Which List Book Could You Just Not Put Down?

[Kayla]

I've hit a reading slump and it's driving me insane. I've started so many different books and just can't get into them (not because of the book but because of me) do any of you have a list book that you just couldn't put down? I need something to get me out of the slump and I just don't know what to do with.

[Linda]

The last two list books that I couldn't put down were:

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami - this was strangely fascinating and I just had to keep reading to see what happened next, even if I didn't fully understand all that was going on. The group I read it with had an awesome discussion with many insights and theories.

and

The Once and Future King by T.H. White - this one won the poll in another group and I actually had never heard of the book and I am not at all familiar with the Arthurian legends, but I was pleasantly surprised by all the humor, tenderness, loyalty and disloyalty alike, and heartbreaking emotions that were packed into this book. I was really sad to end my journey with these characters when I was done reading it.

[Kayla]

Linda wrote: "The last two list books that I couldn't put down were:

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami - this was strangely fascinating and I just had to keep reading to ..."

awesome! thank you so much!

[Linda]

You're welcome! I would say of the two, the Murakami was the harder one to put down. And based on how many people participated in the discussions, I think more people enjoyed the Murakami over the King Arthur book. But I loved both of them.

[Tom]

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson ; A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole ; The Secret History by Donna Tartt

[Tom]

Also the John Irving that are on the list are excellent

[[deleted user]]

All the books of Agustina Bessa-Luís
The series of Swann's Way, A Tale of Two Cities and Bleak House

[Laura]

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins.

[J_BlueFlower]

An all time favorite and also quite short: Chess Story

[Sandi]

Laura wrote: "The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins."

I second this. Impossible to put down!

I also found the three list books by Fanny Burney to be quite addictive, but more in the way a soap opera keeps you hooked, which might be annoying for some readers.

[Tej]

I LOVED The Elegance of the Hedgehog and zipped right through it, but a friend said he couldn't get into it until halfway through. At that point, he couldn't put it down.

A Prayer for Owen Meany seems to be quite polarizing, but I love they way that Irving re-arranged the timeline of the narrative so that you know almost from the first page that by the end of the book Owen would be dead but you still want to learn more about him. In fact, by the middle of the book we learn when but we don't know how until the last ten pages.

Finally, I think anything by Dumas is a real page-turner, especially The Count of Monte Cristo.

[Linda]

Tej wrote: "I LOVED The Elegance of the Hedgehog and zipped right through it, but a friend said he couldn't get into it until halfway through. At that point, he couldn't put it down."

Good to know! I just picked this one up used when I came upon it - hopefully I can get to it soon.

[Alana]

Definitely the Woman in White... I found several of the books listed here already amusing, as they listed the books on the list I've so far hated the most! But that just goes to show you the variety of reading tastes!

[Edwin]

J wrote: "An all time favorite and also quite short: Chess Story"

Yup, this.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

I just finished Germinal. The list introduced me to Zola, and I'm so glad.

[Mekki]

where should I start with Zola? also which translation? thanks

[Mekki]

You can also try The Collector and the Lydia Davis translation of Madame Bovary.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Mekki wrote: "where should I start with Zola? also which translation? thanks"

I understand the new translations are quite good, but I have not read them. After starting with L'Assommoir (The Dram Shop), I decided I wanted to read the series and went to the beginning. Now, nearing the end of the project, I think if a few years' time I might reread them with the new translations.

[Davin]

I just finished The Art of Fielding and I could not stop reading it. It is good and a fun read, but I wouldn't call it great. There is something about it though, that I could not put down.

I feel like I can't predict which books will make me feel that way at all, can you?

[Wendy]

Good thread! In high school I got a kick out of The Count of Monte Cristo, Thérèse Raquin and Crime and Punishment.

I do tend to like the darker, twisted, subtext-dripping, plotty ones. More recently I couldn't put down:
- Closely Watched Trains
- Kiss of the Spider Woman
- Death In Rome
- The Collector (great one!)
- Enduring Love
- Pale Fire
- The Scarlet Letter (of all things. was not expecting that. Luckily I somehow missed that in school. phew!)

(Sadly, I did struggle with Elegance of the Hedgehog, but that probably tells you more about my tastes than about the book.)

I need to get my hands on Chess Story, I keep hearing such great things about it!

[Judith]

A few I loved and could not put down:

The Dumas Club
Ragtime
Alias Grace
Cold Comfort Farm (If you get the humor: not everyone does.)
Atonement
Wuthering Heights
Miss Pettigrew Lives for A Day (humor, again)
American Pastoral

I look forward to reading Chess Story! And I can ditto a few others mentioned here such as A Prayer for Owen Meany,Kiss of the Spider Woman and The Scarlet Letter.

[Judith]

Tom wrote: "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson ; A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole ; The Secret History by [a..."

Not everyone can tolerate the Dunces, but I enjoyed it also, Tom. Good choices!

[J_BlueFlower]

Wendy wrote: "I need to get my hands on Chess Story, I keep hearing such great things about it! "

Yes, judging from what you said, I think you will like it.

[Lisa]

My personal favorites:

1. Gone With the Wind
Any of the books by Isabel Allende
any of the books by Toni Morrison

The Road
In Cold Blood
Breakfast At Tiffany's
Never Let Me Go

I will also 2nd & 3rd The Secret History & The Scarlet Letter :) Dunces was fun, the main character is hatable, which is what makes it fun :) Ragtime was great too :)

Another Dickens which I thought was more enjoyable than Tale of Two Cities was David Copperfield.

[Wendy]

J wrote: "Wendy wrote: "I need to get my hands on Chess Story, I keep hearing such great things about it! "

Yes, judging from what you said, I think you will like it."

Oh, good to hear :)