Novels that become classics

Coco82 said:

I'm not saying I want to write the great American novel, but I was thinking what qualiites, themes, do these novels have in common?

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I think the themes/qualities change as culture does. At some point 'coming of age' novels seemed to have a good chance to become a classic, but anymore I think we as a nation have seen enough offerings to feel inured to it.

For the sake of argument, I'll throw out a couple that I think help:

* Sweeping backdrops (Civil War, the gold rush, sometimes not even a major event.)
* Authenticity to the time period
* Promotion by a validated source (hype can go a long way)

It might be easier to take a look at the books you think are classics and determine what the common factors are.

Timelessness...

The stories are still effective and interesting today and the language isn't cliches and trendy slang that place it in time.

Tom Sawyer
Robin Hood
Where the Red Fern Grows
Pride and Prejudice (need spell chk for that word)
The Hobbit
etc...

the books that took us to those special places will take our children's children to the same places...

What I usually remember about classics is the characters. Books with staying power tend to have characters that the readers care about.