The Next Best Book Club discussion
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Our Top Reading/Book Lists
Ok, so I'll go first!KT's Top 10 Non-Fiction Reads
1. Eleven Seconds by Travis Roy
2. Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
3. Crashing the Net: The U.S. Women's Ice Hockey Team and the Road to Gold by Mary Turco
4. Night by Elie Wiesel
5. My Sergei by Ekaterina Gordeeva
6. Without a Map by Meredith Hall
7. Marley Me by John Grogan
8. On Writing by Stephen King
9. Never Give Up: My Stroke, My Recovery and My Return to the NFL by Tedi Bruschi
10. It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life by Lance Armstrong
Great list Katie, I will have to check out some of those!Lorena's Top 10 Great Books You Probably Never Heard of ...
1. Maria, by Jorge Isaacs -best love story, written by this Colombian writer between 1864-1867.
2. The Vortex, (La Voragine), by Jose Eustasio Rivera, The novel written in 1924, elegant and refined prose, is full of metaphors and poetry, that shows the beauty and exotism of the virgin Colombian rainforest.
3. Love in the times of Cholera, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, magical realism at its best, this is another love story with the strange twist and turns GGM puts into his work.
4. The Billygoat (El Carnero) by Juan Rodriguez Freyle, written in 1638, novel about the establishment of the American conquest, and the foundation of Bogota, the capital of Colombia.
5. Chronicles of a death foretold, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, this could be my favorite novel by this author, its about the story of a death by honor, told by several people who witness the “facts”.
6. Simon the Magician, By Tomas de Carrasquilla, written in 1890, explores the moment in time when black and white Colombians became equals and the clash of the African culture had with the Spaniards and the criollos (sons of Spaniards born in South America).
7. La Celestina, Fernando de Rojas, written in 1499. A tale of love a la Romeo and his Juliet, marks the end of medieval literature and the beginning of the Renaissance in Spain.
8. Don Quixote (Don Quijote de la Mancha), by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, written about 1605, is regarded as one of the best novels ever written, is a satirical look at the world at the times.
9. Azul… (blue…), Ruben Dario, published in 1888, is a collection of his work. He was called the father of modernism. His work was written in prose and depended a lot in rhythm, so I truly don’t know how that would translate to English.
10. Ficciones, Jorge Luis Borges (fictions, by Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges … he he he , I had to do that), 1944 collection of some of the authors short stories, just beautiful work.
Great Idea! I love it! Top 5 best YA Books in The Universe:
1. The Gemma Doyle Trilogy by Libba Bray. I cannot put into words how much I love these books.
2. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. Amazing, I will love Stargirl forever.
3. The Journey to the River Sea. This was my introduction to Eva Ibbotson, and I've loved her ever since, it also started by obsession with gypsy boys :).
4. The Star of Kazan by Eva Ibbotson. Amazing twists, awesome plots, and I love how she describes Vienna!
5. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen. The only book I've read of hers, but I loved it. Fantastic writing.
Lorena -- What a great list...makes me wish I was more fluent in other languages! I do have Love in the Time of Cholera on my TBR list...I shall have to add some more of your wordly pieces to my list!Emma -- I haven't read any of those! I have read one of those authors though...I read Maniac Magee by Spinelli a long time ago & I remember it was good! I haven't read much YA recently...except for the books I'm not allowed to mention in your presense (you know, the vampire/werewolf/Bella ones!) *L*
Thanks for some wonderful lists so far ladies...everyone else please feel free to post whatever kind of list you want!!
The lists posted are very creative so I need time to either a;get over feeling intimidated and just post something or b;think of something uniquely mine and post as soon as I've thought of it. :)
Top Ten Books to Avoid (in no particular order)1. Finnegans Wake by James Joyce
2. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
3. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austin
4. Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maughm
5. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
6. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
7. Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
8. The Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
9. A Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo
10. Moby Dick by Herman Melville
I realize that this will probably stir up some controversy, but I am speaking from the heart.
Sherry... I'm with u with the intimidated bit, lol...I will post, I promise... just might take me a while
Sherry and Kirsty - I have felt the same thing. I found myself wanting to read some more "smart people books" before I posted so I could appear well educated and thoughtful, but that's just not me (sigh). It's all about what we enjoy and when it comes to reading, I read for enjoyment. Catamorandi - ??? Whoa! You are stirring up a little controversy. I'll admit that I haven't read all of those so I can't be too upset, but I am curious why you chose Lord of the Flies? I'll admit I found it disturbing and can never read or watch it again due to the Piggy scenes, but I did find it a GREAT story.
I chose Lord of the Flies b/c it was extremely distressing and depressing. It affected me for 2 1/2 to three weeks after I read it. It kept haunting me. I don't need that.
Andi, wouldn't that make it a good book? That it affected you that much, for the same reason I could never decide if I loved or hated The Kite Runner, it was so intense and violent and deppresing, while I was reading it I felt so sad and kept thinking about the characters as if I knew them.I "enjoyed" LotF, the only problem I had with it was the fact that there was no accountability for the kids actions at the end. I want it some sort of punishment or something ... he he he, I know there is something dark inside of me.
I suppose in a way, you are right about being affected so badly making it a good book. It's just that I already suffer from depression. I don't need any help in that area. I'm doing quite fine on my own.
Happy Saturday All! Here's my current Top 5 Favorite Fiction books (in random order):1. High Fidelity - Nick Hornby (This one never leaves my list of faves - Love the book, Love the movie.)
2. A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving
3. Love in the Time of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
4. Eat, Pray, Love - Elizabeth Gilbert (This book touched me soo deeply it kindof scared me. That's why I haven't posted my review yet...)
5. A Great Deliverance - Elizabeth George
I'm looking forward to seeing more lists!
Hey, I get that involved with books too, my husband can tell when I am reading something that is deppresing my mood totally changes. That is one of the reasons I can't or don't enjoy reading certain memoirs, I just don't understand why should I read about this horrible mothers who abuse their kids and so forth.I see that you have the alchemist on your list, now when I read that book I felt so happy the whole time, just so full of insight and so simple. Another that was on that same tone was Illusions: The adventures of a reluctant mesiah, I have that book and read it everytime I need a little pick me up.
;o)
Christine that is a great list too, I need to add HF to my wish list, I loved the movie and never thought it was based on a book ... oops!
Hi Lorena - Hornby is one of my favorite authors. I would highly recommend HF, Fever Pitch and Slam. :o)
Haha, Katie you can talk about them!! I love having discusions about books (which would explain why I'm here). I haven't read any other Jerry Spineli, but Stargirl is a must. And if your interested in Victorian fantasy, The Gemma Doyle Trilogy is amazing. Again, I cannot put into words how much I love these books!
Feve pitch too? Wow, I felt warm-luke about that movie, I kind of enjoyed it but would not watch it again.;o)
LOL! Yep, Fever Pitch too! The book is actually about soccer and it is waay better than the movie. He also wrote the book About A Boy that the movie was based on... ;o)
Sherry's Top 13 Un-put-down-able NovelsWell I've decided to take my own advice and get over being intimidated and furthermore I fully intend to embrace my tastes in reading material with whole hearted enthusiasm and have decided to list my 13 all time favourite un-put-downable books.Yes 13, as that is a very lucky number for me(it's my birthdate so it had better be)All these books, though of different genres have one thing in common.They were so engrossing that I could not put them down.so here goes.In no particular order of preference:
The Stand by Stephen King
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Blindness by Jose Saramago
The Music of Razors by Cameron Rogers(a heartbreakenly weird wonderful fantasy for those who may not have heard of it)
City of Angels by Ariana Franklin(great mystery set in 1920's and 30's Berlin)
Outlander by Diana Galbaldon
Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Galbaldon
JackDaws by Ken Follet- A suspenseful World War 2 story involving the French Resistence and a trained female team of spies.
The Land of the Living by Nicci French-excellent suspense story of a woman who wakes up to find herself bound and gagged.I'm sure my blood pressure spiked reading parts of this book!
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry-I loved the whole series with Gus and Call but this was the best of them.
Lady of Hay by Barbara Erskine-Incredible story involving reincarnation that takes place in two different times but weaving together in a way that kept the reader in complete suspense.
Misery by Stephen King
Anybody Out There by Marion Keyes-Not suspenseful at all but such a good story about characters that I came to like very much and care about with an interesting twist.
Sherry, I have read several of those on your list, we have very similar tastes in books!I also added TLTL, and LoH to my wish-list...
Thanks!
Lorea,hope you enjoy them.LoH is a little more involved and detailed whereas TLTL just throws you right into the action.Never been so tense and involved from the first couple of pages as from that book!
Wow, this is hard! Here's my all time top ten favorite books as of today (yesterday it was different, tomorrow will probably be the same).These are in no particular order.
1. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
2. The Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde
3. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
4. The Prince of Tides - Pat Conroy
5. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
6. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
7. The Stand - Stephen King
8. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
9. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
10. The Gold Bug Variations - Richard Powers
Here's a list of my favorite YA books:* The Halloween Tree, by Ray Bradbury
* Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury
* Obernewtyn, by Isobelle Carmody
* Shade's Children, by Garth Nix
* The Silver Metal Lover, by Tanith Lee
* Jumper, by Steven Gould
* Whisper of Death, by Christopher Pike
* Princess Bride, by William Goldman
* Coraline, by Neil Gaiman
* Z for Zacharia, by Robert O'Brien
* After the First Death, by Robert Cormier
* The Chocolate War, by Robert Cormier
* James and the Giant Peach, Roald Dahl
* House of the Scorpion, by Nancy Farmer
* The Giver, by Lois Lowry
* The Last Unicorn, by Peter S. Beagle
* Tamsin, by Peter S. Beagle
* Riddle-Master Trilogy, by Patricia McKillip
* The Thief of Always, by Clive Barker
Mod
Hey, I totally love this idea. And was wondering if it was ok if i create a seperate folder, and we can make new threads for each type of list? Like the top 10 to avoid thread, and everyone can list their top 10 to avoid there? And a top 10 non-fic, top 10 fic.... this way it would be more organized and we can comment without getting lost in the shuffle? Is that cool with everyone? Something tells me this will be a big hit, so im thinking seperate threads per list would be really helpful!
For the lists you have already created in here, if you copy and paste, you can post in the new thread... (i know i know, im anal with organization now, right!)
I think it's a great idea Lori! I had trouble coming up with mine because there are so many books I love for various reasons. I have a few more categories to list as well. And, I just added a bunch to my TBR list just from the folder. YEA! Yep, I definitely need to win the lottery and retire to a life of reading.
Mod
Mod
I will admit Nancy, I haven't read any of those! Though I was planning to read Coraline and The Chocolate War.
Ok, either I'm really tired or my brain stopped working due to this stupid wisdom tooth. BWT who the heck gets their wisdom teeth in their 30's ... I do! I don't get it, are we to put our oppinions about those lists there or come up with other lists with that criteria if we would like to, or what?
Yes? What do we do Lori? And if we're suppose to critque, please! Give me your opinons! Rip me to shreads! Honestly, I don't mind. I just warn you, I get a little protective over The Gemma Doyle Trilogy.
Mod
So, Lorena, in your case, you have the top "list of books you havent heard of". Copy that list from this thread, and post it in the thread i made with the same title so its there for anyone to comment on. I think it makes it easier to find the lists and to comment on them that way.
Also, anyone else who wants to make thier own list of "books you havent heard of" can post thier list in the same thread, so the threads have all the same style lists in them...
Emma, the way you did yours was correct. Then we can comment on it and people can add thier own YA list to it....
does that clarify it a bit better?
If its too confusing, we can just go back to this way. For me, I just thought it would be easier keeping them seperate, so if we want to see what people recommend for Fiction, we could go to the fiction thread and see what everyone put on thier lists.... ya know?
Let me know. Im ok with it either way, really.
Okay, thanks Lori! I hope you feel better tomorrow! There's only one thing I can say, critque!
Sherry -- I've had Lady of the Hay for several years now (got it at a yard sale I think) but have never read it. I'll have to dig it out & throw it in my TBR pile! I'm also anxious to read The Road as I've been hearing a lot of good things...I'm excited that you are all running with this idea. I didn't mean for there to be pressure in creating lists...I change my mind every day, and trying to throw together my list as an example was totally off-the-cuff just to give an idea, so feel free to put whatever you want...Today's favorites, Top 10 You're Dying To Read, whatever! I just love seeing what everyone is into! And don't be afraid to show what you read...I often don't feel like I read deep, intellectual books...I read lots of sports books, trashy romance novels, horror, YA...it's been quite some time since I've read a "classic."
So don't worry...we won't judge you:) Happy posting!
Excellent idea Lori!Katie,this was such a wonderful idea and a wonderful opportunity to mull over my favourites and post them.Thanks.I have another list planned for children's books.
Sherry,The Road's unput-downable-ness (yes, I made that up) is an understantement. And, talk about disturbing a person! I have to say that I have yet to read LotF, but The Road was one of those books that I liked, but didn't love, but found myself brooding over for days and can still think about it with goosebumps appearing on my arms.
AND, I also have to agree with you on Lonesome Dove. I read it for my book club...I am not a western fan at all and this is and probably forever will be part of my top 10 books. For as long as it was, it was one of those books that compelled me to read and I was sad when it was over.
I think it sounds great Lori, I think I was just tired and cranky ... sorry ;o)This is an easy way to see what people are into and to get ideas for our wish lists! Thanks for sharing everyone ...
Stacie'**POSSIBLE SPOILERS**about The Road
I agree The Road was rather bleak and disturbing but I thought that the ending was so beautiful.All the things the father had done to protect and nuture his son,the things he was reduced to doing and in the end to tell his son he was the light was the most moving thing I'd read,more so because of all the bleakness and struggle that came before it.That part alone made that a stand out book for me and probably one of my all time faves.
Katie, this is about Eclipse. *spoilers*I loved thar part where Rosalie is explaining her past life. My blood boiled when I found out it was her fiance that did that to her, I felt her sorrow when she was talking about her just wanting to die. And I felt evil happiness when she told Bella she killed Royce. I saw a side of Edward I actually like. It shows that Meyer can actually be entertaining when she applies herself, and that The Cullens (even Edward) have more depth than all sides of Bella combined.
My Top Bathtub Reads(yep for pure fun & sometimes trashy books and absolutely no thinking allowed!!!) This is in no particular order really so here it goes...
The Little Lady Agency by Hester Browne
A Year in the Merde by Stephen Clarke (he has three in the series now)
The Second Assistant: A Tale from the Bottom of the Hollywood Ladder by Clare Naylor (the 1st assistant follows that up)
Blow Me Down by Katie MacAlister
Men in Kilts by Katie MacAlister
any book by Julia Quinn in her Bridgerton series but read in order(historical romance)
any book by Stephanie Laurens in her Cynster series but read in order(historical romance)
Everything's Coming Up Rosie by Kasey Michaels
Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife: Pride and Prejudice Continues by Linda Berdoll
Summer in the City by Robyn Sisman
Wednesday Night Witches by Lee Nichols
Always the Bridesmaid by Sarah Webb
Single White Vampire by Lynsay Sands (she has a series no thinking needed, but they are fun to read!!)
Emma, a lot of my favorites are SF/fantasy. Both Coraline and The Chocolate War are great books. Isobelle Carmody is an Australian writer. Her Obernewtyn series is wonderful too if you like post-apocalyptic fiction and mind talents.
Emma -- That was one of the few things I liked best about Eclipse, going into more detail about some of the Cullens. As you said, I am endlessly annoyed by Bella and even more frustrated with Jacob. They both just behave sooooo childishly!Leslie -- I've had Second Assistant for awhile now (got it off the bargain rack some time ago.) I will be sure to keep it in mind for one of those days that my brain just can't handle something serious!
Nancy, most of my favs are SF/Fantasy also. I'll show you my list if you show me yours.
I love The Cullens! Even Edward seems to have more depth than I expected. Jacob seems to start to become a little childish. Bella is such an idiot! Rosalie tells her all about her past life, and the only thing she cares about is Edward! She doesn't know any of the consequences!
I am glad to hear others share my "fear" of reading depressing books. I always feel like i am lame by sheltering my self in a way, but as you mentioned, when a book is that depressing it REALLY affects me and i hate intentionally making myself feel that way. I understand it can be important sometimes to read those books, but its hard to do when i know how i'm going to feel.I did buy the KiteRunner though..so i am trying. It scares me to read the post above about it!
Also, for a book club i was "forced" to read Lovely Bones which i thought would be depressesing and maddening, but I am really glad i read it! Its a good book!
Tisha, what is the premise for Lovely Bones?
Lovely Bones is a story of a teenage girl whom after being murdered, watches her friends and family go about their lives. The murder part is what made me shy away from it, but it is more about the story of her coming to terms with her death and her family's life without her.
I actually just heard they are making a movie for it too.
The Lovely Bones has been given a pretty bad rep. Personally I thought it was good, but there are so many reviews saying that they hated it.Yes it is being made into a film. Susan Sarandon is playing the grandmother...
The Next Best Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Eat, Pray, Love (other topics)The Gold Bug Variations (other topics)
Gone with the Wind (other topics)
Marley and Me: Life and Love With the World’s Worst Dog (other topics)
Men in Kilts (other topics)
More...
I decided that I can't just go off of the suggestions of any one Top 100 or Summer Favorites book list, so I thought where better to turn than to you all! I figured that we could post some reading/book lists of our own here and that way everyone can reference them and add even more books to our already bulging TBR piles!
Ok, so here's my idea for this topic. Post any kind of list you want: Top 10 All-Time Favorites, Top 25 Summer Reads, Top 15 Books to Avoid...whatever floats your boat! I suppose it's ok to put links to your favorite publishes lists, but I think it'd be way more fun to add our own creations! For the sake of space, I think we should keep the lists to 10 or 25 books at a go...that should be enough to give everyone a glimpse into your reading world! If you could please include the title and the author so we can search for them if we're interested, that'd be super! Feel free to edit your lists as you continue to read and discover new good/bad reads.
If this becomes really popular, maybe Lori can start a new folder for it and we can have each person create a new topic with their lists, but we'll see how things go first! I can't wait to see what you all put on your lists!