This summer, why not revisit some of your favorite classic books or literary characters? Many well-known and well-loved works of literature have been reimagined into modern versions, giving the old classics new life. Whether you like Jane Austen, William Shakespeare, Homer, or the Brothers Grimm, there’s bound to be a retelling that will pique your interest. Some of the updated versions are faithful to the classic tale, some take a familiar story to a whole new place and time, and others are merely inspired by the original. Check out some of these books for your summer reading pleasure!

Eligible: A Novel by Curtis Sittenfeld

Based on Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
In this modern spin, Liz is a magazine editor, Jane is a yoga instructor nearing 40, and Darcy is a standoffish neurosurgeon. This amusing version takes the story you know and love and surrounds it with CrossFit, reality TV dating shows, Paleo diets, and modern day awkward romances. A light-hearted look at a classic favorite!

Going Bovine by Libba Bray

Based on Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
The original Don Quixote is pretty crazy on its own, but this update is absolutely bonkers! The black comedy centers on high school student Cameron Smith, a regular enough guy who comes down with Mad Cow Disease. Cam’s journey through his illness –- with the help of a death-obsessed, video-gaming dwarf and a yard gnome -- is packed with hallucinations, stream-of-consciousness weirdness, and tons of symbolism.

Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler

Based on The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
This retelling of Shakespeare’s famous comedy centers on Kate Batista, an awkward pre-school teacher who has been taking care of her eccentric scientist father and her pretty younger sister, Bunny. In order to save his work and achieve a scientific breakthrough, her father enlists her help in preventing his brilliant lab assistant, Pyotr, from being deported.

March by Geraldine Brooks

Based on Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
You know the sisters of Alcott’s classic tale, but in this take on the family’s story, you’ll get to know the least familiar March -- their beloved father. March explores the dark side of war that Little Women left out, exposing the hatred, violence, and racism of the time.

On Beauty by Zadie Smith

Based on Howard’s End by E.M. Forster
More an homage than a direct retelling, this version shares plenty with Forster’s original work, including its most basic plotline -- it’s about a pair of families with very different ideals that become irrevocably linked over the years. There are some clever modern twists (letters become emails, an entire estate becomes a much more manageable painting), but the books are lovely companion pieces and can easily be read together.

The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood

Based on The Odyssey by Homer
Penelope was left alone for twenty years while her husband, Odysseus, went off to fight in the Trojan War. During that time, she maintained the kingdom of Ithaca, raised a son, and fought off countless suitors. The Penelopiad is the tale of Odysseus’ journey, as reimagined through the eyes of Penelope, his devoted wife, and her twelve maids who Odysseus had murdered upon his return. This feminist version flips the patriarchy of the Greek myth on its head and gives insight into Penelope’s back story.

Boy, Snow, Bird by Helen Oyeyemi

Based on Snow White by the Brothers Grimm
This novel uses the classic Snow White conceit to explore issues of race in 1950s America. The “wicked stepmother” who banishes her stepdaughter for being too fair is seen in a whole new light, and the bad guy isn’t so easy to spot –- but vanity and envy still act as a poison in this reinterpretation.

The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margo Livesey

Based on Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
This updated retelling transports Jane Eyre (now Gemma) to Scotland in the 1950s/1960s, resurrecting the timeless themes of the Brontë novel, as well as adding autobiographical elements of the author’s own life. The result is a book that respectfully honors a classic, while weaving in threads of abuse and economic disparity.