37. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Gone with the Wind is the story of Scarlett O'Hara, a spoiled and selfish Southern belle. It begins in the days before the American Civil War, set in Georgia in a community of cotton plantation farmers. Published in 1937, it was written by one of the "daughters of the Civil War" and while Mitchell did a huge amount of research, it was exclusively with Southern historians and writers so the book definitely has an overt Confederate bias and Scarlett, the main character is often blatantly racist. Scarlett is also selfish and conniving which makes her hard to like - but I still found myself hoping for a happy ending.

Not sure what I thought overall...the word that immediately jumps to mind is "Long!" It's an epic tale and took me weeks to read. I did like the view it affords into a totally foreign setting and mindset. My next task is to watch the movie now - it's one of those classics that I've somehow missed along the way.