More than half of us lie about reading classic novels

Culture
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In a bid to appear more intelligent, more than 60 per cent of people have lied about reading classic novels. A leading research team polled 2,000 members of the British public to find out the tactics people employ to appear more intelligent, with some enlightening results.


The most popular ruse is pretending to have read classic novels, with 42 per cent of people relying on film and TV adaptations, or summaries found online, to feign knowledge of the novels. Surprisingly, half of the adults questioned admit to having displayed books on their shelves without ever having read them.


The top ten books people claim to have read, but haven't, are:


1984 by George Orwell – 26%


War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy – 19%


Great Expectations by Charles Dickens – 18%


Catcher in the Rye by J D Salinger – 15%


A Passage to India by E M Forster – 12%


Lord of the Rings by J R R Tolkein – 11%


To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee – 10%


Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky – 8%


Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen – 8%


Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë – 5%


Titles that just missed the cut are The Bible (3%), Homer’s Odyssey (3%) and Wuthering Heights (2%).


Me, Glyn, commenting now. I have never lied about reading a book. I was just honest about saying I could not get on with Crime and Punishment, mainly because I found the names of the Russian characters so difficult.


I am surprised at some of the books that made the list. 1984, Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird, Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice and Wuthering Heights, for me, are not difficult reads.


(see http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/10286930/More-than-half-of-us-lie-about-reading-classic-novels.html )

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(Note number 14 - why would anyone have pretended to have read this particular novel?

See http://www.the-digital-reader.com/2013/09/08/1984-war-peace-top-list-classic-novels/#.Ui7ZFzhstRh

for more detail)

Americans pretend to have read:-

  1. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
  2. Ulysses by James Joyce
  3. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
  4. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
  5. The Bible
  6. 1984 by George Orwell
  7. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
  8. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
  9. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
  10. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
  11. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
  12. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
  13. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
  14. Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James
  15. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
  16. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
  17. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
  18. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
  19. Harry Potter (series) by J.K. Rowling
  20. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
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I have read all those books except War and Peace, but it was a long time ago for most so I can't remember many details about most. I studied To Kill a Mockingbird at school and I still can't remember much about it offhand!

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Yes, I read it in my teens. Excellent as I remember and I was already reading the quality by then, Camus, Solzynitsyn, Orwell, Sillitoe etc.

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Oh, and I'll add 1984 to my reading list, too.

Have you read Dracula? It's considered a classic. I read it last year. I was never interested. I'm not typically into that type of literature. It smacks too much of today's fascination with vampire stories. I'm not even sure why I picked it up. I think because it was a free ebook (most classics are free through Gutenberg.) I have to tell you, I LOVED it. I was pleasantly surprised.

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Glen,

Thanks for the suggestion. I've already looked him up on Amazon. I think I'll download one of his books to read (after I finish some manuscripts waiting for me). He sounds interesting.

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Toni, An American friend suggested to me, Kent Haruf. She lives in London so became aware that this American author was unknown in the bookshops. I bought a whole lot for my wife, 4 books that follow on. I don't have them to hand to title. if you are interested let me know.

1984 - a must read. My brother bought me a synthetic gin t shirt for my 60th.

I read The Hobbit. Disliked it. I wouldn't even pick up lord of the Rings, nay it would not be upon my shelves! Completely overrated, as is Jane Austen.

Love Bronte though.

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So, maybe that makes me a book nerd, because I've actually read (and enjoyed) this posted book list, except I've not read 1984 and Lord of the Rings. I read The Hobbit and decided I don't like this kind of literature. I don't lie about this, but rather don't publicize the fact because it's not so popular (maybe it's an American thing?) to say you read classics. Rather dull. But I love classics. When I have the opportunity to read what I enjoy most, I choose a classic. As an adult I've made it a point to read the many classics I was NOT required to read in school. In fact, it's a shame how few classics we were required to read.

The Bronte novels are fantastic. If you haven't read them, search out all of the Bronte novels. All three sisters wrote, and the father wrote poetry. In the U.S. this is a little known fact. I've read every Bronte novel and have longed for them to come back to life and write more. They are among my favorites.

Until I became a publisher, I almost never read contemporary novels. I like to search rummage sales and used book stores and libraries for those old books with no image on the cover. Some of the best books I've ever read have been books published before 1950 that are not considered classics and are forgotten. I recommend "The Tin Flute" if you can get your hands on a copy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tin_Flute). It's a forgotten book in the U.S. Not sure about other countries. Originally published in French, it's apparently considered a Canadian classic, according to Wikipedia. I had never heard of it and and found a hardback copy, no cover photos, nothing, in a thrift shop. Like I said, I look for those kind of books because I find they often turn out to be the best.

Literature has changed so much since the 1950s. I would love to find a someone today who writes really good literature. Any suggestions?

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Not read any of these books but saw every film apart from Catcher In The Rye, which I seem to remember was banned from being a film by the writer Salinger.( I think some plonker made a full version that was about 2 hours of just a blue, blank film!!)

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It IS surprising that some of the titles are on the list. I read Great Expectations back when I was 12 or 13 (yes, the unabridged edition) and thoroughly enjoyed it. I always wanted to wander into a mansion and meet an eccentric old Miss Havisham! I DO have to say that in university, I had to read Moby Dick (why is IT not on the list?). I got about half way through and am proud of myself for doing THAT. The other half, I'll admit, I relied on Spark Notes to get me through! Catcher in the Rye and 1984 were high school class reads and everyone wanted to read CitR when we heard it was a banned book at one time to know what the fuss was about. LOVED Jane Eyre and even tried the Wide Sargasso Sea to see Bertha's point of view. No, I didn't read War and Peace, but I DID read Anna Karinina and appreciated it even though I couldn't relate to her.

So yeah, on the list, I have NOT read War and Peace, A Passage to India, Lord of the Rings (but I DID see the movies...several times! haha) To Kill a Mockingbird (even though my student's say it is interesting), and Crime and Punishment. Judge my intelligence if you will, world! I'm comfortable with what I've got.