By Narayan Saimbi
We all know the feeling that comes from this time of year. The summer dresses get put back in their cupboards, the gloves and mittens emerge from deep in our drawers, and going outside feels like a trek in the tundra. But when you do manage to claw your way back home from work or school, there’s no better feeling than sipping on a cup of hot chocolate and dusting off a good book to dive into for the evening. Here are my top 5 classics to read this winter, and why I think they are perfect for this holiday season.
The Picture of Dorian Gray– Oscar Wilde
Arguably Oscar Wilde’s most infamous work, The Picture of Dorian Gray is a story of obsession, wrapped up in the macabre and gothic setting of England in the 19th century.
The story follows Dorian Gray, a young man who receives a painting of himself from his friend Basil. With the unveiling of the painting, Dorian’s psyche is irreparably damaged, and his relationship with his friends and the world around him completely unravels. A story that keeps you on your toes at every turn, The Picture of Dorian Gray is the perfect book to accompany you through this winter season.
The Great Gatsby– F. Scott Fitzgerald
The magnum opus of F. Scott Fitzgerald really needs no introduction, so I’ll make this brief. The Great Gatsby follows the story of the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby, told through the eyes of the salesman Nick Caraway. Here, the reader is thrown headfirst into 1920s America, with both its adoption of new ideas such as jazz and the “American Dream”, whilst still retaining old ways of thinking about matters such as class and race.
Through complex characters, incredible world building and a thoroughly engaging story, The Great Gatsby is Fitzgerald’s critique of the American Dream, and is contains a gripping story that is absolutely worth adding to your TBR this winter.
Dracula- Bram Stoker
Even though Halloween may be over, the iconography of cold dark nights and hunting vampires is the perfect companion for when you’re sat by the fire on a cold November night.
Set in Victorian era, Bram Stoker paints an utterly macabre picture of Count Dracula’s efforts to transport himself from Transylvania to England, in order to wreak chaos and havoc on the country’s inhabitants. Told through the eyes of a host of different characters, we are first greeted by the solicitor Jonathan Harker’s encounter with the demonic vampire, and eventually followed by the efforts of the characters Dr. Van Helsing and wife Mina Harker to stop Count Dracula’s plans right in their tracks.
As the nights get colder and the days get shorter, allow yourself to be transported back to Victorian England, and let Bram Stoker accompany you this winter with this iconic piece of gothic literature. A classic in every respect of the word, Dracula is a brilliant book to get you through this cold winter season.
Emma- Jane Austen
On a much lighter note, Emma by Jane Austen is the perfect novel to transport you to back to those bright sunny days gone by. In typical Austen fashion, Emma follows our titular heroine, as she navigates friendships and love in this tale that is undoubtedly the most “self-insert” moment of Jane Austen’s entire bibliography.
A story that is ultimately about making mistakes, growing up and finding your place in society, Emma not only stands out as a pinnacle of Jane Austen’s works, but is also the perfect novel to remember to those days gone by. As the nights get colder, there is no better time to sit by the fire and immerse yourself in this delightfully charming story about growing up in Georgian England.
A Christmas Carol– Charles Dickens
It goes without saying that to create a list of classics to read in winter and to not talk about A Christmas Carol would be an absolute crime.
One of Charles Dickens’ most famous works, A Christmas Carol follows the miserable penny-pinching Ebenezer Scrooge, as he finds new love for humanity on Christmas Eve. Accompanied by the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future, the novel has been adapted many a time for the silver screen, with the most iconic being the Muppets iteration (in my humble opinion).
The novel is also getting another adaption in the form of the new film Christmas Karma, but if you want to revisit the classic novel in all of it’s original glory, there is no better time to do so than this winter season coming up.
So, there’s the list. Turn on the fire, grab a hot water bottle and choose from this array of classics to delve into on this run-up to Christmas. I hope that at least one of these books has piqued your interest- whether it’s the brilliant Gatsby, or the headstrong Emma, I hope you can take time this winter to fall in love with characters both new and old, and make this cold winter season just that bit more manageable.
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