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List of Books Everyone Should Read at Least Once...

ZiggyPastorius said:
I'm kind of glad to see Crime and Punishment on here, because it's one of the ridiculously bad-looking books I have to read for AP English...
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I had to read Crime and Punishment for AP English years ago...I put it off until the weekend before we were supposed to finish it. I sat down with it on Saturday morning and didn't put it down until Sunday night. It was amazing. Exciting, moving, rich with symbolism (not stupid, ridiculous symbolism, but the kind that actually makes sense). It became my favorite book. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

It got me inspired on a personal project of reading all of Dostoyevsky's work...I haven't quite gotten around to it, though I've read The Idiot, Notes from Underground, and a big chunk of The Brothers Karamazov.
 
The Worthing Saga by Orson Scott Card (best sci-fi book I've ever read. Wonderful piece of literature)

iRobot by Isaac Asimov

The Last Question by Isaac Asimov (short story, google it...now)
 
Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham:
It's an old kid's book, but has a charm all it's own.

The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill but Came Down a Mountain ~ Christopher Monger:
Delightful and fun, with sweet humour.

The Bible:
It's from God - need I say more? In particular the Gospels.
 
At the Risk of Being Redundant

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Don Quixote by Cervantes
The Sportswriter, Independence Day and The Lay of the Land by Richard Ford (3 books)
White Noise by Don DeLillo
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupéry
 
AoWolf said:
Why?
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Because the books would mean different things to different cultures. Maybe nobody in Mongolia gives a toss about Of Mice and Men, Crime and Punishment, or many of the books listed here. They may read it and like it, but would they really love it in the same way as you? There's also a massive collection of books written in Chinese that may be incredible, but you would never fully appreciate it when you read its English translation, or you don't understand the nuances of certain actions, or attitude, tradition, etc. You may like it, but you may also miss a number of critical points.


Anyway, I'll add "Catcher In The Rye" to the list.
 
Abstract said:
Because the books would mean different things to different cultures. Maybe nobody in Mongolia gives a toss about Of Mice and Men, Crime and Punishment, or many of the books listed here. They may read it and like it, but would they really love it in the same way as you? There's also a massive collection of books written in Chinese that may be incredible, but you would never fully appreciate it when you read its English translation, or you don't understand the nuances of certain actions, or attitude, tradition, etc. You may like it, but you may also miss a number of critical points.
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And to add to Abstract's comment, sometimes a distance of time, as well as culture and geography, can dilute the meaning and richness of a book. For instance, a double entendre would be completely lost because of a change in the meaning of a word or disuse of a particular term.

I noticed the wealth of Sci-Fi on the list. I would add Robert Heinlein's Starship Troopers
 
Tale of Genji (the first novel ever written and also one of the greatest)
Journey to the West (the Chinese Classic about the Monkey King)
The Complete Works of Shakespeare
The Bible (two of the most quoted and referenced works in Western Literature)

Mien Kampf :eek::confused::mad:...just kidding:p
 
ZiggyPastorius said:
"We need more atheists, and nothing will get you there faster than reading the damn Bible." -Penn Jillette.
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Agree on that...

Everything I think you should read has already been listed, but what you should never ever read is "The secret". So much bs it's not even funny. The company's CEO actually played us the video version... I think it's time to look for another job.
 
Harry Potter series(I'm serious)

Other than that:

- Hamlet by William Shakespeare
- A Tale of Two Cities
- Les Miserables
- Frankenstein
- Much Ado About Nothing (awesome book here, its funny and well worth reading. )
 
Watabou said:
Harry Potter series(I'm serious)
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I'm curios about one thing; it's not that I disagree, but why exactly is Harry Potter a must-read?:)
Other than that:

- Hamlet by William Shakespeare

- Much Ado About Nothing (awesome book here, its funny and well worth reading. )
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Hmmm, interesting. You chose Hamlet and Much Ado About Nothing as your two Shakespearean choices. I'll admit that Much Ado had its moments, but it was rather formulaic as a Shakespearean comedy, no?

Not that I didn't enjoy it, but it didn't hit the humor that I've come to expect from great works (notably humor that is funny because humans in general behave that way).

A Midsummer Night's Dream, I think, was a better display of human folly.

Sorry to go off on a Shakespearean tangent, but no one ever likes to discuss the bard. :p:eek:
 
CalBoy said:
Hmmm, interesting. You chose Hamlet and Much Ado About Nothing as your two Shakespearean choices. I'll admit that Much Ado had its moments, but it was rather formulaic as a Shakespearean comedy, no?

Not that I didn't enjoy it, but it didn't hit the humor that I've come to expect from great works (notably humor that is funny because humans in general behave that way).

A Midsummer Night's Dream, I think, was a better display of human folly.

Sorry to go off on a Shakespearean tangent, but no one ever likes to discuss the bard. :p:eek:
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you want to discuss the bard? you haven't asked me, :p

anyways, Midsummer is better than Much Ado imo, but Two Gentleman of Verona is often overlooked too.

as to his other works, its up to personal preference i think, but i find Othello to be an entirely overwhelming display of one of the most powerful emotions: Jealousy. which is why i find it so fascinating. but MacBeth has a lot of redeemable qualities and memorable lines too. Hamlet? well Hamlet has been dissected a bit too much, and as such i think a lot of the literary focus has moved away from the actual intent of the play and rather looks to make some off-the-wall claims. King Lear is powerful, but leaves some lacking.
 
CalBoy said:
I'm curios about one thing; it's not that I disagree, but why exactly is Harry Potter a must-read?:)


Hmmm, interesting. You chose Hamlet and Much Ado About Nothing as your two Shakespearean choices. I'll admit that Much Ado had its moments, but it was rather formulaic as a Shakespearean comedy, no?

Not that I didn't enjoy it, but it didn't hit the humor that I've come to expect from great works (notably humor that is funny because humans in general behave that way).

A Midsummer Night's Dream, I think, was a better display of human folly.

Sorry to go off on a Shakespearean tangent, but no one ever likes to discuss the bard. :p:eek:
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@ harry potter comment: I just think that it really is a fun book and whenever I feel down, it always seems to raise me up just because it takes me to another place and it just helps me forget about the stresses I'm in. :)
And anyways, I didn't say it was a must read, but it is a book someone should read at least once.

@ Much Ado comment: I guess but I really enjoyed that book. I don't know what you mean by the book being formulaic though. I never read Midsummer. So I guess, I'll read that and see :p
 
PlaceofDis said:
anyways, Midsummer is better than Much Ado imo,
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**** him ;)

Serious note: I've only seen The Two Gentlemen Of Verona once, and seriously disliked it. It was a low-rate show, so maybe that clouded my judgement. If I had to nominate a best-of-the-bard it would have to be either Macbeth or Othello.
 
Much Ado said:
**** him ;)

Serious note: I've only seen The Two Gentlemen Of Verona once, and seriously disliked it. It was a low-rate show, so maybe that clouded my judgement. If I had to nominate a best-of-the-bard it would have to be either Macbeth or Othello.
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absolutely best is either Macbeth or Othello imo as well. as for the comedies its hard to judge and greatly depends on performance. i've seen all three... and midsummer was done the best, followed by Two Gentlemen of Verona, but that doesn't mean that with a different cast Much Ado wouldn't be better. i do tend to favor Midsummer though for some reason.
 
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