Jared Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 So I'm not so into book really, or reading for that matter. But I've been flipping thru a few books lately in my free time. And I was wondering if anyone had any good books they could suggest? I'm looking for something interesting enough to keep my attention, and maybe a book that is not too long. But I’m open to any ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PassedOutGuy Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 If someone posts Da Vinci Code im gonna vomit! Check out the Harry potter series J... kids and adults love it! what exactly are your reading interests? Bio's? Fiction? Sports? fast Food nation will have you never eating fast food again... that may be too drastic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esau Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Too funny....your like glass. Anyway....try this book,short storys from a seriously cool Canadian,one of my favourites to read. The Clouded Leopard - Wade Davis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimoe Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 This classic is probably up your alley: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamH Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 The Clouded Lepoard is a great read. So is "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time"...and it's short too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradm Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 If you want some good non-fiction, see if you can find the paperback collections of science articles by Isaac Asmiov. He kept up a monthly science column in the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction for something like 35 years (and not only never missed a deadline, he was consistently months ahead of the deadline), and each one is a gem of knowledge, and a shining example of how to write clearly and engagingly. Any of the titles given under "Science Essay Collections" here would be good. Aloha, Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paan Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 I asked the same thing not too long ago, there is a post where poeple suggested alot of great books for me... I will try finding that for you. Some of my favourite books are Grapes of Wrath, Dune, and Jitterbug Perfume. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SevenSeasJim Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 New reader eh? Start here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PalacePrincess Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 jared i think you would like this book: it reads quickly, the story is interesting (and very funny), and you'll have the added bonus of being able to be in the cult of all other douglas adams fans. you'll get what people are talking about when they say things like "DON'T PANIC", or talk about putting a fish in your ear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyberHippie Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Check out "The Electric Kool-aid Acid Test", or "Another Road Side Attraction". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ggrtrhhrtgg Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 John Steinbeck--Tortilla Flats--all about friendship.. great, great fu©king book Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaidy Mae Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Anything by Tom Robbins: Skinny Legs & All Jitterbug Perfume Still Life with Woodpecker are my favourites of him. Also, a lot of the stuff SugarMegs listed is worth a peak (esp. Gatsby). The Catcher in the Rye is a good book to have read not only for the story, but for the pop-culturish aspect of it. Mark David Chapman had a copy of the book on him when he shot John Lennon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaidy Mae Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Life After God (Douglas Coupland) Big Sur(Jack Kerouac) Steppenwolf (Hermann Hesse) The Subterraneans (Kerouac) To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee) Dress Your Family in Corduroy & Denim (David Sedaris) Hooking Up (Tom Wolfe) Sex & Sunsets (Tim Sandlin) Fugitive Pieces (Anne Michaels) Stranger Music (Leonard Cohen) I could go on forever. There are a lot of good reads that I didn't list because they are much longer books (The Foutainhead, A Man in Full) or some that are written in dialects (Trainspotting). When you can I'd recommend you check these ones out too. It's nice to see someone wanting to read. Oh yeah, almost forgot... The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. Every child should have this read to them. If you didn't hear it when you were small, it's never too late. This is the best book you can buy for a little one you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calamity Jane Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 jared i think you would like this book: it reads quickly, the story is interesting (and very funny), and you'll have the added bonus of being able to be in the cult of all other douglas adams fans. you'll get what people are talking about when they say things like "DON'T PANIC", or talk about putting a fish in your ear. PP, ya beat me to it. I HIGHLY recommend this series. A good read, even straight! :: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayRay Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 The Lorax was totally my favorite book when I was a kid, and it's got a great message. As for books to read you can't go wrong with On The Road - Jack Kerouac. That book served as a turning point for me in highschool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calamity Jane Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Dress Your Family in Corduroy & Denim (David Sedaris) is this as good as "Naked"? someone lent that to me and it's one of those rare books that causes booming belly chuckles every few pages. and come to think of it, for honest lol writing, Zadie Smith's "White Teeth" is really frikken hilarious. Don't let the size put you off -- it's a quick read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaidy Mae Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 is this as good as "Naked"? I haven't read Naked yet? But a bookworm friend of mine said they are very similar. I really like Corduroy. At first I wasn't so into it because Sedaris portrays himself as a real bastard child. I was a little taken aback due to the fact that I related to him so well. That put me off. But I stuck with it. He's his usual cynical/hilarious/compassionate self by the end. I'm hoping this means that there's hope I may turn out all right one day. Some parts I laughed so hard I nearly peed. Deb, you may really like Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels. She's a Canadian poet and this is her first novel. It's some of the most beautiful writing I've ever seen. She is going to be huge one day. My brother's a teacher and they have it in their library. You may want to check out yours. One of the first books I've read in a long time that brought a tear to my eye. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bokonon Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Too funny....your like glass. as in transparent? anyways, if you truly want to impress a bookworm, you can't go wrong with war and peace by tolstoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoneMtn Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 This is sort of stating the obvious, but I think most books by Hunter S. Thompson would keep your attention; and especially "Hells Angels". Great read, and a crazy book overall. (Of course, that basically goes for all of his books, but it seems to me that "Hells Angels" is a good place for you to start.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calamity Jane Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Some parts I laughed so hard I nearly peed. now that's the kind of recommendation I like! Maybe the Globe's book section should start using a pee-yourself scale to rate humourous books! Fugitive Pieces....y'know, I tried to get through this book at least 3 times and never made it and that is SO unlike me. I don't know what else was going on in my life that might have made the read tedious/boring/unenjoyable. It's still on my bookshelf at home, so it hasn't defeated me completely yet. But I tend to feel the same way about Michaels as I do about Oondatje (sp?). They're both poets first and foremost and I feel they don't quite make the leap into prose storytelling, but torture their readers with a prose-poetry combo. And by no means do I dislike poetry. I just like to read it as a distinct form, not muddled into prose. I'm not sure this makes any sense...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aromatherapy Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 There's a series of books actually written for children but so beautifully written and full of thought provoking content that they will definitely keep your attention. They are a trillogy called His Dark Materials and are written by Phillip Pullman (The Amber Spyglass, The Subtle Knife and The Golden Compass). The prose is spectacular... books I've read again and again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradm Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 This is sort of stating the obvious, but I think most books by Hunter S. Thompson would keep your attention; and especially "Hells Angels". Great read, and a crazy book overall. (Of course, that basically goes for all of his books, but it seems to me that "Hells Angels" is a good place for you to start.) Actually, I usually recommend "The Great Shark Hunt: The Gonzo Papers Vol. I" as a first HST read for people. It's an anthology (including some of "Hell's Angels", IIRC), and covers a lot of his work from the early '60 up into the '70s. For a reader new to HST, it's a great overview of his significant work. Aloha, Brad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SevenSeasJim Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Anything by Philip Dick is usually interesting and quick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaidy Mae Posted January 31, 2005 Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 Okay, so if we're getting into HST here I would have to recommend [color:"red"]The Rum Diary . By far the easiest Thompson read. Not true to his later style perhaps, but a quick read and a good intro to HST's written character. Deb, I hear you about Fugitive Pieces. I didn't get through it until the 2nd or 3rd try. I always make sure I read at least 50 pages before I give up on a book. Although I believe that if you're not ready to read something or in the right place/mood/time for it, then you are best to just leave it. Books are very personal and are hard to force yourself into. Believe me, I tried with Henry Miller for years. Maybe pick it up in a year or so though, you may find it to be the right time then. Michaels is definitely a poet foremost, so her prose is very whimsical. I'm glad that you at least gave it a try. I think I'm going to go pick up Naked or Holidays on Ice at lunchtime. I'm reading I Am Charlotte Simmons right now and *gulp* I just don't think now's the right time for this book. I try and try to get into it. But I can't help feeling like I've left the house with my pants on backwards. I think we're onto something here with this sliding pee scale. Hmmmm... :: JROC...you're in TO right? The best advice I think any of us can give you is to get a library card. If you can't borrow any of these from friends, at least you won't have to spend a fortune. Movie rental $3-6 New book $20+ (usually) Yeah, I really wonder why people don't read anymore. Vintage book stores can only take you so far...but are a very good place to start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jared Posted January 31, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 31, 2005 wow thats like enough books to keep me busy for a year. I've already covered the dr seuss series, and clifford was my old personal fav. the hitchhikers guide to the universe looks pretty good, war and peace might be a bit above my leauge, considering i've only read like 10 books ever. and anything with short infront of story can't be that bad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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