Some New Trend


List Wednesdays :: Anna Picks 19th C. Horrific Tragedies by Kevin Wilder
April 22, 2009, 10:00 am
Filed under: News, Reviews, Contests | Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
This week’s list comes from our neighbor and friend Anna Carrigan. Anna is both a public health professional and appreciator of countless books. She works at the Homewood Public Library and represents 1/3 the leadership of local BiciCoop. Thanks, Anna!
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When I was asked to create a book list for the creative and inspiring book/blog Some New Trend, I decided that it would be a perfect opportunity to show off how well-read and intelligent I am.  So, without further ado, I give you….
Horrific Tragedies of the 19th Century!

These are the gut-wrenching, make you (either) curl up and cry like a baby (or) stare in horror kind of books, so get ready.
1. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy – Affairs, death.
2. Villette by Charlotte Bronte – A girl struggles through life, has a glimmer of hope that is opposed by everyone, and gets it snatched away from her at the bitter end.
3. The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot -A brother and sister, a father with a grudge, seduction, and a dude with a limp.  According to Wikipedia it has a “dues ex machina” ending.
4. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky – A man murders some folks and then suffers for it throughout the entire book.
5. Anything by Thomas Hardy – Rape, seduction, rejection, deception, hate, murder, greed…this man has it all. Some examples: The Mayor of Casterbridge, Tess of the d’Urbervilles.
6. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo – I can’t think of a way to sum this up in one sentence; it is way too complicated.  I read the abridged version too (which I would recommend, unless you’re really into long descriptive narratives about war and politics).
7. Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert – Affairs, death.
* The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka – ok so it was published in 1915 so it’s technically not a 19th century novel, but come on people! It’s terribly magnificent!
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