All of my Penguin English Library & Clothbound Classics!! (my prized possessions)

Today I'm showing you my prized possessions, also known as my "trophy books." That is, my Penguin English Library and Clothbound Classics collection / bookshelf tour!
Hi friends!
I'm back with the next episode in my bookshelf tour / classics collection series! This is where I show you all of my different editions, their pros and cons, and if I think they're worth collecting!
I hope you enjoy seeing which books are in my collection, as well as find this helpful in some way!
Sending my very best wishes to you,
Carolyn Marie :)
Videos Mentioned -
Bookshelf Tour Playlist - • Bookshelf Tour Series
24 Hour Readathon with Emma - • an EXHAUSTING 24 hours...
My Social Media: CarolynMarieReads
***My Etsy shop - www.etsy.com/shop/CarolynMari...
***My Website/Portfolio - carolyncastagnaart.wixsite.co...
***Art/Book Instagram - / carolynmariereads
***GoodReads - / carolynmariereads
***Business inquiries: [e-mail]
***Want to write to me or send something?
Carolyn Castagna
P. O. Box 773
Greenlawn NY 11740
United States
**Please don't feel like you need to send me anything, but if you'd like to I would be honored!!!** :)
***About me -
I'm a freelance illustrator and writer who recently graduated from college at the Fashion Institute of Technology with my Bachelors of Fine Arts in Illustration with a minor in English/Writing.
My greatest passion in life is combining my love of illustrating, writing, and reading!
Happy Reading :)
#classicbooks #bookshelftour #penguinclassics

[@RickDaltonHollywood]

Never much of a reader, but listening to you and Emma talk about books made me pick a few up :) have read 2 so far this year :D cheers everyone

[@janebaily3758]

Fantastic! YOU CAN START WITH A PAGE A DAY...

[@M-T-123]

That’s proof you’re not a reader because you didn’t have a chance to get inspired! Keep on Reading !

[@subtlefire7256]

The Penguin English Library books are all so stunning. I agree that they're great for annotating. And while these editions wouldn't be my choice for my first reading of a very challenging book because of the lack of notes, I do enjoy the essays at the end a lot.

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Yes, I completely agree!

[@jasmineelizabeth3342]

I love the penguin hardbacks! I actually loved reading from them, something about the thickness of the paper and how good it feels to hold just enhances the reading experience for me! But I agree, they can be difficult to use due to how easily the cover wears off and such 😂

[@CarolynMarieReads]

That’s wonderful! It’s funny how the physical reading of a book can have such an affect on people! 😂

[@theaparaskeva4286]

I love the clothbounds! Penguin now releases them with a paper strap around the back of the book so they don’t have to put a bar code sticker on! I personally hate reading from hardbacks but I really want to have a full collection of hardback classics, so at least it’s a gorgeous one 😂 I completely get you. You have a gorgeous collection❤️

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Yes I’m so glad they’re doing that now! I feel the same way!! 😂 thank you so much! Happy collecting!

[@Kevinakletva]

@@CarolynMarieReads they are saying around is that you are that "Adam Medvidović" that wrote that "Night in Zagreb".It is known that "Adam Medvidović" is a pen name, but actuall writer is unknown. Wanted to ask you is it true? You are a genius for writing that

[@Ninaofthe90s]

I own the entire clothbound classics collection. A lot of books 😀 I have read quite a few of them and so far I've been very lucky. I haven't ruined any of them 😂😂 I also think the notes are pretty great.

[@jeffreykaufmann2867]

I bought one Penguin Clothbound but found it difficult to bend.

[@zamnordic8278]

An aesthetic book collector and an ardent reader. What a grandioso combo!

[@LexieMoon321]

My Penguin Classics are my babies. I look through thrifts stores to find any

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Mine too 😂 oowww that’s a good idea!

[@Tania.atlasinajar]

📚I love these editions and can’t wait to grow my collection. 🍂 I have beautiful cloth bound versions of A Tale of Two Cities by Dickens and a gorgeous copy of Moby Dick Herman Melville! 🥰

[@LexieMoon321]

My library has the cloth bound version of A Tale of Two Cities! (I currently checked it out because I just love it so much ❤️)

[@Tania.atlasinajar]

@@LexieMoon321 that’s awesome! 🤩

[@katerina9159]

North and south is my favourite classic!!

[@katerina9159]

I’m also curious about gone with the wind, my mother gave me this book and she loves it, I guess it’s time to give it a try

[@jenm930]

I’ve been reading my clothbound classics and embracing the pattern partially coming off. The pages are so nice and thick!

[@anitas5817]

This is what I do as well. I consider them a part of my life and my journey and don’t expect them to remain pristine or get resold later.

[@beatrizgarcia100]

Hi, Carolyn! I recently bought a clothbound edition of “wuthering heights”, can’t wait for it to arrive! These videos are great to analyze the editions, specially because they are VERY expensive here (I’m brazilian) thank you!! 💙

[@sammy__20]

I own two of these! 1984 and Tess of The D'urbervilles! They're so pretty

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Two wonderful books! They are!

[@Jeena4873]

Carolyn you have convinced me to read War and Peace and Anna Karenina. They are on my TBR. Hope to read it soon. PS love your videos💜!!! And of course Willow🐶💖

[@Missfrankiecat]

I'm a fan of the Penguin black spines - really good notes and intros (which I read after I've read the book!) and I think they look quite good on the shelf. All books deteriorate over time even if you don't touch them (I'm a lot older and speak from experience over decades of book buying). I am not a fan of cloth jackets because they attract dust far more than paper - if I had the money I would go for leather bindings. You have a lovely collection and it is great to see such love for books.

[@intervineas]

I have wanted to see a video like this for quite a while - great information!!! I recently re-read the Scarlet Letter and Hawthorne's introduction/prelude/whatever-its-called was a real slog to get through, but the story itself was much easier and more enjoyable. So, WHEN you do read it, don't let the intro cause you to DNF it - the actual story is good.

[@leoquesto9183]

Mrs. Dalloway and To the Lighthouse are phenomenal - Virginia Woolf is such a great artist, a giant.

[@4shanna]

Love this series!! Thank you for sharing a tour of your shelves with us ❣️

[@CarolynMarieReads]

I’m so glad you enjoy it! Thank you for watching :)

[@thoralset3635]

You have a beautiful Clothbound collection! 🌿 They would look great with ivy and fairy lights. ✨

[@ewelinahernon6556]

I used to have a plan to collect the Clothbounds ever since my husband bought me Persuasion in Jane Austen Centre for our 1st wedding anniversary . Initially I thought that there was only Jane Austen in this format and so 2 months later I decided to get Sense and Sensibility, because I fell in love with the colour combination (my favourite shade of blue), but then as I was searching for it online , Amazon suggested Orlando to me and I thought I'd die of excitement :p I quickly forgot about Jane Austen, because if I ever have a choice between any book and Virginia Woolf, I always go for Virginia. And I also noticed Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (my favourite book of all time) and bought it together with Orlando. It was while reading Alice from that edition that I noticed the problems with the Clothbound that you were talking about. So I've only ever read Persuasion, Alice, Orlando and Little Women from PCC (Surprisingly, Orlando & Little Women still look ok). And even though I decided not to collect them anymore, because of the lack of practicality, my husband still gets them for me for special occasions :) He got me The Picture of Dorian Gray, Great Expectations and Jane Eyre for my birthday in 2020, Mrs Dalloway for Christmas 2020 and Villette for my birthday this year :) I also got myself Wuthering Heights because it's also one of my favourite books of all time and I wanted to have it in this gorgeous edition, especially because I'm obsessed with blue :) But yeah, nowadays I've given up on getting them myself and if I do get them, it's as a gift :)

[@ReadingNymph]

I love the paperback english library editions! They are my favourite ♡

[@Ohhellodenisse]

The Penguin English Library edition of Pride and Prejudice got me out of a long reading slump.Happy that you have a video about these editions because they are good to look at.

[@denisefreitas6727]

This video made my day, Carolyn, i absolutely loved it! Your collection is beautiful, amazing! Thanks for sharing it! 💖📚💖

[@CarolynMarieReads]

I’m so glad! Thank you! 😄📖💕

[@danasmith7286]

I love a room with a view. I was in a classics reading group, and when we read this book I was the only person who loved it. It was a re-read for me and I had to keep pointing out all the beautiful parts, because i so desperately want others to love it like I do. The leader of the group actually DNF'd it. I was like "I do not belong here!" 🙂

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Oh no that’s so sad 😂 I’m glad you love it so much though!!! 📖💕

[@Acemethyst]

Love seeing your library! I recently got a Penguin Clothbound copy of The Count Of Monte Cristo, I'm in love with the texture of the cover and the translation by the editor. Have you heard of Paper Mill Press, they have a collection of classics in a more luxe cover!

[@mizuki0328]

I love those editions, I don't have any of them but they're beautiful. I can't, however, just buy books for aesthetic purposes. If I'm not going to read it, then it's not worth to buy it. I don't have the money and, most especially, the space to have 3 or 4 editions of the same book, no matter how much I love them or their edition.

[@raechip]

Wow :D I love your idea of "trophy books", I might have to do that

[@bookworm8624]

This video is so helpful, especially when someone is starting their classic reading journey! Personally I decided to collect the English Penguin Library books. I love the cover design, the price and the floppy binding. I think it's a real shame that the gorgeous Clouthbound editions are practically unreadable, if you want to keep them in good condition 🥴 Otherwise I would have loved to collect them 😕

[@sofia7321]

Yey! I love this series!💕📖 I am glad you have continued I do want to read the tenant of wildfell hall! And I am curently reading David Copperfield for the future book club

[@CarolynMarieReads]

I’m so glad! 🥰 So exciting! Happy reading :)

[@Lingosel]

can relate to the dual system. For classics, I usually first read the Oxford or penguin edition on kindle, and if I really likes it, I’d get a physical copy. As for the clothbound, I do read them, but they require a bit more care than average paperback. The two I owned are still in good condition even tho they are read and annotated.

[@RossMcgowanMaths]

My favourite pastime now is shopping in the local charity shops for books. My favourite one is in my hometown just 5 minutes walk away. Every book is 50 uk pence (about 70 cents ?). My town I suppose would be called a bit rough and a more deprived area yet in my last trip I got a copy of The Complete Stories of Somerset Maugham (hardcover published 1951) , Graham Greene Brighton Rock (hardback 1968) and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Complete Illustrated Stories of Sherlock Holmes (all 1400 pages of them !). I have also collected all the classics of Charles Dickens (again 50p each). Your clothbound books look beautiful.

[@nancyabbott2660]

I collect the penguin clothbounds and now have 22. I read mostly digitally or on audio so I too buy them just for my shelves. They are beautiful.

[@cathybalke]

Hi Carolyn, thanks for this video. You have a beautiful collection. Will you be doing a video on Penguin black spine editions as well? Love your channel!

[@tstockto]

If you read any book in your shelf this year, make it North and South! I just read it this year and I loved it so much.

[@jeffreykaufmann2867]

The best thing about the Penguin English Library is the very comfortable Font Size.

[@AllieVDB]

I love those vintage books - so beautiful!! Question: Are you planning on doing a Rory Gilmore readathon this fall? I've enjoyed the previous readathons so much!

[@racheldemain1940]

I am totally with you. I have a box set of F Scott Fitzgerald Clothbound Books for the Book Nook but also have "reading" copird of all of his books so the special ones don't get spoiled.

[@DD-si1gv]

Watching this and planning my bookstore trip today... Also, I loved the Awakening and am considering buying another copy because I lost it. I swear every few months I still go looking for it on my shelves and am disappointed when it doesn't pop up.

[@CarolynMarieReads]

I hope you have a wonderful bookstore trip!

[@jamesduggan7200]

wow - that complete Jane Austen is a for-real chunker! lol - there was once a time before E-books and Kindle when people actually carried those things around read from them - lol. Thx Carolyn, enjoyed.

[@jamesduggan7200]

If you like, we could do a Sense and Sensibility & Persuasion group read-a-long this year. I don't think it would take too long, and if there is a volunteer, we could have a discord page for chat and conversation. I've read both of them, but it was a long time ago, and I was drunk at the time.

[@neverbored]

So much LOVE around 😁🤭

[@jazphillips6657]

I'm currently writing an essay on Villette for uni and I'd absolutely implore you to read it! Not necessarily because it's a "good" book structurally, especially when compared to Jane Eyre, but the themes and characters are so interesting and draws a lot from Charlotte Bronte's own life :) Would love to hear your thoughts on it in the future

[@ReadAndThrift]

I bought my first clothbound book and I am really hoping to get more! They are beautiful! I bought War and Peace, the hard cover one you have. I might need to get a less beautiful copy so I can read it and be messy with it haha. I just read the picture of Dorian gray so now I need it in the cloth bound edition

[@douglashuff8868]

Fascinating narrative of some wonderful classics. Would that everyone could take the time to read your set! Yes, there ARE donkeys in "David Copperfield." They play a funny role. You will see!

[@cliobooks]

What beautiful books!

[@warlockofwordschannel7901]

Adore this series, the next purchase will be a coupe of the little series, including the book that inspired Eyes Wide Shut!

[@cazzyb]

Omg please!!! read Shirley it is one of my favorite Bronte books and it completely whisks you away into that world. I'm so sad it isn't published very commonly anymore!!

[@iwantcheesecake63]

Dammn even looking at these clothbound classics makes me feel so so good🥲🥲 I'll definitely get the clothbound of my fav classics someday when I can afford them😁

[@amberlawson668]

Love this series so much! ❤I don't own any clothbound classics but I think I'm going to get the Pictures of Dorian Gray as my first bc it's my fav classic! I was wondering are you ever going to do a restock of your tote bag on your etsy shop?

[@CarolynMarieReads]

I’m so glad!! 🥰 You can’t go wrong with Dorian Gray! Yes, I am thinking about bring my tote bag back…though I’m not sure when! Happy to hear you’d be interested in getting one :)

[@grvhppr]

Which clothbound books do you have your eye on next? I love Frankenstein’s cover with the human hearts on them. Great collection! I too wouldn’t read them and instead showcase them as trophies.

[@carbonc6065]

Stunning.

[@rosearan8788]

They are beautiful! Love your channel!! (Find you through Emma!🥰)

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Aw thank you so much! 📖💕

[@__rishikasingh]

Yaay ! Finally 😘😘😘😘😘

[@LinusE]

I have John Milton's Paradise Lost from clothbound, it's amazing, read it and sooo want to re-read it

[@Sam_Gurvinder]

great collection

[@samanthaw.6929]

I'm fond of my leatherbound copy of the Blue Fairy book by Andrew Lane, I got it at Barnes and noble and it's probably the fanciest book I have.

[@none8680]

If I ever meet you, I should remember to bring a clothbound classic and read it just for the flex:)

[@hectorrobertocontrerasmiranda]

O M G you have an actual "Cranford Collection" book!!! (The Vicar of Wakefield) Fun Fact: in 2020 the international editorial RBA released a collection of classic novels using 6 of the designs of the Cranford collection as a basis for the covers, and the cover for Jane Eyre and Emma use the cover design of the book you have. The collection, which focuses on classics with either a female protagonist, a female author, or a very important female character is called "Novelas Eternas" in Spanish but it has also been released in Italian, French, and I believe English. But also, like the Clothbound Classics they look gorgeous on the shelf but wear terribly, they have been an extremely messy hit in some countries due to the release format. Christmas

[@Ygnez]

My clothbound war & peace is practically falling apart after finishing it. I kinda like it because it makes the book feel old. For a reread I’ll probably get a new one. My favorites are now Everymans Libarary classics

[@onlyconnect88]

You remind me a lot of myself in my twenties (the exception being i am a man), although these days I'm a much better reader than collector -which hasn't always been the case 🙄😉 as bookworm you wd really enjoy the old bookshops in Cambridge England where i live! Glad I discovered your channel! ✌️

[@sarahsperusals]

we WILL read northanger abbey, and you will love it and add the clothbound to your collection

[@rowenaroberta5244]

I highly recommend Where Angels Fear To Tread!! :)

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Ooww I’ll have to squeeze it in before Autumn! 🥰 so glad you love it!

[@zinaberger8211]

I have 4 or 5 books of the clothbound penguin edition

[@oliviauzquiano7392]

Could the clothbound books possibly get some sort of plastic cover/dust jacket to protect it? Maybe a something fashioned out of mylar. For my personal reading I love the black penguin classics for reading/annotating and the Everyman’s library for books I’ve already read and want a nice edition for my personal library.

[@karenyates6797]

Love your collections! Where do you get the cloth bound books-...Amazon?

[@vnsslms02]

Hi Carolyn! I’m a new subscriber here and i just wanna asked is it better to buy penguin english library edition rather than evergreens edition? I am very torn between the two because I also want to start reading classic books, and the first books i want to read is all of Jane Austen novels. So kinda need an advise here as a newbie. 😅 i love your videos it is very calming!❤

[@itisjulia]

I love your videos! Do you have any recommendations for classics from outside Europe and the US? :)

[@ravenkyledeang]

I envy your collection,😢 I’m currently stuck with mass market collins classics, because they’re the only cheap classic publication. I don’t have any money for those beautiful copies😢 I’ll try to save up.

[@july3817]

I collect most of my classics in the clothebound edition simply because they are just so beautiful. However, I almost never take them with me because I’m scared the design might come of. So whenever I read one of them, I read the hardback at home and get a free ebook for my phone. I wish I had the courage to annotate them, but I don’t want to mess up and "ruin" my edition. It also kind of demotivates me if I have to keep Post it’s around while reading, but maybe some day. I like the paperbacks, but I can’t stand the orange on the spine. If it weren’t for that, I’d probably collect those instead

[@july3817]

Little update on the annotating. I started reading Northanger Abbey in my clothbound edition and annotated it. I highlight passages I find important/beautiful and tab them. I have no colour System other than that I chose a colour fitting to the book. So far I love it

[@arsalansaqib9438]

I'd sell my soul for this collection. So beautiful. ;-;

[@estherhobbel8691]

Thanks for the video, very informative. I recently read the clothbound Persuasion and the print actually did wear off a little. I’m going to try the Penguin English Library. Just curious: do you ever read from an e-reader? Greetings from the Netherlands!

[@Jane4077]

It wouldn't be a Carolyn video without the landscaping neighbour😂

[@SevenUnwokenDreams]

I have learned the hard way that a good many special/collector's editions are not meant to be read. If I ever get a house I will collect special editions for aesthetics, but I don't have the room for it now.

[@Tsotsiiidos]

Does the cloth bound edition of Wuthering Heights also include Agnes Grey in it?

[@michaelgarcia2973]

I've yet to finish the Novel War and Peace by Tolstoy yet as current World events are happening but what is actually catching up my interest lately is The Versailles Series on Netflix i was just taking away with the outstanding period dress and Drama and lovely People i wish i could wine and dine with the leading actors of George Blagden and Alexander Vlahos Wow what an amazing work they dis as King Louis XIV and Phillipe I of Orleans.

[@rufust.firefly4890]

Sense and Sensibility. 👍The Magnificent Ambersons. 4:45> Knock Knock... Emma...emma gonna have trouble with you?. P and P good movie w/ Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson. Tried twice to get through DC.Howard's End, great movie.

[@Gostpepperchicken]

💚💚💚

[@Sophias_booktube]

what is the largest book you have?, Im 41 years old and iv just got into historical fiction and classics thanks yo me reading some of kate moss books, im glade im not the only one my generation that likes the genre I never did when I was a teenager I was beginging to think I was turning into an old square lol. or as some say an old fogy lol.

[@kathy2539]

If you want to read the clothbound couldn't you cover it with a plain brown paper cover you make and then you'd be able to hold the volume and read it without damaging?

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Yes, I’m sure you could! That’s a good idea :)

[@Elizabeth-Reads]

I have such book envy right now! I actually went right to Penguin after watching, to try to buy the PEL collection, they were having a sale so I got excited and filled my cart with 10 books, only to find they don’t ship to the US! So I shopped around for the books I most wanted, but the prices are so much higher elsewhere…Where did you get yours?

[@will5650]

She said she gets them from Book Depository in another video! It has good prices for the PEL editions and free international shipping.

[@Elizabeth-Reads]

@@will5650 Thanks so much, loading my cart now! (Trying to stop myself from ordering them all.)

[@juliehughes1258]

You mentioned that Tess of the D'Urbervilles made you cry. Well, it made me downright angry. Loved the 1979 film adaptation with Nastassja Kinski as Tess. (I have to sort of hand wave the fact that it was directed by Roman Polanski. The two were romantically linked in 1976 when she was only 15 and he was 43. Vomit.)

[@Yussnan84.]

How bad is the fading on the covers of those Clothbound Classics?

[@pattyreads]

I went to purchase and United States isn't an option for shipping. Do they not ship to the US? :(

[@CarolynMarieReads]

You can find them at Barnes and Nobel and I’ve seen them stocked in independent bookshops as well! (They are also available online through Amazon, Bookdepository, and Waterstones UK) hope this helps!

[@pretentioussunshine]

I love the designs of the clothbounds so much but I kinda refuse to buy any just because of the quality I think it's unfair of penguin to put out a book that will already get ruined by removing a sticker they put on it or that already looks really worn when it's bought in store because a few people turned it in their hands Considering the prize and how popular their designs are i kind of feel like penguin ought to offer a decent quality for these books That being said I always check them out when I'm in a book store and I really do think the designs are incredible

[@sherrirabinowitz4618]

What is the name of the book with Birtha from Jane Eyre, I'm sorry I didn't understand when you said it and I can't read it with my poor old eyes. I would be fascinated to read that novel. I love your vlog, I learn a lot. 🙂

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys :)

[@sherrirabinowitz4618]

@@CarolynMarieReads Thank you, I have always felt a great deal of compassion for Birtha. I will look out for a good copy of it. i have to tell you have been an influence. I bought two Penguin English Library books and I just got my first Pan Macmillian. :)

[@therealjetlag]

I love everything about the Penguin English Classics except the titles on the spines are too small to read from any sort of distance.

[@milaces1323]

I'm not envious, i swear i'm not! I'm green because i live in a radioactive area 🤣🤣🤣

[@CarolynMarieReads]

Hahahaha I love this! 😂

[@zubaerchaudhari8267]

Hello

[@nefraial]

I'm not a fan of the clothbound classics. For one, beauty being in the eye of the beholder, I prefer art covers over arty covers, as in paintings and such rather than patterns. For another I like to enjoy reading my treasured books as much as having a nice book on my shelf and I have not found any of these a book that inspires being held and read. They do fight back. Plus the colours in the embossing tend to rub off and reduce them to looking old very quickly. I've also rebound books myself and don't think their binding is worth the price. Luckily I have been able to donate mine to someone who collects them. I prefer to read paperback books, but I enjoy hardcovers if they are both visually and tactilely appealing.

[@davidhatred7275]

i have to check all the clothbounds for marks and damage before i buy them, they're pretty hit and miss, the stickers on the back are disgusting too, i've lifted mine pretty well but theres still a residue that shows on the lighter coloured editions. they should all have a piece of card wrapped around them with a barcode on, such a bad move by penguin and it's made me think twice about collecting more.

[@user-qg9ed3lo4g]

Mallet :)

[@doloresofcourse]

What a stinker the cloth bounds have that stupid sticker on the back. Very frustrating! I've been changing out all of my old paperback versions for the Barnes and Noble Classic hardbacks. I'm really picky about the print size and readability, so I recently had a huge classics unhaul. Plus, I love the deckled edges of the pages.

[@khushboomehta9279]

I know you had Great Expectations as well in cloth bound edition, saw it in one of your videos previously. Where did it go?

[@MartinDSmith]

Where are your Wordsworth Classic covers?😂

[@CarolynMarieReads]

I don’t own any 👀😂

[@MartinDSmith]

@@CarolynMarieReads I know what to send you for your birthday so!😉✨

[@marthacanady9441]

If you actually read the cover at will wear off. That’s a given.

[@vulee100]

it still makes me mad how many subscribers and views you have