the book recommendation thread

I thought we could use a thread for book recommendations, since I'm sure there are a lot of people out there who enjoy reading, but just don't know which books or authors to go with for their next read. also if you want everyone to know about that great book you just read, then this is the perfect place to share.

include the title, the author, the genre, and a brief description/review of the book so that people will have a better idea of what kind of book it is and what it's about.




I recommend Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay if you're into science-fiction/fantasy type stories. it's a single volume epic, set in a land where the people are ruled by two opposing tyrant sorcerers. the backstory is that there was a war between Tigana and one of the sorcerers, and a Tiganan soldier killed the sorcerer's son. because of this, the sorcerer cast a spell that destroyed any knowledge of Tigana's name and existence from the minds of anyone who wasn't from Tigana and then used his forces to take over the land. a group of characters from Tigana then set out to try and overthrow the rule of both sorcerers using psychological warfare, so that they can finally free their people and restore their country's name and history.

there are a lot of really great characters that go through a lot of really terrible things, but it's a wonderful story and a good long read. definitely check it out if you get a chance to.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

A pretty hot idea, in my opinion. I've been looking for places to find book recommendations and have been relying on www.mostlyfiction.net

My recommendation is: The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. The genre is difficult to place, but I'll put it as romantic fiction. Wait wait. Don't be put off. It's actually wonderfully touching and well written, else I wouldn't be recommending it here. The basic premise is that there is a couple composed of Henry DeTamble and Clare Abshire, which fulfills the romance part. However, Henry has a problem. He randomly jumps forward and backward into time, without any control. He may be walking to the library where he works, and suddenly disappears for minutes or hours. Then he reappears just as suddenly. The sad thing is that Claire cannot follow. She must always wait for him, never knowing what will happen. This novel charts from Clarie's youth when she first meets Henry and beyond. It goes into how they both deal with this wayward love and the sudden vanishing of Harry. It's quite touching. A chick flick of a book, but many times better. Give it a looksie.

How ya doing, buddy?

A book that I loved was "The Shadow of the Wind" by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. It's a fiction book that has a bit of everything: mystery, adventure, a love story. While it's not a horror book per se, some parts have kind of a gothic feel to them. The story is basically about this boy who is taken to a large secret library by his father (a bookseller) as kind of a right of passage, and he is allowed to take one book. He randomly chooses a book, reads it, loves it, and then looks into the author. It turns out, however, that all other books by this particular author are missing, and the boy may have the only remaining book. The rest of the plot deals with him trying to find out what the deal is.

It was given to me by a friend whose opinion I trust, and I have since given it to two other people who have both loved it. It's vaguely literary but still a fun pageturner.

Oh, this is my first post, by the way. Woo ha!

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

For fantasy lovers I'd recommend Eragon by Christopher Paolini, he's a fairly new writer but very tallented. I've read it over ten times and I still can't get over it. It starts out slow but you'll be compelled to keep reading because you know what eventually going to happen but have no idea where the story will go from there and when it gets there the story explodes and there is never a dull moment after that. The second book Eldest is just as good if not better.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I'd like to recommend that people NOT READ The Wheel of Time series, by Robert Jordan. This fantasy series is filled mostly with pages and pages of absolutely nothing happening. The series is on it's like 13th book now or something like that. Book five in the series was the most boring thing that I have ever read. It literally took me over a year to will myself through it. Avoid this series like the plague.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Currently I'm working through The Reality Dysfunction by Peter Hamilton, but since it's one book in a series of six, I don't think many would want to take that up for casual reading material.

What I do recommend is Time Enough for Love by Robert Heinlein. It is labeled as science fiction, but leans more towards drama than actual science. The plot is simple: it regards the life of a one Lazarus Long, who has lived for 2400 years, and the many 'lives' he has lived over the millenia. Most of the book regards him telling stories of his past so there is a definitive history of his life, plus drama concerning his future. It runs almost 600 pages, so it should keep most occupied for a few weeks.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Name: His Dark Materials Trilogy
Book I: The Golden Compass
Book II: The Subtle Knife
Book III: The Amber Spyglass

Author: Philip Pullman

Don't be fooled when it's categorized as "young adult" or "youth." It can definitely appeal to younger audiences, but it has some mature themes in it. It's sort of science fiction, sort of fantasy, set in modern day UK that's slightly different than the UK we know. It's easily and by far the best books I've read as they are very engrossing and never slow down. You'll love the characters and the development they go through throughout the trilogy. I highly suggest these books.

FELIPE NO

Name: "The Heritage of Shannara"
Book 1: The Scions of Shannara
Book 2: The Druid of Shannara
Book 3: The Elf Queen of Shannara
Book 4: The Talismans of Shannara

Author: Terry Brooks

This is fantasy at its absolute best. He has other books series dealing with this same land, which I hightly reccomend, but I believe this is the best. There are multiple relationships going on at all times and a very deep story line. The Elf Queen of Shannara is the only book that I have ever read to which I was emotionally distraught. Not to the point of tears, but close. I've never been so riveted in a book before. But anyway, the book starts out with two brothers. A mysterious old man meets them and requests that they visit a dead druid, who sends them on a quest to save The Four Lands from absolute destruction. Various other characters join in the quest, all of whom are very believable and three-dimensional. They have to stop an evil force...of unknown nature and origin...from consuming and "sickening" the land. These are books which I can sit down and read, and not have a worse experience than the last time - the "bored" experience. It's just as good a second, third...whatever read through. If I remember right each book is about 300 pages. It's a long but very worthwhile read.

The first book involves getting all the characters started out on their quests, the second is mostly about Walker Boh, a man who cast aside his life as a Druid and vehemently hates their entire order, but realizes he must make some sacrifices to save the land, The Elf Queen is about Wren...Ohmsford's quest to return the elves and their healing powers to the land of Shannara, and the last is a gripping resolution to the entire story where their various paths meet up for them to finally save The Four Lands.

The first series is almost as good, in fact, it is VERY difficult for me to say which is better.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Since I liked this book a lot, I think everyone else in the world should read it. Check out Life of Pi by Yann Martel. In a nutshell, it's about a boy surviving a shipwreck on a lifeboat with dangerous animals. The first section of the book introduces the boy's life in India with his family and the zoo that they run. Then the boy becomes simultaneously fascinated with several religions, which results in a cool dialogue between his mentors from each church when they realize he's been attending all of them. So the book is about zoo animals, religion, and survival at sea, which is a pretty good read. Then the last section reveals something that adds a new layer of thought-provoking goodness. Very cool. It's an easy read that's really satisfying, I think.

But you don't have to take my word for it!

Jam it back in, in the dark.

For a break from books about dragons and an overrated Canadian hipster trend, I recommend The Great Shark Hunt by Hunter S. Thompson. Without a doubt one of, if not THE most important journalist of the 20th century, Shark Hunt compiles about 600 pages of Thompson's scathing, hilarious social and political criticisms from around 20 years of work. Starting with sports coverage for a military paper, where he went a little too in depth for some people's liking, and travelling through his work for Rolling Stone and The New York Times, among others, this is a must read. Highlights include "The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent And Depraved", which can also be found in the special hardbound edition of Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas, and "The Scum Also Rises". Get a hold of this man's work, now.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I cannot suggest enough of any Haruki Murakami book. He's my favorite contemporary author, and I'm sure all the Japanophiles emos on this board will eat Norwegian Wood up.

Basically it tells the story of Toru, a college kid in Tokyo during the late 1960's. He falls in love with his dead best friend's girlfriend, a girl named Naoko who is as damaged as they come. Eventually she goes insane and moves in to a mental instuition and the rest of the book is Toru's balance between his lingering love for Naoko, a new girl named Midori and coming to grips with his own aimless lonely life in the big city. I particularily like it because Jay Rubin, who translated the book, did a really excellent job on it.

It's a good book and while Murakami has better work out there (Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World, Windup Bird Chronicle), Norwegian Wood is a great starting point.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by xiaowei

My recommendation is: The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. The genre is difficult to place, but I'll put it as romantic fiction. Wait wait. Don't be put off. It's actually wonderfully touching and well written, else I wouldn't be recommending it here. The basic premise is that there is a couple composed of Henry DeTamble and Clare Abshire, which fulfills the romance part. However, Henry has a problem. He randomly jumps forward and backward into time, without any control. He may be walking to the library where he works, and suddenly disappears for minutes or hours. Then he reappears just as suddenly. The sad thing is that Claire cannot follow. She must always wait for him, never knowing what will happen. This novel charts from Clarie's youth when she first meets Henry and beyond. It goes into how they both deal with this wayward love and the sudden vanishing of Harry. It's quite touching. A chick flick of a book, but many times better. Give it a looksie.

Ah, interesting to see that someone recommended that. I saw it awhile back at my local Barnes & Noble and considered getting it. It sounded interesting from the little blurb on the back of the book.


Also, kudos goes to Kat for suggesting my favorite author, Haruki Murakami!
Let me just throw a link in here, for anyone interested, to one of his earlier works: Pinball 1973.
It's very good, and gives a little insight as to what his full length novels are like.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I'm gonna recommend a book I read like 5 years ago, but I thought it was absolutely fantastic.

Tunnel Vision by Keith Lowe

It's about a guy who does some kind of odd pastime in London (I don't know if this is an actual activity or not) where he tries to visit every single subway station in a single day. Not only that but the day he chooses is the day before he is scheduled to get married and, to boot, he bets certain things (his honeymoon, if I remember) with a friend that he can do it.

The book covers his journey and flashes between him and what his fiancee is doing (involving a twist with the betting friend). The writer draws up a great deal of anxiety and the writing matches. It is probably the snappiest book I've ever read.

It was published by MTV, which gave me pause at first...I figured it either had to be awful or for young kids...but it turned out to be absolutely fantastic. I recommend it highly.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I have several books which are "must-reads" from my point of view, but here's the two which come to mind first:

Good Omens
Terry Pratchett and Niel Gaiman
Reprinted like, a bazillion times

This is one of the wittiest novels you will probably read. Look at the authors' names and you'll understand why. It is more 'British' humor (for obvious reasons), but it never failed to make me laugh. Basically, the book broadly parodies "The Omen" and the Book of Revelations, setting a demon and an angel in present-day England, trying to avert the Apocalypse. It's hilarious and wonderfully written.

The Master and Margarita
Mikhail Bulgakov
Four major translations/Reprinted many times

Any Russians on the board don't really need to be told about this one, because MaM is one of the landmark classics of Russian literature. There are many levels one can read it on, especially taking into account that much of it is written as a criticism of Soviet policies. However, you can just as easily enjoy it as an amazing blend of three separate -- yet connected -- stories: one in 1930s Moscow, with Satan&co. wreaking havoc on the subbornly unbelieving populace; another at the time of Pontius Pilate, Jesus' condemnation and crucifixion; the last story being a romance/love between the Master and Margarita and how the title characters are brought into the previous two stories. It's a fantastic novel, full of supernatural elements as well as down-to-earth ones. Draws heavily on the Goethe's Faust.
If you don't want to buy it, read a free translation of the novel here.

Also, two classics of the literature that everyone should read once are The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. Wonderful Romantic-period stories that are enduring for a reason.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by xiaowei

My recommendation is: The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger.

Christ. that book. you can tell a woman wrote this. Henry's character is just so unbelievable. a librarian who goes on adventures, is smart and compassionate, is handsome, who likes punk, and has a really big penis.
seriously, the characters in this book were more thin than the paper it was printed on. Gomez is guilty of some of the worst dialogue I've read these days. it's just such a cliche of every woman's "perfect man" story.

I would recommend I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell by Tucker Max. I'm a huge fan of satire, wit, and, especially, in your face male chauvinism. if you like the loud, obnoxious asshole hanging out in the corner of the party with the crowd around him, boasting about his latest vaginal conquest, then this book was written for you.

FELIPE NO

If you're a WarCraft 3 fanatic like me, get this book:

WarCraft: Lord of The Clan
By: Christie Golden
Genre: Video Game, Fantasy

Plot: This book entails the origin of Thrall, a hero character from the campaign missons in WarCraft 3. Warcraft 3 is a strategy based game by Blizzard. You build a town and create an army to kill the enemy, duh. Anyway, the story of this book tells of where Thrall comes from, how he grows up, and how he exacts his revenge for the loss of his parents by ironic means. I.E. a sort of twist as presented from the first Batman Movie: "You idiot! You made me! Remember?" -Joker.

And if you love science fiction:

Ender's Game
By Orson Scott Card
Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy

Plot: This book is about Ender. I can't recall much of it since it has been so long I've read it, but it's about a brilliant (perhaps genius level) boy who grows up in some space academy. The setting is set sometime in the future when mankind can live on other planets and build colonies. As Ender grows up, he faces tons of obstacles in the academy. It's sort of a boys only academy where they train students to become the next bright minds for the military. Combat skills, thinking/strategy skills, team skills, etc, etc. At first, Ender is outcasted by the fact of the kind of kid he is. By the fact that he was born naturally brighter where as others work their butt off for the same goal. However, he slowly works his way up the ranks by forming ties and bonds with other students, slowly turning their hate and grudges into tools and teamwork for him to continue achieving his goals. One particular example is when Ender must part take in the mandatory battlefield excercise. 2 teams must battle each other and capture the opposing flag. Ender's team, despite how clever and skillful they are, faces a team of senior ranked students whom have more combat experience and strategy skills. It's like pitting a small white mouse versus an adult cat in a confined space. Ender's team being the mouse, the seniors being the cat. But with some brilliance and team work, Ender's team pulls off a stunning victory by using the rules applied by the battlefield:

1. When you are hit by a shot (from some space-like tech rifle) the body part shot will become frozen.

This rule is like gravity. When you jump, gravity must pull you down. Ender's team understand the rules, but only Ender was able to figure out a strategy to use them in other ways. Such as taking a team member, freezing his body in a certain position, and then putting a gunner on the frozen team member. This system acted as a armored vehicle. The battlefield has zero gravity and only the member's suits can keep them weighted down unless they are propelled somehow. Ender rides his frozen team mate using the already frozen body as a shield and guns down the entire senior team.

This is a great book for the witty mind. When all odds seem impossible, the desire to survive becomes so great that chances like this for Ender pop up like candy.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Something I just recently picked up for a short story class, but that I wasn't able to put down when I read it:

The Things They Carried, by Tim O'Brien. It's somewhat of a fiction book, somewhat of a memoir. Read it and you'll understand both what that means, and probably understand why all those critics were wrong about Jarhead being too many things at once. I'd be surprised if the Jarhead novel wasn't influenced by O'Brien himself.

It's about 250 pages, but chances are you'll breeze through it, because it reads more like an intriguing conversation you have with someone than a collective narrative.

As the blurb on the back claims, it's also good pulp material for those of you who are aspiring writers.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Dune: House Atreides, House Harkonnen, and Hoise Corrino. Easily some of the best and most complex sci-fi out there.

Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter is an action packed vampire thriller that brings the world of Dracula to life.

How ya doing, buddy?

Philip K Dick - A Scanner Darkly

Easily the best novel I've ever read. Semi-scifi/crime novel.

Bob Arctor lives with a load of drug addict hippies who use a drug called D. Simultaneously, Bob is Agent Fred, an undercover narcotics agent working for the government. The addicts don't know that Bob is an undercover agent, and the police don't know that Fred is Bob. In order to pass as an addict, Bob has to become a user - As a result, he slowly succumbs to schizophrenia as Bob and Fred develop into two completely different personalities.

Plus, there's a film of it in July. The fact that it's rotoscoped makes up for Keanu Reeves' presence.

Also:

Phillip K Dick - Confessions of a Crap Artist

The best non-science fiction book he's ever written.

Jack Isidore is a "crap artist" - He creates completely outlandish and stupid ideas such as the Earth being hollow, and that sunlight has weight. He moves in with his sister's family. Her husband is a bitter, dominant misogynist and she's completely manipulative and great at creating misery. Jack joins an apocalypse cult, despite being relatively happy with his life.

I know, I suck at synopses.

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Been meaning to get into Tolstoï and Dostoïevski, but I'm not sure where to start. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Definitely read Crime and Punishment. It's a great book, and a good example of how to use symbolism without being fucking annoying.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by kat

I cannot suggest enough of any Haruki Murakami book. He's my favorite contemporary author, and I'm sure all the Japanophiles emos on this board will eat Norwegian Wood up.

Haruki Murakami hosted a lecture last year at my university. I work for my campus bookstore so I got to run it, and stood next to him for three hours controlling the line of people trying to get his autograph. It was quite an experience. I've started reading The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle but because of finals and such I haven't been able to finish it yet. It's third or fourth on my summer reading list. Kafka on the Shore is also on it, and...I forget which book it's in, but there's a story about a newly-wed couple that suddenly becomes so inexplicably hungry that they hold up a McDonald's, which I would be very interested in reading.

Double Post:

Originally Posted by Arkhangelsk

I have several books which are "must-reads" from my point of view, but here's the two which come to mind first:

Good Omens
Terry Pratchett and Niel Gaiman

Here, here! I was going to recommend that one but you got to it first. I'm long overdue for a reread of Good Omens.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Originally Posted by Aardark

Definitely read Crime and Punishment. It's a great book, and a good example of how to use symbolism without being fucking annoying.

I don't know. The symbolism and theme was like a sledgehammer to my brain. It was in yo' face the entire book and I felt it was just too stifling at certain points.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Yamamanama

It manages to be absolutely hilarious, tragic, and profound, and it woudn't be half that if it had a different subject matter. Anyway, read it. My review can not do this book justice. So it goes.

The majority of Vonnegut's work pulls this off. I'd recommend just about anything he's written.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Originally Posted by xiaowei

I don't know. The symbolism and theme was like a sledgehammer to my brain. It was in yo' face the entire book and I felt it was just too stifling at certain points.

Well, maybe it was 'in yo face' (I guess; I read it some years ago, so I don't really remember the details), but that didn't bother me. What I meant by the symbolism not being annoying is that it was not used just to appear 'deep', like you'd see in some shitty anime -- it actually has a purpose, the whole book is built around it. I suppose you might not like it, but either way, I believe it's a great work that everyone should read.

How ya doing, buddy?