OT: Book Recommendations

[Fishy]

That is a great book recommendation. I read "in the Kingdom of Ice" and enjoyed it a lot. Definitely one of those books which makes you question your own toughness. I guess "get tough or die" isn't just a Johnny Cash lyric, certainly not for artic explorers in the 1800s

I would have died on page two when they were just considering going on a voyage.

 

[intlzncster]

That is a great book recommendation. I read "in the Kingdom of Ice" and enjoyed it a lot. Definitely one of those books which makes you question your own toughness. I guess "get tough or die" isn't just a Johnny Cash lyric, certainly not for artic explorers in the 1800s

 

[NYC_HUSKY22]

If you have the time to dedicate to them - the game of thrones books (A Song of Ice and Fire) is absolutely incredible. George RR Martin can REALLY write an incredible story. It's also pretty cool to see how the books deviate from the show and the other story lines that are given more attention in the novels. I think you can get the whole (current) set on Kindle for $20 or if you like actual paper the who set is around the same price.

 

[boog204]

Just read The Road about a month ago. Thats a book that will instill an appreciation in you.

The Road is one of the best novels ever; McCarthy's prose is otherworldly good. I still get chills thinking about it.

 

[intlzncster]

Just read The Road about a month ago. Thats a book that will instill an appreciation in you.

If you like McCarthy, and don't mind violence, Blood Meridian is an amazing read. It's challenging, in that he creates his own lexicon, but damn, the man can sure paint a picture with words.

 

[intlzncster]

If you have the time to dedicate to them - the game of thrones books (A Song of Ice and Fire) is absolutely incredible. George RR Martin can REALLY write an incredible story. It's also pretty cool to see how the books deviate from the show and the other story lines that are given more attention in the novels. I think you can get the whole (current) set on Kindle for $20 or if you like actual paper the who set is around the same price.

Don't do this to people. They'll be waiting 20 years for it to finish up. Better suggestion for their grandkids.

Doubt Martin finishes it anyway. Will be some other writer when he passes on.

 

[bballgrda]

Yes.

"He tried to think of something to say but he could not. He'd had this feeling before, beyond the numbness and the dull despair. The world shrinking down about a raw core of parsible entities. The names of things slowly following those things into oblivion. Colors. The names of birds. Things to eat. Finally the names of things one believed to be true. More fragile than he would have thought. How much was gone already? The sacred idiom shorn of its referents and so of its reality. Drawing down like something trying to preserve heat. In time to wink out forever."

 

[bballgrda]

If you like McCarthy, and don't mind violence, Blood Meridian is an amazing read. It's challenging, in that he creates his own lexicon, but damn, the man can sure paint a picture with words.

Yah, I have it on my list. Been seeing it mentioned even more lately it seems.

 

[EdgewoodNHV]

If you enjoy mindfk books, I'd recommend House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. It is a very strange piece of fiction, I think it's sort of horror? But more mental than anything, and the book itself is gorgeous, with interesting typesetting and strange, spiraling passages, blank pages.... a story within a story within reality. It's not for everybody, but I've never read anything quite like it. It's the only book I've read that actually kept me up at night, a bit scared and uncomfortable, heh. But it's not for everyone.

If you like sci-fi, anything by Philip K. Dick is great, especially Do Android Dream of Electrtic Sheep, which was turned into the movie Blade Runner. The novel itself is brilliant and also very different from the (excellent) movie.

Neverwhere and American Gods by Neil Gaiman are great, sort of dark fantasy. I think I read Neverwhere in about a day, it's great.

Kurt Vonnegut is great if you haven't checked him out, Slaughterhouse Five and Cat's Cradle especially.

If you've never read the graphic novel The Watchmen, you should do so. It's the only graphic novel on the Time 100 Great American Novels list, and for good reason. It's smart and powerful and still relevant today, despite being set in the 80's cold war era.

I also second recommendations for Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which is my all-time favorite series, so funny, so smart, so good. I reread them every couple of years. Also the A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) books are great, but as others have said, they're long and unfinished sooooo.

This is my Goodreads profile if you want to see what else I rated highly.

 

[uconnphil2016]

Read Handling Sin by Michael Malone...book is flat out hilarious. Or if you'd prefer something dark read anything by Cormac McCarthy besides the road...blood meridian is great.

 

[CTGoonie]

If you want something's scary try Paul Tremblays "a head full of ghosts"

 

[TRest]

The Road is one of the best novels ever; McCarthy's prose is otherworldly good. I still get chills thinking about it.

I read an excerpt when it came out, the scene where the protagonist walks past a group of men roasting a baby on a spit, and said no thanks. Just so dark.

I just waded through The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, gorgeous writing but some parts could be a bit of a chore.

 

[CL82]

So I've said a few times on the board, Lee Child's Reacher books aren't epic literature but are definitely addictive, surprisingly so.

My favorite series of all time is the Patrick O'Brian' Master and Commander series. It's twenty books and I've read through it a couple of times. Really good.

Michael Shaara's The Killer Angels is a great book of the battle of Gettysburg.

Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals on the Lincoln campaign and presidency is an excellent book as well.

Hillenbrand's Unbroken is an great book, really it's almost like four because Louis Zamperini's life is so many facets.

A lot of good suggestions in this thread.

 

[intlzncster]

This one was 'the hot read' for a minute, but that's not why I'm recommending it. The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón.

It was a neat little story, which was not really hard to figure out, but the reason I recommend it is that it is a beautifully written book, even in translation. Depiction of post civil war Barcelona is really compelling.

Easy read, but worth a look.