38 replies to this topic

[captain boombatty]

Hi all - I'm looking for a decent book. I will soon be off for quite a while (to a place where there will be no tv, internet or video games) and would like a good read. I would like something that will help me to escape the real world while not marking me out as a geeky weirdo. its a big ask but does anyone have any recommendations? I havent read any books for a while and im looking for something that will take me about 3 months if i read for about an hour a night!

[Roam]

I'd recommend World War Z by Max Brooks (As well as the Zombie Survival Guide if you haven't read it yet.), as well as The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, though it may be preferable to get the Ultimate edition, so you have all five books in the series.

[Mitsuu]

hmmm, i reccomend either the princess bride or howl's moving castle. or both since you want them to last 3 months. they're kind of long, but not incredibly long so i hope you're a slow reader.

[KiloTango]

As you want escapism but not 'geekery'...

'The Player of Games' or 'Use of Weapons' by Iain M Banks (Well written SF, because Iain Banks is amazing. His non-SF is good as well though he can be somewhat shocking at points.)

'Snow Crash' by Neal Stevenson (Very fun cyberpunk, Stevenson has also written a hugely long thing called The Baroque Cycle which I've not started on yet.)

'Altered Carbon' by Richard Morgan (Cyberpunk/noir, has classy non-geeky uk cover. In fact a lot on that guy's UK publisher's roster has a really cool non-geeky cover if you really are that bothered about being judged on your reading matter.)

For pure length, 'The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever' by Stephen Donaldson, though your mileage may vary. It's currently 7 pretty long books long, in 2 finished trilogies and one more book. Most people either really like it or give up a few chapters in due to the hero doing something more than a little morally dubious. But it's worth a read. (It's a little like Life on Mars in it's 'is this really happening and should I be encouraging it?' nature of the world Thomas finds himself in, but with fantasy instead of the 70s and a rather more bastardly hero.)

If you can do long and brainmelty, I've not finished it but you can get the Illuminatus Trilogy in one volume now and I enjoyed that. Conspiracy theory and discordians and all sorts of fun stuff.

Also, The House of Leaves, see its' thread.

Oh, and I have a love for 'What a Carve Up' by Jonathan Coe. It's not about other worlds but it is clever, strange, funny and heartbreaking all at the same time and has one of my favourite bits of writing about writing ever in it.

I'm not sure these will last you three months, but then I'm a fast reader so it's hard to judge. ;

[Uhobi]

If you don't mind something way out there and kind of hard to find but cheap when you finally do...i would say Philip Jose Farmer's The Dungeon series. Kinda mature in some parts but one of the trippyest things i've ever read. i think there was 7 books in the series but each one only takes a week or two if you read fast.

otherwise i'd say Etidorpha by John Uri Lloyd, but it's a super hard read. took me about 4-5 months to finish and it's just one book...

also, i greatly second the previous suggestion of the thomas covenant series but be prepared because the main character kind of a....yeah...

[captain boombatty]

Cheers guys! - plenty of good seggestions there, thanks!

[apti]

I'm a bit late to the party, but I can't recommend Patricia McKillip enough. She's my absolute favorite fantasy writer. Her Riddle-Master trilogy is my very favorite set of books ever, better than Tolkien.
I'm bad at explaining stuff, so pick up one of her books yourself. ^^ Her writing style is really supreme.

[captain boombatty]

I'm a bit late to the party, but I can't recommend Patricia McKillip enough. She's my absolute favorite fantasy writer. Her Riddle-Master trilogy is my very favorite set of books ever, better than Tolkien.
I'm bad at explaining stuff, so pick up one of her books yourself. ^^ Her writing style is really supreme.

Hey - thanks Apti. I checked out Patricia Mckillip on amazon. That riddle trilogy has got some really good reviews!! Plus it comes in a single volume!! Unfortunately i'm going away errr - now! But I will try to get my hands on a copy when I get chance. Cheers!

[ViXEN]

I'd reccomend reading the 'Percy Jackson and the Olympians' series of books by Rick Riordan. Good reading,it has a good story,and bits of humor here and there.

And one book that will keep you reading for a LONG time is Inkheart by Corneilia(Not sure I spelled her first name right...) Funke. It is a GREAT book,and I reccomend this more than the other one.

[Zero-Shift]

Dune by Frank Herbert. It's long and dense, and as such it should last you a while. Also, I like it.

[Madfish]

Fire Keeper saga by Jane Lindskold is pretty good too

[gasman]

I got a good book to keep you interested for a LONG time. Shogun by James Clavell. My copy is small, 1200 pages, font like this packed together. Took me eight months my first time through.

[Nyclone]

Don't forget Replica!

[Mitsuu]

The best choice by far is the Bible.

That said, the Artemis Fowl, Lord of the Rings, and Harry Potter series are great, too. Screw what everyone else thinks.

The Bible and LotR, good choices. The other two, not so great. But if you're into popular badly written fantasy, Eragon is slightly better than Harry Potter(but in my opinion, neither are good).

Oh, you might want to read the original Dragonlance Trilogy. That's some good stuff. Don't bother with the rest of the series though unless it's written by Margaret Weis and Hickman.

[MidgitLD]

A nice non-fiction that I've picked up lately is The Velveteen Principles: A Guide to Becoming Real by Toni Raiten-D'Antonio. A very nice look into how society (mainly pointing fingers at America) has become a realm of false faces and trying to live up to the impossible. Very good read.

Some fiction stuff I've enjoyed has been 1984 by George Orwell. It's a bit of a psychological, sociological, and political shake up when you finish it, but it's still a good book. I've known multiple works by Isaac Asimov to be good sci-fi and fantasy reads as well. Another one, generally geared towards younger teenagers, is The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klause. It's a vampire book, but it has a rather interesting little twist in it.

I'll add more as I get my books organized and remember what I have.

[Nyclone]

The Bible and LotR, good choices. The other two, not so great. But if you're into popular badly written fantasy, Eragon is slightly better than Harry Potter(but in my opinion, neither are good).

Oh, you might want to read the original Dragonlance Trilogy. That's some good stuff. Don't bother with the rest of the series though unless it's written by Margaret Weis and Hickman.

DON'T DISS DA ARTEMIS!!!

[Nemoide]

The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson is hands-down my favorite book. It is somewhat tough to read, long, and takes time; it is very much worth doing though.

The plot is too large to be summarized beyond "it concerns conspiracies and chaos". It is the sort of book that can forever change someone's life. It did mine. Also there is some content that could bother young and/or sensitive readers but perhaps this is a good thing?

[NNR07]

Harry Potter, the Bible, and Mythology are all great choices. Don't suggest the Bible if you're religious, though; you might roll your eyes a lot D8! Either way, you got major bragging rights if you read every page of the Bible; a lot of people don't today. With that said, make sure it's a Study Bible; you might come out with wrong misinterpritations >_>. That's where a lot of the 'hate the gays' stuff comes from.

Mythology is a good choice, too. Lots of symbolism in mythology. The myths aren't always consistent with one another, since they were originally made just for entertainment of fellow Greeks, but it's the symbolism and entertainment that counts.

Also, rereading all the Harry Potters books is a great idea. And then watching the movies, and comparing and contrasting them.

[Zoe]

If you're into thrillers, like me, try something by James Patterson. I especially love his Maximum Ride series, although that's aimed more at teenagers and young adults, rather than the usual adult audience he writes for. I also like books by Jackie Collins (although those books are quite...rude in places!), as well as No Second Chance by Harlan Coben, and Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden.

Hehe, I like to read a lot. 8D;

[Mitsuu]

That's where a lot of the 'hate the gays' stuff comes from.

Mythology is a good choice, too. Lots of symbolism in mythology. The myths aren't always consistent with one another, since they were originally made just for entertainment of fellow Greeks, but it's the symbolism and entertainment that counts.

I've never understood Christians who hate gays, it's so... un-Christian of them. Same with Christians who hate people who have abortions or pre-marital sex. Doesn't matter what they've done, we should love them. God's not about hate. (Just throwing this in here because so many of my 'freinds' who aren't Christian are so because they say we're hypocrits. Unfortunately I have to agree.)

When you said Mythology I was thinking "BULFINCH!!", but you're just talking about Greek mythology it seems. Norse mythology is somewhat interesting as well, and the Egyptians had quite a large mythology as well.


As for more books, The Great Gatsby, Fahrenheit 451, and 1984 are all good. The Wind Singer trilogy is good too, but it's written for high schoolers. If you like reading plays and are into comedy, try Arsenic and Old Lace. Hilarious, but if you don't feel like reading it, go rent the movie.

Note from Mitsuu's sister: Watership Down is the best book of all time.

[NNR07]

I've never understood Christians who hate gays, it's so... un-Christian of them. Same with Christians who hate people who have abortions or pre-marital sex. Doesn't matter what they've done, we should love them. God's not about hate. (Just throwing this in here because so many of my 'freinds' who aren't Christian are so because they say we're hypocrits. Unfortunately I have to agree.)

When you said Mythology I was thinking "BULFINCH!!", but you're just talking about Greek mythology it seems. Norse mythology is somewhat interesting as well, and the Egyptians had quite a large mythology as well.

*nodnod*. A lot of Christians think of it as a sin, and that's ok if they do, but they shouldn't go out of their way to make gays suffer. If it's a lifestyle they choose to pursue, let them pursue it. That's what our church feels about it, anyway. They don't find the feelings wrong; they're more touchy about sexual intercourse between gays, but I think it's 100% ok if they want to. Either way, we're taught not to treat gays as different people. Every church agrees they are one and the same as a hetero or bisexual person.

Ah *nodnod*. I prefer Greek mythology, but Roman and Norse is very very interesting indeed 8D.

[Nemoide]

I read a considerable chunk of the Bible in my youth. It is one of the reasons I generally identify myself as an atheist.

I probably should re-read it but I remember a lot of terrible lessons promoting genocide, slavery, rape, genital mutilation, etc. Not really what I look for in a religious text? Hopefully this is not too controversial a comment but I honestly have trouble understanding how people can claim the Bible contains divine wisdom. Maybe when I read it fully with an adult mind I will find it more to my liking?

[Mitsuu]

I read a considerable chunk of the Bible in my youth. It is one of the reasons I generally identify myself as an atheist.

I probably should re-read it but I remember a lot of terrible lessons promoting genocide, slavery, rape, genital mutilation, etc. Not really what I look for in a religious text? Hopefully this is not too controversial a comment but I honestly have trouble understanding how people can claim the Bible contains divine wisdom. Maybe when I read it fully with an adult mind I will find it more to my liking?

The Bible doesn't promote any of that. But the Bible does talk about the attemted genocide of Christians, the Jews were enslaved many many times in the Old Testament, I believe there are multiple occasions where Jesus rebukes people who shun someone who has been raped, Peter(I think, it may have been someone else) led a eunich to Christ, and I don't know what etc. you're talking of. But, yea, none of that is promoted in the Bible. Maybe you were reading something else?

Edit-I'm not insulting your inteligence or anything, but I was just asked about something. A eunich is a man who has had his penis cut off.

[NNR07]

I probably should re-read it but I remember a lot of terrible lessons promoting genocide, slavery, rape, genital mutilation, etc. Not really what I look for in a religious text? Hopefully this is not too controversial a comment but I honestly have trouble understanding how people can claim the Bible contains divine wisdom. Maybe when I read it fully with an adult mind I will find it more to my liking?

Exact opposite. the Bible talks about some of those subjects, but doesn't promote them. The Bible considers all of those things sins. Genital Mutilation and tattoos in general is not something that Christians are advised to do; human bodies are said to be temples. Think of Tattooing a body as spray painting a design on a church.

For instance, all who believed in Judiasm in the Old Testament were subjected to slavery; they were not committing it. They were the ones that were slaves, and in the end, they escape from slavery and their captors drown.

You might wanna re-read it, but, hey, I'm not gonna push you. You have a right to what you believe in.

[Lost in Dream]

Anything by Douglass Adams...
The guy is funny.

[animejosse]

*admin-hat* Alright people, putting a stop on the Bible discussion since this is for recommending books. That said, thank you for keeping it civil while it lasted - religion can be such an hot-button for people. */admin-hat*

If you're interested in history, particularly the 16th century, I must recommend Antonia Fraser's "The Wives of Henry VIII". It offers an alternative look at the wives while trying to disprove the clichés about them.

[Mitsuu]

They have cliches? *Doesn't know how to put the thingy over the "e"*

And darn it all, I can't for the life of me remember the name of a certain book. I think it's Journy to the West or something like that. It's Chinese mythology about a bhuddist preist who has to travel to a temple in the west with three companions(one being Son Goku, and yes, Dragon Ball was originally based off of this story, along with Saiyuki). They have to overcome 81 obstacles before they get there. It's really long(100 chapters, some are short but some are really long) and I've yet to read it because I can't find a copy anywhere.

Edit-Son Goku is what he's called in Japan, I can't remember his original Chinese name.

[animejosse]

They have cliches? *Doesn't know how to put the thingy over the "e"*

Apparently they do. The author recalled two schoolboys assuming a portrait was of "the ugly wife" Anne of Cleves... when it was in fact of "the temptress" Anne Boleyn.

You guessed right, that story is called Journey to the West. I think the original name was Son Wukong? Anyway, it's one of the stories I've been wanting to read since forever.

[Mitsuu]

You know a story is good when one of the characters looks like this.

[Nyclone]

Another good one is the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.

[NNR07]

Anyone who wants a good lol should open their Bible and turn to Sirach. Make sure you have what they call 'the Hidden Books'; that section of the Bible is only canon to Catholics and Orthodox Christians.

What is this section?

It's actually just writings of Jewish Wisdom. It's very cynical at times and can make you laugh.

Be forewarned, the writer of Sirach was sexist (parts of the Bible are written by different people and put together. They vary from generation to generation. Moses, for instance, was guided the writings of the first few books in the Bible by God, if I am not mistaken. The next books were not by him, since he died. all that is in the normal Bible is considered 'canon'. Some churches don't have 'Canon Law' though; which is different. So, yes, the sh!t you hear about 'THE BOOKS OF JUDAS' or 'ST. PHILIP'S BIBLE'... not Christian Canon. Oldnews (about 2000 f*!*ing years; get with the times man) and media being slowpokes. ). Anyone who says Christianity is a sexist religion is full of sh!t, though, seeing how Jesus was anything but so if you read His works.

[Musashi_HUmar]

If you're into rockstars, I suggest reading Slash's autobiography, titled "Slash". Also, I suggest reading a series of books by Anne McCaffery called The Dragon Riders of Pern. THAT is a good series.

[Saifer Dracondrali]

Romance of the Three Kingdoms...
It's a good/famous book, and lengthy too boot... it is an interesting book of fiction about some warlords trying to rule china. Nice story about war, conflict, and a small tad of (big suprise) romance... and thus there are many sad moments in it too... good book...

[NNR07]

The novelization of Metal Gear Solid, if you're into MGS :3.

Tom Clancy makes some long reads, but you gotta make sure you're into his stuff (Special Ops fetish, as Newsweek calls it in a review of MGS4). I suggest 'The Hunt for Red October'; great book and great movie. The movie has the original James Bond, Sean Connery, as the Captain of the Soviet Sub.

[The wise Kitsune]

Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder. Its a very psycological book with alot of theories and philosophies. Very big, but worth reading.

[NNR07]

I'm not sure if I said it:
The Giver by Lois Lowery

It WILL blow your mind in two about society. It's aimed at teenagers, and it will make you stop and think about the way society is run and where we're headed.

Spoiler

Just you wait 'till you read about the process of releasing. You might cry at what they do to the child and the way Jonas's (main character) father acts.

[Saifer Dracondrali]

The novelization of Metal Gear Solid, if you're into MGS :3.

they made one of those O_o
are they based off the games or some kinda alternate reality crud?

[NNR07]

they made one of those O_o
are they based off the games or some kinda alternate reality crud?

Novelization of the first game.

They make one for the second as well; the 3rd would be a nice read too, but i'm not sure about that.