Modern books with classical literature “companions”

[Anonymous]

The Great Mann by Kyra Lurie vs The Great Gatsby

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Great Mann by Kyra Lurie vs The Great Gatsby

Sorry, just realized this has already been listed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On a lighter note, if you enjoy Jane Eyre I would recommend the Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde.

I loved that book and series. "Lost in a Good Book" is the next one and pairs well with "The Raven" and "The Trial," and the next book ("Well of Lost Plots") goes well with "Great Expectations."

[Anonymous]

The Favorites is a rough update of Withering Heights in the world of ice dancing. I wouldn't call it great literature, but it was fun.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Favorites is a rough update of Withering Heights in the world of ice dancing. I wouldn't call it great literature, but it was fun.

Wuthering Heights, stupid autocorrect!

[Anonymous]

The Wind Done Gone vs Gone with the Wind.

I'm not sure Gone with the Wind counts as "classical" and I have read neither novel (and only seen bits of the movie); however, this is the very first "companion" book of which I became aware.

I did enjoy reading James.

[Anonymous]

"March" by Geraldine Brooks and "Little Women"

"Vinegar Girl" by Anne Tyler and the play "Turn of the Screw"

"A Thousand Acres" by Jane Smiley and the play "King Lear"

[Anonymous]

Another Pride and Prejudice retelling: "Eligible" by Curtis Sittenfeld

"Grendel" by John Gardner and "Beowulf"

"Hamnet" by Maggie O'Farrell and Shakespeare's Hamlet. Looking forward to the movie adaptation.

"The Hours" by Michael Cunningham and "Mrs. Dalloway" by Virginia Woolf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Wind Done Gone vs Gone with the Wind.

I'm not sure Gone with the Wind counts as "classical" and I have read neither novel (and only seen bits of the movie); however, this is the very first "companion" book of which I became aware.

I did enjoy reading James.

Unfortunately The Wind Done Gone is not a good book.

[Anonymous]

I just saw there is a new retelling of The Great Gatsby that came out this year.

Titled Mrs. Wilson’s Affair and told from Myrtle Wilson’s POV. Sounds interesting.

https://coloradosun.com/2025/11/02/sunlit-mrs-wilsons-affair-allyson-reedy/

“Allyson Reedy’s story behind the social climber in “The Great Gatsby” explores the character of a woman she felt he unfairly portrayed”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On Beauty - Zadie Smith
Howards End - E.M. Forster

Not as tied as the books above. I read On Beauty many years ago and liked it. I have never read Howards End - but have seen adaptations.

I do remember when I was reading On Beauty at some point I started getting a feeling about a match with a book I'd read, I don't remember if there was stuff in an appendix or online, but I recall looking it up and finding out it was Howard's End I was thinking of.

[Anonymous]

this is such a great thread!!

[Anonymous]

Love this thread! Thanks for getting it going, OP!

There are so many pairings here that I’d like to read. For Pride and Prejudice fans, I’ll add one more vote for Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld. It’s a fun and engaging read, and fascinating to see how Sittenfeld updated the comedy of manners by nearly two centuries while retaining the core story of love and family complications.

A couple of PPs recommend Little Women and Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano. I loved Hello Beautiful and agree that, yes, Napolitano’s characters, the four Padovano sisters in late 20th-century Chicago compare themselves to the March sisters, but they’re not really that similar other than the gender and number of them, are they?

A couple more — not sure if they’ve been mentioned —
The Brothers Karamazov and The Family Chao by Lan Samantha Chang
King Lear and A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley

[Anonymous]

I would pair House of Mirth (which I loved but was frustrated by) with The Guest by Emma Cline (which I hated and was frustrated by)

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61986136-the-guest

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:On a lighter note, if you enjoy Jane Eyre I would recommend the Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde.

I loved that book and series. "Lost in a Good Book" is the next one and pairs well with "The Raven" and "The Trial," and the next book ("Well of Lost Plots") goes well with "Great Expectations."

These books were so fun! I'm glad to see the mention since I haven't found anyone IRL who has heard of them.