What classic British books would you actually recommend?

Posted by EggRavager@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 891 comments

Bit of a random one, but I was wondering — are there any classic British books you’ve read and actually enjoyed? Not the ones we all got forced to read at school and pretended to like, but ones you’d properly recommend to someone now. Could be novels, plays, essays, whatever. Would be great to hear your favourites and why you think they’re worth a read. Always on the lookout for something new (or old) to add to the reading list!

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brntuk@reddit

If you like sci fi you could read John Wyndham who wrote The Day of the Triffids, The Midwich Cuckoos, and Chocky, and many others.

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danbrown_notauthor@reddit

Definitely John Wyndham. Also John Christopher (British post apocalypse writer: Tripods, Death of Grass, Empty World…)

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Routine_Ad1823@reddit

Death of Grass is so good

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Lshamlad@reddit

Death of Grass is terrifying, but brilliant.

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Guderian-@reddit

Absolutely scary in how real it feels it could be. This was dysyopian before it became such a modern trope.

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Informal-Tour-8201@reddit

I'm fairly sure that Wyndham was my first dystopian author.

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emerald7777777@reddit

I haven’t read Tripods, but watched the tv series as a child. Terrified me.

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Routine_Ad1823@reddit

Chocky is amazing. For anyone wondering - it's about a kid with an imaginary friend, but are they actually imaginary...?

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HeartyBeast@reddit

Oh - actually, the original HG Wells, War of the Worlds remains a really really good read. Rather fond of Three Men in a Boat, too

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dumass112@reddit

Three Men in a Boat surprised me with how much I enjoyed it. Definitely recommend.

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mcn999@reddit

Oh god. Harris sings a comic song. I nearly rotfl.

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Eastern-Ad4890@reddit

The chrysalids is a fantastic book. I don't know why it is less well know than some of his other books

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HiddenOwl99@reddit

I agree... One of my favs along with The Trouble with Litchen

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Pepys-a-Doodlebugs@reddit

Once I saw Wyndham mentioned I came looking for this comment. I love this book!

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ElonMaersk@reddit

Others including: - Trouble with Lichen, about the discovery of a life extension drug. - Web, about a pacific island where spiders have evolved a kind of collective intelligence - The outward urge, a multigenerational family of astronauts and their troubles

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neverendo@reddit

The Chrisalids is my favourite Wyndham

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Inevitable_Thing_270@reddit

I came here to say the midwich cuckoos. It’s a really interesting read. First the story is great. But it’s also interesting to read from a gender role view. The men have control over it all despite it’s the women who are pregnant. The only women who’s voice is heard is the wife of the Lord of the manor (sorry I can’t remember their names but it gets who I mean across). And she’s really just used to get the message across to the women because she’s also a women and seeming in the same situation

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Freudinatress@reddit

I have read sci fi for 40 years. I read Wyndham. Today I learned that an old tv show for kids I watched so long ago was from a book. I will now have to try and find Chocky on Kindle. Thank you.

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MikkiderMaus@reddit

YES! Huge John Wyndham fan here

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Whithorsematt@reddit

Agreed, while we read Cuckoos at school, I'd already read it and loved it by that point.

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wafflespuppy@reddit

I was going to recommend Wyndham as well. Day of the Triffids, Kraken Wakes and The Midwich Cuckoos are all fab books.

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Florence_Nightgerbil@reddit

I was reading Kraken Wakes as a teenager living next to the Thames when it rained solidly for 2 weeks. The news started to discuss the Thames barrier needing to be raised to ensure London didn’t flood. I certainly didn’t sleep well for a few days in that weather 😂

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Lshamlad@reddit

Great recc! They're so sinister because so little is explained. It's all speculation. I love that about his writing.

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cmf194@reddit

couldn't agree more. Well plotted and paced, and some great dialogue, very much of its time (men referring to one another by thier surnames, saying things like 'buck up old chap' to kids, that kind of thing).

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myautumnalromance@reddit

Used to love Midwich Cuckoos, must dig it out and read it again

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MoreTeaVicar83@reddit

The first page of Chapter 3 of "Midwich" was on the English comprehension GCSE paper this year. Very entertaining watching the teenagers of Reddit reacting to it.

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Mysterious_Arugula94@reddit

Here are some I have enjoyed - in no particular order: Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll Through the Looking-Glass - Lewis Carroll Great Expectations - Charles Dickens The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien The Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham Animal Farm - George Orwell Lord of the Flies - William Golding Scoop - Evelyn Waugh The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons Our Man in Havana - Graham Greene

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frantic_calm@reddit

Feather-footed through the plashy fen passes the questing vole... still makes me smile

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Mysterious_Arugula94@reddit

Scoop by Evelyn Waugh?

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frantic_calm@reddit

Yes

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Mysterious_Arugula94@reddit

They had scraped up fresh river fish, and stewed them with white wine and aubergines; also a rare local bird which combined the tender flavour of partridge with the solid bulk of the turkey; they had roasted it and stuffed it with bananas, almonds, and red peppers; also a baby gazelle which they had seethed with truffles in its mother's milk; also a dish of feathery Arab pastry and a heap of unusual fruits. Mr Baldwin sighed wistfully. "Well," he said, "I suppose it will not hurt us to rough it for once.”

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frantic_calm@reddit

The Heart of Darkeness crossed with Wodehouse! A great book outside my normal reading limits but notheless highly enjoyble.

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decisiontoohard@reddit

Through the Looking Glass thoroughly deserves this mention, I remember being so surprised when I read it that no one talks about it like they talk about the other one

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Mysterious_Arugula94@reddit

I prefer it to the other one too

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_ollybee_@reddit

Cold Comfort Farm is such a brilliant book

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Mysterious_Arugula94@reddit

Yes - it’s definitely one I return to from time to time

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KatVanWall@reddit

Graham Greene is severely slept on imo due to people put off by doing Brighton Rock in school. G. K. Chesterton is another one worth a read. And maybe not classic just yet but China Miéville (I enjoyed Perdido Street Station).

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Mysterious_Arugula94@reddit

Yes - I had to study Brighton Rock at school and it didn’t inspire me - but could appreciate the writing.

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frantic_calm@reddit

The Weirdstone of Brisingamen - Alan Garner. The Jewel in the Skull - Michael Moorcock. Both above alternatives to Tolkein. The Great God Pan - Arther Machen Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad - M R James Victorian daddies of modern horror and ghost stories A Fall of Moondust - A. C. Clarke A sci fi classic disaster story Wilt - Tom Sharpe One of the few authors who made me laugh.

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squigs@reddit

Three Men in a Boat. Was laughing out loud by the time I got to the second page.

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bonshui@reddit

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

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ministryofboops@reddit

Jane Eyre or Pride and Prejudice. They're actually very witty, most of the writing style is very tongue in cheek. Some of the lines in Jane Eyre could honestly come from a modern book. Brontë was so ahead of her time, she clearly had a great grasp on human character, and humour. Jane's monologue to Rochester is also in my top 5 best moments in literature.

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OnlyExit4116@reddit

Money. Martin Amis.

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VivifyHope@reddit

John Fowles - The Collector It's about a young man who kidnaps a girl he has a crush on. It isn't very long but it is unforgettable.

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Few-Requirement9133@reddit

the wasp factory

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MarionberryFinal9336@reddit

I felt physically sick reading that book. It’s genius but so dark.

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LittleSadRufus@reddit

The scene with the flies and the skull fracture (I think? It's been 30 years), absolutely horrifying

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HighlandsBen@reddit

Horrible. One book I actually regret reading.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

WHAT!!!!????? ARE YOU MAD!!!?

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Florence_Nightgerbil@reddit

My personal view is it can’t have been his actual first book. There’s no way that someone can think up that as their first published works right? Right??

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TwinkletheStar@reddit

Ermm, Irvine Welsh might not agree with you. (Trainspotting)

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Hamsternoir@reddit

I wish I could forget a couple of passages there. Great but very fucked up.

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jar_jar_LYNX@reddit

The Bridge is an absolutely incredible book too

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

This. And literally anything by ian banks

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ROGERS-SONGS@reddit

I’m halfway through and I can’t tell if I like it or not.

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marbmusiclove@reddit

One of my favourite books

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TwinkletheStar@reddit

Iain Banks is one of my favourite authors, and The Wasp Factory one of my favourite books. I like fucked up.

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Loquis@reddit

And then alternate between his sci-fi and non sci-fi books

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pricey1921@reddit

Technically…. He wrote at two separate people… Iain Banks, and Iain M Banks…

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MonsieurGump@reddit

That’s not classic! That’s modern fiction!

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Unique_Day6395@reddit

It was published in 1984. When does it become a classic? In the 80s, 1984 by Orwell was considered a classic, and would have been roughly the same age.

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MonsieurGump@reddit

Anything published in my lifetime is allowed to be a classic after I’m dead and not before!!!!

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Aeysir69@reddit

No dear, we’re just old now

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Lshamlad@reddit

I think this is semantics. It's a modern classic.

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Aeysir69@reddit

If in doubt, use the spoon you were just using to eat with

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HeartyBeast@reddit

Anything by Iain (M) Banks. Personally I prefer the M

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b_of_the_bang_@reddit

This was the book that got me back in to reading after leaving school and being forced to read books as opposed to choosing. I started reading while at a sleepover in my friends brothers room and had to buy the book because I needed to know what happened.

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Tibs_red@reddit

I finished this yesterday, first time reading it as an adult. Id repressed a lot as an adult.

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Jasboh@reddit

I remember feeling like I found a secret stumbling across this in the school library

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KungFuPup@reddit

Brilliant recommendation. That was a wild book.

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JuicyStein@reddit

That was a wild ride of a book

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Unlucky-Public-2947@reddit

The ending!

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JJGOTHA@reddit

Great shout

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Best-Net6788@reddit

Fantastic recommendation

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ThatNiceDrShipman@reddit

Down And Out In Paris And London

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TheDoctor66@reddit

Orwell in general hits the spot, especially 1984, Animal Farm, Homage to Catalonia, and as you say Down and Out. You can probably skip the rest, keep the aspidistra flying has a really creepy dude as the main character. Basically invented the incel

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eatapeach16@reddit

I wouldn’t recommend skipping Coming Up For Air, it’s a great work

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Lshamlad@reddit

Yes, re-read it earlier this year, it has such a sadness and melancholy about it for the past he's lost and such terror about what's coming too. Highly underrated, IMO.

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eatapeach16@reddit

You’ve hit the nail on the head here - perfect description.

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Lshamlad@reddit

Thanks!

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RodneyRodnesson@reddit

I think I've only read Down and Out but loved it. Perhaps some other non-fiction one that I can't recall but this thread got me looking and my early Fathers Day pressie to myself is a ten box set for less than £20 on amazon. Can't wait.

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BristolShambler@reddit

I love that book. I read it just after I’d left for uni, and the parts where he goes back to his hometown and fails to reconnect with his memories of the place just hit like a ton of bricks. One of those times when you read a book at the exact right moment in your life.

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eatapeach16@reddit

Exactly! The perfect vision of the pond is something that has always stuck with me. I can picture it so vividly

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TheDoctor66@reddit

In fairness I've not read that one. Burmese Days was borderline for me. Clergyman's Daughter was forgettable.

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eatapeach16@reddit

I wrote my undergraduate dissertation on Orwell. Tried to do a trio of Aspidistra, Air and Clergyman’s to do a vision of inter-war England but there’s no criticism of Clergyman’s so I had to stick 1984 in. Kind of worked because of the Winston-Julia walks and then what happens, but I did have to extend the scope to visions and versions of England up to 1984.

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ibnwashiya@reddit

I quite enjoyed that one at the time. but now that I think about it I have basically no recollection of the plot or anything so ‘forgettable’ is pretty apt

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eatapeach16@reddit

I remember hop picking, that’s about it

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No-Conference-6242@reddit

Road to wigan pier is a great work too

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voidstate@reddit

Although I love 1984 and Down and Out in Paris and London, I think the most profoundly affecting thing if his that I have read is his essay on the English language: Politics and the English Language https://www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-foundation/orwell/essays-and-other-works/politics-and-the-english-language/ Read it and you will never think about any writing the same way again

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8NaanJeremy@reddit

I liked Burmese Days, although I have spent some time living abroad (and visited Burma during a brief break in hostilities) - and I think it speaks to that experience of British people abroad quite well

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Double-Emphasis7011@reddit

I'd add, the first half of Road to Wigan Pier. Like Homage to Catlonia, the second half becomes an almost unreadable essay. However both first halves are truly brilliant. AND I think Burmese Days is so brilliant (fiction).

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Caligapiscis@reddit

I read Aspidistra as a teenager,. I'm sure I didn't really get it but I found it compelling and bits of it have stuck with me. Might reread

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Top_Explanation_3383@reddit

Burmese days

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SarkyMs@reddit

1984 and "brave new world" both on a similar vein.

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daddywookie@reddit

Brave New World is scarily close to how we are living now. Worth reading Brave New World Revisited where the author reviews his predictions in light of post WW2 society.

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SarkyMs@reddit

Can't have a hobby unless you have to buy something.

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dolphininfj@reddit

I'm re-reading this currently and really enjoying it.

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rumade@reddit

Read that as a student when I had £1.40 to last the Easter long weekend and nothing in the cupboard but yellow split peas Made me glad for what I had

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rockchick1982@reddit

The secret garden, the Narnia stories, the subtle knife series. Anything from Terry Pratchett.

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mom0007@reddit

The Handmaid's Tale is an amazing book

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LillaLobo@reddit

It is, but Margaret Atwood is Canadian.

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mom0007@reddit

Dang, I'm mixing her nationality with Fay Weldon as I was thinking Puffball seemed written by an English woman only to realise Puffball is written by Fay Weldon. On the plus side, anything by Fay Weldon is a great read, particularly the lives and loves of a she devil.

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LillaLobo@reddit

I love Fay Weldon too. She-Devil is brilliant!

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precious_times_205@reddit

The Satsuma Complex and Hotel Avocado by Bob Mortimer.

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banwe11@reddit

Well it's not a classic as such but recently I was talking to someone about The Remains of the Day, which I think is a great book and really captures the spirit and foibles of the British character in the period in which it is set

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Squirtle177@reddit

Most of Kazuo Ishiguro’s books are brilliant.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

All are pretty much awesome. Never read a bad one by him. Loved that last one klara and the sun

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ruby-lost@reddit

Klara and the sun is currently in production as a movie, directed by Taika Waititi

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Squirtle177@reddit

I love Waititi, I love Klara and the Sun, but I find this such an odd combination and I have no idea what to expect.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

I love the component parts, let's hope it makes s good cake🤗😊

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Squirtle177@reddit

I’ve loved them all, but am currently reading the only novel of his I’ve not read before, The Unconsoled, and am undecided so far. It’s so well written and flows so much like a real dream that it’s hard to imagine how he managed to do it, but also is so all over the place that it’s a bit of a slog.

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Maester_Magus@reddit

Ishiguro is the absolute master of perspective. When he writes first-person, he doesn't just write third-person but change the pronoun — he *really* makes you see and feel everything from the (often very limited) perspective of that character and trusts the reader to connect the dots. It's so absorbing.

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Massaging_Spermaceti@reddit

The film was on TV the other night, I stopped to rewatch it. A really good adaptation. It's my favourite book of his by a long shot.

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Aggravating_Water_39@reddit

Yes this is a great book!

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TheFirstGlugOfWine@reddit

I love this book so much! We did it at a level and I fell in love.

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Which_Performance_72@reddit

Never let me go also deserves a shout. Devastating

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Milly-Molly-Mandy-78@reddit

I hated the main character, he was such an idiot. I wanted to wring his neck.

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GoodEnough468@reddit

Oh my God. I found him so heartbreaking. He's an reliable narrator and his own worst enemy, obviously, but I thought he was rendered so sympathetically. It's astonishing writing.

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nonsequitur__@reddit

It’s devastating

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earlyeveningsunset@reddit

That's kinda the point.

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nonsequitur__@reddit

Brilliant book. Never been disappointed by one of his books. Think my favourite is Never Let Me Go. the Remain of the Day is very British.

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595659565956@reddit

40 years old, booker prize winner, movie made of it. I think it’s fair to call the Remains of the Day a classic It’s a top 5 favourite novel for me

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MoreTeaVicar83@reddit

Amazing book. Manages to say so much, without actually saying it.

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subbiedavie@reddit

excellent shout! fabulous story and characters

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Bobertos50@reddit

This would be my recommendation too! Also Never let me go

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Asayyadina@reddit

Honestly I think that it has achieved modern classic status by this point!

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arpw@reddit

Yep this was my first thought too. Wonderful book.

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borneo_function_@reddit

\+1 for Remains of the Day. Came to post the same

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Normalscottishperson@reddit

1984

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bowak@reddit

It really is as good as the hype isn't it. I've read it 3 or 4 times now and like to leave it as many years as possible so I forgot a lot of the little details. Then I read it again and just have to read it straight through.

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Routine-Rub-9112@reddit

Unpopular opinion but I didn't really enjoy it myself. Didn't see many similarities to modern life and when it looked like it was going to get good with some sort of rebellion it was shut down just as fast.

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bowak@reddit

That's obviously totally fair. I thought that what made it so good was that the rebellion was fully doomed from the start.

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Eye-on-Springfield@reddit

I absolutely love 1984. Not because of how it predicted so much of the future, but the beautiful relationship that develops under such a repressive regime

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Normalscottishperson@reddit

I wrote about the imagery in it for my higher English exam in 2004. I focused on the foreboding elements of said imagery and its relation to the conclusions of the plot. It was a skoosh as there was so much. I have re read it several times as an adult. It’s still relevant and still terrifying. I often wonder if it’s used as a manual for how to indoctrinate and control a populace.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

Don't forget 1985 - Anthony burgess

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Afinkawan@reddit

I've read it well over a dozen times since 1984, when an abridged version was being serialised in my dad's newspaper and I borrowed the full version from the library. Probably the strongest contender for "my favourite ever book" if such a concept made real sense.

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PaddyProud@reddit

How would a simple concept like "out of all the books I've ever read, this one is the one I enjoyed reading the most" not make real sense lol?

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AlfCosta@reddit

I absolutely love “Keep the Aspidistra Flying”. It’s so miserable it’s hilarious.

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JJGOTHA@reddit

Just my opinion, but I don't rate Orwell's writing. Love the premise of his books, but not the execution

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Double-Emphasis7011@reddit

I really love his nonfiction. Down and Out in London and Paris is just fantastic. Very readable too. As it is factual you're more inclined to accept the writing style.

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minadequate@reddit

My great grandfather met him on a park bench when he was down and out in London. My GGF was also a bit of an author (he wrote and published 2 or 3 books) so they had a good chat and he invited him home for dinner. My GGM was not best pleased especially as he went on to give the author his best coat.

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Double-Emphasis7011@reddit

Wow! Are they mentioned in the book?

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Fearless_Cloud_620@reddit

Down and out is such a good read

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JJGOTHA@reddit

I agree. I liked Homage to Catalonia.

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daganscribe69@reddit

Interesting. I've heard that from others. Can you pinpoint what you don't like? I ask because I'm easily irritated by some styles but always enjoyed Orwell.

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JJGOTHA@reddit

I know what you mean about styles irritating you. It's hard to pinpoint. I just find some of his writing dull, analytical and without any genuine feeling

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Embarrassed_Belt1692@reddit

Anything sci fi, fiction in general is a no no unless it's been recommended on good authority, it's strange, a non fictional anatomy book anyday.....always been a little weird

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gloomfilter@reddit

I enjoyed many of his books, but some (Keep the Aspidistra Flying for example) are very turgid.

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Dramoriga@reddit

I started avoiding a lot of the bestsellers lists because they often recommend whatever is popular, and frankly, most people don't read enough to know what's actually good. I remember picking up interpretation of murder and da vinci code when they just came out, and despite the interesting plots, their writing was mediocre at best.

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JJGOTHA@reddit

Even I knew to avoid Dan Brown.

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Dramoriga@reddit

The 2nd time I encountered a movie better than the book. The first was Forrest Gump. That was a hot racist mess.

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Myrcnan@reddit

Have you read any of his 'normal' books, as in not 1984 or Animal Farm? Natural, effortless, effective.

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JJGOTHA@reddit

Only, Homage to Catalonia. Which I like

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popshares@reddit

Add Animal Farm to 1984, I see them as a pair. Between them they describe so much.

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amacadabra@reddit

And Brave New World.

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MrsValentine@reddit

Much preferred brave new world to 1984

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Frosty-Series6301@reddit

I could never get into Brave New World.

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buffysbestmate@reddit

Never read this. Just downloaded it. Thanks

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MoreTeaVicar83@reddit

Brilliant insights mixed with enjoyable anachronisms, like all good classic SF.

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vminnear@reddit

I don't know if I enjoyed it per se, but it's undoubtedly a good book.

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Johnny_Vernacular@reddit

In Britain it's called Nineteen Eighty-four. The yanks published it as 1984.

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BrieflyVerbose@reddit

The book that everyone says they've read when they haven't.

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Nancy_True@reddit

This is a brilliant book.

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TopEstablishment3270@reddit

I actually really struggled with 1984 on the first read and ended up giving up. I just found it too depressing. I read it in full at the start of this year and found it much more interesting for some reason...strange how time can change our interpretation of things.

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birchbarn@reddit

Day of the Triffids. Or any John Wyndham really. Classic British sci fi.

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Puzzleheaded_Cod_891@reddit

Have you tried anything by E F Russell? Well worth it.

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leyland_gaunt@reddit

Absolutely - I love a bit of Jizzle.

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CynicalRecidivist@reddit

James Herbert The Rats trilogy. Watership Down by Richard Adams - wonderful book. OK it's about rabbits but it has action, kidnapping, murders, political strife etc. It's fantastic.

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lordrothermere@reddit

The Rats is the direct cause of my fear of rats.

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CynicalRecidivist@reddit

haha - it was pretty intense, wasn't it? I loved it, but I don't think I would have wanted to be near a rat while I was reading it!

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lordrothermere@reddit

I read his books too young and they are blended together in my head now, as one gory orgy of gruesomeness. The Rats on its own wasn't the worst thing in the world, but I unfortunately associate it with the gym scene in The Fog. And a pathological dislike of rats is what came out of it. They are, to this day, the only animal I would shoot that I couldn't eat.

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WaspsForDinner@reddit

> James Herbert The Rats trilogy It's a tetralogy, if you include The City.

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DarthScabies@reddit

I remember reading the rats books and thinking "fuck. These places are pretty much all within an hour of where I live." As for Pratchett. One of the few books that have made me lol in public. Once or twice to the point of crying with laughter.

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snoobobbles@reddit

Roald Dahl. All of his famous kids ones are great and I also love Boy and Going Solo.

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chaldi91@reddit

Depending on your age Adrian Mole, was hilarious to read.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

Anything by Terry Pratchett, though I reckon Night Watch is his best.

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After_Tune9089@reddit

He was the funniest and the best.

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Fancy-Professor-7113@reddit

I like the Tiffany Aching books best, but Night Watch is great too.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

Tiffany Aching never hooked me the same way the rest of the witches did, I'm not sure why.

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Fancy-Professor-7113@reddit

My first ever Terry Pratchett book was A Hatful of Sky - which my sister bought for my daughters when they were maybe 7 and 8. I read it to them and I think we just all bought into the idea of her because she was young and we just got into it. Of course reading the other books introduced us properly to all the witches who we've fully bought into. The Nac Mac Feegles were a big hit because of my Scottish voice 🤣

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pizzaosaurs@reddit

Literally came to say Terry Pratchett books. Thief of time is my favourite. I think my eldest loves Witches Abroad. That's what is so great about him, he wrote in his own way but managed to shift his style to match different genres and topics.

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Jill4ChrisRed@reddit

As a one off, Monstrous Regiment is excellent and filled with LGBTQ+ allegories. Closest thing we'll get to understanding Sir Terry's views on transpeople too and by the sound of it, he was definitely an ally.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

I think acceptance permeates through all of his books, but to me, I don't think that Monstrous regiment is a good allegory for trans people at all. The characters make a conscious choice to pretend to be another gender for work purposes and acknowledge then later cut through the pretense. It reads to me more like a dissection of femininity in the workplace, where there was the belief that women had to act like men to succeed. Though the handling of the Dwarves clearly shows his thoughts about transgenderism and is a whole hearted support of it. I think that the best one off in my opinion is Thief of Time, closely followed by Small Gods.

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Jill4ChrisRed@reddit

True however Jackrum continues to live as a man after the war and his retirement, even when he doesnt need to put up the pretense anymore, which I think canonically makes Jackrum a trans man.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

But the reason he does isn't because he believes that he's a man, it's because he's ashamed to see his son. You can't separate the reason from the actions, it's the difference between him being transgender and maintaining the pretense.

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flimflam_machine@reddit

More straightforwardly, it's a book about the role of women in society.

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simmonator@reddit

It’s of its time, but I’d also recommend his treatment of the dwarven member of the Ankh Morpork watch, “Cheery Littlebottom”, as quite good for this. It’s not a perfect analogy but it’s definitely got an exploration of different ways to express gender. Holds up as pretty socially liberal and inclusive. In fact, much of the Watch sequence of discworld books are very pro-inclusion and diversity.

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cypherspaceagain@reddit

All the Watch books are about inclusion, and the stupidity of those who exclude, and that inclusion is extended to every person. Even vampires.

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Deadened_ghosts@reddit

“Hey, that’s Reg Shoe! He’s a zombie! He falls to bits all the time!” “Very big man in the undead community, sir,” said Carrot. “How come he joined?” “He came round last week to complain about the Watch harassing some bogeyman, sir. He was very, er, vehement, sir. So I persuaded him that what the Watch needed was some expertise, and so he joined up, sir.” “No more complaints?” “Twice as many, sir. All from undead, sir, and all against Mr. Shoe. Funny, that.” Vimes gave his captain a sideways look. “He’s very hurt about it, sir. He says he’s found that the undead just don’t understand the difficulties of policing in a multi-vital society, sir.” Good gods, thought Vimes, that’s just what I would have done. But I’d have done it because I’m not a nice person. Carrot is a nice person, he’s practically got medals for it, surely he wouldn’t have… And he knew that he would never know. Somewhere behind Carrot’s innocent stare was a steel door. -Jingo

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gyroda@reddit

>Closest thing we'll get to understanding Sir Terry's views on transpeople too Fwiw, his daughter has spoken on this topic and dey the record straight when some people made the opposite assumption. There might also have been something in the biography written by his assistant.

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janquadrentvincent@reddit

I mean the dwarves also explain his feelings pretty well.

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CaptainDrinksAlot@reddit

Take my upvote. Nights watch was my reintroduction to reading after a few years hiatus and had me laughing aloud and staying up late to finish.

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yarnycarley@reddit

This!!!

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BaldPleaser@reddit

Didn’t he used to be the boss of Tesco’s? I never knew he wrote books too.

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mimeycat@reddit

I see Sir Terry, I upvote. A legend taken too soon.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

G.N.U

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StonedJesus98@reddit

GNU sir PTerry

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Flaky-Jim@reddit

"But...well, Reg, tomorrow the sun will come up again, and I'm pretty sure that whatever happens we won't have found Freedom, and there won't be a whole lot of Justice, and I'm damn sure we won't have found Truth. But it's just possible that I might get a hard-boiled egg."

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

See how the little angels rise up, rise up high.

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sihasihasi@reddit

I love Night Watch so much, if you've not heard the BBC Radio dramatisation, go and find it. It's excellent.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

I'll have to check it out

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AnxiousAppointment70@reddit

That's what I came to say, anything by Terry Pratchett

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Possible_Tie_2110@reddit

Weird confession, my teenage self I used to crush on Vimes and Carrot. Terry P is a must!

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RelativeStranger@reddit

Calling them classic makes me feel old. But everyone should read them.

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Whithorsematt@reddit

I agree, although I didn't really like that in the later books Vimes is more like a superhero than a fallible everyman he started out as.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

I completely agree, though Thud has a special place for me.

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craigus17@reddit

Now please don’t shoot me down for saying this, but personally I didn’t enjoy The Colour of Magic or The Light Fantastic. I am very glad I persevered with Discworld though. Soul Music, Thief of Time and Night Watch are my favourite.

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ffordeffanatic@reddit

They're definitely his weakest Discworld novels, I don't think that Rincewind carries books on his own very well, but Equal rites and Mort that follow them are superb.

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Alpine_Newt@reddit

That's a common view even among hardcore fans.

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jimmyboogaloo78@reddit

Masquerade or any of the nightwatch.

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Routine-Rip-2414@reddit

Absolutely agree! *Night Watch* hits different, it’s funny, deep, and weirdly emotional. Honestly, it’s peak Pratchett.

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grub-street@reddit

But Pratchett is definitely not a classic. More like “popular fantasy”.

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Afinkawan@reddit

> Pratchett is definitely not a classic Why not? Over 40 years since the first one, ten years since the last one. Still read, still discussed. Still influential. Still finding new fans. Timeless and likely to be enduring. Absolutely a modern classic, and unlikely to just suddenly fade into obscurity. GNU Sir Terry.

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ShepardsCrown@reddit

Night Watch is great, it probably works as a one off but it is best if you've read about 6 other books to get the full story

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phobosinadamant@reddit

At the very least Guards Guards to see his growth, the rest you can kind of full in!

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CountvanSplendid@reddit

Guards Guards is my favourite of the lot.

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phobosinadamant@reddit

Worth it foe Vetinari's evil speach alone, I think Night's Watch edges out the the context of Guards Guards is invaluable for that book to work!

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cypherspaceagain@reddit

Night Watch is incredible partly because of the darker tone it takes. It works as a standalone, but you don't get the same sense of impact without knowing how Ankh-Morpork is usually presented or the usual nature of the banter and interaction between the Watch. And all Pratchett books have references to prior works that just make them better if you've read them.

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Different-Employ9651@reddit

Beat me to it. So entertaining. I laugh so much even when I'm re-reading them.

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jakeedwards567@reddit

loved your taste! <3

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LaraH39@reddit

Bratty book he wrote. Not a good place to start though. Best to stay with Guards Guards.

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sjplep@reddit

Terry Pratchett's 'Discworld' series. Douglas Adams' 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' series. JRR Tolkien - 'The Hobbit', 'Lord of the Rings', 'Silmarillion', 'Children of Hurin' etc. CS Lewis's 'Narnia' series. Arthur Conan Doyle's 'Sherlock Holmes' books. Agatha Christie - 'And Then There Were None' etc. Ken Follett - 'The Pillars of the Earth'. Some Charles Dickens - 'Great Expectations'. Sue Townsend's 'Adrian Mole' series. George and Weedon Grossmith - 'Diary of a Nobody'. Roger Lancelyn Green's books on mythology and folklore - 'King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table' etc. Jane Austen. Roald Dahl's books for children, and short stories for adults. Bruce Chatwin - 'The Songlines', 'In Patagonia'. There are a lot of great British writers to choose from.

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Old-Awareness4657@reddit

Little black sambo

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mcn999@reddit

Och, and all of Mary Renault

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mcn999@reddit

Bugles and a Tiger, John Masters Going to the Wars, John Verney Anything by Eric Ambler Ditto Neville Shute.

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BloodyStupidJonSon@reddit

Anything by Charles Dickens, one of the greatest writers ever. Fantastic story telling with superb characters and plot twists. I never tire of Dickens and have read and re-read his books numerous times.

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Spiritual-Mango287@reddit

You didn't specify but I'm going to say The Magic Faraway Tree - I'm so excited for the film!

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MedicalCook6653@reddit

Wuthering Heights - I both love and loathe this book

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Alert-Shirt-1694@reddit

As a love story just no.

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jakubkonecki@reddit

I really enjoyed the Semaphore Version: https://youtu.be/kqiUGjghlzU?si=t8Je7Zx1YX64ApMX

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Vegetable_Orchid_492@reddit

I reread Jane Eyre recently. I had forgotten how wild, Gothic and romantic it was. Much better than WH imo.

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Zaganoak@reddit

Jane Eyre lost me so hard in the second half, even though I loved the wild gothic romance of the first part. Wuthering Heights got better and better for me. Everyone I've spoken to sharply prefers one to the other, I wonder what it says about us and imagine it's nothing good about Team WH haha

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Zaganoak@reddit

I avoided this for years because I thought it would be some boring romance where we're supposed to like unlikeable love interests. I read it recently and LOVED it. The characters are so complex and interesting. Most of the relationships are awful but they're supposed to be. It's not a romanticized romance so much as a horror story about how romance can destroy people, about intergenerational trauma, about class and race and mental illness and the way our childhoods impact us through adulthood. These characters will stay with me forever, whether I want them to or not, even though I'm glad I don't know them in real life lmao. The drama and the vibes are so enthralling. Highly recommend.

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BobBobBobBobBobDave@reddit

I hated it. Hated it. Hated the characters, hated that I was supposed to care about them, etc. But I can also see why it appeals to people. It is so Gothic and crazy and weird. Tbh, I don't think any of the Brontes are really for me, but they are interesting and weird at least.

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MedicalCook6653@reddit

I don't think you're supposed to care aboit the characters (with the exception of Edgar bless him) but I do get why some people wouldn't find the book appealing, especially if they prefer a character they can root for in their stories

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Final_Anybody_3862@reddit

It was one of the books we had to do for 'A' Level English Literature back in the day, and while it was enjoyable, all the analysis that went along with the class kind of made it a chore to get through. Then I remembered a few years later, that as an adult I could read whatever I liked, so tried Wuthering Heights again and I absolutely loved it.

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MedicalCook6653@reddit

It is a good read, I love how flabbered my gasts are every time I re-visit the characters, they're all hideous but compelling

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Florence_Nightgerbil@reddit

The decades with which they hate each other is impressive. These people know how to hold a grudge.

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Kirstemis@reddit

Bunch of emos.

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MedicalCook6653@reddit

Emo Northerners that die if they leave Yorkshire ✅️

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Sweaty_Sheepherder27@reddit

So non fiction then?

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Old_Introduction_395@reddit

English lessons in school!

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Runneymeade@reddit

Pride and Prejudice.

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Nettinonuts@reddit

As a child I devoured many classics. Stand out favourites were The Sam Pig books by Alison Uttley, Wurzel Gummidge (Barbara Euphan Todd), the Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham, all the E Nesbit books (including The Phoenix and the Carpet, Five Children and It, The Railway Children), the Just William series (Richmal Compton), just loved Ronald Searle’s works featuring Nigel Molesworth (How to be Topp, Back in the Jug Agane, St.Trinians)… Thinking back on these they were all rather old fashioned classics that were quite humorously subversive and distinctly British.

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TMagsJr@reddit

Sherlock Holmes.

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dragonlady_11@reddit

The weird stone of brisingerman, technically a kids novel, but I loved it as a kid and still reread as an adult. Based on a legend from the area of Alderley Edge very near where I grew up, i soent a lot of time as a kod exploring the edge, locally, it's known for its tales of witches, wizards, and other mysterious things that happen around the edge and its rock formations, strange lights and noises, animals behaving oddly etc. I love that someone else visited the area an loved its folklaw and history enough to write a book about it.

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Neither-Drive-8838@reddit

Tess of the d'urbervilles. Thomas Hardy.

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Wildwife@reddit

This would be my pick. It’s very classically British in the scenery and social aspects of how Tess is treated at the time it’s set. I would warn however that it is the saddest book I have ever read and I would never read it again.

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Jane1943@reddit

I remember reading it for the first time and I cried so much for Tess.

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triz___@reddit

I watched the black and white Tess film on a tiny telly at a caravan on the the Norfolk Broads in the 80’s when I was 7. A year later I named my hamster Tess in recognition.

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Jane1943@reddit

Most films of Tess are pretty good except the Roman Polanski version. My favourite Tess is Gemma Arterton in a mini series but Angel Clare was played by Eddie Redmayne, he is a good actor but he was wrong for Angel.

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LetterheadLopsided26@reddit

Oh totally! I still get low-key mad about Eddie as Angel. So wrong.

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triz___@reddit

lol I cannot imagine redmayne as an angel. Tess was the first hardy book that really got me, I’ve since read everything he’d ever done (bar poetry) but it’s still Tess that comes to me in my quiet moments

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delpigeon@reddit

I love Hardy's writing and made the mistake of following it up with reading Jude the Obscure. Turns out Tess wasn't the saddest book he wrote!!

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triz___@reddit

I just wrote a dissertation on hardy and he’s a beautiful writer but his books destroy you,

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anabsentfriend@reddit

This is one book that really stayed with me for a long time after I read it.

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mom0007@reddit

Amazing book, great choice.

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MoreTeaVicar83@reddit

As featured in "Novel-writig, live from Wessex!" https://youtu.be/monGja7MtfY?si=gt61qBzK-BUM5gFP

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Englishbirdy@reddit

Thomas Hardy is actually my favorite novelist. I love classic literature.

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tartanthing@reddit

The Crow Road by Iain Banks. Partly because I come from the rural west coast but live in Glasgow, like the main character.

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jar_jar_LYNX@reddit

Lanark by Alasdair Gray An absolutely bizarre piece of semi-dystopian fantasy meta-fiction with a bleak, Glasweigian sense of humour

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muirchezzer@reddit

Irvine Welsh - The Acid House & also Marabou Stork Nightmares. Admittedly both are really not the easiest of reads but I loved both of them

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pale_doomfan@reddit

Richmal Crompton's "William" series.

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chasingkaty@reddit

The Picture of Dorian Gray.

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RobCarrol75@reddit

💯 I'd also add The Importance of Being Earnest

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Dic_Penderyn@reddit

I would only recommend reading that if you had seen the play first, because seeing that performed live is absolutely hilarious.

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RobCarrol75@reddit

I saw a production at the Vaudeville theatre in London a few years back that was fantastic. I had only read the play before that, so that really brought it to life. Oscar Wilde was a comedy genius.

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nonsequitur__@reddit

Hilarious too

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SzandorClegane@reddit

Wasn't Oscar Wilde Irish?

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younevershouldnt@reddit

Came here to say this. And Frankenstein felt surprisingly modern, iirc

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yrurunnin@reddit

Not British

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chasingkaty@reddit

Set in Britain.

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Pedant!

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Horror-Kumquat@reddit

It was at the time it was written.

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Giraffesrockyeah@reddit

After I finished reading it the first time I sat staring at the book for a few minutes and almost missed my tube stop, the ending was so good.

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chasingkaty@reddit

I read it for the first time for school and a few times in the years since.

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Thestolenone@reddit

I really enjoyed the Rivers of London books, weird and whacky easy reading, sort of Harry Potter for grown ups mixed with a Neil Gaiman type vibe.

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RodJaneandFreddy5@reddit

The audiobooks of this series are fantastic!

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Sudden-Requirement40@reddit

Oh I downloaded the first one for my first labour then spent 8 hours in the pool so didn't get to it and forgot! I bet I probably forgot to return it too since I came out of mat leave with like 9 credits, I only really do Audible going to work so sort of forgot about it!

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RodJaneandFreddy5@reddit

Get it again if you can, you won’t regret it. Well done with 8 hours in the pool though! If you carry on with the series you might appreciate certain aspects.

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Dreaming-of-books@reddit

My favourite audiobooks ever Kobna is incredible!

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Toikairakau@reddit

Kobna Holbrook-Smith also read the Wizard of Earthsea trilogy and made a cracking job of it

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bluebellwould@reddit

I've got the 1sr 3 graphic novel volumes too. I don't like the way Nightingale is pictured but the others are spot on. Another shout out for the audio books too. So good.

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Raen138@reddit

I'm going to a reading of his next month at Waterstones. I'm kinda hoping the narrator of his books will be there he's awesome.

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heidivodka@reddit

My husband has these on audible and they are fantastic

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Mysterious_Arugula94@reddit

I have enjoyed most of these - but the more recent books by Aaronovitch haven’t done it for me - sadly.

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Fizl99@reddit

Love these books too

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MoreTeaVicar83@reddit

Shout out for HG Wells. War of the Worlds, Time Machine, Island of Dr Moreau...all amazing. His social realism is pretty good too, e.g. Kipps.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

👍❤️

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Time-Mode-9@reddit

1984. Written over 75 years ago, and still very relevant.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

Literally the most relevant novel to today's world ever written.

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louse_yer_pints@reddit

I enjoyed 1984, Frankenstien, War of the Worlds and The Island of Dr Mereau.

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i-like-cloudy-days@reddit

Almost everything by Kazuo Ishiguro. Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go come to mind.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

The buried giant and klara and the sun... ❤️❤️❤️❤️utterly fantastic

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updownclown68@reddit

Never let me go is so beautiful and so heartbreaking

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onedayitshere@reddit

I've been loving reading Sherlock Holmes lately. Really interesting stories, and surprisingly easy to read from a modern perspective. I guess they were intended for a mainstream audience, and I actually think that counts in its favour when reading it 100+ years later. It feels sophisticated just by being so old, but doesn't get caught up in overly complicated language. (I do still appreciate being able to look up words on my Kindle though)

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

Any conan doyle is awesome.

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

Have you ever read the white company? Proper swashbuckling yarn... was one of my teenage faves

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Shoddy_Juggernaut_11@reddit

Surprised this isn't higher. A lot of the stories are short too.

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onedayitshere@reddit

Yep, really easy to get into even if you have a short attention span!

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The-Jelly-Fox@reddit

Yes, I have the Annotate Sherlock Holmes and it’s so great, because alongside the stories, there is the history of how Conan Doyle came to write the stories, but also really interesting facts and information about Victorian-era London. Highly recommend!

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onedayitshere@reddit

Ohh, I would love that!

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CalligrapherShort121@reddit

Rebecca - Daphne De Maurier The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien The Sandcastle - Iris Murdock (This was actually one I was forced to read at A-level. And the only one I actually loved).

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

The L-shaped room by Lynn Reid banks. Girls of slender means by muriel spark. The white company - sir Arthur conan doyle. Oranges are not the only fruit - Jeanette winterson The buried giant - kazuo ishiguru

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Feersum_endjjinn@reddit

Anything by ian banks.

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dbxp@reddit

Hitchhiker's guide

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Dic_Penderyn@reddit

Hitchhiker's guide is quoted so much in social media it really is a must read.

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CaptainDrinksAlot@reddit

Fantastic series. The humour was on point, it perfectly captured that out of your depth, not a clue what's going on but rolling without to be polite, British experience.

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Lshamlad@reddit

This hoopy-frood knows where his towel is. Will get you three pints.

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chrisrazor@reddit

Three? At lunchtime??

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cathb1980@reddit

Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so

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CaroSCP@reddit

Also Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency.

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RodneyRodnesson@reddit

Absolutely — if anything I preferred it to Hitchhikers Guide, maybe, I still don't know — but I do know I really loved it, felt like I'd discovered a hidden gem because Hitchhikers was so popular.

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NeilDeWheel@reddit

Absolutely, so many things to laugh at in that book. The way he sets up a gag pages or chapters ahead is genius. I still think of the couch on the stairs, many years after reading it. I’ll have to get a copy again.

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Surreywinter@reddit

Can you hold that door open for a moment please?

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The-Jelly-Fox@reddit

And all the other books in the series too! And if you don’t want to ready a physical book, the BBC radio series is fire!

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PomPomBumblebee@reddit

I finally got around to reading it at university after seeing the TV series years before and before the new movie came out. Loved it, read most of the sequels straight after.

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Prestigious-Candy166@reddit

*(Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy** and the rest of 'em. Classic? Yeah! Classic British Humour.

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digyerownhole@reddit

Orwell 1984, Animal Farm, An Homage to Catalonia Douglas Adams HHGTTG books, The Meaning of Liff Sue Townshend The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole (Age 13 and 3/4) James Herbert Rats Trilogy Not sure what scope 'classic' encompasses, but these fall into it for me.

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Time-Mode-9@reddit

+1 for the meaning of liff. Words I still use: Fremantle (taking things that are not valuable enough for it to be considered theft( Addis Ababa (unintelligible noise from loudspeakers) Sturry - the limbs of ruin that you do in front of a car which gives the illusion of speed, but doesn't affect crossing time)

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anabsentfriend@reddit

Liff is the only book that has made me cry with laughter whilst reading it and even just thinking about it. It's a bizarre concept to explain to someone else. BERRIWILLOCK: An unknown workmate who writes "All the best" on your leaving card. ELY: The first, tiniest inkling that something, somewhere has gone terribly wrong. WOKING: Standing in the kitchen wondering what you came in here for.

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digyerownhole@reddit

Skegness Nose excretia of malleable consistency The book resides, obviously, in our WC

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otherpeoplesthunder@reddit

Under the skin by michel faber. The film is great but the book it's based on is better.

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Queenoftheunicorns93@reddit

Agatha Christie books

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Nedonomicon@reddit

All sci fi here 1984 The day of the triffids Tripods trilogy Red dwarf Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy

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callandreturn@reddit

Good Night Mister Tom!

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Pharmacy_Duck@reddit

Frankenstein, Lord of the Rings, any Sherlock Holmes… How are we defining “classic” here?

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Hopeful-Ad6256@reddit

Frankenstein is so good. Scared me then upset me, as the creature was slowly humanised.

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autumnbutterfly24@reddit

Yes I second these

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Pharmacy_Duck@reddit

So, defining "classic" as anything that was on my parents' bookshelves before I was born, I'd add: Not \*just\* My Family and Other Animals, but any of Gerald Durrell's non-fiction. Three Singles to Adventure still has me crying with laughter in places. Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. A very funny, well-observed play that was also the best school drama production I was in. 1066 And All That, by Sellars and Yeatman. A spoof of the way history was taught in the 1930s. All my immediate family have some level or another of an interest in history, and we often find ourselves quoting this.

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brntuk@reddit

About the Civil War - the Royalist were Romantic but Wrong, and the Roundheads were Repulsive but Right. Says it all in a nutshell.

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Shot_Leopard_7657@reddit

Sherlock Holmes is always my answer to people who say they 'want to read more'. I think some people are put off by this notion that they're some intellectual great classic, but they're actually kind of trashy (in a good way). Easily accessible and fun little stories where you can just turn off your brain on a Spanish beach and enjoy the ride. Their reputation and accessibility together makes it feel like you're eating Mcdonalds in a fancy restaurant.

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blackdogmanguitar@reddit

I was going to say Sherlock Holmes. They really stand the test of time. Also, the moonstone by Wilkie Collins is a great read.

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Glum_Football_6394@reddit

Frankenstein is so good. I was expecting it to be difficult to read since it was written 200 years ago but I devoured it.

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SnooRegrets8068@reddit

We aren't, all shouting into the void.

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EggRavager@reddit (OP)

However you deem appropriate.

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Hopeful-Ad6256@reddit

For classics. Alice in Wonderland. I don't care how old you are.

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Reddit__user_@reddit

Anything by Douglas Addams 👍🏻

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lightninseed@reddit

Brighton Rock

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Optimal_Collection77@reddit

Not now Bernard!

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Sudden-Requirement40@reddit

I traumatised myself with this in Waterstones recently

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Upstairs_Yogurt_5208@reddit

That was my favourite as a kid

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Florence_Nightgerbil@reddit

As an adult I find it really sad that his parents don’t notice him. Kids books are so dark sometimes.

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Teazels@reddit

Off the top of my head , Spike Milligan’s autobiographical books about the second world war. They are brilliant. George MacDonald Fraser’s Flashman series and also his McAuslan books about WW2. HE Bates - Fair stood the wind for France All Douglas Adams books

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jb0079@reddit

Upvote for GMF. Particular shout out for The Reavers, which is a hilariously over-the-top swashbuckling tale told for the sheer joy of it.

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bopeepsheep@reddit

Upvote for HE Bates! In danger of being forgotten, he seems to rally in popularity now and then. It'd be a crime for him to disappear.

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liztwicks@reddit

‘Quartered safe our here’ also my GMF - a very readable account of the war in Burma as seen through the eyes of a common soldier. GMF himself was there. It helped me imagine what my Dad had experienced as a very young man.

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Teazels@reddit

Yes I have that book too. I wrote to him a few times talking about his books and he always replied too - lovely man.

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neverendo@reddit

A few I think are great. Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon (must be the great Scottish novel?) O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker (not sure if this quite has classic status?) Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys (Jean Rhys obviously grew up in the Carribbean, but she spent a lot of time in the UK) Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks (quintessential British perspective on WW1) Jeeves and Wooster (truly great comedy writing with loads in the series) Skellig by David Almond (was reminded of this one by mention of Stig of the Dump) I think Babel by RF Kuang might end up being seen as a British classic (author is Chinese, but has spent a significant amount of time in UK, and the novel is primarily set in Oxford) Recently I have enjoyed Eliza Clark's books and I can also imagine them achieving classic status Also surprised no one's mentioned Agatha Christie - I don't love her books but they are definitely British classics which people still read.

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Capable_Loss_6084@reddit

+1 for Skellig. My year 7s loved it as much as I did.

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ASmoothx@reddit

Middlemarch by George Eliot is a classic 🙌

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Capable_Loss_6084@reddit

I love both this and Silas Marner. Never had to read it for school, which may help.

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BobBobBobBobBobDave@reddit

It is, IMHO, the greatest novel ever written. But I know a lot of people who just can't get on with it. I think (like with a lot of Victorian novels) you have to accept the idea of reading for the insight and the pleasure of the writing, rather than expecting a rollicking tale or a drama every few pages. The characterisation in Middlemarch is amazing. I think I fell in love with Dorothea when I first read it, despite her naivete and flaws.

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bopeepsheep@reddit

I'm in the other camp. Read it for uni, can 100% see its literary merits, would still drown everyone in it for pleasure. Silas Marner is much better. ;-)

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BobBobBobBobBobDave@reddit

Oh, my "drown everyone in it for pleasure" book would probably be Wuthering Heights.

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bopeepsheep@reddit

Can't really disagree with that choice! I sideeye anyone who says WH is their favourite book...

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updownclown68@reddit

I genuinely enjoy Jane Austen my favourite is Northanger Abbey

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Am_I_Miriam@reddit

Pride and prejudice is lovely too, even though it's not an easy read...

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mom0007@reddit

Longbourne by Jo Baker is a great read and an alternative view on the family.

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CanarySure8594@reddit

I enjoyed that so much more than P&P. I've made a few attempts at P&P but just can't finish it whereas I've read Longbourne several times.

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mom0007@reddit

I have to admit I, too, prefer Longbourne

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autumnbutterfly24@reddit

Very funny in places

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Pepys-a-Doodlebugs@reddit

That's interesting. I read Pride and Prejudice for the first time at 18 and found it an easy read. I did however read Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre first and I found those challenging. I wonder if they broke me in?

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bopeepsheep@reddit

Austen is a much easier read than any of the Brontes - she moralises less and her style is less plodding. (I adore The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, but will pick Austen for comfort reading every time. I will probably never reread Wuthering Heights again. Life's too short.)

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updownclown68@reddit

Absolutely

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liebackandthinkofeng@reddit

Austen carries the reputation of romance novels but they are a witty commentary on social manners and expectations at the time and are actually extremely comical. Emma in particular is actually really funny and Austen is so good at creating characters who are in some ways real caricatures and in other ways very deep and complex. I think if I had read some of her books with that in mind first time, I’d have found the language more palatable!

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preaching-to-pervert@reddit

Persuasion is my favourite novel.

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FranFace@reddit

I'm a huge Austen fan, but have trouble reading the difference in language. For anyone in the same situation, I 100% recommend the audiobooks (Rosamund Pike reads some on Audible), total game changer and utterly hilarious and wonderful 🥰

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nonsequitur__@reddit

Definitely, them being read out helps so much with understanding the meaning. Same with Shakespeare.

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Throwaway91847817@reddit

Audiobooks are such a game changer for getting people into books. Really helps with Dickens too, I find.

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updownclown68@reddit

Yes it’s great having them read to you

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nonsequitur__@reddit

I’m not a big fan but read most of hers at uni, and Northanger Abbey is definitely my favourite.

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More_of_a_listener@reddit

Yes! Massive Austen fan too and the more I read the novels the more I find to love about them. Reading Austen has also led me to read other writers of her era such as Frances Burney and Maria Edgeworth.

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updownclown68@reddit

Ooh I will check them out

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bluejackmovedagain@reddit

I always recommend Emma if people want to start reading classics. It's great fun.

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Traditional-Tour37@reddit

I read this first, and I liked the book but not the characters. It didn't put me off Jane Austen though.

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WoodenEggplant4624@reddit

Me too but my favourite is Persuasion

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PumpkinJambo@reddit

Mine too, I read it every couple of years or so, I love it.

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WoodenEggplant4624@reddit

I posted on this thread about Thackeray's Vanity Fair and another favourite is Anne Bronte's Agnes Grey which is a lovely story.

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updownclown68@reddit

I’ve grown to love it more as I’ve got older

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New_Pop_8911@reddit

I had to do a twenty thousand word essay at school on pride and prejudice that put me off Austen for years. I assume they made us do it as prep for writing a thesis but it really just made me hate it. It took me years to revisit any of her works but now that trauma has passed I also love her works. My daughter had a beautifully bound set of all the books for her birthday (she asked for them!) as for various reasons she left school before getting to any Austen so is reading them with untainted eyes.

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Throwaway91847817@reddit

Its a shame that school often puts kids off reading, because I remember studying a huge amount of classics at school that I hated at the time but have since read again and loved.

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New_Pop_8911@reddit

To be honest it was only this book I ended up hating, we had excellent English lit teachers who really conveyed their passion well but this essay was set for the summer holidays, so it was looming over me for the weeks that I kept putting off starting lol. Neither of my daughters read for pleasure from the age of 11 until after they left secondary education and I think that was largely to do with how it was taught in school, which made me sad for them. Eldest is 21 and now will read a book a day if she's at home on her own.

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updownclown68@reddit

Yeah school can really ruin books

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Campievanner@reddit

I enjoyed listening to The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. Also the fact you could send a letter then and it arrived next day.

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Capable_Loss_6084@reddit

I couldn’t put this one down. A proper thriller.

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Neddlings55@reddit

Watership Down.

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Capable_Loss_6084@reddit

Still my comfort book. I read it whenever I’m unwell or need rabbits in my life.

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Whithorsematt@reddit

Yes. But I'm still scarred from watching the film as a small person.

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blahdee-blah@reddit

what did they do to us all, showing that to small people? Recently listened to the audiobook (fantastic reading by Peter Capaldi) and was on edge waiting for rabbit on rabbit violence to break out

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zipitdirtbag@reddit

Incredible book

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pinpoint321@reddit

No- ees called The Assmaster!

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Aaaaargh NO, horrible bk, horrible film. This commenter needs watching!

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JuicyStein@reddit

Bright Eyes .....

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sihasihasi@reddit

<sob>

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blue-eyed-zola@reddit

Burning like fire ...

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lordrothermere@reddit

To The Devil A Daughter by Dennis Wheatley

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Warrior_king99@reddit

Shackletons violent voyage

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FuzzyDuck81@reddit

Modern classics definitely anything by Terry Pratchett For older ones, three men in a boat by jerome k jerome is genuinely great, sure the language and some references change, but people really don't

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Massaging_Spermaceti@reddit

I picked up Three Men in a Boat in The Works when I was a teenager because I thought the name "Jerome K. Jerome" was funny. I ended up really enjoying it, to the point my creative writing project for A Level English Language was a travelogue in the same style updated for a modern audience. I got a very good mark on it, and I've had a soft spot for JK Jerome since lol

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victoriaj@reddit

The bits at the beginning of chapters which aren't humorous have aged, and seem weirdly out of place. The humour is still funny. I love that it is basically set in motion by the late 1800s equivalent of googling your medical symptoms. My mother read me the tin of pineapples but when I was a child and I laughed so hard I fell off the bed. Not very related but - old copies have ads in them ! In the middle, for chocolate. Why are books one of the few things that lost adverts ?

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Specific_Koala_2042@reddit

I agree. I was going to suggest Three Men in a Boat, and the sequel Three Men on the Bummel. There is an excellent BBC recording of it, read by Hugh Laurie.

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Throwaway91847817@reddit

Read this a few months ago after seeing the film of it with Tim Curry. Amazing how modern it felt despite being published in 1889!

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AyrtonSaintJohn@reddit

such a good question :) glad you put in the thing about not the ones you just pretend to like. i think a lot of people still do this as adults at freddie's by penelope fitzgerald is good. funny and atmospheric.

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Ianhw77k@reddit

The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, by Robert Tressell.

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HarryFlashman1927@reddit

The Flashman Papers.

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DPropish@reddit

North and South, by Mrs Gaskell. Wonderful social novel of the 19th century.

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Flaky-Delivery-8460@reddit

I recently really enjoyed Rebecca which I hadn't read. Wide Sargasso Sea (author is Dominican-British) is good, although benefits from having read Jane Erye first. I like Moonstone by Wilkie Collins as well. Anything by Austen is well written and you can enjoy the surface bits and good writing or delve a bit deeper and see the commentary on society of the time (particularly in Emma). It's not everyone's cup of tea, but Little Dorrit by Dickens is a great introduction into serialised fiction formats. His other works are obviously more famous but LD is more accessible imo.

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Few_Industry_7760@reddit

Frankenstein. And then read Spike Milligan's version. Pride and Prejudice. Then read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Also any Discworld.

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LondonLeather@reddit

Dickens, Great Expectations it is a really good read. Because it is unique in its exploration of the human condition, Hamlet seeing the play or watching one of the films counts. I'm looking forward to seeing the new National Theatre production in January.

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shaolinspunk@reddit

Brideshead Revisited. It's a reminder to us all how out of touch and intoxicating the aristocracy is to the lower classes.

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CurrentTurbulent@reddit

2001: A Space Odyssey, you see first hand what Stanley Kubrick tried to translate into celluloid but of course is impossible against Arthur C Clarke's description of a man becoming one with the universe/a god/tripping

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Expensive_Finding_74@reddit

Jude The Obscure. Holy shit is it ever bleak. But considering how old it is, the messages still respond remarkably today.

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w1gglepvppy@reddit

Any of the Jeeves and Wooster stories by P.G. Wodehouse. Generally quite light hearted and the humour has aged well. For more recent classics, I've enjoyed *The Sense of an Ending* by Julian Barnes, *Piranesi* by Susanna Clarke, & *Oranges are not the Only Fruit* by Jeanette Wintersen.

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victoriaj@reddit

__Most__ of the Jeeves and Wooster stories. There are a couple that are very racist. I do enjoy the others, but I wouldn't recommend them without the warning. I'd say they're "of their time" racist, not like H.P.Lovecraft etc, but they are pretty uncomfortable.

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SzandorClegane@reddit

Great Expectation by Dickens.

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Diddleymaz@reddit

The Narnia series. Doesn’t matter what age you are.

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CaptainDrinksAlot@reddit

"And then there were none" - Agatha Christie (1939). Tremendously well written, and a joy of a mystery to try and unravel. Whenever a friend says they are in a reading rut and need something different and thought provoking I gift my well worm copy of this to them and challenge them to figure out who the murdered is. (No one has, not even me on my first read) Other stand outs by her include anything poirot, especially murder on the orient express and death on the nile. Both of which now have movies made on fairly recently.

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Away-Ad4393@reddit

Anything by Dickens, Thomas Hardy, The Brontë sisters.

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ihavetakenthebiscuit@reddit

Oxford dictionary, starts out slowly, great twist in the middle and an ending you don't see very often.

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CaptainDrinksAlot@reddit

The picture of Dorian Grey - Oscar Wilde (1890). A guy lived a double life, doing terrible things with a beautiful face and so gets away with alot. Amazing, nuanced social commentary from over 100 years ago.

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PlasticFamous3061@reddit

What's a book?

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Dazzling-Event-2450@reddit

For a massive haul of what is considered a British masterpiece try A Dance to the Music of Time. Might be worth an audible purchase I think the whole thing is about 90hrs long.

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johnfp1966@reddit

Swallows & Amazons.

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Ready-Ant-1332@reddit

The History of Mister Polly HG Wells

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Ready-Ant-1332@reddit

Middlemarch by George Eliot

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Crochet-CrashHelmets@reddit

Wuthering Heights - and yes to ‘get it’ you have to read the passages written in local dialect in a Yorkshire Accent. I know how weird that sounds, but it does work. I struggled with it until I did just that.

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greenbeanz_5@reddit

I loved the classic horror novels: Frankenstein by Mary Shelly Turn of the Screw by Henry James (technically British American) Dracula by Bram Stoker (technically Irish lol)

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Illustrious-Berry375@reddit

I’m a huge horror fan so for me it would be anything written by James Herbert, The Magic Cottage being one of my favourites.

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Bulky_Sign_2617@reddit

Personally, I got introduced to James Herbert through a book that one of my much older cousins had left at my grandparents house. That book was 'The Ghosts Of Sleath'. I happened to be staying there for a week when i was about eighteen and from the moment I picked it up I was hooked! The Magic Cottage is excellent but I must give a favourable mention to 'Others' as well. Brilliantly written.

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DamoSapien22@reddit

The Magic Cottage! Fabulous book. Haven't thought of that for years!

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Illustrious-Berry375@reddit

The 1st time I read it In was 16, so 2000, I was captivated! Was the 1st James Herbert book I’d read and was not expecting the twists and turns along the way, had to reread it immediately and started my life long horror story appreciation, specially horror that makes you think and isn’t just gore and violence, Fluke is probably my second fave.

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DamoSapien22@reddit

I've not read Fluke, actually. Was that the one with the dog? Others I liked were The Dark (which goes to some extremely dark places), The Fog, and Haunted, as well as 48, his alternate timeline story - but my second fave was Creed, which was unexpectedly hilarious as well as disturbing.

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Illustrious-Berry375@reddit

All great books! Yes Fluke was the dog story.

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Nellie-Bird@reddit

I am still scarred by The Rats as an audiobook when I was about 12. Underground trains still give me the heebie jeebies. The Fog was also a good listen with a couple of humorous bits.

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mycatiscalledFrodo@reddit

I love '48

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Ohnoits1453@reddit

Jude the Obscure

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FordZodiac@reddit

Sherlock Holmes.

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Own-Fishing-8283@reddit

From the Victorian era, anything by Thomas Hardy. It takes some adjusting to the literary language of the era, but once you've got your head round it he's an excellent storyteller. And if you're into science fiction, then the classics by HG Wells and Jules Verne will be worth the investment of your time. From the 20th century, then anything by George Orwell. Everyone will mention 'Nineteen Eighty-Four', but if you haven't already read it then 'Animal Farm' really is one of those books that absolutely every English speaker in the world should read. Also, the original James Bond books by Ian Fleming - they're a very different beast to the films - and John Le Carre's classic spy thrillers. Back on the sci-fi theme, '2001: A Space Odyssey' is a must-read if that genre floats your boat, as are Isaac Asimov's robot and Foundation novels. If you want something a bit lighter, then the Sherlock Holmes novels are enjoyable pot-boilers, as is 'The Thirty-Nine Steps'. And if Sherlock Holmes works for you, then you'll probably also enjoy Agatha Christie's work.

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probablyaythrowaway@reddit

Mortal engines

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SnooMacarons9618@reddit

I’m a big fan of horror, sci-fi, modern fiction. Given that… Pride and prejudice. I hate’ classic’ fiction, I’m a 50+ yr old guy who grew up as a punk. I love this book. Any of Ian McEwans early works. Iain Banks has been mentioned, and I’d highly recommend The Wasp Factory - but it’s not a book you ever want to reread. JG Ballard - concrete island and Empire of the Sun (read it then watch the film with a very young Christian Bale)

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Top_Explanation_3383@reddit

Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh

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councilsoda@reddit

I love this book and will never forget the first time I read it. Got to say I prefer Marabou Stork Nightmares though.

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anabsentfriend@reddit

This was the first Irvine Welsh book I read, it took me a while to get my head around the language and rhythm of his writing, but I've read every book of his as they appear in the charity shop. I loved Filth. I'm reading Dead Mens Trousers at the moment.

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Top_Explanation_3383@reddit

Try Bret Easton Ellis next. Very different but they're both big fans of each other. Start with less than zero

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anabsentfriend@reddit

I will. Thank you for the suggestion.

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DeathGuard1978@reddit

Perdido Street Station by China Mieville. The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse by Robert Rankin or any of his Brentford novels. The Eisenhorn novels by Dan Abnett (for an accessible look at the Warhammer 40k universe).

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YourLittleRuth@reddit

Anything by Jane Austen (just don’t expect it to be a romance). Also, Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons.

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Superbad1_8_7@reddit

Clive Barker

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Geordieinthebigcity@reddit

Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome. Victorian middle-class larks.

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Marilliana@reddit

Basically all the Agatha Christie back catalogue. Some favourites of mine: The ABC Murders*; Crooked House; The Man in the Brown Suit; And Then There Were None. *Warning: you will read this and think "bit of a cliche', and then remember that this one of, if not THE first serial killer novels!

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

"And Then There Were None", they kept changing the title for it as political correctness broke out, I actually bought it a few times because I didn't recognise the change. The US couldn't cope with the original title and renamed it before its initial release! The 1930s was an interesting time. 😱😈

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Marilliana@reddit

I have a copy with the original name! I bought a complete set of Christie's from the 70s. Except they weren't really complete because her estate released two new books that she wrote during her life and placed in her safe to be published after she died - the final Poirot and Marple novels!

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

Yeah, that was a bit of a surprise when it came out about her having done that. And they weren't tame stories either. She was a great writer and made no mistakes.

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PumpkinJambo@reddit

I’m currently re-reading The ABC Murders, it’s gripping!

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Marilliana@reddit

Christie really knew how to write a page turner!!

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cathb1980@reddit

In The Country of Last Things by Paul Auster

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likes2milk@reddit

Gerald Durrell's My family and other animals. Long before the TV adaptations, this had me chuckling mainly because I could see the rooms, the people, relate to the young lads menagerie.

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SmokyBarnable01@reddit

It's curious that for much of the late 20th century, his brother Lawrence was the more acclaimed member of the familly but Gerald is now more widely recognised. Anyway, Lawrence Durrell's Alexandria Quartet is a majestic work and should be included in any list of classic british books.

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RPG_Rob@reddit

I read these as a child! They are wonderful books.

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Creepy_Radio_3084@reddit

The magenpie... no idea why that stuck with me, but it did.

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Dr_Surgimus@reddit

The Go Between Anything by Siegfried Sassoon Wind in the Willows Lord of the Rings Shakespeare...? Literally hundreds of others

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extraneous_parsnip@reddit

I struggle with the classic-classics, Austen, Hardy, Dickens, but ones I have genuinely really enjoyed: * North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell * anything by E.M. Forster * Lady Chatterley's Lover by D.H. Lawrence * Brighton Rock by Graham Greene

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autumnbutterfly24@reddit

Mmm yes EM Forster is great. Haven't read the test but you make me want to!

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RaspberryJammm@reddit

Seconding north and south & Brighton rock

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Robotadept@reddit

A Kestrel for a Knave by Barry Hines Is a great book

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VillageHorse@reddit

Great Expectations

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HidingInACupboard@reddit

Brighton Rock - opening chapter is just the best. Day of the Triffids.

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malcolmmonkey@reddit

Just read the classics. They’re classics for a reason. No shitty books accidentally slipped through and became a classic. Charles Dickens’ worst book is better than 95% of the books being written today.

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1234onions@reddit

I've been reading the BFG with my 5 year old recently, and I have enjoyed it immensely.

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Willsagain2@reddit

Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stephenson The Mill on The Floss by George Elliot Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

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PlasticSnakeVeryFake@reddit

Read some Trollope. Hilarious.

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Menyana@reddit

I genuinely enjoyed Jane Eyre. Totally recommend. I love A Christmas Carol and read it every year. Treasure Island is a must read as well.

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captain_crackerjack@reddit

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. My favourite novel.

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Ricky_Martins_Vagina@reddit

Oxford English Dictionary would be a great start for a lot of people

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ROGERS-SONGS@reddit

No one mentions Daphne du Maurier. Fantastic books that inspired Hitchcock.

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MarzipanElephant@reddit

John Wyndham. Which actually we did read at school - my class did The Day of the Triffids.

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uncle_monty@reddit

I loved reading Enid Blyton when I was a kid - I used to think they were stories from the dim and distant past, but we are now further removed from my childhood than my childhood was from when those books were written. Weird to think about. . Agatha Christie is the worlds best selling author for a reason. You can't go wrong with Sherlock Holms. Pretty much anything by Alan Bennett.

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antjelope@reddit

Oh dear. Don’t remind me of Enid Blyton. I understand people who grew up with them might be a bit nostalgic when it comes to her, but I didn’t and decided to read them as an adult. The references to corporal punishment had me already. Throw in some casual racism, xenophobia, classism and sexism and I really couldn’t enjoy the stories. :( From what I was told, those were cute children’s books, so it might have been expectation vs reality. When you see them more as a window to people’s attitude in Enid Blyton’s time, that might be more accurate.

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Sasspishus@reddit

Probably best if you stick to modern books then.

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antjelope@reddit

Oh as long as you see them for what they are (a product of their time) then they’re ok. Just cute whimsical children’s books they are not. I wish I had the fondness you probably need to look back to those stories now. But then again, fairy tales have been sanitised a lot from when they were first published. Maybe I need a republished / sanitised version of Blyton. :)

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Sasspishus@reddit

Personally I don't think any books should be "sanitised" for the people of today. Everything is a product of of its time, and rewriting books because its now seen as offensive just seems ridiculous because where would it end? If you want to read something that fits with modern day opinions and perceptions, then stick to modern day literature, don't ruin books from other time periods

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antjelope@reddit

Interestingly, I never had so many problems with Mary Poppins. But then again, the book has been revised several times including by Travers herself. And the film doesn’t contain the most problematic stuff either which helps. The question really is: are we ok with the original work potential being lost to the target audience (and replaced by adaptations or new works) or do we want to adapt them to make them enjoyable for today’s sensibilities. As I said, my problem was expectation vs reality. If I had been warned that the books were slightly problematic, but still great, I would have approached them differently and probably enjoyed them. But no, I was constantly told how wonderful and timeless those children’s stories were. So I certainly wasn’t expecting what I got. Maybe I try again in the future. But I am not quite ready for that.

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Sasspishus@reddit

Everything is of its time, so anything written a while ago will have the same issues, it's to be expected

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

Enid Blyton had a huge output, and there was quite a wide range of themes that she addressed. I love Blyton and look past the things that modern society consider inappropriate, she wrote reflecting the time that she was in: no pretence of a future society that has undergone seismic changes. Best just to give her a polite Noddy, and move on.

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antjelope@reddit

I completely get that and wish I had first encountered her as a child. I have other things which I loved as a child which looking back at them makes me notice all the problems. But the fondness I have for those stories makes me look past those.

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nonsequitur__@reddit

Ooh good shout on Brookmyre. Love the protagonist in The Cut!

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Status_General_1931@reddit

Trainspotting a modern classic

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ladybugcollie@reddit

I love Jane Austen, Oscar Wilde, Anthony Trollop, Jeanette Winterson, Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Sarah Waters - to name a few

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Specific_Koala_2042@reddit

Some that I don't think have been suggested; Elizabeth Gaskell. You could start with 'Cranford', then go on to 'North & South', 'Mary Barton', 'Wives & Daughters'. Neville Shute A Town Like Alice, On the Beach, No Highway... It might take a while to get used to the writing style, but I believe it is worth it.

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LillaLobo@reddit

Is No Highway the one about the aeroplane part? I think I had all three in one volume and loved them all, but it must be thirty years since I read them.

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Specific_Koala_2042@reddit

Yes, it's about metal fatigue, which was only just being discovered! Sorry if that's spoiler, but it is a good read, and made a good film too!

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LillaLobo@reddit

Yes, I remember now, thank you. That poor engineer!

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LillaLobo@reddit

Is No Highway the one about the aeroplane part? I think I had all three in one volume and loved them all, but it must be thirty years since I read them.

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ta0029271@reddit

Three men in a boat

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isabelhughess@reddit

Frankenstein is my favourite

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Oblomovsbed@reddit

The Flashman books are hilarious.

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PabbageCatchKid@reddit

Any John le Carré book.

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tellhimhesdreamin9@reddit

No Dickens on here yet? I know he's not for everyone but such great storytelling and characters that stay with you. I particularly love Bleak House. Also War of the Worlds is fantastic.

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autumnbutterfly24@reddit

Oh yeah Dickens is a must-read

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rizozzy1@reddit

The audio of War of the Worlds (I think it may have been a BBC radio program) was amazing. As a child, our family we used to listen to it on long journeys. That Da Da Daaaa, still sends shivers to my core.

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Orcapa@reddit

A Tale of Two Cities!

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paper_truck@reddit

Great Expectations remains one of my favourites reads, though I prefer his original ending to the schmaltzy crap his editor persuaded him to replace it with.

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BobBobBobBobBobDave@reddit

I always find Dickens a missed bag. Some of it I can't get on with and find a bit of a grind. Hard Times, for example, I hated. But Great Expectations is probably in my top five novels ever.

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PlumCrumble_@reddit

I think people are intimidated by Dickens but he's written some of the funniest, most moving, most insightful stuff you will ever read. It's extremely readable.

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imimmumiumiumnum@reddit

a Christmas carol is probably a good gateway Dickens;, fun, pacey and short. then maybe great expectations.

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Traditional-Tour37@reddit

I think I have this on my kindle, I've watched the film so many times

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Throwaway91847817@reddit

A lot of people struggle with how verbose he is, which is understandable. Absolutely listen to him as an audiobook though, makes it a lot easier.

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LittleLotte29@reddit

His bro Wilkie Collins was also pretty great. The Woman in White is very absorbing and a great fun to read, and it also features one of the most memorable female characters in 19th century British literature.

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Stunning-Wave7305@reddit

I absolutely second The Woman in White. It's a such a great book and a great starting point for anyone who loves reading but feels a bit intimidated by the thought Victorian literature.

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autumnbutterfly24@reddit

Daphne du Maurier... Lots of action and beautiful writing.

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Wes_tleton@reddit

The Machine Gunners by Robert Westall

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Crackers-defo-600@reddit

Philip Pullman His Dark Materials Best trilogy of books ever

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ecapapollag@reddit

Stupidest thing I did was read these before Harry Potter. Pullman is so filling, like a huge Christmas dinner, whereas Harry Potter feels like an ice cream sundae - fun, but not very sustaining.

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pinkthreadedwrist@reddit

Each had its place.

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TheScarletPimpernel@reddit

Wish he'd hurry up and finish the final Book of Dust. Was supposed to be released last year.

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DarkNinjaPenguin@reddit

It's finished. Release date is 23rd October this year.

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chrisrazor@reddit

He seemed to get a bit lost during book 2 so hopefully the extra time he's spending will dig him out of the hole.

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idris_elbows@reddit

I enjoyed the His Dark Materials books, but it did feel like one giant anti-church propaganda advert

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Proof-Dog9835@reddit

Warning kids about organised religion seems like a noble aim to me

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nonsequitur__@reddit

Like a perfect antithesis to CS Lewis

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MerlinOfRed@reddit

Yeah I really don't think many Christians take issue with his criticism of the church. They will be saying the same things. The point of contention is the literal war on God. Again though, excluding american-style fundamentalists, most Christians will accept that Pullman is asking all the right questions even if they don't agree with his conclusions - exactly what you want from a thought provoking piece of literature.

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KungFuPup@reddit

That is basically the idea. It's the opposite of Narnia and Lord of the Rings.

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KombuchaBot@reddit

You say that like it's a bad thing

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Happylittlecultist@reddit

I feel it started strong but by the end it was meh

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TimeNew2108@reddit

I felt this way about the game of thrones books

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Sasspishus@reddit

I never really get the love for this trilogy. It's okay I guess, but I'm not really into the heavy religious overtones and without that it's just kinda meh

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Princess_Limpet@reddit

Just kinda meh? For me it’s top quality world building, plot aside.

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Sasspishus@reddit

Yeah, for me it's OK but not great and definitely not top tier. Maybe I just don't like his writing style? Not sure what it is really, it's fine, but I wouldn't read it again. There are ither trilogies/series that I much prefer

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nonsequitur__@reddit

Brilliant books, and the prequel/sequel Book of Dust books are brilliant too!

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Florence_Nightgerbil@reddit

I’m in love with this trilogy.

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jimmyneutch@reddit

Jacqueline Wilson! I also read the Mr Majeka series as a kid.

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SebsNan@reddit

I assumed you meant the real classic when I read your question, not the sort of things people are suggesting. I may be weird but I really enjoyed several real classics like Jane Eyre, Little Women, The Mill on the Floss, Wuthering Heights,

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A_Balloon_A_Balloon@reddit

If you are interested in English life just before/around when the industrial revolution really changed the country, any of the novels by Thomas Hardy. Sometimes he went in a bit long on the description of places, especially at the start, as they were wont to do back then. But in terms of a feel of rural life, characters, story, atmosphere... really wonderful. "Far from the madding crowd" is one of the best known but allow me to humbly suggest "Return of the native" for your consideration.

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brntuk@reddit

Special mention for Honorary Brit - Paul Gallico, who lived in Devon for a while. He wrote The Snow Goose, but my favourite book, even though it is a children’s book and long forgotten, is The Man Who Was Magic, about a man called Adam who journeys to a magicians competition and wins it by performing natural magic, not stage tricks.

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TimeNew2108@reddit

As others have said Pratchett is amazing but if you like you fantasy with less humour David gemelli is also magnificent

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Voodoopulse@reddit

Stig of the dump

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PaddyProud@reddit

I don't know what this book is, all I remember is that my Geography teacher used to call me that all the time when I was still at school. After a quick search on Google images, I now understand why lol.

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BastCity@reddit

Primary school flashbacks. I'm sure this book means a lot to many people, but I am not one of them. Memories of being forced to slog this out even though I didn't care for any of it. Why was this book so popular in primary schools? Was it on the curriculum?

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TwinkletheStar@reddit

Lol. Me too. I clearly remember having this book but don't think I actually read it. Sounds like I shouldn't bother to give it a go now then?

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BrieflyVerbose@reddit

Probably the only book I managed to read all the way through while I was in school. Usually I read a little and blagged my way through telling the teacher I had read it all.

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Hated that bk, typical Eng latch-key kids adventure with a dash of Fantasy also. How different from Enid Blyton? EDUARDO Oxford OX1

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Kirstemis@reddit

I love that book

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LordGeni@reddit

Pratchett (all of them) The Bond books George Orwell (especially down and out in London and Paris, and Coming up for air) Jasper Fforde (especially Shades of Grey and Red Side Story).

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CrystalPalace1850@reddit

Anything by PG Wodehouse is hilarious. And 1984 is genuinely gripping and a very easy read.

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Dnny10bns@reddit

The rats trilogy.

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LeTrolleur@reddit

My primary school teacher got us all to read The Hobbit together in year 6, and The hobbit is probably still my favourite book to this day. Shout out to /r/lotr

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ifwhiteamerica505@reddit

While Brideshead is his most famous work I would recommend Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh. Graham Greene’s “Catholic triology” - the heart of the matter, Brighton rock and the power and the glory are fantastic. Would also recommend the quiet American by Greene, which is one of the most profound books I’ve ever read. Also recommend Burmese Days by Orwell, his anti colonial novel which made him deeply Unpopular at the time for even daring to question the virtue of Empire. And “coming up for air” for what Orwell does so well - tearing down the nonsense of the English middle class idyl.

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Ranunculus_bulbosus@reddit

Viz's Profanisaurus.

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TinhatToyboy@reddit

Saki - The Complete Short Stories

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KellehBickers@reddit

Rebecca by Daphne de Maurier

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REidson89@reddit

Dracula and Frankenstein are both great!

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SnooRegrets8068@reddit

Anything by Terry Pratchett or Douglas Adams

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Regular-Whereas-8053@reddit

One could definitely argue that these can now be defined as “modern British classics”; Adams definitely is standing the test of time without flinching for close on 50 years and Pratchett not far behind.

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sobrique@reddit

I think every school should have a Complete Works of Terry Pratchett as standard.

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LaMaupindAubigny@reddit

Penguin have just published a Modern Classics edition of Night Watch!

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SnooRegrets8068@reddit

Certainly made finding anything remotely similar very difficult.

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Regular-Whereas-8053@reddit

Q.v The Meaning of Liff by Adams and John Lloyd (co-writer of HHGTG radio series and creator of QI)

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SnooRegrets8068@reddit

Yeh got the book and audiobook.

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Regular-Whereas-8053@reddit

OMG I found a like minded soul haha

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leobeer@reddit

He seems to have gone out of fashion but anything by Tom Sharpe. I could not read them in public as the set pieces would have me howling with laughter.

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Anybody_Mindless@reddit

Fly Fishing by J.R Hartley.

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Double-Emphasis7011@reddit

Just bought this on Kindle, hopefully as good as it appears on this thread!

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sub273@reddit

Could never find it. Ended up buying a bike saddle.

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RPG_Rob@reddit

Like sitting on a razor blade

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Whithorsematt@reddit

Never read it, but I did get a Hornby R186 signal box.

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Stunning-Wave7305@reddit

My name? Well, it's...

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Witty! No spoilers please folks! EDUARDO Oxford UK

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Time-Mode-9@reddit

I've been searching for that for ages. Must have rung every bookshop.

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Acceptable-Fun640@reddit

Angela Carter. Her takes on fairy tales in The Bloody Chamber. And her novels

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m000nm0th@reddit

Cold Comfort Farm is great. Tarka The Otter is beautifully written but also very sad. Down and Out In Paris and London is fantastic. It’s very poignant and funny. Orwell brilliantly captures the speech of the homeless people he spends time with. ‘Brideshead Revisited ‘ is one of those books about posh people you’d probably avoid but is actually a really easy read and the writing is jaw droppingly beautiful.

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papayametallica@reddit

Treasure Island,

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Beautiful-You-2222@reddit

My favourite of all time!

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papayametallica@reddit

I’m reading all my favourite childhood books to my son atm. Robinson Crusoe, Kidnapped and The last of the Mohicans are in line.

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Dry-Crab7998@reddit

Pride & Prejudice. I reread it every 5 years or so. Not otherwise a romance novel fan. But the writing! Aah. I enjoy it every time.

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rizozzy1@reddit

Anything by James Herbert. Brilliant horror novels and stories. His imagination was quite terrifying. He waffles less than Stephen King too, which is always nice.

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Polythene_pams_bag@reddit

Came to say James Herbert I absolutely love his books

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RPG_Rob@reddit

I find him a bit hit-and-miss. The Rats books, Fluke, Magic Cottage, and Sepulchre were books of his that I really liked. My English Lit studying daughter finds the way he writes about women very problematic.

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rizozzy1@reddit

My favourite has to The Secret of Crickley Hall. But the Magic Cottage was my introduction to Herbert, so that one’s a close second. As a woman I can see why some may find his approach to women problematic. But personally it doesn’t bother me.

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DamoSapien22@reddit

Good shout. His conclusion to his Rats trilogy, Domain, was his best book, imo. Superb combo of post-apocalypse and creature feature.

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Debtcollector1408@reddit

Domain could have been an excellent horror book even without the rats. It's got enough material to stand alone as a threads-level nuclear horror, but the rats just elevate it.

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Belle_TainSummer@reddit

I still get nightmares over the tent scene in Lair.

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rizozzy1@reddit

I haven’t read it in years and can’t remember that scene, but I’ve got it on my bookshelf. I’ll have to give it a re-read, who needs sleep anyway!

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DamoSapien22@reddit

I enjoyed Lair and Rats but Domain was just next level. In that one there are 5 nuclear bombs dropped on London. People flee to the subways and there the rats have dominion! Awesome story.

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Weak-Acanthisitta-18@reddit

His imagination is great but definitely grotesque at times. The others, that was the first book of his I read. Quite an introduction! He does love a good fire at the end though.

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EldritchCleavage@reddit

I think Jane Austen stands the test of time. She was very canny about human motivation and the hypocrisies of society. Northanger Abbey would be a good place to start as it is quite short and pretty funny. I think adventure classics are usually easier to get into than other genres, so with that in mind I recommend: Robert Louis Stevenson: Kidnapped The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Treasure Island Charles Dickens: A Tale of Two Cities Barnaby Rudge Daniel Defoe: Moll Flanders A Journal of the Plague Year Robinson Crusoe Oscar Wilde: Dorian Grey William Golding: Rites of Passage Close Quarters Fire Down Below ( a trilogy) John Buchan: The Thirty-Nine Steps Anthony Burgess: A Clockwork Orange

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red_black_red0@reddit

The Sherlock Holmes stories are fantastic. Anything by PG Wodehouse - it's not for nothing they call him "The Master".

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LillaLobo@reddit

And if you like Wodehouse, then Saki’s short stories will be up your street too.

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DazzlingClassic185@reddit

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

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bopeepsheep@reddit

Written by an American.

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DazzlingClassic185@reddit

Was it?😂

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decisiontoohard@reddit

Oh hell yes, and We're Going On A Bear Hunt

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DazzlingClassic185@reddit

Also, The Tiger Who Came For A Pint. A classic of our times, surely

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preaching-to-pervert@reddit

Three Men in a Boat remains the funniest, most quotable English novel ever written

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EllebumbleB@reddit

I enjoyed Jane Eyre. A classic, but very readable.

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Shot_Leopard_7657@reddit

Sherlock Holmes. I think a lot of people are put off by their perception of them as these great classics, but they're actually kind of trashy (in a good way). Easily accessible and fun little stories where you can just turn off your brain on a Spanish beach and enjoy the ride. They're usually my first recommendation to anyone who says they 'want to read more'. Their reputation and accessibility together makes it feel like you're eating Mcdonalds in a fancy restaurant.

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ShepardsCrown@reddit

Animal Farm, just finished my 3rd or 4th time reading it. It's short, good and still worryingly relevant.

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MrsMaplebeck@reddit

A friend’s rather strange Mum gave me a copy for my 8th birthday. I really enjoyed it but thought it was a story about animals. Big surprise when I re-read it as an adult.

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Shoddy_Juggernaut_11@reddit

39 steps

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uk451@reddit

Most of the books I was forced to read I know adore. Eg Wuthering heights Jane eyre

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Werthead@reddit

I find most of Charles Dickens to be extremely readable (he was writing for the masses in his day, and it's not like language has changed too much since then), especially *Great Expectations*. Agatha Christie as well. People tend not to read them because they're old and they equate that with being difficult, but actually there were tailor-made for the masses. *The Wasp Factory* by Iain Banks, if you're into something dark, or *The Crow Road* if you want something funnier (the infamous exploding grandmother scene). Most of Terry Pratchett's output. I'd recommend *Small Gods* as a great, total standalone. For science fiction, HG Wells *War of the Worlds* has withstood the test of time well, maybe Arthur C. Clarke's *Rendezvous with Rama*. Certainly Brian Aldiss, most of his stuff feels like it was written yesterday: *Nonstop* and *Houthouse* are brilliant standalones, his **Helliconia Trilogy** is epic, operatic and clearly an inspiration on George R.R. Martin's **Game of Thrones** material. Alastair Reynolds' *Chasm City* is also phenomenal. The late Christopher Priest was chronically underread, but most of his stuff is excellent. Most people start with *The Prestige* (made into an excellent movie by Chirstopher Nolan, starring Christian Bale, Scarlett Johansson and Hugh Jackman, and it still didn't make Priest a star like it should have). For fantasy, *Lord of the Rings* is a great read as well as being a historic literary work. Suzanna Clarke's *Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell* is a modern masterpiece, and her much more recent *Piranesi* as well. Mary Gentle's *Ash: A Secret History* is the best-kept secret in modern literary fantasy, just absolutely mind-blowing. Probably the British classic I expected to hate the most but school, but ended up really taking on board for its very concise exploration of human nature, is William Golding's *Lord of the Flies*.

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IrritablePowell@reddit

For poetry I’d recommend Simon Armitage, Carol Ann Duffy and Geoffrey Hill’s Mercian Hymns. For novels, anything and everything by Hilary Mantel. A stunning talent gone too soon.

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PlasticFannyTastic@reddit

Anything by Patrick Hamilton - he had a bit of a revival 15 years ago and I still regard his books some of the most engrossing depictions of interwar lower/working class London I’ve read. Strangely dark and psychological (but generally humane and empathetic too) he was a bit of a Mike Leigh of his time. It actually made sense of some of the snippets of stories that our Nan used to tell us. Very evocative. Hangover Square is a good place to start.

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fengshuifountain@reddit

Any Agatha Christie and Georgette Heyer's detective novels are great! (I also love her regency romances too but they are possibly a bit niche!)

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bowak@reddit

It's probably still a bit too new, but a modern classic is definitely The City And The City by China Mieville. I'd recommend it to absolutely anyone.

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gloomfilter@reddit

Love his books. The City and The City has such a wild premise. Great TV adaptation too.

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sihasihasi@reddit

Also, Perdido Street Station, and The Scar (I thought Iron council was boring, though) Embassytown is also a good read.

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bowak@reddit

I agree with every book there. Iron Council just felt like he'd had the idea for a weird train book and had to create the rest of the novel to fit it in. He did at least then make a much better weird train book with Railsea.

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sihasihasi@reddit

Hmm. I've not read Railsea. I'll give it a go, thanks!

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bowak@reddit

It's on the YA side like UnLundun.

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LupercalLupercal@reddit

The Day of the Triffids is a great book

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ibnwashiya@reddit

Three men in a boat still makes me laugh

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gloomfilter@reddit

Wonderful - "Three men on a bummel" too.

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zipitdirtbag@reddit

One of the funniest books ever published

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Innogen@reddit

I read it once every couple of years. I absolutely adore Jerome K Jerome and this is the best of his books. We don't do DIY in my house, we Uncle Podger it.

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BobBobBobBobBobDave@reddit

Jerome K Jerome. So good, they named him twice.

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Hated that bk. Acquired taste maybe. EDUARDO Oxford UK

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ibnwashiya@reddit

You comment like my dad texts. Sincerely, LEONARDO, Cambridge, UK

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boomerangchampion@reddit

Can't believe this is so far down. Maybe it doesn't count as a "classic" because it's not gloomy enough.

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Jimboats@reddit

I had tears rolling down my cheeks the first time I read Three Men in a Boat. It still cracks me up every time I delve into it now.

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Clonmach@reddit

Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee, then his other books about walking across Spain and the civil war. All great

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Huge-Promotion-7998@reddit

Beat me to it, brilliant books, particularly if you visit the areas he grew up in and writes about.

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Low-Confidence-1401@reddit

I grew up in Stroud and didn't read Cider with Rosie until last year. I loved it so much, but knowing all the places he talks about makes it even better! I was talking to my mum about it afterwards and it turns out my great grandpa (who died when I was about 7) grew up in Sheepscombe (the neighbouring village) at the same time as Laurie Lee, so probably knew him.

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gloomfilter@reddit

I haven't read that yet, but just finished "As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning". Looking forward to reading his others.

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Huge-Promotion-7998@reddit

There's a bit in one of his compiled works where he talks about sitting on a hill and watching the Severn in the distance shining in the sun, and it's exactly like one of my favourite views near Stroud ☺️ And love Sheepscombe, The Butchers Arms is one of my favourite pubs in the area.

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MikkiderMaus@reddit

Oh yes, ‘As I walked out one midsummer morning’ ! I loved this book, preferred it to ‘Cider with Rosie’

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mom0007@reddit

Sadly, I read this at school, so it ranks top of my most hated books. I reread it as an adult but still hated it.

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Thatsthebadger@reddit

Oh Cider with rosie is such a lovely book. I haven't read it for ages, must dig it out and add it to the pile

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No-Conference-6242@reddit

I was so lucky my English teacher slapped that on our desks at 13 years old. Incredible writer.

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Puzzled_Caregiver_46@reddit

The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists by Robert Tressell.

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SparklyEarrings@reddit

This was and still is *the* most important book I've ever read in my life. I came to say exactly the same thing.

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stevej9900@reddit

Agreed, I re-read it every couple of years. I’ve lost count of how many copies I have bought and gifted over the years.

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SparklyEarrings@reddit

Same here, I teach Literature and when students ask me for recs outside of class reading material, I'm always pushing this. I remember it had a profound effect on my dad, and he couldn't wait until I was old enough to understand it. He'd talked about it so much I felt like I knew the characters personally.

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MikkiderMaus@reddit

I second this one!

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Stunning-Wave7305@reddit

100%. This had a profound effect on me. I treasure it.

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Praenei@reddit

Any of the Flashman series by George MacDonald Fraser. Not politically correct but brilliantly funny & great history lessons too.

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Uppernorwood@reddit

Brideshead Revisited is one of my favourite books. Wuthering Heights has stuck with me but it’s not for everyone. The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings are world famous for a reason.

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zipitdirtbag@reddit

Brilliant list. Only needs Watership Down adding to few perfect.

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glittermaniac@reddit

I agree with all of these and would add Jane Eyre and the Importance of Being Earnest.

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paper_truck@reddit

‘The Devil on the Road’ by Robert Westall is one from my 80s schooldays that I genuinely loved.

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realmccoyredbus@reddit

irving welsh books are excellent but hard to read if your not Scottish imo

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BastCity@reddit

Agatha Christie, as long as it isn't Murder on the Orient Express. Literally any other will do.

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Glad-Feature-2117@reddit

Agree about Christie. Hated Lord of the Flies.

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raspberryamphetamine@reddit

I love Five Little Pigs, the Suchet adaptation is amazing too!

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viimoo@reddit

Seconding Lord of the Flies!

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ecapapollag@reddit

Yes, and would add Dorothy L Sayers to that.

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popsy13@reddit

I’d recommend The Pickwick Papers (Dickens) I fell in love with one character from it, also Oliver Twist is worth reading it’s a LOT different from the film version

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Throwwtheminthelake@reddit

Redwall

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PomPomBumblebee@reddit

I'd highly recommend the His dark materials trilogy. I plucked them and another book out of a hat to read for book week at university and I read all 3 over 2.5 days. I ditched the other book and went fully on this trilogy for a second time Very good, very likable characters and villains but my god the emotional impact. I got my best friend at university to read them and he texted me in the middle of the night one time saying he finished it and genuinely wept at the end. He is now my husband. I was not a fan of the book of dust books which were written years later(took several attempts to read the first which I didn't like the ending of, I gave up on the second) so I would not recommend reading them first (the first is a prequel and has spoilers if you read first) but I love the smaller books that were written like Once upon a time in the North and Lyras Oxford (just discovered there's a 3rd I didn't know about). I enjoyed the first season of the HBO series to a point but have not seen the second season. Its a difficult book to get right on screen with several topics such as anti religion which would rub some the wrong way. Some amazing cast choices for the original film though, Sam Elliott played one of my favourite characters in it and I love Iorek.

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nonsequitur__@reddit

I love this trilogy and have reread many times. I also love the Book of Dust books but definitely recommend reading them second. Especially given the time jump between books 1 and 2, and 2 being set well after His Dark Materials.

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collapsedcuttlefish@reddit

Zuleika Dobson by Max Beerbohm. Never went to Oxford, or even university for that matter. So I doubted I was going to get into the setting. But I really enjoyed the themes of identity centralised on a woman character. It really plays really well with the oxymoronic expectations of women in the Edwardian era, and Max Beerbohm is one of the few who pointed out these societal inconsistencies. And it's almost unbelievable to me how much of these expectations still linger onto today in a modernised hat. His much earlier entry in the yellow book periodical 'a defense of cosmetics' is also lead by this theme, and critiquing society's view on women was quite controversial then (1896 and 1911). There was a real fear at the time from the general public that writers like Oscar Wilde and Max Beerbohm were going to completely degrade British society. Oscar Wilde for his illegal homosexual acts, and Beerbohm for his emulation of Wilde and suggestions of female sexual and romantic agency. As someone who enjoys art history for showing me how societies have developed through the years in their attitudes and fears, Beerbohm is great for revealing said attitudes and fears he experienced in his period, many of which non-decadent contemporaries dared not touch with a barge pole. Perhaps a more significant look into these themes could be Joyce or Wilde, but Zuleika Dobson is short and packed with character and Beerbohm satirical silliness.

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Cassandra_UK@reddit

Day of the Triffids. It's just so very British and it's a very quick read very much the page turner.

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ExoticMangoz@reddit

Orwell is a classic for a reason. *1984* is better than *Animal Farm*. *Brave New World* by Huxley is also a good classic. Technically under the British Empire when she was born in Canada, I’ll include Margaret Atwood. Anyone who hasn’t read *Oryx and Crake* is missing out (it’s one of my favourite novels) and it has two decent sequels. *The Handmaids Tale* is also very good (though I haven’t read its sequel, *Testaments* yet). You might have read all of these but if you haven’t they are definitely classics.

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nonsequitur__@reddit

The Testaments is well worth reading! I had The Handmaids Tale listed originally then took it out for being Canadian so glad it’s here! And Oryx and Crake too.

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Regular-Whereas-8053@reddit

Someone sent me an Insta reel of a “Scottish Handmaid’s Tale”, and now I can’t see it any other way 😂 worth seeking out

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StarkkContrast@reddit

Ridley Walker

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Rog2006@reddit

The Flashman books. Had to stifle a few laughs into the duvet so I don’t wake the wife For some the series will get too repetitive but I’d highly recommend the first few

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Ti-Jean_Remillard@reddit

Discworld (Terry Pratchett)

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Ok_Introduction_1882@reddit

Childhood i used to love Enid Blyton especially the boarding school series and K M Peyton who you never really hear about anymore. The Pennington books and Flambards. Not seen my favourite Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier mentioned yet either.

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bopeepsheep@reddit

She died quite recently - Dec 23. I reread all of Flambards last year as a result.

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Which_Performance_72@reddit

Sherlock Holmes, a picture of Dorian gray (my favourite of all time), Lord of the rings

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StressedOldChicken@reddit

Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons is hilarious and a great read, particularly if you live in the countryside. The Driver's Seat by Muriel Spark - a very dark short novel about a woman who wants to be murdered. Spark is better known for The Pride of Miss Jean Brodie. Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain is also a remarkable autobiography about a middle class woman in WW1 who becomes a Red Cross nurse. She loses so many friends, her fiancé and her brother - it's a harrowing read that feels almost like it was written yesterday. Pair it with Sebastian Faulks's Birdsong.

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Beautiful-You-2222@reddit

Brontë sisters and Jane Austen.. Dickens.

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LandofGreenGinger62@reddit

I actually really enjoyed Watership Down... I'm told that puts me in a minority, but it's v gripping...

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Comfortable_Backside@reddit

The Ragged Trousered Philanthropist- Robert Tressell

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nonsequitur__@reddit

Classics: - The Picture of Dorian Gray - Dracula - Frankenstein - Brave New World - Rebecca - Northanger Abbey - most of Sherlock Holmes - Alice in Wonderland - Gullivers Travels - The Secret Garden - Beowulf Modern Classics: - almost all of Muriel Spark — I particularly like The Drivers Seat read by Dame Judi Dench - 1984 - all of Kazuo Ishiguro - especially The Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go - Atonement - much of le Carre

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merlin8922g@reddit

The Road to Wigan Pier, George Orwell. The opitome of British life.

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2TinsOfCondemnedVeal@reddit

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘩𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘳'𝘴 𝘎𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘛𝘰 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘹𝘺 and 𝘞𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘋𝘰𝘸𝘯 both perfectly capture British society as it was at the time — anything by Adams is highly recommended. Similarly, while the authors Iain Banks and Iain M Banks have very different styles — and set their characters in wildly different universes — each of them weave quintessential Scottishness into their worlds.

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Little_Region_827@reddit

Douglas Adams and Richard Adams are not the same person

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emerald7777777@reddit

It’s the same person. He added the M to his science fiction. Without the M was mainstream fiction.

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SalParadise100@reddit

Down and Out in Paris and London

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BarNo3385@reddit

I actually thought Pride & Prejudice was quite good. Probably the best of the "do them in school" classics. Frankenstein and Dracula (Stoker was Irish, but when Ireland was part of the UK) are both very readable. Treasure Island I think was quite good too.

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tr1pdee@reddit

Coming Up For Air - G. Orwell.

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Purple-Pie4283@reddit

The Thirty Nine Steps by John Buchan. Not a wasted syllable in there - tight, fast, fun adventure that you’ll read in a sitting. Then the rest of his Richard Hannay books, then…the guy wrote a LOT. His historical novels are also well worth it, but 39 steps is the place to start.

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Little_Region_827@reddit

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell and The Woodlanders by Thomas Hardy are relatively recent discoveries for me. Fantastic stories.

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SnooBooks1701@reddit

Dracula

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

Anything from the pen of Robert Rankin. Author of self proclaimed far-fetched fiction, not limited to: The Brentford Triangle, East of Ealing, The Antipope, The Sprouts of Wrath and The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse. I cannot pick a favourite, I just listed a few that came to me as I was typing. He deserves a much wider audience to appreciate the weird worlds that he creates; often in and around Brentford. Point of interest, he writes in pencil in old fashioned exercise books! 😄😄😄

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Hot-Chocolate-3402@reddit

Anything by the author Bill Bryson. For an outsider's view of Britain, start with Notes From a Small Island. It's literally my favourite book and led me on to many great others. Not sure you'd consider it a classic, but I guarantee people will be referencing these books in the next century.

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idris_elbows@reddit

My Uncle Oswald by Roald Dahl (I know he was Norwegian but iirc he lived over here)

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TollemacheTollemache@reddit

Born and raised in Cardiff.

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WillJM89@reddit

JRR or CS Lewis, Cider With Rosie, Poldark books.

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Simulacrum2720@reddit

"The Monk" by Matthew Lewis "High Rise" by J.G. Ballard "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

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cwatt69@reddit

Captains Courageous by Rudyard Kipling is a great booj

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Sszaj@reddit

Are we still allowed to recommend Neil Gaiman? Feels kind of weird, but I love so many of his books.

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

I know what you mean; it doesn't feel right to "cancel" the whole body of work that was so enjoyed previously, because of the discovery that the artist didn't deserve the pedestal that he'd been placed upon.

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Ulfgeirr88@reddit

My recommendations are going to have a heavy scifi bias, so: The revelation space series by Alistair Reynolds (one of my all-time favourite sci-fi series but can be dense reading) Dune Anything by Terry Pratchett Dracula Frankenstein Pretty much anything by Arthur C Clarke The Children of Men by P D James

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zobovaultgirl@reddit

Wuthering Heights definitely. Great Expectations. Dickens gets some stick, but I like his episodic style writing.

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

People forget that Dickens was writing for publication in a newspaper — it was necessarily episodic because of that. I love his writings.

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gromitrules@reddit

I genuinely love all Jane Austen’s books (even the ones where I would hate the characters if I met them in real life - Mansfield Park, I’m looking at you) and I adore Jane Eyre. So, so well written, beautiful language, great characterisations. I also loved William Golding’s Lord of the flies, even though I don’t feel the need to read it again now it struck a chord with teenage me (bullied and not massively fond of children my own age at the time). I reckon those all generally go on the ‘forced to read at school’ list, but I love them anyway. Not on that list (and I can’t imagine them being force-fed at school) - anything Terry Pratchett. Just an absolute hoot, laugh-out loud funny - and THEN you discover the barb of social commentary and the unflinching portrait of humanity inside the jokes. Admittedly not so much in the first books where he was still finding his feet and creating the world (and clearly just having fun with jokes and wordplay), but pretty soon the social conscience starts shining through.

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IrascibleOnion@reddit

We have exactly the same taste! I’m adding on Tenant of Wildfell hall, wuthering heights, vanity fair and my absolute favourite- Middlemarch

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Hour-Cup-7629@reddit

Diary of a Nobody by the Grossmith Brothers. Its still hilarious. The Complete Molesworth by Geoffrey Willans, still funny as f.

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br0wn0ni0n@reddit

Haven’t seen it mentioned, so I’ll suggest “The Swiss Family Robinson”. Found a copy of it when I was a kid and I’ve read it many times over the decades. Nice and short enough to get through in a day or two and it always appealed to my desire to escape society and live on a remote island.

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sbg_gye@reddit

The Lord of the Rings

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Academic-Ad-3677@reddit

Decline and Fall and the Sword of Honour trilogy by Evelyn Waugh Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis Money, London Fields, and Experience by Martin Amis

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fleshcircuits@reddit

watership down. and it has a totally different vibe to the film, before any one says it.

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

The two films have different vibes to each other as well. Read the book. It's the best.

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Vivid-Blacksmith-122@reddit

Define classic? I love Ballet Shoes but I don't think it would be studied in school. Its a stone cold classic in my eyes. Lord of the Flies is pretty great.

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12EggsADay@reddit

I really enjoy Norman Lewis' books if you're into observing cultures from a now bygone era. Naples 1944 is a classic but his other books are a interesting look into a life of a wanderer.

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Choice-Bid9965@reddit

Marabou Stork Nightmares. Irving Welsh, Also by him Trainspotting.

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yOB-LEd@reddit

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

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BobBobBobBobBobDave@reddit

The Ballad of Peckham Rye is also very good.

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Diplomatic_Gunboats@reddit

Most stuff by Iain Banks, particularly Use of Weapons and the Wasp Factory.

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Desperate-Cookie3373@reddit

Middlemarch by George Eliot is astonishingly good. Anything by EM Forster too, but especially Howard’s End which is a fantastic lyrical take down of the British class system and A Passage to India as a critique of Empire. Anything by Salman Rushdie but my favourite is The Moor’s Last Sigh. Also anything by A.S. Byatt, but particularly Possession or The Children’s Book.

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cloche_du_fromage@reddit

Brighton Rock Far from the adding crowd Martin Amis at his peak was pdg. Money is a cracker.

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Previous_Kale_4508@reddit

Ah yes, Far from the Adding Crowd. An early view of a time when everyone can do maths. 🤣

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Aeysir69@reddit

Use of Weapons - Iain M Banks There have been various recommendations for Iain’s sci-fi (M. Banks) and non-sci-fi (Just Banks) with Wasp Factory a deserving classic (Crow Road was life changing) but, Use of Weapons is Iain at his most sadistic. Just make sure you find a comfy chair.

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East-Present1112@reddit

Rogue Male, by Geoffrey Household, is a classic thriller novel, published in 1939. Loved this- intense, claustrophobic, bizarre and Dorrrrrset!

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highlandviper@reddit

The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake.

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Butagirl@reddit

Second this. I read it as a teenager and adored it. I must reread it some day.

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Toikairakau@reddit

I third this, some of the images were so memorable, the baker leaving a cake to show how far he'd come, Steerpike, Fuschia 'the water drowned her at its ease'

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8NaanJeremy@reddit

There's a lot of great Irvine Welsh novels, I would have to say 'Filth' is my favourite though Mind bending, disgusting, gripping and hilarious

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crumblingruin@reddit

Rogue Male by Geoffrey Household. Written in 1939, it clearly inspired many thriller writers of future decades, including Ian Fleming. Not high literature but utterly gripping from start to finish.

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SpaTowner@reddit

I’ve just had to go took this up as Zi was surprised it was a whole novel and not a short story. We read this in primary 7 (age 11-12 I think) and all I remember are the opening and what’s apparently the very end when he’s stuck in some sort of hole in the ground and is saved by ingenuity and Asmodeus’s remains. Is it a short book? I wonder if we might have read some sort of abridged version.

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crumblingruin@reddit

A couple of hundred pages, so a short novel or a long novella, really.

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SpaTowner@reddit

Ah, we probably did read it all then. It was getting on for 50 years ago so not really surprising that my recollection is imperfect! Cheers.

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No-Daikon3645@reddit

Jane Eyre. Woman in white. Pride and Prejudice. Dracula. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. I loved Middlemarch, but i seem to be on my own with that choice. Oliver Twist. 1984. All the Jeeves and Wooster books. And I love a bit of Agatha Christie.

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HeartyBeast@reddit

A Room with View is a good read

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Alpine_Newt@reddit

Treasure Island. Frankenstein. The Lord of the Rings. Discworld

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StillJustJones@reddit

The day of the triffids - I love that book.

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Toikairakau@reddit

The Once and Future King, by T H White, it's such an affectionate look at Britain and genuinely moving

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badbadget@reddit

Wind in the willows. Pooh bear.

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mom0007@reddit

Georgette Heyer, many of her regency romances are hilarious, Cotillion is my favourite. The lesser known murder mysteries are good, too. A passage to India by EM Forster is fantastic. No classic English book list is complete without books from DH Lawrence. Lady Chatterley's lover and Sons and Lovers being my favourites. Never Let Me Go would also be on my list.

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Lshamlad@reddit

Time is an illusion, lunchtime doubly so

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JJGOTHA@reddit

Wuthering Heights Jane Eyre I read both for the first time, recently. They are great books

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Inglourious_Bitch@reddit

Hopping onto the Jane Eyre train, Wide Sargasso Sea is FANTASTIC for some British Commonwealth reading (the author was born in Jamaica) It's a prequel that came out in the 60s about the first Mrs Rochester, it's quite short but what a ride

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JJGOTHA@reddit

Just ordered it. So, this is on you, now.

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WilkosJumper2@reddit

People are not pretending to like them.

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129sapphires@reddit

Tess of the d'Urbervilles Novel by Thomas Hardy. Heart wrenching. Loved it so much that I was thinking about it afterwards. Re-read it 2 days later. It affected me as I was going through the same thing as Tess and the love of her life.

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mom0007@reddit

I love the Mayor of Casterbridge too, but Tess is incredible.

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Aberfalman@reddit

Moonfleet by J. Meade Falkner.

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Chargerado@reddit

The Faraway Tree series by Enid Blyton.

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mom0007@reddit

The tripods trilogy by John Christopher incredible young adult Sci fi

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Chargerado@reddit

Midwich Cuckoos and Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham and I Claudius by Robert Graves.

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mom0007@reddit

CS Lewis books starting with the magicians nephew and the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe.

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Bluebirdhouse11@reddit

1984 Trainspotting Rogue Male (read this at school in 90s for gcse) downloaded it recently and read again.

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shell-84@reddit

Cold Comfort Farm. One of the best books ever imo

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chrisrazor@reddit

His Dark Materials

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Whithorsematt@reddit

Dorothy Sayers. Ellis Peters. Most things by the above.

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ZaphodG@reddit

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was written in 1979.

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boostman@reddit

Feeling really old reading this thread because all the answers are from the 20th century whereas to be ‘classic British book’ means Brontë or Dickens.

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PinkGinFairy@reddit

Cold Comfort Farm

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parsl@reddit

I think everyone commenting ought to read The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde

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itsYaBoiga@reddit

Maybe not classic, per se but the Adrian Mole series.

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Nancy_True@reddit

The Picture of Dorian Gray, Hound of the Baskerville (or any Sherlock Holmes), Jane Eyre and Lady Chatterley’s Lover are all brilliant. As a fan of mystery, I’d also recommend anything by Agatha Christie (although not sure how “classic” they count as being)

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PleiadesMechworks@reddit

>Not the ones we all got forced to read at school and pretended to like Those *are* the books you should be reading, idiot. You didn't like them because you were forced to read them, but if you read them now you'd probably enjoy it.

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djashjones@reddit

Adrian Mole & Fly Fishing by J.R. Hartley.

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Hamsternoir@reddit

Never actually read Fly Fishing, it's always been sold out when I've looked for it.

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Stunning-Wave7305@reddit

You have to ring around a load of bookshops. Takes ages.

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griffird@reddit

It’s more English than British, but The Buried Giant is a good contemporary novel about a post-Roman, fantasy Anglo-Saxon period.

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_Jay-Garage-A-Roo_@reddit

Idk if these are “curriculum” books but I loved them: Great Expectations, Tess of the d’Urbevilles, Frankenstein, and Gulliver’s Travels.

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_Jay-Garage-A-Roo_@reddit

Also this is a wonderful example of the importance of the Oxford comma, lest anyone go searching for a book in which Dr Frankenstein and Gulliver go on trips together.

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Stunning-Wave7305@reddit

Heart of Darkness. In its simplest terms it's a surprisingly fresh, incredibly well written, short adventure story. But there's much, much more to it than that: a critique of colonialism, of racialism and of cities versus wilderness. The fact it was written by Conrad when English was his third language is remarkable. It's one of my favourite books and I'd recommend it to anyone.

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Throwaway91847817@reddit

Anything Dickens, but definitely as an audiobook. Hes very long winded and it can be a pain to read at times, but very rewarding when hearing it aloud.

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Fyonella@reddit

Jane Eyre Tess of the D’Urbervilles Three Men in a Boat Robinson Crusoe

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

OMG. Jane Eyre, Tess of the Wotnots, what are you trying to do to the youth of .today? Had to do them for A-level. Will kill anything I suppose. Luckily Eton College had a realistic expectation of what you can expect of adolescent boys without inviting open revolt. They showed us the fllms instead.

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Fyonella@reddit

I genuinely enjoyed both! I admit Tess was an A-level text but I read ahead over a weekend and have read it several times since. Jane Eyre I read at 13 for pleasure, and again have read it since. Tbh - I almost put Bleak House on the list (another A-level text) but figured it might be a bit heavy going in places although I really enjoy it.

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Whole-Ad-2618@reddit

The Animals of Farthing Wood by Colin Dann are books I recommend regularly to people with kids. Along with Mr Men by Roger Hargreaves (and the lesser known Timbuctoo series) they were my window into reading myself. They’re from late 70s/early 80s so I guess that makes them classic-ish.

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MysteriousBebop@reddit

We have one of the literary heritages in the world bruh. Start with Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton...

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Orange-Squashie@reddit

1984 or animal farm.

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steerpike_is_my_name@reddit

Any Alan Garner - both fiction and autobiography. He conveys a startlingly real sense of place, time, history rooted in rural Cheshire, mostly. The Weirdstone of Brisingamen is his best known work but his recent books are great too.

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Poser-Dispozer@reddit

Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh Anything by Graham Greene Anything by William Golding, but The Spire is my favourite. 1984

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remus213@reddit

I remember enjoying reading these ( in the order I read them in my life) - The Chronicles of Narnia, His Dark Materials, (not exactly "classic" as it was written fairly recently but a great British fictional series I read was called "The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness" depicting a neolithic Britain/Europe). Oh and going back to earlier in my childhood Beatrix Potter ofc. Lord of the Rings was ok but did drone on a bit - definitely written by an academic rather than a vivid storyteller. Sherlock Holmes. Great Expectations was the only dickens one I actually read and liked at the time. George Orwell ofc - his political satire novels Animal Farm and 1984. Rudyard Kiplings various tales/fables were quite good. There was also a very funny old nursery rhyme book (not sure if it was English) but belonged to my great grandfather and had some rather amusing / disturbing tales. I had nightmares about a giant man with scissors chopping off my thumb and blood pouring out.

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llynglas@reddit

Lorna Doone.

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loveswimmingpools@reddit

Jane Eyre. I loved that book as a teenager. And I've read it several times since. Most classics are too descriptive for me but I love this book.

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Stevebwrw@reddit

On the Beach by Neville Shute. I read it last year. It is very dated in its language and so on, however the central message and story still hold up well. How people come to face their inevitable end is extremely moving. I found it deeply affecting.

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majesticfloofiness@reddit

Several have already mentioned Great Expectations, but I’d say that part of its enduring appeal, is that it was popular during Dickens’s lifetime and accessible, as he and other contemporaries had work published in volumes, so you have multiple twists and climaxes to keep the reader engaged before the next volume was released.

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Psittacula2@reddit

Highrise \~ JG Ballard Why? \- Recognizable modern Britain = A mix of modernity mixed with underlying primitive, human drives. \- A combination of “everything is a bit lousy” mixed with “what would happen if people rebelled against that feeling to feel more alive”? \- Recognizable stereotypes, characters irrespective of the authoritarian modern thought police saying that is wrong, it still exists and Ballard always point out the thin veneer of ”Civilization and society mores“ which is thin veil over deeper subconscious forces in people. \- “dark humour”, think of the local pub bore who literally turns into a human boar… ! Or any other of Ballard’s books: Millenium People, The Drowned World, Empire of the Sun.

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AwkwardDuddlePucker@reddit

Tess of the d'Urbervilles and Of Mice and Men

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AwarenessComplete263@reddit

Any of Ian Fleming's James Bond books are quite good. Much better than the films, which originally put me off reading them.

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Absolutely 100%

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Birdy8588@reddit

I think every young tween should read Goodnight Mister by Michelle Magorian. It's such a beautiful and tragic book. Even adults should read it if they missed out when they were young.

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VeterinarianVast197@reddit

Alice in Wonderland is worth a read as an adult too

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

For adults or precocious children, try The Annotated Alice. The annotations are things like possibilities in modern physics, answer to the riddle asked at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party, etc.etc. EDUARDO Oxford UK

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Zephinism@reddit

I enjoyed "A Very British Coup" by Chris Mullin If you want humorous books to bring early teens into reading I suggest the following 3 by Anthony Horowitz Falcon's Maltesers, Public Enemy Number Two and South by South East. They are comedic homages written with a lot of wit.

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ChonkHole@reddit

Middlemarch is the one classic epic you should definitely read

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plantlady1-618@reddit

Pride and prejudice. Honestly, one of my favs. I've lost count of the number of times I've read it or listened to the audio version

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Wonderful_Welder_796@reddit

HG Wells and Arthur C Clarke

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Thatsthebadger@reddit

I really enjoy Anthony Trollope, The Barchester Chronicles is a lovely series. Also Jane Austen. Like others have mentioned, Terry Pratchett was a genius. Other modern stuff I've enjoyed: Joe Abercrombie, Robin Hogg, Phillip Pullman

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Unique_Day6395@reddit

Pat Barker Regeneration Trilogy

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Designer_Pin4130@reddit

Mary Webb- Gone to Earth.

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Greggybread@reddit

Robert Louis Stevenson is great. He doesn't have that flowery 15-words-when-five-would-have-done style you get in a lot of British classics. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Treasure Island are both very fun reads. The Magus by John Fowles I feel is a modern classic. Beautiful writing, mysterious, psychological. The Lord of the Flies by William Golding - short, brutal, very memorable.

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Hamsternoir@reddit

I actually quite enjoyed the Thomas Hardy books.

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morriax42@reddit

Pride and Prejudice, most of the humour has actually held up

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erbstar@reddit

The Far Pavillions by M M Kayne It's classically British and beautiful

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zobovaultgirl@reddit

Also, more modern, Don Delillo White Noise is a great detective novel.

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zobovaultgirl@reddit

But not British!!

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Egregious_Flame@reddit

The Orton Diaries The naked civil servant

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Pure_Cantaloupe_3195@reddit

I love Thomas Hardy's books and poems. He perfectly encapsulates rural and social mores of the time.

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Kat8844@reddit

The Mayor of Casterbridge and Tess of the D’ubervilles by Thomas Hardy, did them at school and they’re still favourites of mine all these years later!, they are a little on the bleak side though!.

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DameKumquat@reddit

Some less well known ones, and modern classics: The Crow Road by Iain Banks. Morality Play by Barry Unsworth Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch Regeneration trilogy (and anything else) by Pat Barker The Mask of Apollo - Mary Renault The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole - Sue Townsend (and Growing Pains, but the later ones are just depressing) A Diary of a Nobody - G&W Grossmith Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

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mcintg@reddit

Douglas Adams hitchhikers guide, Dirk Gently

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Huge-Armadillo-5326@reddit

If you want something humorous I’d suggest anything by Tom Sharpe, Ancestral Vices is where I’d start. My grandad got me on to them.

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Ok-Location-9910@reddit

I have a love for classic British sci-fi/apocalypse/dystopia novels. War of the Worlds obviously, the works of John Wyndham, Arther C. Clarke, John Christopher is underrated as hell

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AllScatteredLeaves@reddit

I loved Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. I also think that John Berger's Ways of Seeing is so useful for everyday life.

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MelodicPaws@reddit

A Room with A View - E M Forster

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tonio776@reddit

Terry pratchett Douglas Adams Tom sharpe are 3 of my favourites

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Srapture@reddit

This thread seems to have revealed to me that I have almost exclusively read British books without realising it, haha

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LAcasper@reddit

My favourite book ever is 'The Collector' by John Fowles. It was written in the 60s so I'm not sure it can be considered classic but it would be old enough to retire now haha.

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not_so_lovely_1@reddit

White teeth

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appetiteneverceases@reddit

I think I recommend this book once a month, it's brilliant.

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coffeewalnut08@reddit

David Copperfield Great Expectations Nicholas Nickleby The Secret Garden A Little Princess Adrian Mole

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azoldale@reddit

Virginia Woolf

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CaroSCP@reddit

Mary Barton

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TheAntsAreBack@reddit

Lord of the Rings is still the greatest.

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jexodus91@reddit

My Son, My Son by Howard Spring

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LAcasper@reddit

I really loved The Great Gatsby

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Littleleicesterfoxy@reddit

Some of his books haven't aged wl but Tom Sharpe. Also Michael Green

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all_the_sevens@reddit

Howard’s End by EM Forster. Had to read it at school, read it many times since.

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KombuchaBot@reddit

There's a story I read by another writer that they met Philip Larkin at a not very good amateur boxing event and Larkin said sadly to the other guy "only connect"

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MillyMcMophead@reddit

I love all Forster's books.

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Little_mossy_tuffet@reddit

Diary of a Provincial Lady by E M Delafield and I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (she of 101 Dalmatiins fame) are two of my most reread favourites.

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JT_3K@reddit

Casino Royale is a much better book than any of the other Bond books, and far better than the film (which I enjoyed but it wasn’t as good). It’s an easy read and very interesting. Moreover, I hate the “gadgets and smugly-delivered one-liners” type Bond and Casino Royale was a clear and realistic depiction of what could have been at that time.

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Muggerlugs@reddit

I just read the secret garden and it was a nice easy read that I enjoyed after a couple of heavy books.

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KombuchaBot@reddit

It starts off very strong, but the culmination in the boy's mystical theories about Life energy were a bit weird, like they were joining a cult. I think Little Lord Fauntleroy is actually a bit less offputting on the whole

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subbiedavie@reddit

Brideshead Revisited is pretty good.

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Crayons42@reddit

Wind in the willows, War of the Worlds, anything by M R James.

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Good taste, though nowadays the Willows are in the wrong genre, are watched as colour cartoon. If you do read the bk, be sure to skip the chapter called The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. It is a weird discourse of the mystical-religious genre, which has nothing to do with the rest of the book. Just like the Tom Bombadil chapter in Lord of the Rings. See even the mighty Tolkien could have done with an editor. Everyone could do with an editor, it's part of the human condition.

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Tommy-Foxwell@reddit

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Also, 1984 George Orwell. Classics that hold up well today. Almost too well for 1984

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Competitive-Kick8064@reddit

Casino Royale by Ian Fleming. I could suggest many Bond books but his first is the best. I would also recommend thrilling cities by Fleming too. It's his account of traveling the world in the 1960s. His amazing prose describing a world that now no longer exists

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heywhatwait@reddit

Well, although we read them at school, I did enjoy A Kestrel for a Knave (Kes) and Cider With Rosie, and have read them since. Basically because they were snapshots of what was real life at the time of the book. And Lord of the Flies (although not a historical snapshot). I’ll freely admit that I’ve not helped there.

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yearsofpractice@reddit

Hey OP. I’d recommend Orwell’s The Road To Wigan Pier. It’s more “embellished journalism” than true fiction, but it’s explosive. It changed me as a person as it opened my eyes to privilege, poverty and power. It powerfully disabuses one of the idea that life is somehow fair or just, but gives ideas and thoughts on how it could be. Orwell speaks to me like no other author.

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dom_eden@reddit

Of Human Bondage by W Somerset Maugham. Fantastic tale set in London and I’m always surprised how many people haven’t heard of him, a brilliant writer.

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MillyMcMophead@reddit

I concur. I love a bit of Maugham.

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KombuchaBot@reddit

Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson is a banger.

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Scout_the_Vole@reddit

I’ve not seen anyone mention Ray Bradbury, so throwing his name out. ‘The illustrated Man’ was recommended by my Dad, a collection of weird & wonderfully sci-fi short stories that stay with you long after you finish them. ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee is a classic that’s worth its hype in my opinion, read it multiple times. Never studied it in school though & I know ppl who did that dislike it bcos of that!

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mincepryshkin-@reddit

To me it has always seemed dumb to let school put you off books. Or be out off by the sense that something is too canonical. I re-read Hamlet for the first time since school (so about 10 years) and I was stunned by how good it was. The classics that we read in school are classics for a reason. So, I'd always recommend going back and reading the "standard" great books if you haven't already. Middlemarch, Paradise Lost, Great Expectations, the Canterbury Tales, Brideshead Revisited, etc. I also love The End of the Affair by Graham Greene.

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_Pamelaaa@reddit

I started reading the classics a couple of years ago and all are good in their own way - I’ve found some are much more accessible than others. War of the worlds is fantastic and a quick read. Dracula was really enjoyable and easily consumable. The Picture of Dorian Grey was good in a bit of a depressing way, if you want something a bit meatier. If you want to read Jane Austen, I’d recommend starting with Lady Susan. A little book which will give you a feel for her work.

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PokedBroccoli@reddit

Jane Eyre. I know it’s a GCSE type book but it’s still a banger.

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WoodenEggplant4624@reddit

I love Thackeray's Vanity Fair it has a sly humour that is very British

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OrdinaryImplication@reddit

Anything by P.G. Wodehouse

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scooches66@reddit

Watership Down

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GeorgiaPeppard@reddit

The Invisible Man by H.G Wells

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annakarenina66@reddit

Charles Dickens LOTR Day of the Triffids

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Leifang666@reddit

I really enjoyed David Copperfield. It's a long book but Dickens blended comedy and tragedy so well.

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Synapse_Soup_soup@reddit

Possibly stretching the criteria but: A House for Mr Biswas- V.S. Naipaul

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Low_Mistake3321@reddit

I can thoroughly recommend Martin Amis's "The War Against Cliche" as a fabulous jumping-off point for discovering and getting another layer of detail on some nailed-on modern classic books. It's a collection of Amis's book reviews and essays which may sound dull and dry but it's anything but. It truly kick-started my interest in reading books that upended my reading experience.

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MinMorts@reddit

The lion the witch and the wardrobe is an iconic book as a child. Also any roald dahl

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Interceptor@reddit

Almost anything by Patrick Hamilton is worth a go. His later works like Hangover Square and 20,000 streets under the sky can be a bit downbeat but are very compelling, but early stuff like Bind Street Story are great fun. In a similar vein, Norman Collin's 'London belongs to me' is fantastic.

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Ambiverthero@reddit

any Ian McEwan are excellent. as was

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PedanticRedhead@reddit

The Rise and Fall of Little Voice by Jim Cartwright (play). A very interesting insight into how different people coped with the economic difficulties of living in the north during/after the mining strikes without directly addressing it. The use of torch singer voices and lyrics by the mostly quiet protagonist to express herself and show her love for her dead father is so powerful. I'm being deliberately vague so you will give it a look. There was a very good film adaptation too starring Michael Caine, Jane Horrocks and Euan McGreggor.(The only major difference from page to screen being birds instead of lights. You'll see.) Fun fact: the main role was written with Jane Horrocks and her particular talent in mind. She debuted the role on the stage and on the screen.

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blue-eyed-zola@reddit

J.L. Carr - A month in the country

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Kian-Tremayne@reddit

The Hornblower books by C S Forester. Also The Ship by the same author. The Cruel Sea. The Lord of the Rings. I’d also recommend getting a collection of Rudyard Kipling’s poetry. The man was an amazing wordsmith. I’ll also second the recommendations others have made for George Orwell, John Wyndham and Terry Pratchett. Although I have real problems classing Pratchett as “classic” because that makes me feel old (in the same way that my daughter studying the end of the Cold War as “history” does) Finally - not a ‘classic’ but Legend by David Gemmell is really bloody excellent.

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antibac2020@reddit

Diaries of Adrian Mole

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Worldly_Ear4701@reddit

Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh still sticks with me , the writing is insanely beautiful and there’s something kinda haunting about the nostalgia and decline running through it. Also Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, if that counts as classic enough. It’s got that gothic tension but still feels super readable today. And tbh, I ended up enjoying The Remains of the Day way more than I expected. Quiet book, but it hits hard. If you're into character-driven stuff, that one’s gold.

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PudditTV@reddit

The Lord of the flies

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VeterinarianVast197@reddit

Brighton Rock 39 Steps. Both exciting adventure stories

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sihasihasi@reddit

I got a quiz question wrong once, when I was at college: Who wrote Brighton Rock" - I said "Queen". I still think I should've got the point.

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Unlucky-Public-2947@reddit

Not a novel but Blake’s ‘Songs of Innocence and Experience’ is something I always find myself going back to.

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Krak3nkiller@reddit

Kes/Kestrel for a Knave and Pride and Prejudice for no els that are taught in schools but are enjoyable in their own right (although be prepared, Kes is very sad). Read some discworld to cheer back up (something with either the Watch or Death would be my preference). Brave New World is better than 1984 for the joy of reading.

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DonkeyOT65@reddit

Great Expectations.

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Proof-Dog9835@reddit

Don't know if these will qualify for your definition of classic but hitchhikers guide to the galaxy obviously. Three men in a boat is great, still funny 135 years later. A lot of Agatha christie is good, recommend starting with "and then there were none" We do the best children's books in the world, anything by roald dahl, julia donaldson or beatrix potter. His dark materials trilogy still holds up as an adult

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ignatiusjreillyXM@reddit

Graham Greene. Seems very out of fashion at the moment, but such an insightful, sharp , observant,writer. Brighton Rock, The Comedians, The End of the Affair...and many more. I think many of his later novels (and he was writing from the 1920s through to the 1980s) are particularly fine. A Dance to the Music of Time by Anthony Powell - a generational history (of the liberally minded upper-middle class): some very memorable characters (Widmerpool, the Quiggin twins....) - a great outstanding of how mores and values of "the establishment" changed between the first world war and the 1970s.

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No_Wrap_9979@reddit

The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists

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east112@reddit

A tale of two cities Oliver Twist

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Nublett9001@reddit

Anything by Iain M. Banks, it's Sci-Fi but it is truly exceptional and worth a read regardless of genre preferences. He also wrote more mainstream novels under the name Iain Banks, the Wasp Factory and Canal Dreams are both very good books. Anything by Terry Pratchett. And of course the Granddaddy of fantasy writing, Tolkien.

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sullcrowe@reddit

I remember being really shocked at school when I really enjoyed Wuthering Heights

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SpudFire@reddit

LOTR for fantasy. Pretty much anything by Agatha Christie if you like mysteries. And Then There Were None and Murder on the Orient Express if I had to pick one (I can't, so picked 2)

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Low_Mistake3321@reddit

Mother London by Michael Moorcroft. Excellent characters and a rich atmosphere that captures and enthralls you.

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sergeantpinback@reddit

Trainspotting- Irvine Welsh

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fede_galizia@reddit

Middlemarch by George Elliot. Every romantically minded teenager should read it. She really nailed particular types of relationship, some healthy and others not so much

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PomPomBumblebee@reddit

I read Jane Eyre in my late 20's or when I was around 30. I wish I had read it in my teens. It would have taught me to hope, trust your gut and be proud and protective of looking out for yourself whilst accepting yourself and allowing yourself to find love and happiness is a good and acceptable thing no matter who you are. I had (and still have to an extent) self esteem issues and I was emotionally manipulated a lot growing up. I was labelled as moody the rare times I stood up for myself or called bad things people did out and it took me years to accept praise which I still struggle with at times. I feel like this would have really helped me if I was able and willing to read this sooner. I saw a film adaptation in my late teens and a TV series of it but the book has so much more depth. I have been a huge fan of the 1995 pride and prejudice series since it came out when I was around 10 but I didn't read the book till I was in my 30's (I finally tried to read the whole thing after JE) and I LOVED it. I don't know if I'd have been able to read it as a kid but it was hilarious and I plan to read it again soon. Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy is another id recommend, you don't have to be a big sci-fi nerd if particulars to love it. I would recommend Dune as well but I personally haven't finished it yet, I keep losing my copy or going onto other things so I have started it several times but not finished. I need to break my leg or have another pandemic when I'm actually furloughed to have a chance to finally read it all but the world and language in that book is marvellous

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JoshuaDev@reddit

John Le Carre also James Bond novels (the latter are very of their time but still fun)

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Stuffedwithdates@reddit

Watership Down

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notaenoj@reddit

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

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MuteButHappyOwl@reddit

Lord of the Flies - William Golding

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Alternative-Ask4642@reddit

Is this question a hoax? My first ever bk in English was Will Dexter's Illustrated Book of Magic Tricks, beautifully printed in Romania (later they let said engravings into the hands of Poland, with less happy results). I must have been the only 4-yr-old west of Berlin who knew how to spell Romania. In parallel I had Tog \[Trains\] by Richard Scarry. Actually I had a vast book on all sorts of subjects by Richard Scarry but 50 yrs on I forget the title cuz it's stranded in Brighton grrr. But I know I adored the colour picture of a hippo in the dentist's chair ...

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shark-with-a-horn@reddit

E.M Forster pleasantly surprised me, entertaining and insightful

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AWhistlingWoman@reddit

As someone who loved all the books we did at school, I’m concerned that my recommendations might not hit the spot…

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Optimal_Collection77@reddit

It's a classic. It actually really captures the late 70s/early 80s British atmosphere (Whilst being the story of our kid getting eaten by a monster)

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dommiichan@reddit

Day of the Triffids... love them plant zombies

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Expensive-Scheme6817@reddit

Three Men in a Boat - Jerome K Jerome

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tulipjessie@reddit

The majority of Charles Dickens books. Especially, Little Dorrit, The old curiousity shop, Oliver Twist, Christmas Carol (this is only a short story so worth a try), David Copperfield and Great expectations. They are all marvelous, the stories, the characters everything is wonderful. They also give a glimpse into the working lives of working class people during the Victoria era. Also, Shakespeare, difficult to get into but well worth it. Especially Macbeth, Hamlet and Julius Caesar.

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birchbarn@reddit

Day of the Triffids. Or any John Wyndham really. Classic British sci fi.

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Robotniked@reddit

The Sherlock Holmes books are excellent and very readable. I put off reading them for years because I assumed they would be stuffy and boring, but they are genuinely great.

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PrincipleMany8660@reddit

If you like dystopian fiction then Death of Grass by John Christopher

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Ickham-museum@reddit

The Mysteries of Udolpho, Mrs Radcliffe, 1794 . Other Days, Other Eyes, Bob Shaw, 1972.

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UmpteenthTide@reddit

The Brensham Village trilogy by John Moore.

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TimboJimbo81@reddit

‘The card’ is favourite of mine by Arnold Bennett

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Teamwoolf@reddit

One of my favourite novels is The Collector by John Fowles. I read it at 16 and it’s had an effect on me ever since.

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Automatic-Jello5995@reddit

Joseph conrad not born english but some of the greatest books written in the english language

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mycatiscalledFrodo@reddit

War of the World's, Day of the Triffids, anything by Terry Pratchett, Wuthering Heights. Not sure of your definitions of classic but I love James Herbet too

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LikeReallyOMG@reddit

I hate all the characters in Wuthering Heights, yet love the book itself so much!

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Kirstemis@reddit

Anything by any of - the Brontes - Jane Austen - Douglas Adams - Terry Pratchett - JRR Tolkien - Richard Adams - Sir Walter Scott - Thomas Hardy - Agatha Christie

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eatapeach16@reddit

Lost Horizon by James Hilton, Any Human Heart by William Boyd

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Belle_TainSummer@reddit

I recommend the collected Para Handy stories by Neil Munro. It is nice slice of an interesting time in Scottish working class history. They are short stories, originally published in Scottish newspapers, about the crew and captain \[the titular Para Handy\] of a small freighter called The Vital Spark set around the early years of the twentieth century. There is also The Wee MacGreegor\[sic\] by John Joy Bell which is set during a similar time, but more written for a younger audience and a bit twee-er. Also, and for those who want their Magical Boarding School stories, without supporting Britain's current worst person ever, Jill Murphy's Worst Witch books. Honestly, how she never sued is a mystery for me.

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Alarmed_Crazy_6620@reddit

Club club classics

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Dranask@reddit

I have a book from my childhood The Coral Island. Quote from Amazon. Experience the thrills and adventure woven throughout this classic survival tale! The Coral Island by Scottish author R.M. Ballantyne is a book of literary fiction first published in 1857 in the United Kingdom. A celebrated classic survival novel filled with thrilling adventure and dark mystery.

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rumade@reddit

Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham. Apocalypse event book which starts with a big event and includes genetically modified plants as the danger

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RainbowSparkles17@reddit

Not a classic but 2 books by R S Leonard I absolutely love. Murder mystery-esque set around Victorian times. The Body, The Diamond and The Child & Murder at the Lunatics Ball.

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Altruistic_Fun_3048@reddit

Any of the Terry Pratchett Discworld novels.

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