• rsn@lemmy.worldEnglish
    4·
    1 year ago

    East of Eden, hands down. That said, it’s hard to explain why (a short description of this book will always sound dull and boring)—I suppose it’s the character development. It’s truly something else.

    Anna Karenina, but not because of Anna (she’s kind of a dickhead); because of Levin. So good.

    • giacomo@lemmy.worldEnglish
      2·
      1 year ago

      East of Eden definitely has a place in my top 5. Having been forced to read grapes of wrath in highschool, I didn’t touch another Steinbeck for quite a few years. I think being told to read something immediately changes your opinion about the book and author.

      East of Eden was a perfect book about humans. Definitely changed the way I think and feel about Steinbeck. Worth every page.

    • Dusk@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
      1·
      1 year ago

      The synopsis I just read of East of Eden is very intriguing, on the list it goes ^^

  • soggywhale@lemmy.mlEnglish
    3·
    1 year ago

    l’etranger by Camus. I relate sometimes too much with the main character im starting to worry

  • kd637_mi@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
    3·
    1 year ago

    My all time favourite would be Blood Meridian, but very close would be A Canticle for Liebowitz, A Clockwork Orange, and Slaughterhouse 5. All brilliant books, and the last two are very short as well.

    Canticle hits my post apocalypse and medieval loving brain in exactly the right spot, Clockwork is so challenging at first but the immersion is ridiculous, and Slaughterhouse is a brilliant piece of unreliable narrator fiction.

  • bornforleaving@reddthat.comEnglish
    3·
    1 year ago

    Beyond the Sky and Earth - Jamie Zeppa The Hobbit/LOTR - JRR Tolkien Harry Potter series - JK Rowling Outlander series - Diana Gabaldon A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman (honestly anything by him) Gone with the Wind - Margaret Mitchell

  • Fudgy@feddit.ukEnglish
    3·
    1 year ago

    I loved the Murderbot series it was amazing

    • The Dark Tower series by Stephen King
    • The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice
  • PooPooTheClown@lemm.eeEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    80% of these are gonna be Lord of the Rings lmao

    I just finished Endurance, a pretty fun classic nonfiction about a dangerous trans-Antarctica trip. I think it’s pretty well known but I hadn’t heard of it until I read it.

    • externelly@lemmy.worldEnglish
      2·
      1 year ago

      Ordered it a couple of days ago! I’m generally interested in the ancient biblical history and archeology so it seemed like a must read

    • Dusk@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
      2·
      1 year ago

      I’ll have to check it out, it’s not a genre I’m too familiar about myself but happy to add things to my to read list at any opportunity ^^

  • Jordan Lund@lemmy.oneEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    Travel:
    Into the Heart of Borneo - Redmond O’Hanlon. He was a pasty, British, natural history book REVIEWER, until his editor had the brilliant idea to torture him by packing him up and sending him to Borneo for a month.

    In Trouble Again - Redmond O’Hanlon. Freshly surviving Borneo, his editor sends him to the Amazon for TWICE as long.

    These two books are bright, funny, and immensely readable. You will be tempted to follow them with his 3rd book “No Mercy: A Journey to the Heart of the Congo.” Be aware this one is neither bright, nor funny. He and his crew barely survived, it’s an amazing story, but a super tough read.

    Road Fever - Tim Cahill. Hired by General Motors for a promotional stunt, Cahill and his co-pilot/co-driver Garry Sowerby drive a show-truck from the tip of Argentina to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, as fast as possible.

    • Dusk@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
      1·
      1 year ago

      Oh those are quite some interesting books, definitely gonna check them out ^^

    • Dusk@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
      1·
      1 year ago

      I’ve had my eye on the night watch before, it’s part of the discworld series right, every time I come across that it looks a little daunting, is it one big series or just drop in wherever

        • Dusk@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
          1·
          1 year ago

          Thanks for the deep dive into the series there, much appreciated and really helpful, I’ll 100% be adding them to my list, probably pick the few you mentioned before the 5th instalment Night Watch.

          I do love a series that’s complicated and has a whole world built with characters that crossover, good shit right there. ^^

  • pajaritocolibri@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    The book that made me fall in love with reading was “City of The Beasts” from Isabel Allende. I picked it up because my dad had left it lying around, and I completely fell in love. Not only with Isabel Allende, but with reading.

    And my favorite book is “One Hundred Years Of Solitud”. The first time I read it, was pre internet, so I would write down the name of the characters, to keep track of the family tree. It was just so beautiful, and it really opened me up to fantasy.

  • giacomo@lemmy.worldEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    Ender’s game is a book I can always pick up and read through in one or two sittings. The rest of the serieses maybe not as much.

    Also anything Jonathan safran foer.

    Edit: foundation and anathem are also gems.