Islandia, by Austin Tappan Wright - It's a fully realized fantasy world, except populated by humans. In fact, the fantasy is only a little removed from history as we know it, which makes the disconnect so familiar and likely that we fall into the story as if it were a feather bed.
The story itself gets a bit long winded, and the ending is abrupt; but the concept, wow. It just felt...right. I've come back to read again at least 3 times during my life.
[–] Captain_Defect ago
Metro 2033 by Dmitri Glukhovski. I really like it because it's like Fallout's other half, only a lot more realistic and it was actually a book before it became a game.
I really should have been a high school English teacher because I love most of the books that one reads in high school. That is not to say my tastes have not matured since high school, however, if I had to pick a single favorite book it would be, "Catcher in the Rye." It was my first experience reading a book where I felt that author truly understood what it meant to be me. I am not some knight out to save the kingdom or some person with an interesting life; I am simply a guy trying to find happiness in a somber world. I did not know what I wanted to be and I did not have a single good friend, but the idea of being a catcher in the rye really spoke to me. To be something important but simple. I did not feel that level of connection again until I read, "Hyperbole and a Half." I can fully appreciate the complexity of ASOFAI or "Finnegans Wake." I can love the depth of, "A Thousand Splendid Suns," or, "The Color of Water." But at the end of the day, the novel that speaks to who I am is simply, "The Catcher in the Rye."
[–] Ar_Nimruzir ago (edited ago)
The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien and The Prophet by Khalil Gibran tie for my favorite books of all time.
I love The Silmarillion because I love Tolkien's world and because the writing is absolutely some of the most beautiful prose poetry I have ever read. The love that Tolkien had for those in his life comes across quite clearly in this work, and by reading it you may come to a more deeper understanding of him. Not only that, but to be able to so perfectly construct an entire world and contain it in a single book surely marks it as his magnum opus, even though it was published posthumously and finished by his son. But it is the language, it is most certainly the masterful and beautiful use of the English language which makes this my favorite book!
I love The Prophet because of the writing as well, the words are beautiful, and even more so because such beauty lies in the truth spoken of in that book. The Prophet is filled with amazing life lessons conveyed in language so lovely it will bring tears to your eyes. It teaches peace, happiness, truth and beauty. The Prophet teaches us of a world that can be better if we choose to make it so. It is the story of a prophet, who upon leaving the city he lives in, is stopped by the high priestess of the temple and the people of the city so that he may impart a few last words of wisdom to them. To be able to know so much about the human condition, about beauty and love, surely marks Gibran as a man of wisdom and under recognized genius of the last century.
Both of these books are available for free on the internet if anyone is interested; I know The Silmarillion isn't for everybody, but The Prophet is a quick and easy read and should be mandatory for every person on the planet.
If you want to know more or would like a free copy of either please reply to this message or PM me!
One more thing: what is your favorite book @haveallthebananas? (Also, bananas are my favorite fruit! And mangosteens, too. I can decide on just one thing...).
[–] haveallthebananas [S] ago
My favorite? Well it's a series... Actually it's Stephen King's Dark Tower series... There's a such a rich history there, I mean everything he's written all tracks into that series some how. The most memorable (to me) being IT, the clown, is a demon or something called a World Eater and it's responsible for destroying the world that Roland lives in and even was shown in IT (the book) near the end to be "eating" worlds when the kids (gang?) finally realize or are shown what IT is.
[–] tito_bandito ago
" The Talisman," by Steven King and Peter Straub, King develops his characters so well, and Straub does the supernatural to a tee. I have reread it a dozen times. I envy the person who gets to read it for the first time!!!
[–] KThief 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
1984 by George Orwell.
It's difficult to pick a favorite of all time, so I tried to select a book that really got me interested in reading when I was younger. I won't credit any of the numerous (mostly forgettable) YA fantasy series I read in middle school, or other 'recommended reading' like Catcher in the Rye, although those were all enjoyable.
1984 was the first novel that really opened my eyes to the fact that (good) literature can not only mirror and interpret our world, but even shape the world as we experience it.
[–] caius_iulius_caesar ago
My favorite novels are The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Bell Jar, Last Exit to Brooklyn, A Confederacy of Dunces and The Rules of Attraction.
I love then for their technical features (predominantly their sentence-structure), the skill and poignant beauty of their writing and the way they find nuggets of humor in otherwise tragic subject-matter.