Books everyone should have read.
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gnoriac
lowly seer
Ulysses by James Joyce. Understandable if you can't plough through it, it's far from easy going. You might try Dubliners and Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, both far more accessible, brilliantly written and the latter helped give me a grounding in Joyce before tackling Ulysses.
Hats off to anyone that can manage more than a couple of pages of Finnegan's Wake though.
Hats off to anyone that can manage more than a couple of pages of Finnegan's Wake though.
DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
lobster said:
Try Dubliners. It's far better imo
Boogie Boy
Rockin' on the 1210s
Some more:
'The Three Muskateers' Dumas - this story has usually been experienced through every other medium except the original text. There are issues regarding which parts Dumas may, or may not have written, but Dumas writes with a real sense of timing and an accute sense of developing narrative. Very easy to get through, and may well lead you on to read the further adventures of the characters, or even to pick up 'The Count Of Monte Cristo'.
'The Communist Manifesto' Marx and Engels. This operates as an effective political tract, an historical document and also a fine piece of literature. The writing is engaging and very memorable, and can be read in half hour or so.
'Utopia' Thomas More. Available in a variety of translations, More shows how a fine intellect can create a deceptively simple text. Humour and humanity abound in this, and interpretations as to the meaning (s) of the text abound.
Have to go to work now!
BB
'The Three Muskateers' Dumas - this story has usually been experienced through every other medium except the original text. There are issues regarding which parts Dumas may, or may not have written, but Dumas writes with a real sense of timing and an accute sense of developing narrative. Very easy to get through, and may well lead you on to read the further adventures of the characters, or even to pick up 'The Count Of Monte Cristo'.
'The Communist Manifesto' Marx and Engels. This operates as an effective political tract, an historical document and also a fine piece of literature. The writing is engaging and very memorable, and can be read in half hour or so.
'Utopia' Thomas More. Available in a variety of translations, More shows how a fine intellect can create a deceptively simple text. Humour and humanity abound in this, and interpretations as to the meaning (s) of the text abound.
Have to go to work now!
BB
catinthehat
Failed VK = Replicant
A Confederacy of Dunces. John Kennedy OToole
Things fall apart. Chinwe Achebe
Canterbury Tales. Chaucer
Anything by Thomas Hardy - best read if you are in Dorset as it sets it off well.
Ragged Trousered Philanthropist. Robert Tressell
Ursula le Guinn for science fiction
Anything by Iain Banks but especially The Wasp Factory
Things fall apart. Chinwe Achebe
Canterbury Tales. Chaucer
Anything by Thomas Hardy - best read if you are in Dorset as it sets it off well.
Ragged Trousered Philanthropist. Robert Tressell
Ursula le Guinn for science fiction
Anything by Iain Banks but especially The Wasp Factory
Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Wild Swans by Jung Chang
Das Boot by Lothar-Gunther Buchheim
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
The Day of the Jackel by Fredereck Forsyth
....and any of the Asian series of novels by James Clavell.
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
Wild Swans by Jung Chang
Das Boot by Lothar-Gunther Buchheim
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
The Day of the Jackel by Fredereck Forsyth
....and any of the Asian series of novels by James Clavell.
Alex B said:
Edit: I'll revise what I said somewhat
I think he's gathered an awful lot of evidence for some pretty interesting stuff and then made it fit his theory rather than vice versa. I don't doubt that he got an awful lot wrong and that his presentation leaves a lot to be desired in terms of rigour.
But ffs, the idea that the chinese, with their civilisation far in advance of Europe's at the time, had contact with the Americas and Australasia, given their relative position on the globe isn't very far fetched at all. I'd be surprised if they hadn't got their first tbh and circumstantial evidence would seem to back that up. And Menzies doesn't suggest they 'forgot' about it, just that they elected to retreat into isolationism and destroyed/lost the knowledge that they already had.
I'll have some of his ideas over the ridiculous concept that a shite navigator like Columbus discovered the lot when he ended his days thinking he was in asia any day.
JTG said:
I assume the Chinese investigated the West Side.
The East was rampant with Basque dried cod-dealers by then.
I read that once. Mark Kurlansky wasn't it?
purves grundy
ambient clown remix
oh yes! The more Hardy you read, the more the coincidental meetings make youcolbhoy said:
but this one is a winner from start to finish.JTG said:
Not read that.
'Cod' was by Kurlansky.
Strangely, I gave my copy to a passing Englishman on Monday, so the precise fishy reference is lost to me.
Lord of the Flies by Wm. Golding
The Plague by Albert Camus
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Anything by Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Plague by Albert Camus
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Anything by Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald
Fez909
toilet expert
There are some great recommendations on here. But one of the problems with no having read much is you often don't know what you like, as you've said, or you read stuff which you might have appreciated more after having read some other stuff first - but I suppose this will always be the case. Anyway, I also got 'into reading' quite late, and I found these useful as they allowed me to know what I like without reading shit loads of 'heavy' books which I may not have enjoyed. As such, I rarely pick up a book and dislike it - very good for 'catching up' on lost reading time!
A Short History of Nearly Everything - Bill Bryson: History of the sciences, with major theories or ways of thinking explained. Excellent for the non-scientist, or someone who just wants a superficial understanding of the major sciences for possible avenues of interest.
Sophie's World - Jostein Gaardner: Similar to the above, but for philosophy. Explains each what each branch of philosophy is about, but again, only superficially. Good starting point.
I'm sure similar books to these two exist for 'beginners' about different topics. The Oxford University Press has a good series called "A Very Short Introduction to..." which covers a lot of ground, but are a fair bit less accessible than these. Here's some other stuff which I enjoyed:
Fabric of the Cosmos - Brian Greene: It's a history and explanation of physics starting with Newton and going through to string theory and where we are today. It's much more enjoyable than Hawking's Brief History of Time, with better analogies, etc., but it covers similar ground. Good follow up to Bill Bryson if you're interested in this branch of science.
The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists - Robert Tressell: Mentioned earlier, but worthy of another recommendation. Working class tale with a lesson on socialism thrown in. Quite funny, too, in parts!
Sirens of Titan - Kurt Vonnegut: As mentioned earlier, Slaughterhouse Five is an excellent book, and I thought I'd always recommend that if talking about Vonnegut, but Sirens is even better, I reckon. Manages to be funny, poignant, tragic and absurd; and is amazingly easy to read. This and Slaughterhouse Five are well worth checking out.
In Dubious Battle - John Steinbeck: I read Grapes of Wrath, mentioned earlier, first, and loved it. But this is my favourite by Steinbeck. It's about two Communists sent in to organise strikes in the fruit farms in California during the Great Depression, and the tactics used against the migrant workers by the bosses. Fantastic!
Of Ape and Essence - Aldous huxley: A post-apocalyptic novel which shows America, I think, after the Third World War (an all-out nuclear war) and the collective suicide that is industrial warfare.
Hopefully there's something there for you
A Short History of Nearly Everything - Bill Bryson: History of the sciences, with major theories or ways of thinking explained. Excellent for the non-scientist, or someone who just wants a superficial understanding of the major sciences for possible avenues of interest.
Sophie's World - Jostein Gaardner: Similar to the above, but for philosophy. Explains each what each branch of philosophy is about, but again, only superficially. Good starting point.
I'm sure similar books to these two exist for 'beginners' about different topics. The Oxford University Press has a good series called "A Very Short Introduction to..." which covers a lot of ground, but are a fair bit less accessible than these. Here's some other stuff which I enjoyed:
Fabric of the Cosmos - Brian Greene: It's a history and explanation of physics starting with Newton and going through to string theory and where we are today. It's much more enjoyable than Hawking's Brief History of Time, with better analogies, etc., but it covers similar ground. Good follow up to Bill Bryson if you're interested in this branch of science.
The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists - Robert Tressell: Mentioned earlier, but worthy of another recommendation. Working class tale with a lesson on socialism thrown in. Quite funny, too, in parts!
Sirens of Titan - Kurt Vonnegut: As mentioned earlier, Slaughterhouse Five is an excellent book, and I thought I'd always recommend that if talking about Vonnegut, but Sirens is even better, I reckon. Manages to be funny, poignant, tragic and absurd; and is amazingly easy to read. This and Slaughterhouse Five are well worth checking out.
In Dubious Battle - John Steinbeck: I read Grapes of Wrath, mentioned earlier, first, and loved it. But this is my favourite by Steinbeck. It's about two Communists sent in to organise strikes in the fruit farms in California during the Great Depression, and the tactics used against the migrant workers by the bosses. Fantastic!
Of Ape and Essence - Aldous huxley: A post-apocalyptic novel which shows America, I think, after the Third World War (an all-out nuclear war) and the collective suicide that is industrial warfare.
Hopefully there's something there for you
Paulie Tandoori
shut it you egg!
I've started Ulysses a few times and then tailed off before finishing it each time. I still have it by the bed and am determined to crack it sometime soon though.gnoriac said:
On a similar tip, in terms of writing that does not conform to normal practices if you like, I would recommend Naked Lunch by William S Burroughs, i still remember how exciting and vivid and surreal i found it when i first read it more than 20 years ago. And I've gone back to it again and again since.
William Burroughs. Hmm. Cities of the Red Night is quite accessible.
One doesn't have to spend that long on urban without discovering that quite a few people like a spot of botty activity, but Burroughs does push it.
No one ever settles down for a nice cup of tea and a digestive without first dropping their kecks and spraying radioactive man-fat all over the shop.
One doesn't have to spend that long on urban without discovering that quite a few people like a spot of botty activity, but Burroughs does push it.
No one ever settles down for a nice cup of tea and a digestive without first dropping their kecks and spraying radioactive man-fat all over the shop.
Fez909 said:The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists - Robert Tressell: Mentioned earlier, but worthy of another recommendation. Working class tale with a lesson on socialism thrown in. Quite funny, too, in parts!
Yeah, have to bump this one. If everyone was forced to read one book, it may have to be this. Do not be put off by the length, you fly through it.
I think it's clear we can recommend plenty of books which have affected us personaly, I'm a bit cautious about recommending anything really because the list of books you must read is enormous when you think about it. Apart from the above I don't recommend anything, you discover books as you read and search by yourself, often randomly.
(btw, didn't think Dubious Battle was one of the better Steinbeck books, found it a bit disappointing and not as powerfully written as say Grapes of wrath.)
Ned Pointsman
Sells Tac to Bairns
Paulie Tandoori said:
Best thing to do with Ulysees is ignore chaper three, true.
Paulie Tandoori
shut it you egg!
chapter 3 is so out of my conciousness the next time innit, it'll probably die of lonelinesss, believe it mr Bloom here i come....
mr Bloom here i come....
Ayn Rand writes rambling contradictory turgid nonsense. But if it floats your boat like...
And, of course, Northmen/Norse/Vikings.
Excellent taste. Not sure what Talking in Whispers is though?
...
Only thing I can think that hasn't been mentioned is Homer's Odyssey.
Calva dosser said:
And, of course, Northmen/Norse/Vikings.
Sweaty Betty said:
Excellent taste. Not sure what Talking in Whispers is though?
...
Only thing I can think that hasn't been mentioned is Homer's Odyssey.
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