I've only read The Phoenix and the Carpet, Freckles, and The Sea Wolf. Freckles is fun but also terrible; I read The Sea Wolf a long time ago and liked most but not all of it, and I can't remember it well enough to feel confident voting for it. I like The Phoenix and the Carpet but it's my least favorite of that series. This poll is a hard one.
If anyone's interested in weird, experimental short stories from 1904, check out Kipling's "Mrs. Bathurst," one of the most confusing stories ever written.https://www.telelib.com/authors/K/KiplingRudyard/prose/TrafficsDiscoveries/bathurst.html
― Lily Dale, Thursday, 10 September 2020 15:37 (three years ago) link
Sitting this one out, as I haven't read a single one of these titles.
― pomenitul, Thursday, 10 September 2020 15:38 (three years ago) link
The Late Mattia Pascal was maybe one of the first books I picked as a NYRB classic and it's interesting only.
I've recently picked up a cheap copy of Lucky Per which I am looking forward.
*Makes the sign of the cross* to whoever votes for The Golden Bowl
― xyzzzz__, Thursday, 10 September 2020 15:49 (three years ago) link
Interesting, as this is one of the first of these where I've read more than one of the books! And for me, The Golden Bowl was the clear winner...
― healthy cocaine off perfect butts (the table is the table), Thursday, 10 September 2020 16:52 (three years ago) link
Haven't read any of these? There's still time! And all should be available via public domain.
― koogs, Thursday, 10 September 2020 20:25 (three years ago) link
Freckles is a fun hate-read, I recommend it. (Not exactly hate, but you'll marvel at how batshit it is on every page while happily reading on.)
I remember the Sea Wolf as being suuuuper homoerotic, so it's a good one as well.
And E. Nesbit is a total classic. (Look out for some really bad antisemitism when you get to the otherwise brilliant Story of the Amulet though.)
― Lily Dale, Thursday, 10 September 2020 20:56 (three years ago) link
Nesbit, Conrad, Chesterton all great.Lucky Per is NEARLY great, he just didn't realise which character he should have written the book about and she vanishes 4/5 of the way through and then all the air goes out of the book.
― Tsar Bombadil (James Morrison), Friday, 11 September 2020 02:36 (three years ago) link
Ooops, the Wells is also great fun.
― Tsar Bombadil (James Morrison), Friday, 11 September 2020 02:37 (three years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.
― System, Sunday, 13 September 2020 00:01 (three years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.
― System, Monday, 14 September 2020 00:01 (three years ago) link
E. Nesbit vs Henry James FITE
― Daniel_Rf, Monday, 14 September 2020 09:57 (three years ago) link
Wherein We Elect Our Favourite Novels of 1905
― Daniel_Rf, Monday, 14 September 2020 13:14 (three years ago) link