Korean Job Discussion Forums

SuperHero · Joined: 10 Dec 2003 Location: Superhero Hideout

So this semester coming up I'm teaching a class of "Advanced" students which really means native/near native speakers. One of the things I'm going to get them to do is read one novel before the midterm and one after. I'm going to give them a list of 10 books to choose from and I'll read them all and prepare quizzes for each book.

I picked up a few books today but didn't realize that I had given away a couple on my list until I got home. so I need to buy & read two additional books. I'm looking for popular re: pulpish fiction of about 400 pages in length.

Current authors on the list include:
Dean Koontz: Ice Bound
Dan Brown: The Davinci Code and Digital Fortress
Sophie Kinsella: Confessions of a shopaholic
Yann Martel: Life of Pi
John Grisham: The King of Torts and The Pelican Brief
Arundhati Roy: The God of Small things (not pulp but still an easy read)

Suggestions welcome.

tzechuk · Joined: 20 Dec 2004

Nick Hornby: About A Boy.

Very funny book.

Actually, any book by Nick Hornby is good. What about Amy Tan? The Joy Luck Club..

Or the current hype of Arthur Golden's Memoir of a Geisha (might be a little long, but at least it's popular nowadays with the movie etc.).

Squid · Joined: 25 Jul 2003 Location: Sunny Anyang

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

Whitbread book of the year 2003.

Unusual.

memorabilis · Joined: 19 Jan 2006 Location: Seoul, Korea

Margaret Atwood - Oryx and Crake or The Handmaid's Tale
Mordecai Richler - Soloman Gurski Was Here
Manjushree Thapa - The Tutor of History
Colin MacAdam - Some Great Thing
Salman Rushdie - Shalimar the Clown

All amazing books and in the 300 - 400 page mark.

Arundhati and Martel (especially) are excellent choices - boo-urns to Dan Brown garbage.

Dodgy Al · Joined: 15 May 2004 Location: Seoul

Decent list apart from Dan Brown. If anything will put them off English forever it's Digital Fortress. complete toss... IMHO.

Maybe difficult to get here, but most Ben Elton novels are fun. Good luck

J.B. Clamence · Joined: 15 Jan 2003

Whatever happened to the classics?

kimchikowboy · Joined: 24 Jan 2003

Finished The Russian Debutante's Handbook by Gary Shteyngart yesterday and thoroughly enjoyed it. Also, it is available here (bought mine at Kyobo in Daegu).
Was a New York Times Notable Book a couple of years ago, and comes in at 476 fun-filled pages. As a bonus for Korean students, he mentions Chang-Rae Lee in his dedication at the end.

SuperHero · Joined: 10 Dec 2003 Location: Superhero Hideout

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'll be heading to the bookstore later this week and check these books out. More suggestions are of course welcome.

deessell · Joined: 08 Jun 2005

The true history of the Kelly Gang....Brooker Prize- Peter Carey.

Brave New World ...Huxly.

The Bone People...Kerri Hulme.

Margaret Attwood....The Blind Assassin.

Son Deureo! · Joined: 30 Apr 2003

1984 and Animal Farm - George Orwell

Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Philip K. Dick

blunder1983 · Joined: 12 Apr 2005

Lovely Bones: Alice Sebold.

Its really sad and could only ever be read by adults, but its a cracking read.

jinks · Joined: 27 Oct 2004 Location: Formerly: Lower North Island

kermo · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 6:38 pm Post subject:

Some books I've enjoyed over the last couple years (suitable for kids)

Alexander McCall Smith's "The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency" is beautiful, touching, and also it's set in Botswana, so you get to discuss Africa a bit.

Lemony Snicket's The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book 1) is an OUTSTANDING choice. It's clever, sensitive, funny, compelling, and as a bonus, many of the difficult words are explained as a funny literary conceit.

The Narnia Books are an obvious choice if you don't feel they're too easy for these students. Page-turners!

As for the previous suggestions, I would avoid Dan Brown (crappy quality) and Life of Pi (very very disturbing) but I give a thumbs up to "The Strange Case..." Great for comparing style if you're into literature.

rokgryphon · Joined: 12 Apr 2005

How about something by James Ellroy. Some great American crime writing..i.e. L.A. Confidential or any of the Dudley Smith trio. I didn't see if the students are kids or adults though.

peppermint · Posted: Mon Feb 13, 2006 7:50 pm Post subject:

Something by Nick Hornby for sure-- accessible writing, and it's not gendercentric, though I'd go with High Fidelity rather than About a Boy.

Maybe something by Paul Coelho? Doesnt appeal to me personally, but he seems very popular here.