> > My personal "classics" are those which have
> evoked a genuine emotional response from
> me, the sort of books that leave you pondering
> what happened in them for hours afterwards.
>
> Ooh, that's a good definition. Tolkien's stuff fits
> the bill for me. So do The Count of Monte
> Cristo and David Copperfield, both "classic
> novels" that I've read in recent years for the
> first time.


You rule. LotR and The Count of Monte Cristo are tied as my favorite books (I have an all-three-in-one copy of LotR), and I literally NEVER tire of reading them either. They're the books that make me feel and think. Sometimes they're not fun, but are they ever good.

I work that way with my favorites in other areas too... to pick the most recent example that startled me the most, my favorite anime series is an obscure little gem called Hunter x Hunter that only recently climbed to the top of my list. Startled is the exact word here... it's a very long series, 70 episodes long (with 8 more on the way), and I was initially reluctant to watch it. About halfway through the series, which I had watched because a good friend wanted me too, I was very very surprised when, at a crucial scene of triumph, I began crying (in joy, which I actually do more often than for negative emotions). The emotional weight of the scene and the sudden realization that wow, I really care about these characters, and this can evoke this kind of reaction in me... boom, there you go.

It's experiences, epiphanies of that kind that consistently mark my favorite works... because if they can make me genuninely feel (as opposed to just recognizing "Oh, they're trying to manipulate my feelings here") then well... it becomes a personal classic for me. Regardless of the medium in which the story is told.

Sosi"I hope someday I can create something like that"qui