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

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message 2551: by Cassie (new)

Cassie (cassieroll) Lyn M wrote: "Technically I just finished two, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass both by Lewis Carroll. They are listed separately on the list, but I rea..."I recently re-read these too.. it's been 30 years since I'd read them. Loooooved every word!


message 2552: by Judith (new)

Judith (jloucks) | 1202 comments "A Thousand Acres" - Jane Smiley


message 2553: by Katrina (new)

Katrina (katrinasreads) A Suitble Boy by Vikram Seth, huge but worth the effort


message 2554: by melita (new)

melita | 10 comments I just finished A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess... i'm glad that he invented the nadsat language, if that wasn't there and I wasn't able to solve the mystery of what he meant I don't think I could have dealt with Alex at all...


message 2555: by Anthony (new)

Anthony DeCastro | 168 comments Just finished "The Human Stain" by Philip Roth


message 2556: by Lauli (new)

Lauli | 263 comments Facundo: Or, Civilization and Barbarism by Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
This book tells a bloody chapter in the history of my country. I found it very interesting as regards what it has to say about Argentine society and political history, but it is half novel half essay, and the essay part bored me a little. All in all, I'd say it's ok.


message 2557: by zespri (new)

zespri Jay wrote: "Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll... I thoroughly enjoyed it!"

wonderful book read it last year ...


message 2558: by Charity (new)

Charity (charityross) Finished If on a Winter's Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino.


message 2559: by Cindy (new)

Cindy (newtomato) | 195 comments The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. I loved the dig, "Yes; she is a peacock in everything but beauty." Ouch!!


message 2560: by Alexandra (new)

Alexandra | 13 comments Just finished The Secret History by Donna Tartt. I really enjoyed it. It makes me want to go out and learn Ancient Greek.


message 2561: by Becky (new)

Becky (munchkinland_farm) | 248 comments Casino Royale - eh.


message 2562: by P. (new)

P. (shimizusan) | 96 comments finished 'devil and miss prym'


message 2563: by Kate (new)

Kate (kateduttera) Jay wrote: "Alice in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll... I thoroughly enjoyed it!"

Ooh, that might be my next. I just finished The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. I love that so many good, "1001" books are getting made into movies. Hopefully it inspires others to pick them up as well!

Also, Cindy, Dorian Gray is one of my faves of all time. Wilde's wit is without peer!


message 2564: by Cindy (new)

Cindy (newtomato) | 195 comments Katie wrote: "Also, Cindy, Dorian Gray is one of my faves of all time. Wilde's wit is without peer!"

I surprised myself how much I liked the story - I think it helped that I knew next to nothing about the plot before beginning. Then you add the witticisms and it became fun!


message 2565: by Alexandra (new)

Alexandra | 13 comments I just finished An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro. I enjoyed it, but not as much as his other work.


message 2566: by Susan (new)

Susan | 28 comments Just reread Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (part of a set.) The first I enjoyed, the second, was not as good as the first in my opinion, but I love how you can read a children's book as an adult and come up with a whole new appreciation for it.


message 2568: by Kristi (new)

Kristi (kristilarson) | 263 comments Finally finished The Name of the Rose: Including Postscript. (I guess I'm still reading the post-script, but I just had to check it off.) It was really hard for me to get through, but I did like it. I don't usually do this, but I plan on re-reading the book in 5 years, and I think I'll really like it then. I've been told that this is the kind of book that requires more than one read. Also have the movie from netflix, so I'll watch that this weekend.


message 2569: by Trice (new)

Trice Kristi wrote: "Finally finished The Name of the Rose: Including Postscript. (I guess I'm still reading the post-script, but I just had to check it off.) It was really hard for me to get through, b..."

I felt the same way about The Name of the Rose - found it was a put down/pick up again book for me but at the same time I really liked it and I'm planning on reading it again sometime in the next few years. I saw the movie years prior to reading the book at a conference of medieval scholars (no, I'm not one - long story) and they were commenting on the over-cleanliness of some of the characters in certain scenes. My memory is that they really over-simplify the story, but that's not really new. I thought it was enjoyable and that Sean Connery and Christian Slater were really good in it. Hope you enjoy! :)


message 2570: by Joy (new)

Joy (joyousnorth) I just finished King Solomon's Mines by Haggard; a fun adventure tale full of sensual metaphors. Ahh, Victorians.


message 2571: by Anna (new)

Anna (lilfox) | 290 comments Joy wrote: "I just finished King Solomon's Mines by Haggard; a fun adventure tale full of sensual metaphors. Ahh, Victorians."

I love King Solomon's Mines.
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi


message 2572: by Chel (new)

Chel | 380 comments I loved King Solomon's Mines too. I finished Vathek and did not like it at all. It was sort of 1001 Nights meets Dante meets Baron von Munchausen. Maybe I was not in the mood for this short read's combination of grotesquerie, exaggeration, and cynicism. It seemed a bit anti-middle eastern culture too. It wasn't very memorable at all but many others have said they liked it.


message 2573: by Becky (new)

Becky (munchkinland_farm) | 248 comments Dead Babies by Martin Amis. Mindless hedonism ends badly for most.


message 2574: by Michelle (new)

Michelle Lour | 15 comments The Shipping News. I read many mixed reviews and wasn't sure what to expect but really enjoyed it. Very atmospheric and melancholy but in an almost sweet way.


message 2576: by Lynn (new)

Lynn Cindy wrote: "The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. I loved the dig, "Yes; she is a peacock in everything but beauty." Ouch!!"

I read this book years ago and it is still with me. Somehow a great book never leaves you.


message 2577: by Katrina (new)

Katrina (katmcv) | 35 comments Finished Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons. Loved it!


message 2578: by Lyn (Readinghearts) (new)

Lyn (Readinghearts) (lsmeadows) I just finished Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. This is the first book I have read by this author, and I LOVED it. What a beautiful love story!! I will definitely be reading more by Ishiguro, I really liked his writing style!


message 2579: by Joy (new)

Joy (joyousnorth) Just finished Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Unfortunately, I read this book approximately 20 pages at a time over about a month (very unusual for me as I usually read a book in about a week), and I think that all of the interruptions and other books I am reading simultaneously distracted me from really enjoying this novel. Still, it's a classic and I am glad to finally have read it.


message 2580: by Becky (new)

Becky (munchkinland_farm) | 248 comments I, Robot (audio version) - this may have been a better book to read than listen to - I had to "rewind" many times because my mind began to wander. In a perfect world, I would listen while reading - throw in some chocolate and like George Costanza, I'd have the trifecta!!!


Shokufeh شکوفه  Kavani کاوانی | 2 comments I also read " The picture of Doryan Gray "...isn't it amazing how some people look beautiful but you can not tolerate them after one week ?


message 2582: by Jessica (new)

Jessica Chambers | 60 comments Julie at All Ears wrote: "Jessica wrote: "A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth"

Hi Jessica - I'd love to hear what you thought of this one. I have this book on my shelf, but it is SOOO long that I haven't cracked it open (too bi..."


Okay. Here's what I thought. I enjoyed the story, EXCEPT...there were alot of Indian references unfamiliar to me. I like to know what people are talking about, so I had to look them up or ask people what holiday was what, etc...so it took me FOREVER to read this. And I didn't like the ending, even though i'm not a happily-ever-after type of girl, normally.


message 2584: by Johnny (new)

Johnny B. Rempit (johnnyrempit) | 20 comments Just finished 'Stranger in a Strange Land' by Robert A. Heinlein. It took me a while but finally finished it.


message 2585: by Katrina (new)

Katrina (katmcv) | 35 comments Finished The Pigeon by Patrick Suskind earlier today. Very quick one, and although a bit weird and not as good as I found Perfume to be, I still quite enjoyed it, and enjoyed having ticked off the second and last book to be on the list by this author.


message 2588: by Jennifer (new)

Jennifer | 27 comments Life of Pi by Yann Martel
I really enjoyed this story.


message 2589: by Deanne (new)

Deanne | 681 comments Finished At Swim Two Boys by O'Neill. It's been sitting on my shelf for about 2 years, really enjoyed the plot and the relationships between the boys each other and their famillies.
Also finished Essays in Love by De Botton, spent a lot of time saying that's so true, another good read.


message 2590: by Leora (new)

Leora | 40 comments Finally finshed 'War and Peace'-I read it on an ereader on my i-phone, and 'The Bell Jar'. Loved W and P! Really getting into Russian lit lately.


message 2591: by Cindy (new)

Cindy (newtomato) | 195 comments Wow, congrats Leora! That's a big accomplishment!


message 2592: by M (new)

M (masanobu) | 110 comments Finished Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges. This is the most amazing book I've read in a while.
Although it is a collection of short stories, it took me quite a long time to read because I couldn't stop thinking about the last story I read and didn't focus on the following one. These are surprising, well-written and lucid. And with my scientific background I couldn't but love them even more.

Really recommended!


message 2593: by Jessica (new)

Jessica Chambers | 60 comments The Stone Diaries, Carol Shields


message 2594: by Trice (new)

Trice War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells, which I liked a lot more than The Time Machine. This one felt like it had a lot more humanity to it (ha ha) as well as more depth. It's a lot longer so that may be the reason for all of that, but the protagonist in The Time Machine didn't really understand the ppl around him so they were at the end rather faceless. War of the Worlds delves more into who/what we are at our root.


message 2595: by Jenny (new)

Jenny (jennyil) Not quite on the list but I just finished reading Roberto Bolano's Nazi Literature in the Americas. It is short -- a little over 200 pages, humorous and more approachable than either Savage Detectives and 2666. I may go back and finish Savage Detectives now, I got about 2/3 of it read last fall and then set it aside.


message 2596: by George (new)

George | 16 comments Eliza wrote: "just finished The Swarm"

Was it worth it? Tell me it is worth it, because I am considering putting it aside and not finishing it.


message 2597: by Trisha (new)

Trisha My two cents on "the swarm". No, not worth it. But I know (from the reviews) that others would disagree. Maybe skim the last part? :D


message 2598: by Alexandra (new)

Alexandra | 13 comments I just finished "the last of Mr norris" and "goodbye to berlin", by Christopher Isherwood. These are the books Cabaret is based on. I quite enjoyed them.


message 2599: by Julie (new)

Julie (juliemoncton) | 54 comments Jessica wrote: ...Okay. Here's what I thought. I enjoyed the story ...."

Thanks, Jessica - I'll have to give it a try. Although it'll take a while to finish it, it is taking up such a huge space on my 'to read' shelf, that it is time to move it along!


message 2600: by [deleted user] (new)

I just finished Surfacing by Margaret Atwood.


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