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

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message 651: by [deleted user] (new)

I Robot. Didn't like it.


message 652: by Hashi (new)

Hashi Against the Grain by Joris-Karl Huysmans. Very tedious. Bleah.


message 653: by Judith (new)

Judith (jloucks) | 1202 comments "The Forsyte Saga"* - John Galsworthy

Great book! I've had it on my shelf forever and finally found the time to take it in. Every bit as good as a Dickens!


message 654: by Denise (new)

Denise | 231 comments My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk. Not a list book. Worthwhile, but wouldn't put it at the top of any TBR list.


message 655: by Dana (new)

Dana (dfs212) | 3 comments I am glad to see that I was not the only that was not impressed with Cocaine nights. The first few chapters are the best part of the book.



message 656: by Tabrez (new)

Tabrez | 5 comments Stardust by Neil Gaiman. Loved it, especially the way the author ties-up everything in the end. Didn't like the magical candle.


message 657: by [deleted user] (new)

The Book of Lost Things.

Not on the list but an excellant book.


message 658: by Judith (last edited Aug 16, 2008 09:18AM) (new)

Judith (jloucks) | 1202 comments "The Alchemist" by P.Coehlo ***

I'm sorry to have to admit that this one was more of a disappointment to me than a delight. While I agree with much of the wisdom and message of the book, I found the story hard to relate to and did not think the book compelling to 21st century readers to seek their personal legends. I was just not emotionally drawn into the tale. Still, it's been on my shelf for ages; and I'm glad I experienced it first hand.


message 659: by Susan (new)

Susan | 28 comments Just finished Trainspotting. It took a few pages to get into, but once I got the Scottish accent into my head, I enjoyed the different narratives and the trippiness behind it.


message 660: by Christine (new)

Christine (hatorisblindeye) | 5 comments Just finished The Book Thief- loved it loved it loved it.


message 661: by Derrick (new)

Derrick (afderrick) | 87 comments Finally finished Glamourama, ugh what a complete waste of time. I don't think anymore Bret Easton Ellis books are going to be read by me.


message 662: by Deanne (new)

Deanne | 681 comments A Modest Proposal by Swift, very quick read which deals with Swift's way of relieving poverty and dealing with the rising population in Dublin.


message 663: by Denise (new)

Denise | 231 comments Amsterdam by Ian McCewan. Liked it, didn't love it.


message 664: by [deleted user] (new)

Denise: I am glad to hear that as I bought it and am dying to read it but have several in front of it.


message 665: by Courtney (new)

Courtney (courtneyclift) If you're reading McKewan, read SATURDAY first.

Happy reading!


message 666: by Paula (new)

Paula | 3 comments Never Let Me Go. I liked this book. Gave it 4 stars. I don't use the list for all of my books, but use the list to do some research. I look up the titles on bn.com, read reviews and then decide if I'm interested. Our library is small but has a great hold/request system. Let's me get the books I want quickly. I found myself wanting the characters in this book to have some back-bone, and not believe everything they are told.


message 667: by Kara (new)

Kara One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, by Solzhenitsyn.


message 668: by Liz M (new)

Liz M Finally, finally, finally finished The Count of Monte Cristo (unabridged). After weeks, if not months, of reading, I am not sure I remember the story well enough to honestly decide if I liked it or not.


message 669: by Samara (new)

Samara Just finished Rabbit, Run by Updike. Was my first of his, definitely a change of pace for me but that's what this list is all about for me, broadening the reading scope.


message 670: by Tara (last edited Mar 13, 2009 03:36AM) (new)

Tara (grammar_panda) Saturday, by Ian McEwan - loved it! I had only read his creepy incest stories before this [Cement Garden; First Love, Last Rites:], and didn't expect much, but after seeing the film version of Atonement, I decided to give him another chance. Glad I did!

I also took a stab at "The Sheltering Sky" by Paul Knowles, but by 50 pages in it hadn't hooked me and I was annoyed by all the untranslated French conversation.


message 671: by Michelle (new)

Michelle (shielareddings) Hey everyone. I'm new to this group, and, sadly the only book I've read so far is The Catcher in the Rye. But it was really good. The ending caught me off guard, but it was good. I joined because a good number of my "to-reads" are listed here.


message 672: by Dave (new)

Dave Just finished Everything is Illuminated.


message 673: by Tara (new)

Tara (emerging) I remember reading The Sheltering Sky years ago; it bored me to tears.


message 674: by Pam (new)

Pam War and Peace.


message 675: by Kara (new)

Kara Pam,

*clap clap clap!* i am still terribly intimidated by that book, so I haven't read it. I'm impressed. :)


message 676: by Pam (new)

Pam Hi Kara, it was actually pretty entertaining and not hard to read, though it did take about 3 weeks of regular daily reading to finish it. Some of the "war" chapters got a little long for my taste, but I really enjoyed all of the characters and their development throughout the story.



message 677: by Karen (new)

Karen | 63 comments I finished The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid in basically one day. It's a suspenseful, very well written book that I think should be required reading for every American. It shows how the actions America has taken since 9/11 are perceived by people in other countries.


message 678: by Denise (new)

Denise | 231 comments Karen, I will try to remember that. It sounds good.


message 679: by Chloe (new)

Chloe (countessofblooms) | 129 comments Pam, that makes me relieved. I'm due to read War & Peace in December after years of dawdling. You've got me actually looking forward to it now.


message 680: by Deanne (new)

Deanne | 681 comments Kara and Logan
Read War and Peace last christmas, have to agree it was a fantastic book. Just the name Tolstoy intimidated me, but his style of writing is very easy and enjoyable to read. The characters are believable, I have to admit a soft spot for Prince Andrei.



message 681: by Denise (new)

Denise | 231 comments Me, I had a soft spot for Dolokov. Even at 17 I knew that was a bad sign.


message 682: by Liz (new)

Liz (hissheep) Finished "The Shunning" by Beverly Lewis, picked up a couple of others and tossed them aside for "The Time Traveler's Wife", which I'm having a hard time making sense of. Anyone with advice on how long I should stick with this title?


message 683: by Lisa (new)

Lisa (glinda) | 30 comments Stick with it - it's definitely worth it.


message 684: by Stacie (new)

Stacie | 140 comments Pam and Deanne,
Like Logan and Kara, I too am glad to hear that it is a good and approachable book. I am not sure why I have always been so intimidated by that book. I have read Anna Karenina, so I have read Tolstoy. But, there has just always been something about that book that makes me shake in my boots.

After reading your posts, I am shaking a little less and may just be ready to pick it up. Hey Logan! Maybe we could read it together in December. I will be done with school and ready to pick up the tome.


message 685: by Chloe (new)

Chloe (countessofblooms) | 129 comments Stacie, that sounds great! I'd love to have someone to read along with. Something that epic needs group support to not get overwhelmed.


message 686: by Macy (new)

Macy | 17 comments Just finished Veronika Decides to Die by Coelho. Can't say I was all that impressed.

Maybe in December I'll try to get on the Tolstoy train with you guys!


message 687: by Chloe (new)

Chloe (countessofblooms) | 129 comments Macy, that'd be great. The more the merrier, I think.


message 688: by Rebecca (new)

Rebecca (rebsbooks) I (finally) got around to reading The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. I enjoyed it and wrote a review.


message 689: by Pam (new)

Pam Stacie, For some reason I didn't have any preconceived notions about War and Peace, other than I knew it was long. It's always been Anna Karenina that I've been intimidated by. In fact, I think that's what led me to read W&P first...I was looking at AK in the bookstore but instead walked out with W&P. Go figure! :-)

Anyway, have fun in December reading it!


message 690: by Vicky (new)

Vicky | 43 comments Liz --
Hang in there with "The Time Traveler's Wife". The farther you get into it, the more sense it makes. I ended up loving it -- one of the best I read that year!


message 691: by Deanne (new)

Deanne | 681 comments Just finished the Nice and the good by Iris Murdoch, great book with a likeable cast of characters and a feel good ending.
Now off to find something darker on the list.


message 692: by Stacie (new)

Stacie | 140 comments That is so funny, Pam. I did the exact opposite! I LOVED AK and I am sure that if you decided to pick it up you wouldn't be disappointed.


message 693: by H.J. (new)

H.J. Swinford (hayleejalyn) Just finished Ragtime by Doctorow and I really, really liked it. His style is quite unique and I loved the historical and fictional tie-ins.


message 694: by Danny (new)

Danny Wilson | 1 comments I will try to read the book because I believe that looking at a subject from a different perspective is a good practice to follow!!!!!!!


message 695: by akaellen (new)

akaellen | 12 comments Just finished
The Thin Man - by Dashiell Hammett

I am a huge fan of the Thin Man Movies and for once I have to say that I enjoyed the movie MORE than the book.


message 696: by Annemaria (new)

Annemaria | 12 comments I just finished "the end of the story"...have to say I was disappointed with it...I like the concept but I just couldn't like the characters. Never had that problem before.


message 697: by Allison (new)

Allison | 1 comments I just (aka, 15 min. ago!) finished reading The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I would recommend it to anyone in the mood for a little gently guided soul searching.


message 698: by Lisa (new)

Lisa | 3 comments I am finishing The Once and Future King today. The book is about 50 years old and I keep sneezing my way through it.


message 699: by Stacie (new)

Stacie | 140 comments I finished Native Son this morning and am about 30 pages away from finishing the Book Thief (not on the list). It was strange reading these two books at the same time - different, but the same.

Next up is Fathers and Sons by Turgenov.


message 700: by Nahla (new)

Nahla Al Mahmood (missnahla) | 2 comments "The Last Lecture" by Pausch, Randy. it's really inspiring, i recommend it for people who gave up living, diseased or just sad, it nice to read and motivating.


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