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funny/uplifting books?


meggo

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Anything by Farley Mowat; unbeatable Canadiana.

Agreed.

Just Mowat's passion for Canada alone is inspirational & uplifting.Currently I'm re-reading (just started after reading this thread) "Walking on the land".

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I'd recommend Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut.

I'd have to second that; that one made me a Vonnegut fan.

How does this one compare to Slaughterhouse 5? I am just at the last few pages of that one... found it kind of dry.... but I always like to try more than one book for an author before I judge.

It's decidedly more cynical in a Big Picture sort of way, I think, than Slaughterhouse Five, if that's at all possible, and more animated in terms of the characters involved; I think it holds up better, but maybe that's just me. It also explains where Ice Nine Publishing got their name from (I won't give that away, as it's key to the plot).

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I'd recommend Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut.

It's one of my favourite books by anyone of any genre; but I don't think I'd call it funny or uplifting. (Maybe a really black humour, but I think it's a stretch to fit it into the category of "funny/uplifting books".)

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A Prayer for Owen Meany is funny & uplifting, particularly if the person isn't in the mood for a book that is too "difficult" (if you know what I mean).

I know when I'm in need of spiritual renewal or buoying, I often don't have the energy for a difficult read, where I have to exert a lot of mental force to find the humour or the deeper meaning.

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One of my favorite books of all time:

"A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedey O'Toole. A pullitzer prize novel; brilliantly written, and absolutely hillarious. A real treat.

It's nice to know someone else has read this and that they think it's great too. At first I didn't really like to book, the main character annoyed the crap out of me, but in the end, it was a great read. I even got to love when he annoyed me. I mean hey, if a character in a book can annoy you, it's GOT to be well written.

The Life of Pi by Yann Martel wasn't particularly funny throughout, but I got some chuckles out of it, and it was pretty uplifting too. Taught me some valuable lessons as well.

And if your friend is down with smoking top than I'd suggest Mr. Nice by Howard Marks.

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Good call on all of those Alexis! Mr. Nice certainly is an entertaining read. Man, what a crazy life. That Jim McCann dude is fucking high-larious!

Speaking of good books with characters who annoy you...Dress Your Family in Corduroy & Denim by David Sedaris was like that. It's a collection of short stories that occur in chronological order. The child character in the first few really pissed me off. I grew to love it in the end though. Such great humour.

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I'm not sure Paan, I haven't read any more of his books other than Cat's Cradle and (presently) Breakfast of Champs. But I say try out Cat's Cradle! Its short anyway, so if you find it blows, at least you won't waste much time on it.

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