I know you're asking serious questions, but unfortunately (IMHO) the questions are really unanswerable.
For instance, the Wikipedia definition of a
Classic Book says:
Quote:
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A classic book is a book accepted as being exemplary or noteworthy, either through an imprimatur such as being listed in any of the Western canons or through a reader's own personal opinion.
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Genres change as fast as a publisher's marketing director can type.
We can't even agree whether a book is Hard Science Fiction or Space Opera.
It's all in the eye of the beholder.