Favorite Books

[MD13]

Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow are two very odd books, but easily in my tops. Definitely sci fi classics. In the same genre, Hyperion and its sequel are just off the wall and absolutely epic in scope. Lots of expert world building by Simmons, I really enjoyed those two although a lot of people think the sequel faltered a bit (it did, in some sense, but it was still excellent).

Haven't read much since I blazed through Martin's ASOIAF series though. Nothing really touches it as far as sheer readability, entertainment factor, and epic scope.

I prefer genre classics rather than so-called "literary masterpieces." In one of my first college level English courses, had to read some of these types of books, they included Lolita which was hot garbage pedophile poetry and some other "great novel" about some hicks in the south and it was told from different viewpoints. (I have since remembered the name, it was Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury) I blocked it out of my memory. Was torturous. I did read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in that class, though, which was very, very fun. I really enjoyed that. The Remains of the Day was another one, it was about a British butler who traversed the countryside or some shit. I don't remember a ton about it but I do remember it resonating with me, and I liked it. I may have to read that one again. It sounds super boring and I guess it sort of was, but...I dunno.

To me, the most IMPORTANT part of a good book (fiction, at least) is that it tells a damned good story. That's it. A good story, one that entertains and keeps me compelled to read. Now there are a bazillion factors that can make a story good, but you get the idea. I don't really care that much about artsy language or fancy writing style or anything of that sort. Obviously I don't want a book that looks like it was written by a 12 year old, but I'm all about good stories with characters I want to root for or root against and shocking moments and all that shit. I can appreciate advanced literary methods, however I don't like having to analyze every sentence to figure out what the fuck is being said (see: Lolita).

The Road and Blood Meridian, two books I think everyone should read.

Cm, seems like we have similar taste in books. I second Hyperion; I've read a ton of sci fi books, but the imagination and characterization in Hyperion are just about as good as it gets.

A book I really enjoy is Shadow of the Wind (and all its sequels). It was written by a Spanish author, but it's tough to shoehorn it into any genre. It's a bit of a noir mystery novel, some romance, it could be called a period piece, etc. It's just a great book with a complex plot and incredible prose.

If you're looking for something historical fiction, I was blown away by Shogun by James Clavell; it's held as one of the best novels ever written. It's quite possibly the longest book you'll ever read, but it's an incredible look at the beginning of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the british man who helped bring it about.

If you're looking for a good fantasy series, Name of the Wind is a pretty recent novel that got great reviews. The main character is the most infamous man in the kingdom, the so-called Kingkiller, who is hiding in a remote village. A scribe tracked him down and asked to hear of his life story, so his tale is told over the course of 3 days (one for each book). Great coming-of-age fantasy.

My two favorite under the radar indie e-books I've found are Blood Song by Anthony Ryan and the Wool books. Blood Song is very similar to Name of the Wind in it's format (scribe documenting a man's life story) and I think it's either the first or second highest ranked e-book in the Kindle library.

Wool is also really highly rated; it's a post-apocalyptic story about a silo of humans where going outside is a death sentence. I think the movie rights were recently purchased in a bidding war by Ridley Scott's production company, hopefully that pushes through.

 

[Chris]

Check out The Forever War, son. Probably my favorite sci-fi novel, neck and neck with Hyperion at least. It's about a dude that joins up into an elite force of soldiers when an interstellar war breaks out and his travels from planet to planet fighting against these aliens; the twist is that due to time dilation from their FTL travel to reach these battlegrounds, they come back to Earth after a year on campaign and like a decade has passed, and it kind of compounds each time they head out.

Really awesome. I'm pretty sure it's heralded as one of the best sci-fi novels of all time. Ridley Scott got the film rights to it but I doubt he ever makes it (someone else will, I'm sure) because he has a billion projects on his plate. Shame, because that book is begging to have a movie made of it and Scott would be the best dude for the job (Prometheus, while leaving too many questions, was a really good sci fi venture and it proved Scott hasn't lost his touch).

Heard some good things about Name of the Wind, might check it out. I'm not really a fantasy guy, and I think A Song of Ice and Fire being the first true fantasy series I ever read (besides LOTR which I disliked) probably ruined the genre for me since it's likely the best it has to offer.

I think I might actually brave Shogun based on your recommendation. Could be a doozy.

 

[The Oi]

So beta.

Yeah, seriously. I'm sorry that war, alcohol, bull-fighting, marlin fishing and emotionless pimpin...all without being overly descriptive and flowery aren't up your alley.

 

[MD13]

Check out The Forever War, son. Probably my favorite sci-fi novel, neck and neck with Hyperion at least. It's about a dude that joins up into an elite force of soldiers when an interstellar war breaks out and his travels from planet to planet fighting against these aliens; the twist is that due to time dilation from their FTL travel to reach these battlegrounds, they come back to Earth after a year on campaign and like a decade has passed, and it kind of compounds each time they head out.

Really awesome. I'm pretty sure it's heralded as one of the best sci-fi novels of all time. Ridley Scott got the film rights to it but I doubt he ever makes it (someone else will, I'm sure) because he has a billion projects on his plate. Shame, because that book is begging to have a movie made of it and Scott would be the best dude for the job (Prometheus, while leaving too many questions, was a really good sci fi venture and it proved Scott hasn't lost his touch).

Heard some good things about Name of the Wind, might check it out. I'm not really a fantasy guy, and I think A Song of Ice and Fire being the first true fantasy series I ever read (besides LOTR which I disliked) probably ruined the genre for me since it's likely the best it has to offer.

I think I might actually brave Shogun based on your recommendation. Could be a doozy.

See, I never liked Lord of the Rings either. I had a recent argument with my friends about it, but I hated the one-dimensional characters and boring good vs. evil plot. I do give him credit for incredible imagination and research in constructing Middle Earth though. The fantasy series I like try to break free of the cliches LotR started. It's actually kind of funny, because I read a ton of fantasy but I don't like probably the two most popular fantasy series of all time (LotR and the Wheel of Time).

Name of the Wind is definitely worth a read, it's a great page turner that'll suck you in. Another series that you'll probably enjoy is the Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb. I'm pretty sure George R. R. Martin took the concept of warging straight from this series, and (I'm being vague so I won't spoil either series) based on what happens to Jon Snow in the last book, I'm pretty sure his fate will be very similar to that of the main character in the Farseer books as a similar thing happens to him. Edit: In fact, I think the whole character of Jon Snow as well as his entire plot arc might be based on the main character of the series. They both have a ton of things in common, from warging down to being a royal bastard.

http://www.amazon.com/Assassins-Apprentice-Farseer-Trilogy-Book/dp/055357339X

Forever war looks great, based on the blurb the time dilation aspect seems to be used similarly to that in the Consul's tale in Hyperion. I'll have to check that one out.

 

[The Oi]

Into horror novels? It, The Shining, The Stand and Pet Sematary are all fantastic and will stick with you. When I say that the book It is "dark," that word doesn't even begin to describe it. It's like nothing I've ever seen or watched before. The movie didn't even come CLOSE to covering how disturbing the book was and the movie was pretty disturbing.

I'd also say at least 60-70% of his short stories are good to great too. Everything's Eventual, Four After Midnight and Nightmares & Dreamscapes have some good ones.

A lot of HP Lovecraft's stuff was great. In fact, Stephen King's "Crouch End," was influenced by Lovecraft and is a really great and disturbing little short story.

Even though I'm about 20 years older than when I first ran into them, I'm still partial to those "Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark" books. I still go back and read them sometimes around Halloween and get just as creeped out as I did back then.

 

[Soda]

I've read all of the Dan Brown books. I like conspiracy, especially with deeply rooted non-fictional places and theories. Not to mention, Mr. Brown has a lot of twists and the structure of the chapters keep you wondering whats next.

Chuck Palahniuk is good, but a little different. Read Sin City and Blankets in school, liked them both.

Currently, I'm reading The Greater Journey by David McCullough. Story about Americans venturing over to Europe (Paris at this point) when most Americans were moving west. Pretty interesting.

 

[WellYouNeednt]

Yeah, seriously. I'm sorry that war, alcohol, bull-fighting, marlin fishing and emotionless pimpin...all without being overly descriptive and flowery aren't up your alley.

Coming from a guy who doesn't smoke or drink, does yoga and drinks coconut water.

Williamsburg, Brooklyn is waiting for your return...

 

[Backstage]

Coming from a guy who doesn't smoke or drink, does yoga and drinks coconut water.

Williamsburg, Brooklyn is waiting for your return...

You know how one-liners on this forums are generally frowned upon?

Hemingway's RCF posts would garner accolades.

 

[The Oi]

Coming from a guy who doesn't smoke or drink, does yoga and drinks coconut water.

Williamsburg, Brooklyn is waiting for your return...

Hey, I fish and I used to pimp...2 out of 5 ain't bad.

 

[RikSmits]

Name of the Wind is definitely worth a read, it's a great page turner that'll suck you in. Another series that you'll probably enjoy is the Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb. I'm pretty sure George R. R. Martin took the concept of warging straight from this series, and (I'm being vague so I won't spoil either series) based on what happens to Jon Snow in the last book, I'm pretty sure his fate will be very similar to that of the main character in the Farseer books as a similar thing happens to him. Edit: In fact, I think the whole character of Jon Snow as well as his entire plot arc might be based on the main character of the series. They both have a ton of things in common, from warging down to being a royal bastard.

http://www.amazon.com/Assassins-Apprentice-Farseer-Trilogy-Book/dp/055357339X

For fantasy, I can second the Assasin's Apprentice series by Hobb, although I think her Liveship Traders series is even better. Name of the Wind by Rothfuss is great as well, just like the Song of Ice and Fire series by GRRM.

For lovers of historical fiction, especially military, check out Bernard Cornwell. He's known for his Sharpe series, but I like his Saxon series better, and he recently had one on the American war of independence, The Fort.
Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth and World Without Ending, both set in Medieval times are very good as well. Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose is a classic, IMO.

Of more recent literature, I enjoyed Everything is Illuminated, By Jonathan Safran Foer (reminded me of Jerzy Kozinsky's The Painted Bird), Michael Chabon's The Amazing Advetures of Kavalier and Clay. And I was blown away by The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini.

If you're looking for something less known, try Dutch Author Harry Mulisch. The Assault is short, concise and evocative.

I could go on and on, but I'll stop now.

 

[StuDiscus]

Ken Keasy* is one of my faves, just love the way he spells it all out to you..
Reading "Sailor Song" right now, cant wait to see how it ends.

Keasy also wrote "One Flew Over The Coukoos Nest" And "Sometimes a Great Notion" - Fucking amazing!
The latter is probably my favorite book ever but like music it is extremely hard to nail down a true #1.

Someone else mentioned "One hundred Years of Solitude" another masterpiece that must be read.
As far as shit you read in school, I really liked "To Kill A Mockingbird" and "The Invisible Man" ...


* Its important to note that Keasy was a true "dead Head" that participated in the first acid tests. (See Dead, The Grateful)
He was a prominent figure in "A long Strange Trip" a Grateful Dead biography. Please don't dismiss him based on this alone.

 

[Triplethreat]

Not sure if we have any readers here.

However, I know we're all hoops fans. And I would be doing myself and everyone else here a disservice if I didn't recommend EVERYONE and I mean EVERONE go pick up a copy of Basketball (AND OTHER THINGS) by Shea Serrano.

I'm not finished yet, but what an incredible read for hoops fans.

Topics ranging from which version of Michael Jordan was the best Jordan, what NBA players group you would join if the purge started tomorrow, things you can and cannot do in pick up games.

All in all, it's an absolute must fucking read for any hoops fan, and sells for like 11 bucks on Amazon.

Go. Buy. That. Shit.

 

[David.]

The righteous mind by Jonathan haidt is riveting.

Only on chapter three but every line has been profound.. Libertarian intellectual, he has performed and cites solid work. Essentially he explains the phenomenon in which we first react intuitively and we rationalize our feeling post hoc.

He references a lot of fun thought experiments such as "is it ok to sleep with your sister should a condom and female birth control be used?" he found that a vast majority of his subjects said it wasn't, but couldn't rationalize why when asked to do so. Even if every objection was dismantled, they woyld still reaffirm their initial opinion and would conclude" I just don't agree"

Audiobook is on piratebay

 

[CleveRocks]

So I read alot.. and my tastes are all over the map. Old favs are Catcher in the Rye, and Breakfast of Champions.. full disclosure, I own every Vonnegut book..

I think the most thoughtful book ever written is Walden, but it's complex language, which nobody uses mostly.. And I think the most beautiful English language is in Fitzgeralds Tender is the Night which is not a great story, Gatsby is a better story..

I am also not a Hemingway fan, because I think he sells the language short, and not fond of Steinbeck because he is depressing.

Tolkien is a good story, and if you have the patience War and Peace is a lot of good stories.. Frank Herbert is a good escape.

Can't beat Twain for a good laugh.

Modern work I have enjoyed the Expanse series, ..I also have enjoyed the Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy Killing Patton etc series a lot more than I thought I would. Dragon Tatoo series was fun..

Ancient work, Thucydides is a must read. Religous content if course the Bible or the Koran in the correct order.. I have tried the Book of Mormon, but struggle to stay interested. Doctrine and Covenants is more interesting.

I also like old speeches. Kings, I have a dream, or Teddy R's speech after he was shot, Lincoln.. I have a number of essays that are pretty good. But I really like Karl Kapeck in that category. I find a lot of interesting stuff in old English Textbooks. It's interesting what people regard as good literature in different generations. Poe is surprising, and I think Braer Rabbit is funny, but you won't find it at the library.

I could go on for a long time. I like books.

 

[FiveThous]

Farenheit 451 is becoming an HBO movie. I'm hoping the movie doesn't suck because the book is amazing.