagher3106]

I love that you don’t touch politics. That makes you the best booktube in my opinion

[@mikesbookreviews]

Thanks! It would be quite hypocritical of me to base my channel on discussion and agreeing to disagree and then shouted my political beliefs at everyone. I am old enough to remember when it was fine ti disagree on things, even politics, and still be friends.

[@briangallagher3106]

@@bookmistress7142 Nice. I have a similar situation with a friend of mine. We disagree on many things and I’m sure he thinks I’m a bit out there which I possibly am but we still get on very well and it never gets in the way. I need a place to go to avoid politics if I can. I read, I paint and I walk my dog. Most Social media is absolutely toxic if you ask me. When I quit Facebook I read 70 books in the following year. I’ll never look back.

[@smileyclips1615]

I don't get why so few people have read, or talk about Jack London's novels: "Whitefang" and "Call of the wild". Two of my all-time favorite stories, no doubt.

[@chrisw6164]

I think they associate those novels with middle school assignments. I read them both recently and they blew me away. But my favorite Jack London so far is The Sea Wolf.

[@smileyclips1615]

@@chrisw6164 I'm from Europe. So I didn't read those books at school, but I understand the reasoning for it. The Sea Wolf is on my to-read list. I will try to read it soon.

[@erikaeriksson9840]

Oh, I just loved Whitefang when I was a child. I might have to read it again. The Call of the Wild was a good one as well.

[@thetimeofthewolf257]

Jack London is one of my favorite authors too. He is also considered right wing with his Nationalist-Socialist views. We live in an age of liberal pansy soyboys who hate strong masculine authors and writing.

[@TheRealJaded]

I'm not a mutt lover so I don't read mutt lover books

[@socialbianca]

My favorite book of all time hands down is The Count of Monte Cristo. Ugh, my heart. I also love To Kill a Mockingbird, Gone With the Wind, and Dune. I'm new to your channel but am so glad I found it.

[@muhtasimshammo]

How is the book dune?

[@MaxCadyS]

One of my fav things about the Count of Monte Cristo is the romance. It would have been so easy for Dantes to win back X (censored for spoilers), but instead Dumas takes the much more satisfying bittersweet route.

[@lavingshadow345]

I absolutely love Gone With the Wind. Scarlett is my role model for her strength and gusto

[@mikesbookreviews]

She’s an icon.

[@Leomhaiin]

The way you explain books make me want to read them.

[@mikesbookreviews]

That’s the goal!

[@wolfhart1444]

Mike, I've suspected it before but am now sure, we would be great friends if we ever met. Great list and thanks for sharing. To Kill a Mockingbird is my favorite book and I had a similar experience to you; I had to read it for class and we were assigned chapter chunks to read but it was one of those that once I started I found it difficult to put down. The story just flowed so organically that I had to shove the rest of my homework aside and just keep going. Finished it in 2 sittings and it's the one book I've re-read the most (and yes it's going to come around again sometime soon). I have thoroughly enjoyed revisiting some classics that were assigned in school and discovering ones that weren't. Picked up Gone With the Wind for the first time a few years back and was surprised how much I loved it, and for a lot of the same reasons you did. Really enjoy your channel ✌️

[@mikesbookreviews]

Thanks for the kind words!

[@Jaxxofrune]

Great list Mike. I was actually surprised how many of them I've read.

[@lenas9487]

I am so glad this video of yours came up on KZbin for me! Going to now go and check out your other videos! Love your bookcases btw! ❤📚

[@mikesbookreviews]

Thanks! They have actually grown since this video.

[@amandaofhouserobinson6707]

I love the time machine and 1984 and the mountains of madness, 3 of my absolute favs. Such great stories!! You have great taste in books!

[@lucasmorgan2364]

I love your videos Mike! I’ve been speeding through them ever since I discovered your channel several months ago. Classics are what transformed me into an avid reader and for the past couple years I’ve been on a shameless fantasy binge. Your videos have had major influence on my personal TBR list. Steinbeck is my all time favorite author with Sanderson being my current favorite fantasy author. A book I’ll recommend to everyone for as long as I have breath is Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury. His prose is unparalleled in this beautiful coming of age story. It is one of the few books that has brought me to tears.

[@mikesbookreviews]

That is a brilliant Bradbury book.

[@flowaroundtherock]

Great video! My top 5 classic books are: The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Of Mice and Men, Tales of the South Pacific and Gulliver's Travels.

[@Rogue_VI]

I had to read Fahrenheit 451 in 9th grade and I loved it. It's one of my favorite books.

[@donaldmartineau8176]

Great show! I love the classics. I've read most of these. Thanks.

[@socialanxiety1541]

First video I've watched on this channel, and I already subscribed! I love healthy and open conversation about books

[@jaecubed592]

That was fun! Lord of the Flies is also one of my favorite books of all time. Plan on reading some of these classics this year. Never been into classics but as I've gotten older I would like to read some of these before my time here is over. 😀 Thanks for some recommendations.

[@locolima279]

19k gonna happen! Way to go, Mike!

[@mikesbookreviews]

Tonight or tomorrow!

[@madisongoodyear5040]

Todaaaay! Let’s share the video

[@themanmrbijok7364]

I think reading texts and watching films from the past not only provides an interesting insight into the mistakes of the past, but also show just how far we come, progressively. Not just in history, but in media as well. You can watch Casablanca or Gone with the Wind and still see why it’s considered iconic and get enjoyment from it, while acknowledging some of the dated flaws of it. I’m 20 (as of writing) and have watched Vertigo, while I enjoyed watching it with Hitchcock’s plot unraveling, it had some very creepy and somewhat manipulative undertones in the main characters relationship. Point being, you can still enjoy a piece of media while acknowledging its more heinous flaws.

[@JamesI88]

High quality list. I own and enjoy many of these, and would be very interested to hear you talk about classics you love in the future, although I understand those videos might not be good for the algorithm.

[@craxanshards3139]

A great Count of Monte Christo science fiction re telling is The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester...a sci fi classic! Great list Mike.

[@mikesbookreviews]

I’ve heard this before. Sounds really cool.

[@djsuth7727]

Great list you've made there, Mike. Varied & all quality reads.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Gracias.

[@scatsandwich38]

Loved the Time Machine. So impressed by HG Wells, Jules Verne, Bram Stoker. Such imaginative well written books from a long time ago. War of the Worlds is one of my favorites as well. Great vid!

[@RayBlake]

'Far From the Madding Crowd' by Thomas Hardy is a book worth reading as an adult, not when they make you at school. It has complex characters and the most extraordinary prose. Speaking of which, 'The Long Goodbye' by Raymond Chandler. If you've never read that you only know the many sad parodies of it. The original is breathtaking.

[@abrahemsamander3967]

Chandler is on the list. Will check out the other. Love good prose.

[@lindafarnes486]

I really liked all Raymond Chandlers books. I thought The Big Sleep was the best though. So many different threads all pulled together by the time you get to the end.

[@Vangone-bu6vu]

To Kill a Mockingbird Bird is my favorite book of all time. Actually live south of Monroeville that the town is based on. Reread it every year or so. Love it.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Very cool!

[@JJ-gc8du]

FINALLY! A reviewer that loves- AND lists as #1 -"Gone With The Wind". You zoomed up to the top of my lists of great book reviewers. It's.an amazing period piece with layers and layers of great characters. Now, my friend...how about "Les Miserables"?? Unabridged of course! 😃

[@thiswitchburnsforbooks]

Slaughterhouse-Five & 1984 have to be my favorite classics! I reread Slaughterhouse-Five a few months ago again and I’m still pulling new thoughts and themes from it.

[@mikesbookreviews]

💯

[@shawnwales696]

I discovered Lovecraft as an adult, At the Mountains of Madness is probably his best work. Really recommend the audio book edition.

[@AshtheViking]

I think Scarlett O'Hara is my favourite character of fiction ever. Other top favourite classics for me would be Count of Monte Cristo, War & Peace (surprisingly easy read just very long), 1984, and The Count of Monte Cristo.

[@michaelbodell7740]

Great list. F451 was the first "good" book I loved (7th grade) and was really turned me into a serious reader, and a sci-fi/fantasy reader. The only one of these books I was assigned in school was Lord of the Flies. When you described not liking all quiet on the western front my thought for a war book you'd like was slaughterhouse-five, so glad to see it on the list.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Probably the first real thought provoking war story I read.

[@sebastianstark8517]

Totally agree about Scarlet O'hara. Didn't like her, but admired her ability to get things done.

[@tiffworthy1610]

Great picks! I have read many and you have given me many to check out! Dracula is one of my favorites!

[@robinmixon6999]

You picked 3 of my faves! I love Dracula, To Kill a Mockingbird and Gone With the Wind! I am against banning books and even worse - burning books!

[@mfar3016]

Amazing review of monte Cristo! Not a book I’d typically pick up, but now I’m intrigued! On my TBR list.

[@turtleanton6539]

Lord of the flies is a dark but excellent book.

[@marlaeningles3788]

The Count of Montecristo is a true masterpíece. It is so big but it reads so easily, that the size simply is not there. It is fluent, it is also a good history lesson, and it is just so entertaining and inspiring also. And it goes beyond revenge because it also shows how these evil characters, at least one of them, also brought evil to themselves from their own actions, not all coming from Edmundo Dantes...

[@Rixxa_01]

I agree 100% on “Gone With The Wind”!!

[@Sara-gz1lp]

I love how you say the year of any book you mention❤️

[@Coley_-_]

Great Video! I love Frankenstein too. Another classic I love is Tarzan.

[@Thecatladybooknook_PennyD]

Gone With The Wind. A favorite of mine!!! Love this whole list!!

[@mikesbookreviews]

❤️

[@sjkrum320]

My sister had to read To Kill a Mockingbird and she loved it so much, I read it when she was done and I NEVER read when I was a teenager. Great story. Loved your whole list. Haven't read all of these, but I loved all the ones I have read. And yes, Gone With the Wind is gold!

[@mikesbookreviews]

Amen.

[@nurjahanblaskar6105]

Im so happy that I came across your channel

[@mikesbookreviews]

Same here!

[@chrisw6164]

The Sea Wolf by Jack London. Criminally overlooked these days. Captain Wolf Larsen is an unforgettable character, and you will love to hate him.

[@stevenmccart8502]

I forgot all about Sea Wolf. Thank you

[@kahlbutomacfarland]

Considering your list, I’m really surprised to not see Brave New World. If you haven’t read it, I recommend it. The long debate is BNW vs 1984, I’m a BNW guy. Huxley was just a genius overall and the predecessor to Orwell. Don’t judge it based on this upcoming show which will certainly blow.

[@anakinsolo4529]

Going through these comments seeing all the praise for Orwell and 1984 waiting for someone to bring up BNW. BNW is superior to 1984.

[@PerfectCell9]

I just finished “Solaris” amazing classic sci fi with a brilliant take on the genre. I highly recommend if you haven’t read it

[@donovanmedieval]

My grandmother read Gone with the WInd before the movie came out, and was really excited when she heard there was going to be a movie. Later, when my mom was a kid, it was playing in a nearby theater. My grandmother said she would take her, but my mom had to promise to read the book. It took my mother the whole summer.

[@Spartacus-hc9xt]

The count of monte cristo is my favorite book, so happy to see it on here

[@verosnotebook]

Nice selection with quite a few of my all time favourites 😊

[@b2ickwall978]

Vonnegut! I went on a Vonnegut kick years ago. My personal favorite of his is Sirens of Titan.

[@snaredman1]

I would love to hear about your favorite time travel books. Anything involving time travel is a yes for me.

[@pyke209]

Hi started looking at KZbin vids by readers as I found myself reading more than ever , haven't stopped reading for over a year now. Anyways just saying your vids in particular have been the most appealing so thanks for that and keep up the good work.

[@mikesbookreviews]

I am always in favor of someone reading more.

[@lizc.214]

Hey Mike! Can't believe I just found your channel. I'm 2 yrs late to this video and I just wanted to say that I love Dune!! Read it when I was still in Highschool (not because it was required, mostly because I enjoy scifi) and have enjoyed it ever since. I'll sure be going through your backlog of videos.

[@abnushagnasty805]

All great books and some are on my TBR. My favorite classic will always be Catch 22. There were some chapters in that book that made me burst out laughing and most books don’t usually have that effect on me. Also Pony Boy loved the Gone With The Wind so I think I’ll give it a shot one of these days. 👍

[@kristey2663]

Great list! A classic I really enjoyed that I didn’t see on your list is Catch 22. This book sat on my shelf for a while. When I finally picked it up, I almost put it back. When I started reading it, I thought it was a slog. It took me about 100-175 pages until I changed my mind and was so glad I had stuck with it. It turned out to be an amazing book. I was really invested in the characters. Definitely a classic that is worth a read. Just don’t give up if it starts off slow for you. You will be glad in the end. (I hope!)

[@locutusdborg126]

EXCELLENT novel and insight. The term Catch 22 is a staple of our language yet very few realize it came from that book.

[@kristey2663]

@@locutusdborg126 So true! I've heard (but not confirmed) that this book is loosely based on events in Joseph Heller's actual life, which adds yet another interesting dynamic.

[@mikesbookreviews]

About a dozen folks have recommended Catch 22, so I’m going to have to put it on the old TBR.

[@anna_rn]

Love finding your old videos! To me, banning books and censorship are useless and always backfire. The best thing I’ve read about cancel culture frenzy was by Brendan O’Neill after a school in Scotland wanted to cancel To Kill a Mockingbird. “It often feels like we’re living through the revenge of the talentless. Cancel culture is essentially a war of no-marks against high achievers. Think of all those faceless furious people on Twitter who want the Harry Potter books thrown in the dumpster of history just because JK Rowling thinks biological sex is real”

[@mikesbookreviews]

I’m definitely okay if folks folks some of these things dated. I’ve always had the attitude of look at these things in the time they were written. Regardless, banning books is something I will NEVER be on board with.

[@Thorbearius]

I have not read many classics but Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame has always stuck with me since I read it in high School. I have Les Miserables on my tbr list, love the Musical and have very high expections on the book. Crime and Punishment by Dostojevskij is another good one.

[@TiffWaffles]

I love Victor Hugo as both an author and poet, but I will forever hold a grudge against him for that horrific info dump chapter about Gothic architecture. I had to read Notre-Dame de Paris in both English and French (Books in Translation and French Literature classes). I did not appreciate the English translation whatsoever. A lot was omitted by Victorian English translators because it was too unclean. Glad to hear that Everyman's Classics did a recent translation to include as much of the problematic 'unclean' parts that make the book as well.

[@ravenbellebooks5665]

I had to read Lord of the Flies in 6th grade, and I'm convinced that is entirely too young to appreciate that book. Also. I FINALLY added Dune to my TBR. It'll be awhile before I get there, but it's there! I kept pushing back, but you've convinced me 😂

[@mikesbookreviews]

Definitely too early to read a book with themes as deep as that.

[@nicktankard1244]

Great list. I need to reread many of those.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Yeah, same here.

[@Lu.G.]

*To Kill A Mockingbird* is probably my all-time favorite, but I adore *Frankenstein,* too. I recently picked up the 1818 edition which I'm excited to read. Also love *Dracula* and *The Haunting of Hill House.* I have *The Count of Monte Cristo* and *Gone With the Wind* on my shelf, but have yet to read either. Such a great list, thanks for sharing!

[@mikesbookreviews]

I read the “1818 Text” version.

[@justinthyme2666]

"there were about 30 and I narrowed it down"....need a part dos

[@AllenFreemanMediaGuru]

in the mid 70s I read 1984 while playing the Paranoid album by Black Sabbath. A chilling combination!

[@arlissbunny]

So many of these books are books I truly dislike (or in the case of “Slaughterhouse Five,” really hate) but your reviews of all of them were absolutely accurate. I’ve read all of these and I’m with you, I think these are all outstanding exemplars of their respective genres even if they don’t appeal to me. In the case of “Dune,” however, it is an all time top ten book for me and I would love to see an entire video on it. I fell into the pro-Dune camp about ten years after it was released, when I was in my mid-teens and I have probably read it a couple of dozen times since then. It still blows my mind and I continue to find new insight each read. These days I read about three hundred books a year and trust me when I say, there are very few books with that kind of depth over time. “Dune” is everything and more.

[@ChrisfromtheBasement]

Great list Mike. All of these books are must reads. Cant wait for October!

[@mikesbookreviews]

Me too!

[@partygirlbg]

Count of Monte Christo is also my favourite classic, so glad to see it here! Such an easy and gripping read :)

[@mikesbookreviews]

It's so good!

[@Pandas_and_Books]

What a great list! My favorite classic is Pride and Prejudice but I love a lot of the ones you listed.

[@shawnashe9710]

I just got through Crime and Punishment, and am now trying to get through Brothers Karamazov. Last summer was Hugo's Les Miserables; this summer is finally going to be Count of Monte Cristo. Those huge tomes are frightening.. you just have to get started.

[@unlimitedreads]

Because I've made a promise to myself to branch out a bit in 2022 and read at least one classic, and after much research, I've selected The Count of Monte Cristo! I've heard incredible things about this book and I'm really looking forward to it!

[@akellerhouse83]

I loved TKAM too. Here in the Memphis area, we read it in 9th grade. It was the first book I remember reading in AP English.

[@mikesbookreviews]

So good.

[@kajikanna]

Hey Mike, you don't have to apologize to us for liking books that have controversial material. We get it. No one book is going to please everyone.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Definitely not an apology. But I do accept others have reasons for not liking some of these titles and I want to respect their right to that opinion.

[@joshuafowler883]

This is great a list. To Kill a Mockingbird is my number one novel. I'm always surprised when people say they haven't read it. It was also the number one book in PBS's The Great American Read, getting the most votes and never leaving top spot. Only two books in my life have made me cry TKaM and Flowers for Algernon.

[@mikesbookreviews]

It’s bloody brilliant and I wish everyone could enjoy it as much as I did.

[@JZETH_]

1984, I really enjoyed it. It’s kind of eerie how a lot of what is happening today is part of today’s society in some countries. Slaughterhouse 5 has been something I’ve planned to read for a while now. I think I’ll throw it in for my July reads. Dude, that’s a great t shirt. R.I.P Chester 🙏🏼

[@turtleanton6539]

Its great, also Brave New world and Fahrenheit 451

[@mikesbookreviews]

It’s a crazy read but very good.

[@JZETH_]

Turtle Anton I actually own Brave New World but I didn’t give it a fair shot. I’ll take another look later this year.

[@Scottlp2]

It was meant as a warning, not an instruction manual.

[@Scottlp2]

@@JZETH_ Brave New World is a great book but first ? 50 pgs difficult to get through. Ira Levin’s This perfect Day is almost as good and more recent so easier to read.

[@austinquick6285]

Dune is one of those books where the setting and plot can host soooo many themes and concepts. It’s obviously a sci-fi, but It is sooo much more than that. It also changed the way I look at things. Of course I didn’t read it until I was 25. If I would have read it when I was a teenager, I doubt I would have had the patience to truly appreciate and comprehend the masterpiece that it is. As soon as I finished the book, I had to immediately find out who the hell frank herbert was, and what he’s been through, because you don’t just write something like that out of the blue.

[@thesmuli83]

Great list. Should read some of those books again. I have read these books for the last 20 years🤣

[@mikesbookreviews]

I’d definitely like to revisit some.

[@theskyisteal8346]

I love Dune! It's one of my favourite books! I only got through a third of the first book before I had to return it to the library but I could tell it was something special. I pledge here today that I will finish Dune...eventually.

[@mikesbookreviews]

I recommend it, obviously.

[@pnutbutrncrackers]

Loud hurrahs for Huckleberry Finn and To Kill A Mockingbird! I felt there was even higher praise you could've given aspects of the former, and the latter may literally be a perfect novel. I could type on for paragraphs, but won't. Enjoyed the vid.

[@mikesbookreviews]

I welcome these thoughts. Thanks for watching!

[@bluesgirl410cg]

I have almost all of those and many of them I haven’t read yet. I definitely have a problem with buying books faster than I can read them, ha. Fahrenheit 451 was excellent! I have Something Wicked This Way Comes and October Country and I’m planning to read them along with Dracula and Haunting of Hill House in October. I recently picked up a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo and I’m excited to read that one. I’m currently reading Lies of Locke Lamora and The Blade Itself right now and their both pretty awesome! Great video, cheers!

[@mikesbookreviews]

Enjoy! Those are some great picks.

[@MagusMarquillin]

Damn, when you said most people had read the abridged version of CoMC I raised my eyebrows and ran to my shelf, looked over my copy and, alas! It has indeed been *butchered!* Under 600 pages - is that like, half the content? I suppose it's a good thing I haven't read it yet, I was buying all sorts of classics from used book stores years ago and never thought to look for that sort of thing - I suppose it's just to assign to students below it's reading level (or who aren't interested). My Frankenstien had this done to it also, and I didn't notice till years after had consumed and fell in love with it, apparently I haven't _really_ read Frankenstien after all! I guess I can look forward to fixing that. Glad you're covering Dracula and Lovecraft this October, I was planning to finally read those then myself.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Ha ha both are good.

[@safinan8008]

Great video!! Happy weekend reading to u!!

[@mikesbookreviews]

Thanks! You too.

[@larryladeroute971]

The Iliad and The Odyssey translated by F. Scott Fitzgerald make the top of my classics list. Some Shakespeare as well. Jane Austen even.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Never gotten all the way through Iliad.

[@TranslatorsAloud]

Fantastic list--and so pleased to see a classic in translation included among your picks! If you loved THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO you might want to read an earlier novel of Dumas's, GEORGES, which has some similarities to TCOMC but features a mixed-race protagonist and is set on the island of Mauritius (then Ile de France). Still tons of swashbuckling action (and a man wrestling an alligator!) as only Dumas could write it.

[@RichardJoshua1995]

Love your channel! Do keep posting more videos!

[@vaporiiz]

some great books! my TBR keeps growing lol

[@Jeff-yg6er]

Love the channel mike! Quick question because I’m too indecisive. Should I start the first law trilogy or should I start a Stephen King binge with IT, 11/22/63, and the stand never read any of them.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Love First Law, but King is my guy. So I’m always going to lean that way.

[@AJPzaworld]

I feel as though forcing someone to analyze something for an assignment really can take the fun out of a story; even with how much how I love The Bell Jar by Sylvia Path, having to skim, analyze, write essays, various reports, and explain the novel to a T had killed a lot of fun I would've had if I were to read it in my free time. Also, poor Sylvia Path, she went through far too much in her life; she deserved far better in life. Anyways, there are far too many classics that are good, so I'll just state the top 5 ones I love below: 1) The Book of Disquiet: A novel that I related to on so many levels, and struck so many chords within me when it came to depression and just feeling so.... worthless in life. Best prose I've ever read, Bernardo Soares is a man I am just fascinated by, and a living example that a truly masterful author can make even the most dull of life exhilarating. So many quotes that just hit me so hard, especially this one: "My soul is a hidden orchestra; I know not the what instruments, what fiddlestrings and harps, drums and tamboura I sound and clash inside myself. All I hear is the symphony." - Fernando Pessoa 2) No Longer Human: Depression incarnate. The author, Osamu Daizai, pretty much wrote everything from the perspective of himself, a sort of confession on why him and his wife ended up taking their own lives. He was a man in suffering, one who felt a great disconnect to humanity, and with it, fell into vices to try and escape the traumas he endured in his youth, the crime committed upon him. And I related so much with that feeling of disconnect to reality, to people, to humanity. 3) The Count of Monet Cristo: Beautiful on every level. Great comedy, great prose, great symbolism, great drama, plot, action, everything about this book is damn near perfect, and deserves the title of masterpiece and classic. 4) Pretty much everything Lovecraft: Read him when I was eleven, and been in love ever since. Everything about Lovecraft's writing is just magnificent, and really did change my perspective back when I was little about my place in the world. Humbled me quite a bit, making me realize just how small I truly am compared to everything else, and that I should stop being a brat. Cosmicism hit me hard, man. 5) Sea of Fertility and Sun and Steel.: A beautifully written penology about Post-Russo War Japan, with some very fascinating commentary about Post-World War 2 Japan, and an author that surpasses his work with just how infamous he is (seriously, look him up after you've read his work, as his actions tend to supersede his work). Great symbolism, rather interesting insights into philosophy, and also the nature of humanity. Yukio Mishima's work is just beautiful, and deserves it's status of classic over in the Land of the Rising Sun.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Absolutely. No one wants reading to feel like work.

[@abrahemsamander3967]

Thanks for the recs.

[@abrahemsamander3967]

I’m a sucker for good prose. A few of those I already know and are on the list. Lovecraft, Mishima, Dumas. The others I haven’t heard of. I’ll check it out.

[@marcweber8509]

I went to school in Germany and I read To Kill a Mockingbird in the Advanced English Course. It was one of those exceptions, where you're forced to read something, but you absolutely love it. But my #1 classic novel would be The Count of Monte Christo everytime! Unabridged version goes without saying. When I went out and bought, it started raining and the book got really wet, but I love it all the more for it.

[@mikesbookreviews]

It’s such a great book.

[@tarico4436]

Great comment. Complete with a slice-of-life denouement. Riveting!

[@Merrymaidenart]

Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu is a vampire book that heavily inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula. It is good and only 60-something pages.

[@turningpageswithclaudia4559]

A lot of my own favorite classics ended up on this list. 1984, Slaughterhouse 5, Fahrenheit 451, The Count of Monte Cristo!!!, Dracula and Frankenstein were all great classic reads. I have some of the other books from this list on my tbr. I feel like I should read To Kill a Mockingbird next, since everyone I know seems to have read and loved that book.

[@esliet]

Gotta put several of these on my list

[@kristenjohnson6583]

The Haunting of Hill House: The scene describing footprints pressing into the grass has stayed with me since high school!