It can be easy to get caught up in the fervor of all the best-selling new release novels coming out, but sometimes it can be fun to turn back to the classics.
Books were once a luxury and a novelty. In the 1920s, books were often printed using the dry offset, also know as letterset process, which Britannica defines as:
"A special plate prints directly onto the blanket of an offset press, and the blanket then offsets the image onto the paper. The process is called dry offset because the plate is not dampened as it would be in the offset lithography process."
This meant that it took weeks or months to print a book, a far cry from our techniques today!
So let's dive in and rediscover some of the books that were printed in 1924.
A Passage to India, by E.M. Forster
Focusing on the subject matter of imperialism and cultural differences, A Passage to India explores the relationship between British settlers and the Indian people in the early 20th century. It was also made into an Oscar-winning film in 1984.
The Boxcar Children, by Gertrude Chandler WarnerConsidered a classic series for children and middle schoolers, The Boxcar Children follows four orphaned siblings who take up residence in an abandoned boxcar and create a home. This series is still widely read and the series has even been spun off to include graphic novels.
Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair, by Pablo NerudaPablo Naruda's most popular work, Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair, is a best-selling work that launched Naruda into the literary stratosphere. Published when he was only 19, it has sold over 20 million copies, and was the inspiration behind the film Neruda.
The Magic Mountain, by Thomas Mann
One of the best known examples of bildungsroman (a novel dealing with the character's formative years), The Magic Mountain, follows a young German who visits his cousin in a tuberculosis sanitarium in the Swiss Alps. It deals with themes of death, disease and spirituality and is considered a monumental work of erudition and irony.
The King of Elfland's Daughter, by Lord Dunsany
If you are a fantasy or science fiction lover, this one is for you. Often considered one of the most beloved fantasy novels of our time, The King of Elfland's Daughter tells the tale of a fairy bride who marries a mortal man.
Billy Budd, by Herman Melville
Melville may be best known for Moby Dick, but fun fact: Billy Budd was released posthumously three decades after Melville's passing. After being accused of mutiny, Billy Budd inadvertently kills his accuser, leading to trial. Billy Budd has also been adapted into a film, stage play, and an opera.
The Most Dangerous Game, by Richard Connell
When it comes to classic short stories, The Most Dangerous Game is considered one of the most popular short stories of all time (up there with The Lottery or The Cask of Amontillado). Inspired by the big game safari hunts that were popular among the wealthy in the 1920s, The Most Dangerous Game puts the shoe on the other foot. It has been adapted into several film versions.
When We Were Very Young, by A.A. Milne
Although Milne is most known for Winnie-the-Pooh, this collection of prose came out two years prior. One of the most notable poems in the collection, Teddy Bear feels like a precursor to Pooh. This is a must-read to little ones, as it celebrates childhood and family.
The Home-Maker, by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
Canfield's The Home-Maker centers around a very proud housewife whose life is turned upside down by a near fatal accident that causes a shocking role reversal in her household. Many of the themes of societal expectations and family roles still resonate today.
The Man in the Brown Suit, by Agatha Christie
While Hercule Poirot gets all the love, this freshman installation to the lesser known, Colonel Race Series deserves a bit of recognition. Like so many Christie novels, there is adventure, mystery, and murder. It has been adapted for television in both the U.S. and France, and is also a graphic novel!
It's fun to look back on these novels and explore what is similar in our world today, and what feels vastly different. How many of these classics have you read?
