What's your favourite novel of all time?

[MrSmith]

What would be a good Charles Bukowski book for someone just getting into him who is, um, 13 y/o?

And I.... don't tell me that I'm too young or something. Please. Just getting that out there.

My dad was all, "I wouldn't hand his work to you but if you want to go over the bookshelf and try one out...." I <3 him. Def.

Sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but...what?

 

[amateurmacfreak]

Sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but...what?

Haha, what about what?

Yes. I am pathetically tired and my brain's not functioning fully.

 

[MrSmith]

Haha, what about what?

As in 'what did you just say?'

I can understand everything except the words.

 

[amateurmacfreak]

As in 'what did you just say?'

I can understand everything except the words.

Haha now I'm even more confused.

As in what were you referring to?

heh

 

[dsnort]

As I look at all the intelectually stimulating listings, I can't help but wonder how many people would answer " Curious George" or "Playboy" if a truth serum were administered?

 

[MrSmith]

Where's me meds?

 

[it5five]

1984 is my favorite, followed closely by Catch 22.

 

[fhqwhgads]

wow, a buechner fan! one of my all-time favorite authors, and godric was definitely my favorite book for a long time.

right now, though, i think lolita by nabokov has that title. although it'll probably be something else again soon.

anyway. i so rarely meet people who have even heard of buechner, and i really think he's one of the best of his time--certainly his work has affected me profoundly. hooray, isaint!

 

[Bibulous]

The Good Earth - Pearl S Buck

 

[MrSmith]

Doctor Zhivago

Of course that really wasn't a book so l vote for;

War & Peace

or was it ??

Doctor Zhivago was a book; by Boris Pasternak. [Ctrl-Apple-D over Pasternak for details ]

 

[~Shard~]

The Art of War.

(Yah, I know it's not really a novel per se...)

 

[Rickay726]

To kill a mocking bird, that or Of Mice and Men

 

[me_94501]

Without a doubt, Catcher in the Rye.

Other favorites include To Kill a Mockingbird, Things Fall Apart, and The Tortilla Curtain (by T.C. Boyle).

I'm an English major, so I've read a lot of good novels--and a lot of bad ones too!

 

[Lau]

What would be a good Charles Bukowski book for someone just getting into him who is, um, 13 y/o?

And I.... don't tell me that I'm too young or something. Please. Just getting that out there.

My dad was all, "I wouldn't hand his work to you but if you want to go over the bookshelf and try one out...." I <3 him. Def.

I'd try Ham On Rye — it was written after Post Office but is the prequel to that, and describes the childhood of a character called Henry Chinaski (although is basically fairly autobiographical). Any of Ham On Rye, Post Office and Factotum are probably good to start with, but Ham On Rye would make the most sense to read first, I reckon.

Wouldn't worry too much about the age thing — my parents were fairly relaxed about what I read, and it never did me any harm.

 

[Chundles]

-"Catch-22" - Joseph Heller

-"In The Skin of a Lion" - Michael Ondaatje

-"Love in the time of Cholera" - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

-"High Fidelity" - Nick Hornby

-"The Life and Extraordinary Adventures of Private Ivan Chonkin" - Vladimir Voinovich

 

[Motley]

I'll throw another vote for 1984, now more relevant than ever.

 

[rose red]

The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald

Kim - Rudyard Kipling

Ali and Nino - Kurban Said

 

[Lyle]

Microserfs (Coupland)
Lord of the Flies (Golding)
Breathing Lessons (Tyler)
To Kill a Mockingbird (Lee)

 

[Lyle]

... and I hate to say it, but Lemony Snicket.

Why hate to say it? Those are fantastic books. Which reminds me, I guess I need to go pick up the last one!

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Dumas. Best storyteller ever. The Three Musketeers is the ancestor of all modern action/adventure novels and films (don't argue with me on this )

Honorable mentions to Poe and Conan Doyle round out my top three (more known for their short stories)....but there are so many others.

 

[jalagl]

I see a lot of good ones listed, but I'll go with one of my favorite authors, Robert Heinlein, especially Starship Troopers. ( And if you've only seen the movie, then you have no idea what the book is about.)

I forgot about Heinlein... I loved Starship Troopers and Job.

 

[question fear]

All time faves, a three way tie:
Stranger in a Strange Land, Robert Heinlein
Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand
The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand
Of the above three, with "Atlas Shrugged" and "Stranger in a Strange Land" if I read or someone recites 2-3 lines from any section I can either complete the paragraph or at the very least give an excellent summary of the rest of the scene. That's how often i've read them.

Books I return to quite a bit for sheer fun and interest:

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (and all sequels), Douglas Adams
Lamb, Christopher Moore
Ender's Game (and the first few sequels), Orson Scott Card-post "Children of the Mind" I started to lose interest, mostly because I only really cared about Ender. The fate of the battle school kids left me fairly "Meh". But Ender's Game is like a super comfy sweatshirt, I love reading it and thinking back to the first time I read it, during a week where school was closed due to an especially nasty set of snowstorms.

 

[Phat Elvis]

I can't believe it hasn't been said yet but:

Neuromancer - William Gibson

gets better everytime I read it (and I'm not a sci-fi geek - I swear). You've got to love Steppin' Razor.

 

[quigleybc]

Not the most academic choice

but Stephen King's Dark Tower series really took me away..

I loved every second of every book.

Same goes for George R.R Martin's Song of Ice and Fire Series.

 

[kondspi]

Stranger In a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein...
Quite a book.