I need new books!

[jondy]

I've been on a spate of novel reading recently. Now I need a new author!

Recommend me some books. They can be non-fictitious, as long as they're enjoyable/reasonably easy to read (ie A Short History of Nearly Everything etc, I get enough hardcore non-fic in my history degree ). I was thinking about starting the song of ice and fire series.

Cheers, Jon

 

[Asknoone]

At the Mountains of Madness by H.P Lovecraft is pretty ****ing good. Short too.

 

[ComradeBadger]

A Clockwork Orange
Catcher In The Rye

 

[Bad^Hat]

Currently reading the Tales of the Otori series by Lian Hearn and it's pretty darn good.

 

[Darkside55]

I was thinking about starting the song of ice and fire series.

Do it. IMO it's the best fantasy series right now. Maybe ever.

 

[Reginald]

A Clockwork Orange
Jarhead
American Gods - Neil Gaiman

Those are my three suggestions.

 

[Evo]

Jarhead definately!

I'm reading Eragon at the moment, very good

Before that had read Hannibal Rising, a bit shorter than i would've like but still good

 

[AKIRA]

enders game was pretty cool

 

[Absinthe]

Last book I read was "The End of Faith" by Sam Harris. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Non-fiction.

Really, you have to be interested in the role of religious faith in modern society if you're gonna bother with it. And while it's certainly not a difficult read for the most part, much of the philosophy regarding objectivity/subjectivity and the definition of "self" around three-quarters through can be confusing and fly over one's head. And there are a few parts where I don't entirely agree with him (he seems hawkish in his implied advocacy of military force against Islam, or at least finds it inevitable). But all in all it's a fascinating read that lays out its thesis in very eloquent terms. I'd certainly recommend it.

Next up is "The God Delusion", I guess.

 

[Krynn72]

The A Song of Ice and Fire series is the best god damned story I have ever read. Its not finished yet, so it has longevity... and its going to eventually be an HBO series.

READ IT

 

[Steel.Inferno]

Really Krynn? I hadn't heard that (HBO thing) Wouldn't actually be hard to pull off, besides lots of characters and difficulty distinguishing them.

I'm currently on the last released book "A Feast for Crows", damn awesome series. One of the first fantasy books with unpredictable twists and such. The four books took me since mid-November up to a week or two from now. You'll be set for reading for quite some time, and I read faster than most.

And, w00t another book thread. Got great recommendations (song of ice and fire actually) last time.

 

[StardogChampion]

Here's my "books to read" list:

"The Interpritation of Murder"
Raymond Chandler - PI Novels
James Ellroy - LA Confidential, Black Dahlia etc.
Frederick Forsyth
Sam Bourne - Righteous Men
Discworld
J.M. Barrie
The Club Dumas - Arturo Perez-Reverte
In Cold Blood - Truman Capote
MEG: A Novel of Deep Terror
Catch-22 - Joseph Heller
Bravo Two Zero
The Perfect Storm - Sebastian Junger
Shadow Divers - Robert Kurson
Sleepers
1984

George R.R. Martin - A Song of Ice and Fire
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Frankenstein
Alexandre Dumas - Count of Monte Cristo
Daniel Defoe - Robinson Crusoe
Charles Dickens - Great Expectations
Robert Louis Stevenson - Treasure Island
Frederick Forsyth - The Day of the Jackal
Robert A. Heinlein - Starship Troopers / The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress
Dave Eggers - A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

 

[Asknoone]

James Ellroy - LA Confidential, Black Dahlia etc.

I've only read LA Confidential, but its very, very good.

 

[Dekstar]

Next up is "The God Delusion", I guess.

My mate's reading the God delusion, and says it's a really good read.

Uhm I suggest anything by Terry Pratchet if you haven't already, or anything by Douglas Adams.

 

[knut]

The Discworld books by Terry Pratchett, prefrebly the Night Watch books. Start with Guards! Guards!, the very first in the 'series'

DISCWORLD!

Also, Children of Men (book, doy) by P.D James is great. Really an atonishing lot different in terms of story/pace, etc. I'm surprised there aren't people on this forun actually complaining the movie was bad because it isn't the same as the book. Heh. Great read though, really hard in places too because it can be really descriptive on the real horrible things going on.

 

[Solaris]

Yes the God delusion is utterly fantastic, life changing read.

Also 'The ragged trousered philanthropist' is a great book, it's what made me a socialist.

 

[Tyguy]

Do it yourself masturbation books.

 

[Evo]

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.

Set in late 18th early 19th centuries in France, many well written characters and scenes. May be a tough read but definately worth it

 

[Seppo]

Dragonlance books that are written by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis

 

[Dan]

Some WW2 novels:

Enemy at the Gates (not at all like the movie)
A man called Intrepid
Catch-22
Johnny Got His Gun
All Quiet On The Western Front
Wild Bill Donovan: The Last Hero

 

[Anthraxxx]

Snow Crash

and

Cryptonomicon

both by Neal Stephenson... defnintite must read books!!!!!!!

 

[Neutrino]

Earth by David Brin

 

[Geogaddi]

Since JNightshade isn't here...

House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski


Right now I'm reading

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein.

Hooray revolution. Boo government.

 

[Icarusintel]

House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski

I agree with this.


And offer as my own suggestion -

Apathy And Other Small Victories by Paul Neilan

It's a downright hilarious take on modern society. Kinda dark, edgy, and somewhat tasteless at times, but it's never so bad it'll turn you off.

 

[Polaris]

Richard Dawkins - The God Delusion is great choice but The Selfish Gene is maybe better, it's a book what changed my view of the world.

 

[DeusExMachina]

Dawkins comes off as too militant for my tastes when it comes to atheism.

 

[[Dragoon]]

I was thinking about starting the song of ice and fire series.

Do it.

You may also like the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan, and the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind. They're both rather long series, just short of conclusion. There's also the Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb, which I really enjoyed.

 

[Bad^Hat]

Really Krynn? I hadn't heard that (HBO thing) Wouldn't actually be hard to pull off, besides lots of characters and difficulty distinguishing them.

Heh, HBO managed it well with Band of Brothers. Atleast once you've watched it through a few times you get to knowing who everyone is, and they're all memorable characters for the most part. That being said, I haven't read the Fire and Ice books, but they'll definitely be next on the list once I'm done with my current reading.

Oh, and Garry Kilworth is another author worth checking out. Of the books I've read (or half-read >.>), Cloudrock and Hunter's Moon are very good, and have a different theme to most other books I've read. The first one's about an inbred society living atop a giant rock formation, the second is a tale from the perspective of foxes - without resorting to fantasy.

 

[poo poo head]

From A-Apple to Z-Zebra, Baby's First Pop-up book is 26 pages of alphabetic adventure!

 

[CyberPitz]

I liked Hatchet by Gary Paulson!

Yeah, I havn't read books since middle school..

 

[Kadayi]

Snow Crash

and

Cryptonomicon

both by Neal Stephenson... defnintite must read books!!!!!!!

I heard the hype about how uber they were and ploughed my way through both and frankly they blow hard, both in terms of story, pacing and characters (walking text book cliches every MF last one of them..). Stephenson is the sort of guy who thinks wearing sunglasses at night or inside a room is cool (much like the numbnut Wachowski Brothers) but has never actually been even remotely cool in his life. Gibson on the other hand ...he knew how to party hard in his day. Neuromancer is written by a guy who knows his subject.

Need a Good book? try 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coello, 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' by Hunter.S.Thompson, 'One flew over the cuckoos nest' by Ken Kesey or 'The unbearable Lightness of being' by Milan Kundera.

 

[DeusExMachina]

I think Gibson's pretty overrated to be honest. Neuromancer being his only book I could get into. Kind of like Chuck Palahnuik. Fight Club was great, but his other books are just...meh.

Check out anything by Vonnegut, Philip K. Dick, and Ellis.

 

[MorganFreeman911]

Artemis Fowl series.

 

[Jintor]

Anything by Neil Gaiman, although I reccomend either his Sandman comic series or my personal favourite, American Gods.