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cangel
Joined: 19 Jun 2003
Location: Jeonju, S. Korea
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 Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2008 6:18 am Post subject: |
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| I think John Irving is brilliant. Three of his books that I absolutely love are, The World According to Garp, The Cider House Rules, and A Prayer for Owen Meany. Additionally, The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon is a nice read, which surprised me as I am not a romantic novel kind of guy. |
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jkelly80
Joined: 13 Jun 2007
Location: you boys like mexico?
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| Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2008 7:26 am Post subject: |
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A Prayer For Owen Meany is legit.
A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin. Tolkien on steroids. |
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ChopChaeJoe
Joined: 05 Mar 2006
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Fri Oct 24, 2008 7:25 pm Post subject: |
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A few i really like:
Catcher in the Rye, this book just doesn't age. I do though.
The brothers karazmozov, I wish it were even longer
The great gatsby, his best, most focused book
As I lay dying, Faulkner being almost avent guarde
Naked Lunch, Burroughs get pretty boring in mid-carer, this book kept the readers waiting
The Metamorphoseis, are useless and wothless the same thing? Kafka wants to find out.
The Dead, by James Joyce, not a book in itself, but one of the most beautiful things i've ever read.
Don Quioxte, digresion after digression
The Grapes of Wrath, what if that guy in he barn had really just finished eating a sandwich?
On the Road, it's been a long time, but I bet i'd still love it.
I guess i should throw in the bible and a short story collection or two from the likes of Borges and Babel -- the Russian jew who rode with the cossacks in war.
Anyways, good reading! |
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misschel
Joined: 14 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 3:53 pm Post subject: |
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Labyrinths of Reason: Paradox, Puzzles, and the Frailty of Knowledge - William Poundstone
Socrates Cafe - Christopher Phillips
I also agree with many on this discussion about Life of Pi. One of those books everyone has to read. The first couple chapters are a bit dull compared to the rest of the book. So amazing. I love that it's so descriptive and I can perfectly visualize in my mind exactly what I'm reading. I could read it over and over. |
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Underwaterbob
Joined: 08 Jan 2005
Location: In Cognito
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 6:09 pm Post subject: |
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| jkelly80 wrote: |
A Prayer For Owen Meany is legit.
A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin. Tolkien on steroids. |
I find Martin more like Tolkien on tranquilizers. It's all character based and I couldn't care less about the characters. For some good epic fantasy check out Steven Erikson.
War and Peace was a great book even if it took it about 1000 pages to start to get interesting.
"Waterworld" by Graham Swift is another favorite of mine, though Swift's other books have been a bit disappointing. |
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jkelly80
Joined: 13 Jun 2007
Location: you boys like mexico?
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 6:19 pm Post subject: |
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| Underwaterbob wrote: |
| jkelly80 wrote: |
A Prayer For Owen Meany is legit.
A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin. Tolkien on steroids. |
I find Martin more like Tolkien on tranquilizers. It's all character based and I couldn't care less about the characters. For some good epic fantasy check out Steven Erikson.
War and Peace was a great book even if it took it about 1000 pages to start to get interesting.
"Waterworld" by Graham Swift is another favorite of mine, though Swift's other books have been a bit disappointing. |
I've read the Deadhouse Gates and Gardens of the Moon, and found them to be most bizarre books I've ever read. They're not bad, just completely out of left field. I don't know how you can find his characters to be more engaging than Martin's. Whiskeyjack and that crew was pretty interesting in GOM, but the two super old guys with amnesia walking around in the desert in Deadhouse Gates was the most brutally boring POV chapters I think I've ever read. |
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blurgalurgalurga
Joined: 18 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 6:31 pm Post subject: |
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| "London Fields" by Martin Amis. Cheers, Keith! |
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Underwaterbob
Joined: 08 Jan 2005
Location: In Cognito
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 7:41 pm Post subject: |
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| jkelly80 wrote: |
| Underwaterbob wrote: |
| jkelly80 wrote: |
A Prayer For Owen Meany is legit.
A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin. Tolkien on steroids. |
I find Martin more like Tolkien on tranquilizers. It's all character based and I couldn't care less about the characters. For some good epic fantasy check out Steven Erikson.
War and Peace was a great book even if it took it about 1000 pages to start to get interesting.
"Waterworld" by Graham Swift is another favorite of mine, though Swift's other books have been a bit disappointing. |
I've read the Deadhouse Gates and Gardens of the Moon, and found them to be most bizarre books I've ever read. They're not bad, just completely out of left field. I don't know how you can find his characters to be more engaging than Martin's. Whiskeyjack and that crew was pretty interesting in GOM, but the two super old guys with amnesia walking around in the desert in Deadhouse Gates was the most brutally boring POV chapters I think I've ever read. |
Erikson's fiction is less character driven than Martin's. He's just released 1000+ page book number 8 and it deals with situations introduced and developed in books 1, 2 and 3 mostly. Book 2 and 3 take place simultaneously and are both over 1000 pages. He'll throw things at you that won't be explained for another three books. His plot structure is incredibly complex and great fun to unravel.
I've only read the first Martin book and wasn't impressed, though I feel the entire series probably deserves more credit than I give it. |
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T-J
Joined: 10 Oct 2008
Location: Seoul EunpyungGu Yeonsinnae
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 8:12 pm Post subject: |
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| King Rat - James Clavell |
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MollyBloom
Joined: 21 Jul 2006
Location: James Joyce's pants
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 9:27 pm Post subject: |
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| VanIslander wrote: |
Would make a good coffee table book in Korean medical waiting rooms these days. (  Get it?) |
Oscar would be insulted! You know he would want you to read it and take your time, smoke a few ciggies and have a brandy in your palm! |
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blurgalurgalurga
Joined: 18 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Sun Oct 26, 2008 9:42 pm Post subject: |
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| T-J wrote: |
| King Rat - James Clavell |
Yeah, King Rat was awesome. I read that book probably six times before I was twenty. Couldn't ever read any of his other stuff though...maybe I'll try again someday. |
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RobertX
Joined: 07 May 2006
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| Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2008 3:23 am Post subject: good read |
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| white noise - Dellilo |
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M-su
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2008 6:51 am Post subject: |
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| jkelly80 wrote: |
A Prayer For Owen Meany is legit.
A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin. Tolkien on steroids. |
Silmarillion by Tolkien.
Best book ever! |
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murmanjake
Joined: 21 Oct 2008
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| Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2008 7:05 am Post subject: |
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damn, so much i have yet to read. I'll be coming back to this list for sure.
The Great Book of Amber- Roger Zelazny
Waiting For Godot-Samuel Beckett
No Exit-Sarte
Richard Brautigan's poetry and stories
60 stories-Donald Barthelme
Lolita-Vladimir Nabokov
The Diamond Age-Neal Stephenson
Watership Down-Richard Adams
The Bell Jar-Sylvia Plath(possibly my favorite-as raw as it gets)
The Lorax-Dr. Seuss
Electric Kool-aid Acid test-Tom Wolfe
One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest-Ken Kesey
The Rum Diary and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas-Hunter S. Thompson
Still Life with Woodpecker-Tom Robbins
Yellow-back radio broke down-Ishmael Reed
Confederacy of Dunces-John Kennedy Toole
Ulysses-James Joyce
Something Wicked this Way Comes-Ray Bradbury
The Bluest Eyes-Toni Morrison
The City and the Pillar-Gore Vidal
Hope I've added some new leads...or at least reaffirmed the greatness of those that've already been listed. Happy reading! |
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yingwenlaoshi
Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Location: ... location, location!
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