The Bookworm
Classic Literature
Providing Everything You Need
“You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever."
- Chapter 23
Persuasion
Published: 1818
Author: Jane Austen
Personal Rating: 5 stars
Age Rating: 13+
Average Size: 250 pages
When nineteen year-old Anne Elliot falls in love with a young and undistinguished naval officer, her family and friends persuade her to end their relationship. Seven years later her lover is back on the scene rich and unattached, setting the scene for many humorous encounters as well as a second chance at love for Anne.
Persuasion was Jane Austen's last completed novel, and was published six months after her death. It is a story of silent longing and concealed emotion that utilizes Austen's own experiences as an older unmarried woman in regency society.
The Bookworm rates this title 12+ owing to its emotional depth, themes of repressed love, and societal penalties suffered by the unmarried spinster.
“I have been bent and broken,
but - I hope - into a better shape.”
- Chapter 59
Great Expectations
Published: 1861
Author: Charles Dickens
Personal Rating: 4 stars
Age Rating: 12+
Average Size: 450 pages
Philip "Pip" Pirrip lives on the coastal marshes of Kent with his violent sister and her kind husband. Young Pip dreams of becoming a blacksmith, but an unexpected summons from the reclusive but wealthy Miss Haversham instills in Pip the desire to become a gentleman and win the hand of Miss Haversham's aloof daughter Estella.
A coming-of-age story, Great Expectations explores themes of manipulation, hatred, social class, and ulterior motives. Due to Pip's ascent to wealth, there is a strong desire to find out who his mysterious sponsor is—someone whose identity defies both social and cultural conventions. Arguably Dicken's finest work, Great Expectations, includes a cast of unforgettable characters such as the cold-hearted Estella, the all-knowing Mr. Jaggers, and the jilted Miss Haversham.
The Bookworm rates this title as 12+ due to content. A character's clothes catch fire and she is fatally burned. An attack occurs off-screen on a woman, leaving her brain-damaged and mute. Requires moderate reading comprehension.
“The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again"
- Chapter 3
Nicholas Nickleby
Published: 1838-39
Author: Charles Dickens
Bookworm Rating: 3 stars
Age Rating: 12+
Average Size: 800 pages
When Nicholas Nickleby’s father dies, the young man finds himself tasked with caring for his sister and mother. Forced by poverty to leave his family under the neglectful care of their uncle Ralf, an unprincipled but wealthy businessman, Nicholas lands a job at Dotheboys Hall, run by the sadistic Mr Squeers. Despite his innocence and inexperience, Nicholas eventually finds prosperity and love.
In this novel Dickens brilliantly captures the anxiety, insecurity and sheer confusion of being young. A perfect read when you feel inexperienced, stupid or just plain lost. Textbook coming-of-age novel.
Bookworm rates Nicholas Nickleby as 12+. Contains suicide, as well as graphic scenes of child abuse and mistreatment (Dotheboys Hall), however this is not a central part of the book.
“We must have felt what it is to die...that we may appreciate
the enjoyments of living."
- Chapter 117
The Count of Monte Cristo
Published: 1844-46
Author: Alexandre Dumas
Bookworm Rating: 4 stars
Age Rating: 15+
Average Size: 900 pages
Edmund Dantes is blessed with strength, love and talent. But when his jealous rivals scheme to deprive him of all three, young Edmund finds himself imprisoned in the dungeons of the impregnable Château d'If. Fourteen years later, Dantes rises from the abyss to wreak terrible revenge on his enemies.
The Count of Monte Cristo was written by Alexandre Dumas in french and completed in 1844. Since then, Dumas' colossal creation has enthralled countless generations with a tale of loss, rebirth and revenge.
The Bookworm gives this title a rating of 16+ due to its length, and content including poison, murder, drug use, and challenging cultural references and views for the 21-century reader. This title is a special book worth reading.
“I always deserve the best treatment because I never put up with any other.”
Emma
Published: 1816
Author: Jane Austen
Bookworm Rating: 3 stars
Age Rating: 12+
Average Size: 360 pages
Emma Woodhouse is handsome, clever and rich. When her governess and close friend gets married, she befriends the naive yet endearing orphan Harriet Smith. But Emma's passion for matchmaking quickly leads to issues for herself and everyone around her.
Emma was dubbed "the work of a mature mind" by one writer. It is in this novel Austen refines her intoxicating blend of daily life and the psychological drama it produces as experienced by the protagonist.
The Bookworm rates this title as 13+. Good comprehension is required to understand the flow of the novel, in addition to regency era language and references.
‘Upon my word, I think the truth is the hardest missile one can be pelted with’
- Chapter 38
Middlemarch
Published: 1871-72
Author: George Eliot
Personal Rating: 4 stars
Age Rating: 15+
Dorothea Brooke is an idealist who longs for a life filled with meaning in a strict society. When she meets the scholarly but aged Mr. Casaubon, who is engaged on a great religious work, she decides that life as his wife is the key to higher things. Dorothea’s burgeoning path intersects with the new town doctor, Lydgate, and the adventures of the love-sick wastrel Fred Vincy.
A complex narrative about idealism, realism, disillusionment and hypocrisy interspersed with passages of stunning insight into human reasoning, motivation and passions. Virginia Wolfe said Middlemarch “is one of the few English novels written for grown-up people.”
The Bookworm rates this title as 15+ due to its complex vocabulary, passages describing reformist politics, social upheaval and psychological growth.
“I was quiet, but I was not blind.”
Mansefield Park
Published: 1814
Author: Jane Austen
Bookworm Rating: 3 stars
Age Rating: 14+
Average Size: 400-480
Shy Fanny Price is taken from her family to live with her aristocratic cousins at Mansfield Park. There, she experiences both kindly and cruel treatment, and witnesses the turbulent romantic drama that breaks out when the worldly Crawford siblings arrive.
Jane Austen's third book to be published, Mansfield Park was a huge hit with readers. Within six months, every copy of the book was sold, and Austen made more money from this book than from any of her previous works. The protagonist, Fanny Price, provides a unique perspective on family dynamics and behaviour, which the author expertly details to create a complicated and poignant story.
The Bookworm rates this title as 14+. Although Austen's well-known societal insights are included in the book's literary style, the story is lengthy and heavily focused on emotion. Not a great way to start reading Austen, but an excellent novel that readers with more experience should pick up.
"All animals are equal, but some
animals are more equal than others"
War and Peace
Published: 1865-67
Author: Leo Tolstoy
Bookworm Rating: 4 stars
Age Rating: 15+
Average Size: 1200 pages
An epic work of historical fiction. The Napoleonic invasion of Russia is woven throughout Tolstoy's story of love and grief, which is recounted via the various individuals that make up high society. Meet Natasha, a perceptive yet vivacious young girl, Pierre, the kind optimist, and Andre, a disillusioned soldier and spouse. War and Peace vividly depicts a forgotten world when brutal battlegrounds and silken salons coexisted. It is a gripping blend of intellectual thought and actual historical occurrences.
The Bookworm rates this title as 15+ due to content, length and comprehension. The novel describes multiple battle scenes in realistic detail, from cavalry changes to camp hospitals. It also includes implied incest, adultery, a duel in which one of the combatants is severely injured, the execution of four convicts by firing squad, a suicide attempt by poisoning, and a death while attempting to induce an abortion. A character becomes a Freemason and participates in initiation rituals. The book also sets out Tolstoy's philosophical thesis, tackling themes of spirituality and history in chapter long passages.
“Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show.” - Chapter 1
David Copperfield
Published: 1850
Author: Charles Dickens
Bookworm Rating: 5 stars
Age Rating: 12+
Average Size: 800-1200 pages
David Copperfield spends an idyllic youth surrounded by the love of his widowed mother Clara and nurse Peggotty. But when David's mother marries the cruel Mr Murdstone, the boy's world is turned upside down.
Dickens autobiographical masterpiece. Set against a backdrop of social and industrial change, David Copperfield incorporates a tale of poverty, wealth, growth, and realization amongst a cast containing some of the most enduring and beloved characters in English literature.
The perfect introduction to Dickensian literature. Comparatively fast-paced. The Bookworm rates this title as a 12+ due to its considerable size.