Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die discussion

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message 4101: by Bob (new)

Bob Kaufman (bobkaufman) | 689 comments The Go-Between by L.P. Hartley. A very good coming of age story with some exciting, dramatic events, a little angst, and a bit of reflection.


message 4102: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
Kirsten wrote: "Bob wrote: "The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. Quite an interesting adventure. A slow starter as..."

I've also just finished The Woman in White, which was a group read for the "Catching Up with Classics" group. Liked it but thought it was tedious at times.


message 4103: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
Luís wrote: "Suttree is on the list?"

There are 2 other novels by Cormac McCarthy on the list: Blood Meridian, and All the Pretty Horses. Both were added in 2008 and remained in 2012. I didn't care much for Blood Meridian.


message 4104: by Kirsten (new)

Kirsten  (kmcripn) George wrote: "Kirsten wrote: "Bob wrote: "The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins. Quite an interesting adventure. A slow starter as..."

I've also just finished The Woman in White, which ..."


I agree.


Bryan--The Bee’s Knees (theindefatigablebertmcguinn) | 629 comments Finished Jane Eyre by C. Bronte. I liked it a lot more than I thought I would.


message 4106: by Peter (last edited Dec 06, 2017 11:26AM) (new)

Peter | 443 comments On The Road by Jack Kerouac. I thought that it was OK as a book of its time but only really portrays the differences between the haves and the have nots and in the sexes.


message 4107: by Linda (new)

Linda | 275 comments After almost 3 months, I just finished Against the Day by Thomas Pynchon. What a beast of a book! I enjoyed it, but there were so many characters that I found myself lost and confused many times. It didn't help that I listened to the audio book. I should have just stuck with print, although the narration by Dick Hill was fabulous.

Anyway - CHECK!


message 4108: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
Just finished The Godfather. It's really not great literature but it is a very good story and has some very good characters. Even Puzo said of his book, " I'm not writing War and Peace, I'm just trying to make money".


Bryan--The Bee’s Knees (theindefatigablebertmcguinn) | 629 comments Coincidentally, I just finished War and Peace (which was no Godfather, let me tell you!)

I read a couple of chapters a day, but sometimes letting some time go by if I was caught up reading something else. Took me most of the year to read.


message 4110: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
The Master and Margarita by Bulgakov
Finally finished the October read -- really enjoyed it.


message 4111: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
Dusklands by J. M. Coetzee
Not really a favorite -- since there are so many of Coetzee's books on the list, I hope they get better.


message 4112: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
A short one and an old one- Candide by Voltaire. Over-the-top, but enjoyed it.


message 4113: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
Karen wrote: "Dusklands by J. M. Coetzee
Not really a favorite -- since there are so many of Coetzee's books on the list, I hope they get better."


I've read his Disgrace and Waiting for the Barbarians, and while I liked them both I liked Disgrace a little better. The film of Disgrace with John Malkovic in the lead role is pretty good as well.


message 4114: by Yrinsyde (new)

Yrinsyde | 295 comments I've just finished The White Tiger - a darkly humorous novel which I enjoyed.


message 4115: by Diane (new)

Diane  | 2336 comments Mod
Kirsten wrote: "Diane wrote: "Finished The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen. Great book."

So you don't think Franzen is overrated?"


I can't speak for his other books, but I enjoyed this one immensely.


message 4116: by Diane (new)

Diane  | 2336 comments Mod
George wrote: "The film of Disgrace with John Malkovic in the lead role is pretty good as well. .."

I had no idea it was made into a movie. Cool. I'm even further behind in my movie-watching than my reading.


message 4117: by Diane (new)

Diane  | 2336 comments Mod
Just finished the seriously hefty Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong. It took me nearly all year, but I read lots of other books at the same time. The app doesn't reflect just how long it is - at well over 2000 pages. Glad to have it finally behind me.

Also finished What I Loved by Siri Hustvedt.


message 4118: by Dree (new)

Dree | 160 comments Finished The Radiant Way by Margaret Drabble. I really liked this one, it hit close to home for me even though it is 30 years old.


Bryan--The Bee’s Knees (theindefatigablebertmcguinn) | 629 comments Diane wrote: "Just finished the seriously hefty Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong. It took me nearly all year, but I read lots of other books at the same time. The ap..."

Diane, is the book you linked to the edition you read? I want to read this as well, but I wanted to make sure I was getting a complete version. Who was the translator of the edition you read? Thanks


message 4120: by Angelo (new)

Angelo (angelominnm) | 6 comments Fahrenheit 451.


message 4121: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
Diane wrote: "Just finished the seriously hefty Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong. It took me nearly all year..."

Maybe I should read War and Peace and Infinite Jest first to build up my stamina before taking this one on ;) I also enjoyed "What I Loved".


message 4122: by Karina (new)

Karina | 401 comments Just finished The Professor’s House by Willa Cather and I was not disappointed.


message 4123: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
Diane wrote: "Just finished the seriously hefty Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong. It took me nearly all year, but I read lots of other books at the same time. The ap..."

Which edition did you read? I've been looking for the best translation and the complete version, but can't decide.


message 4124: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
George wrote: "Karen wrote: "Dusklands by J. M. Coetzee
Not really a favorite -- since there are so many of Coetzee's books on the list, I hope they get better."

I've read his Disgrace an..."


I'll try those next.


message 4125: by Mia (new)

Mia | 1198 comments Karen wrote: "Dusklands by J. M. Coetzee
Not really a favorite -- since there are so many of Coetzee's books on the list, I hope they get better."


I've read all of his books from the list, except Foe (which I have but I have to read Robinson Crusoe first) Waiting for the Barbarians, Life and Times of Michael K and Youth are my absolutely favorites. I don't remember Dusklands that much so it must mean that it didn't impress me.


message 4126: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
A beautiful little book about a young girl and her grandmother spending a summer on a small island in the Gulf of Finland and dealing with grief and aging.

Just a note -- Tove Jansson is best known for her Moomin books for children and the Moomin comic strips.


message 4127: by Debbie (new)

Debbie | 22 comments Just finished The War of the Worlds. I am not a SciFi person but I gave it 5 stars. Really enjoyed it and can’t believe it was written in 1898


message 4128: by Bob (new)

Bob Kaufman (bobkaufman) | 689 comments The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides. A very well told story, crass at times (but that's how teenage boys are) it describes what the author thinks about so-called life in middle class suburban America.


message 4129: by Diane (last edited Dec 16, 2017 06:24AM) (new)

Diane  | 2336 comments Mod
Bryan wrote: "Diane wrote: "Just finished the seriously hefty Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong. It took me nearly all year, but I read lots of other books at the sam..."

I am not sure. I read it in a series of volumes and one of the volumes had the same cover as the one in the link.


message 4130: by Diane (new)

Diane  | 2336 comments Mod
Finished The Cathedral by Oles Honchar.


Kelly_Hunsaker_reads ... Can anyone tell me what book was set to start in December?


message 4132: by Laura Hailstone (new)

Laura Hailstone | 15 comments I think it was HG Wells ‘War of the Worlds’- purely as that’s what I have listed as reading next


message 4133: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
Kelly wrote: "Can anyone tell me what book was set to start in December?"

Yes, War of the Worlds was the poll-winner.
We should be voting now on books for the next 3 mos (Jan, Feb, Mar) but the poll isn't posted yet.


message 4134: by Amanda (new)

Amanda | 191 comments Just finished Marius the Epicurean. Man, that was boring. Review is up on http://1001everything.blogspot.com


message 4135: by George P. (new)

George P. | 1402 comments Mod
Finished Written on the Body by English writer Jeanette Winterson (1992). A short one about a romantic relationship with many moving passages. Has an impressive 4.08 avg Goodreads rating.


message 4136: by Tricia (new)

Tricia | 18 comments I finished Kristin Lavransdattar last week. It was excellent!


message 4137: by Dree (new)


message 4138: by Bob (new)

Bob Kaufman (bobkaufman) | 689 comments Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. Very interesting, great characters, multiple timeline story, better than Virgin Suicides.


message 4139: by Bob (new)

Bob Kaufman (bobkaufman) | 689 comments Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson. Awesome story of adventure, history and science.


message 4140: by Ellen (new)

Ellen | 6 comments Just finished a Christmas Carol


message 4141: by Cara (new)

Cara  (shortpenguin) | 8 comments A Christmas Carol
I figured now was as good a time as any to read it for the first time. I actually liked it. I always assumed I'd not really enjoy any of the Dickens on the list based on my experiences in high school. We had to read parts of A Tale of Two Cities, and I remembering being so bored.
But so far, I've liked the ones I've read in the past couple years. Probably because they weren't for some assignment.


message 4142: by Eva (new)

Eva | 60 comments I just finished Candide by Voltaire. It surprised me at being a quick read and really funny. I had somehow gotten the impression that this would be a long 129 pages to read.


message 4143: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
Moscow to the End of the Line by Venedikt Erofeev (also know as Moscow Stations). Be careful which edition you get -- the translation by Stephen Mulrine is actually an adaptation of the book to be performed by one actor.


message 4144: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison.


message 4145: by Yrinsyde (new)

Yrinsyde | 295 comments Emu wrote: "I just finished Candide by Voltaire. It surprised me at being a quick read and really funny. I had somehow gotten the impression that this would be a long 129 pages to..."

I thought it was really funny too!


message 4146: by Sarah (new)

Sarah (sarahbethie) | 438 comments Finished Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis.


message 4147: by Angelique (new)

Angelique (mjollnir972) | 74 comments I just finished The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. The series is more enjoyable not that the book was bad but more not as descriptive as it should have been to give the true impression of what they were really facing. All in all I have it more 2.5 then 3 stars.


message 4148: by Bob (new)

Bob Kaufman (bobkaufman) | 689 comments Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs. As the author says due to the subject of this book it is "necessarily brutal, obscene and disgusting." It is also difficult to read. I'm not sure if it's hyperbole, theater of the absurd, satire, or the DT rantings of a man in detox. It comes across as the author's stream of consciousness meandering reminiscent of Henry Miller and Jack Kerouac. His prosetry is often beautiful, so maybe I just don't get it.


message 4149: by Karen (new)

Karen Hoehne | 1717 comments Mod
Thais by Anatole France.


message 4150: by Dree (new)

Dree | 160 comments Finished The Cathedral by Oles Honchar, my 190th book from the complete list.


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