NationStates Jolt Archive

Grrrrr but I really wanted to include 'Yes Man' by Danny Wallace

I'll take any Lee Child book as a holiday read (or for long flights)

EDIT : As holder of the OP I hereby decree Yes Man is legitimate as an entry

okay, so what books do you think are worthwhile for just about anyone to read?

fiction only please, last time I did one of these I got tired of every 3rd post being Mien Kampf.

I will post my list in a bit.

3rd post: Mein Kampf ;)

Let's see...fiction everybody should read...

The Bourne Trilogy: so everybody that complains how badly a movie did a book will know how bad it can actually be.

The Dragon Reborn (Wheel of Time 3): probably the best in the series (here's hoping Jordan lives to finish the last one).

The Dark Tower series: Steven King at his best

Obviously, Mein Kampf.



More to the point, War with the Newts by Karl Capek. There are newts, and they take over the world, eventually.

Anything by the classic authors is a must read, except David Copperfield. Non-specific religious deity help the man who has to read David Copperfield.

Winds of War (Mein Kampf is mentioned in this book) and War and Remembrance - by Herman Wouk
Gone for Soldiers - by Marge Piercy

These tell a good story and, at the same time, give some excellent insights into World War II from perspectives other than the battlefield.

The Joy Luck Club, The Kitchen God's Wife, the Bonesetter's Daughter, The Hundred Secret Senses all by Amy Tan

Well-told stories with lots of information about Chinese and Chinese-American culture. Good insights about family relationships, especially mother-daughter interactions.

Stranger in a Strange Land - by Robert Heinlein

Self-explanatory.

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

It's an excellent story of the harsh conditions and psychological challenges faced by prisoners of the Soviet GULAG system in the aftermath of WWII. It's especially gripping because Aleksander Solzhenitsyn actually spent time in a GULAG prison and saw it firsthand. It is also important because it represents the real peak of the post-Stalin thaw in the Soviet Union and Khrushchev's own anti-Stalinist campaign in the late 1950's and early 1960's. It's what I call a true "novel of the 20th Congress".

Oops forgot three:

Iliad
Odessy
Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Probably the best historical epics of the time.

Notes From The Underground and/or Candide. Candide because it's funny, NFTU because, it is the most self-loathing piece of literature quite possibly ever. The main character is absolutly repulsive, but as he is ranting he brings up all the ideas and thoughts that make us human. Very, very interesting.

Gravity's Rainbow. Because: ROCKETS!

I second the opinion that anything by the classic authors is a must-read. Personally I like Thomas Hardy's works. The plots are extremely well-developed and he's fabulous at descriptive writing.

With regard to contemporary authors, I've read a lot of books by Haruki Murakami. Perhaps it's because the books are translated from Japanese, the language is fairly simple, which makes them very readable. And the content of his stories are often very thought-provoking (or invoking?).

For instance, my favorite was "Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World". It's written in a way where the chapters alternate between real life and the other (perhaps inner) mind of the protagonist with a lot of parallels that are obvious but not so obvious. Somewhat fairy-tale like, it is a very encaptivating story of a man caught up in some big secret and ends up losing himself to his 'other mind'.

Obviously, Mein Kampf.

More to the point, War with the Newts by Karl Capek. There are newts, and they take over the world, eventually.

Anything by the classic authors is a must read, except David Copperfield. Non-specific religious deity help the man who has to read David Copperfield.

I haven't read much in a while, but MASH by Richard Hooker. Best book comedy ever, nothing like the show. I'd say Catch-22 for the absurdity of it all as well.

The Bible. Nice moral stories mixed with sci-fi action and almost unbelievable sadism. Something for everyone.

no rockets.

I love the Carlos Castaneda series of books on the teachings of Don Juan.

Carlos contends that they are true but they are listed as fiction because of the far out stuff that happens in them.

I think they are great reading because they are like a megaphone for the mystery of life.

The Bible. Nice moral stories mixed with sci-fi action and almost unbelievable sadism. Something for everyone.

If you can find a copy of Bridge of Birds (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_kk_1/105-0868389-1743615?ie=UTF8&search-alias=aps&field-keywords=barry%20hughart) by Barry Hughart, it's worth it. Wonderful book.

no rockets.
I don't want to give anything up, but there are übercool amphibious vehicles and chariots of fire...

L'etranger (The Stranger), Albert Camus.

The Death of Ivan Ilych, Tolstoy.

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

has a good moral and it's much more fun than watching An Inconvient Truth

and the Harry Potter books....they're just so good

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

It's an excellent story of the harsh conditions and psychological challenges faced by prisoners of the Soviet GULAG system in the aftermath of WWII. It's especially gripping because Aleksander Solzhenitsyn actually spent time in a GULAG prison and saw it firsthand. It is also important because it represents the real peak of the post-Stalin thaw in the Soviet Union and Khrushchev's own anti-Stalinist campaign in the late 1950's and early 1960's. It's what I call a true "novel of the 20th Congress".

Yes. This is a really fascinating read - though I can't help but wonder what it would be like if he'd written it about a bad day. I guess I'd say 1984/Animal Farm, as well. Mainly so everyone was on an equal footing.

The only fiction I read these days usually involves either Star Wars or Dungeons & Dragons.

Grrrrr but I really wanted to include 'Yes Man' by Danny Wallace

I'll take any Lee Child book as a holiday read (or for long flights)

EDIT : As holder of the OP I hereby decree Yes Man is legitimate as an entry

Set up a funny and pointless poll, god damnit. No threadstealer EVER does this, and yet they have the opportunity to do so.


On topic: The Count of Monte Cristo. I guess mainly because it's an awesome book, but it also discusses things like betrayal and revenge, and why they're bad and stuff.....I guess.

Mostly it's a good read.

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Fiction, but has a good moral and it's much more fun than watching An Inconvient Truth

Excuse me while I clean Dr Pepper off my monitor...

and the Harry Potter books....they're just so good

I'll take your word for it.

Men Like Gods - HG Wells
The Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham

Catch 22, Joseph Heller

And clearly several Orwell books.

Jurassic Park.

25 posts in and nobody has mentioned The Lord of the Rings? *shock*

Also, A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley.

25 posts in and nobody has mentioned The Lord of the Rings? *shock*

Also, A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley.

Because LOTR is horrible to read

25 posts in and nobody has mentioned The Lord of the Rings? *shock*



This isn't the "Overrated Books" thread.

25 posts in and nobody has mentioned The Lord of the Rings? *shock*

It's a better movie.

Catcher in the Rye, by J.D.Salinger,
The Sound and the Fury, by William Faulkner,
Finnigan's Wake, by James Joyce (Just Kidding. Don't read this book unless you hate yourself, in which case you will love it.),
and Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.

I recommend against anything by Faulkner. Also the Bronte sisters and that other lady.

Fight Club- Chuck Palahniuk
The Phantom of the Opera- Gaston Leroux
Dracula- Bram Stoker
The Eternal Champion series- Micheal Moorecock


Ill post more later.

I recommend against anything by Faulkner. Also the Bronte sisters and that other lady.

Faulkner is a brilliant writer. A bit hard to understand, but it comes together eventually (some thought required). What do you have against him?

Faulkner is a brilliant writer. A bit hard to understand, but it comes together eventually (some thought required). What do you have against him?
I havn't read The Unvanquished or A Rose for Emily for a while so I don't remember specifically, but I remember I hate Faulkner.

The Sharpe series by someone I cant remember and the 'Boy Soldier' series by Andy McNab.

Also 'Winters End' by john Rickards and 'The Business of Dying' by Simon Kernick are good reads.

Salems Lot FTW

...that other lady.

The one that wrote Pride and Prejudice or the one that wrote Jane Eyre?

Or was Jane Eyre one of the Brontes? I can't remember, I blazed thru that book as quickly as possible. Sort off the same way you rip a band-aid off.

Lord of the Rings.

The Hippopotamus; Stephen Fry.

The Great Gatsby

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Three Men in a Boat

25 posts in and nobody has mentioned The Lord of the Rings? *shock*
*Ahem*
Because LOTR is horrible to read
This isn't the "Overrated Books" thread.
It's a better movie.
Yeah ;)

I'll back up Day of the Triffids.

My entries:
War of the Worlds - H. G. Wells
Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis de Bernieres

And, probably - hey, why not? Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

Anything by Edger Allen Poe!

Anything by Edger Allen Poe!

And on that note, anything by H.P. Lovecraft. Anyone with even the slightest interest in horror literature needs to read at least the "Best of" book.

Awesome stuff.

The Walrus and the Carpenter. *nods*

and the Harry Potter books....they're just so good

The first three suck. Horribly written, the plot is too simple, not enough is revealed to make them even remotely interesting. The 4th and 5th are okay, but I'll agree with you about the last two.


Or was Jane Eyre one of the Brontes? I can't remember, I blazed thru that book as quickly as possible. Sort off the same way you rip a band-aid off.
Pretty sure it was Charlotte Bronte. Jane Austin is horrible though.

Virginia Woolf is over rated, except her essays, which are under rated. Her problem was she tried to show people that good writing (and she is fantastic at it) was enough and you didn't need a complex story, in some cases she had NO story. The problem is that you do need something.

Pretty sure it was Charlotte Bronte. Jane Austin is horrible though.

Pride and Prejudice had a few humourous moments, but by and by large I agree.

If you really want to solidify disgust with Jane Eyre, find Wide Sargasso Sea. It's a prequel that deals with the past of the psycho woman in the attic. A standard "turn the poor woman into a victim of circumstance and make the man an asshole (while ignoring that he, too, was a victim of circumstance) story."

Three Men in a boat, Three men on a bummel - two of the funniest books written

The Giver. It tells the tale of 12 year old Jonas in a utopia society where fear, pain, and violence are almost completely nonexistant. Soon, Jonas is given the job of "giver" by the elders (the government). The giver is basically the only person who has memories of life before the utopia because the memories are deemed too harsh for nongivers and the utopia might need the giver's advice when situations arise because of the giver's memories. Soon, Jonas begins to see the flaws in the Utopia, such as the absence of real love, joy, or even sex, though the designated birthmothers might or might not get sex to start their pregnancies. The utopia might have found a way to start pregnancies without sex.

It's a really deep book, even if it is for kids.

The one that wrote Pride and Prejudice or the one that wrote Jane Eyre?

Or was Jane Eyre one of the Brontes? I can't remember, I blazed thru that book as quickly as possible. Sort off the same way you rip a band-aid off.

The one that wrote Sense and Sensibility. Jane Austen.

I don't remember much about S&S but I remember wanting to carve my eyes out with rusty spoons by page 40.

Anything by Fyodor Dostoevsky, with the possible exception of The Insulted and Injured. That one is far too sentimental.

Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman: the War and Peace of the 20th Century.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka: a brilliant short story about a man who, for no discernible reason, has been transformed into a giant insect.

Point Counter Point by Aldous Huxley
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Island by Aldous Huxley
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein
Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
The Theory of Moral Sentiments by Adam Smith
MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors by Richard Hooker
One Flew Over The Cookoo's Nest by Ken Kesey

The Brentford Trilogy by Robert Rankin

It's a series of 8 books :D which if you know anything of Rankin constitutes a Trilogy;
'The Antipope'
'The Brentford Triangle'
'East of Ealing'
'The Sprouts of Wrath'
'The Brentford Chainstore Massacre'
'Sex Drugs and Sausage Rolls'
'Knees Up Mother Earth'
'The Brightonomicon'

hienline's "strainger in a strainge land" WAS THE "great american novel", but i also think it needs to be read along side of kalil gebran's "the prophet".

i'm not too up at the moment for attempting to describe why you should read them. but sampling a random page or two out of either of them will either give you as good a reason to read the rest of both as anything i can say about either.

i honestly consider these to be the two greatest literary works in all of human history.

=^^=
.../\...

Because you just have got to skew your perspective from time to time :

Fear and Loathing (series, if you can call it that)
Coin Locker Babies (bizzar-o-emothon)
Mort (learn to dress according to the RULES)

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series of books by Douglas Adams as well as his detective novel The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul

Heinlein's Job: A Comedy of Justice

Tolkien's The Silmarillon

Olaf Stapledon's Last and First Men

Tokyo Doesn't Love Us Anymore by Ray Lorega. fantastic distopian stream of conciousness goodness that actually makes sense by the end and really draws you in.

Anything by Fyodor Dostoevsky, with the possible exception of The Insulted and Injured. That one is far too sentimental.

Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman: the War and Peace of the 20th Century.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka: a brilliant short story about a man who, for no discernible reason, has been transformed into a giant insect.

I love the D-Man! Even the Insulted and Injured.

Why, The Great American Novel Philip Roth, of course.

Because LOTR is horrible to read

You should try Simarillion then, but that doesn't take anything away from the genius of Tolkiens work and the massive mythology and story they represent, they are truly the greatest literary achievement ever imo. You just have to get into the pace of reading Tolkien and his style, and you do with many authors, a thing these days (both on the page and in the cinema) is that the attention span of readers/viewers is greatly reduced. The depth of Tolkien is to be appreciated, especially considering the opening descriptive chapters of the Simarillion.

So I'll mention some:
LOTR
Simarillion
Children of Hurin (recently released, must read - it's a massive elaboration of the story of Turin Turambar in Simarillion).

okay, so what books do you think are worthwhile for just about anyone to read?

fiction only please, last time I did one of these I got tired of every 3rd post being Mien Kampf.

I will post my list in a bit.

1. Dune
2. The Secret Garden
3. Life of Pi
4. The Five People You Meet in Heaven
5. The Gunslinger
6. All Quiet on the Western Front
7. Timeline/Jurassic Park/Eaters of the Dead

Bunker 13 is also very good book, but I did not feel it warranted inclusion in the list for its really very mature themes and plot twists that most high school students, let alone middle schoolers and younger, would have trouble understanding and fully appreciating.

Fight Club and Paradise Lost are two works that I find amazing

1984 because it keeps your eyes open.

The Dune Chronicles because it will redefine Science Fiction as you know it.

The Dark Tower series because it's an epic without being painful to read.

The Sum of All Fears because it can happen.

Anything by Mark Twain because it will teach you to appreciate dry wit.

I'd like to read War and Peace in the original Russian, but my 1337 skillz in reding Russian ain't what they used to be.

Most fascinating book I've read in many a while:
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

As well as telling a gripping story, it provides an insight into living with autism.

Also the chapters are short and numbered in prime numbers, so you can impress people by telling them you're already on chapter 107 after only a short read!

okay, so what books do you think are worthwhile for just about anyone to read?

fiction only please, last time I did one of these I got tired of every 3rd post being Mien Kampf.

I will post my list in a bit.

The Historical Illuminatus Chronicles, by Robert Anton Wilson.


Coincidance, by Robert Anton Wilson (although that's more agitprop and headfuck than actual "fiction").

Nausea, by Jean-Paul Sartre.

Three-Fisted Tales of Bob, by The Subgenius folk.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, hmmm i wonder who that could've been ...

The Devil's Dictionary, by Ambrose Bierce.
(although, this may or may not qualify as fiction, admittedly)

I'll think of more later when i remember the last intentional fiction i read. Last one was The Dark Half, i think, other than The Genesis Wave series for Star Trek.

Oh yeah - Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas and Jitterbug Perfume from Tom Robbins.

Notes From The Underground and/or Candide. Candide because it's funny, NFTU because, it is the most self-loathing piece of literature quite possibly ever. The main character is absolutly repulsive, but as he is ranting he brings up all the ideas and thoughts that make us human. Very, very interesting.

Voltaire ROCKS. :)

I'd say Catch-22 for the absurdity of it all as well.

Oh yeah. *bows*

Closing Time wasn't as good, but a few good ideas.

Also from him worth the gander:
Something Happened

God Knows


Admittedly, it takes a certain modicum of patience to handle his writing style. But it's worth it.

I'll second the recommendations for "Candide" and "Catch-22." Possibly the only two book assignments I actually *enjoyed* completing during high school. :p Both are great.

I'll add Lem's "The Star Diaries." Sort of the precursor to the whole "Hitchhiker's Guide" series, though, In my opinion, funnier and more engaging. :p

I'll think of some others later. :)

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich-
Already been explained by another user earlier in the thread.

Starship Troopers-
A good war novel with a heaping helping of philosophical discussion.

I'll second the recommendations for "Candide" and "Catch-22." Possibly the only two book assignments I actually *enjoyed* completing during high school. :p Both are great. There's points, then, for your high school book assignments. *bows*

I got "Heart of Darkness" (which SUCKED to me), "The Great Gatsby", and two others i've since forgotten and buried with more literature and such since.


I'll add Lem's "The Star Diaries." Sort of the precursor to the whole "Hitchhiker's Guide" series, though, In my opinion, funnier and more engaging. :p I read THHGTTG, and it occurred to me that i could write that, even better than that. If i ever bother finishing, i guess i'll find out. :)

Harry Potter. It's an international phenomenon.

Jitterbug Perfume from Tom Robbins.

Absolutely.

Aside from that book, I'll go with "Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit" by Jeanette Winterson, "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by Jonathon Safran Foer ("Everything is Illuminated" is amazing, too), and... "Cat's Eye", by Margaret Atwood. Those are just some of my personal favourites.

There's points, then, for your high school book assignments. *bows*

I got "Heart of Darkness" (which SUCKED to me), "The Great Gatsby", and two others i've since forgotten and buried with more literature and such since.

I wasn't a big fan of Gatsby, myself. I remember reading it, along with A Tale of Two Cities one semester. Not a whole lot of fun. :p

I read THHGTTG, and it occurred to me that i could write that, even better than that. If i ever bother finishing, i guess i'll find out. :)

I'd say you probably can. Good luck! ;)

Tsukihime is my favorite novel. :D

House of Leaves.

Three words, Harry Fucking Potter. If anyone cared or was wondering, my absence of a few weeks was mostly spent camping outside Borders Books and Music waiting for the seventh book.

Three words, Harry Fucking Potter. If anyone cared or was wondering, my absence of a few weeks was mostly spent camping outside Borders Books and Music waiting for the seventh book.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

Alexandr Solzhenitsyn's The First Circle

If you don't learn to be ethical from it, you are a lost cause.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

Better make up your mind quick. Indecisiveness is a serious character flaw.

I got "Heart of Darkness" (which SUCKED to me), "The Great Gatsby", and two others i've since forgotten and buried with more literature and such since.
Read 'The Secret Agent'? if you ask me, it's much better.

Forgot Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre.

The Hobbit
Lord of the Rings (it is a classic, and it is brilliant, despite what some might say)
Silmarillion
The Children of Hurin
Tales from the Perilous Realm
The Complete History of Middle Earth (3 vols)

Almost all by Tolkien, and all brilliant.

The Earthsea Quartet
Tales from the Earthsea
Words of Exile and Illusion
The Lathe of Heaven
Wind's Twelve Quarters
The Other Wind

All by Ursula Le Guin. She is a magnificent author, and one who is on some levels as good as Tolkien. Particularly ingenious is The Earthsea Quartet.

Complete Tales and Poems, Edgar Alan Poe
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Robert Heinlein
Brave New World, Aldous Huxley - A master classic.
1984, George Orwell - Overrated, though it complements BNW well.
Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand - I know many dislike Miss Rand. I don't care. I think she is a genius.
The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand
The Odyssey/The Iliad, Homer - Had to read this for high school. Highly enjoyable, and so different to what the movies show.
The Republic, Plato - Strictly speaking a philosophical treatise, a very thought-provoking work by Plato. Not read nearly enough.
Faust, Goethe
The Portrait of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde
The Divine Comedy, Dante - A major work in Western literature, it also contains multiple allusions to various myths and is brilliantly concocted.
The Call of Cthulhu, H. P. Lovecraft
The War of the Spider Queen hexad, Various Authors - anything to do with the Drow is worth it. :D
The Demon Awakens, R. A. Salvatore - It may seem like a sub-par little work of fiction, but the author weaves together vivid imagery and the story is memorable.
Time Will Run Back, Henry Hazlitt - a work of fiction by a brilliant economist.
His Dark Materials trilogy, Philip Pullman
The Complete Chronicles of Conan, Robert E. Howard - a classic that is frequently overlooked. It shouldn't be.
Eragon/Eldest, Christopher Paolini
Harry Potter heptad, J. K. Rowling
A song of Fire and Ice trilogy, George R. R. Martin

Both the above are overrated IMO. They're still worth the read though.

The Chronicles of Narnia set - another classic that is gaining the recognition it deserves.
The Magician trilogy, Trudi Canavan
Age of the Five trilogy, Trudi Canavan

The Curse of Chalion
The Hallowed Hunt
Paladin of Souls, Lois McMaster Bujold

The Sword of Truth set, Terry Goodkind - an Objectivist author, what is not to like. :)

The Masks of God (4 vols)
The Hero with the Thousand Faces

All are by Joseph Campbell. Strictly speaking they are books pertaining to mythology. I can think of no better tomes on the matter.

The Illustrated Bulfinch's Mythology, Bulfinch

The Devil's Apocrypha, John. A. De Vito
Dangerous Liaisons, Laclos
Paradise Lost, Paradise Found, Milton

It's also sinful not to read anything by Shakespeare. Personally I like A Midsummer Night's Dream best. I'm wading through his collected works.

The only fiction I read these days usually involves either Star Wars or Dungeons & Dragons.
Which D&D works?

This isn't the "Overrated Books" thread.
Except it has no place there.


Can anyone tell me what The Great Gatsby is about? :p

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's The Little Prince.

It's a tiny little childrens book. Not hard to read or anything.

Anything by H.P. Lovecraft, Stephen King, or Terry Pratchett.

I could list every book I would recommend, but the Jolt servers only have so much space. ;)

Forgot Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre.

Excellent read that. The idiomatic language is almost as entertaining as Fry's placement of profanities within a pseudo-intellectual, seemingly dignified style.

Books Of Blood - Clive Barker.