Five Favorite Books

[Spudman]

"Ishmael" - Daniel Quinn

That is one that I've read. Certainly interesting and thought provoking.

 

[Childbride]

When I was in high school I took an AP (advanced placement) English class my senior year. I picked Dostoevsky for my presentation. I read Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamazov, The Idiot and a few of his short stories. The Brothers Karamazov was brutal: I divided the total number of pages in the book by the time that I had to read it and forced myself to read a set amount of pages per day. I never would have gotten through it had I not done this.

My all-time favorites are:

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle
The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
The Battle Circle Trilogy by Piers Anthony
War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
Many Waters by Madeline L'Engle

L'Engle is probably my favorite author. I've read just about every book of fiction she had written. I also have signed copies of the two aforementioned books.

I also really enjoyed the Golden Compass series by Philip Pullman and Breakfast with Buddha by Rolland Merullo.

tung

ooohhh, forgot about l'engle. delightful writer. love her work.

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

Thirteen years ago I took a year off work and went off on an extended holiday around Australia,NZ and a chunk of SE Asia , in my rucksack for the trip I packed The Island of the Day Before . I lugged that book around for the whole trip , now that should go on my list of failed to understand/finish , I did try but it was to much for me .I was too tight to throw the book away in fact its in my book case now as a reminder of my failure .

My wife's feeling exactly & in fact I don't think that I have ever successfully convinced anyone that it is a great story.

Many people think that Foucault's Pendulum is hard to follow with its labyrinthine plotline weaving together secret histories. the Island of the Day Before is an altogether different kind of confusion. The pace is laconic, the action nonexistent, but there is a heightened sense of something but it is not clear what that something might be. It is the interior, adrift, & delusional "antipode" to Foucault's fast-paced, conspiritorial & esoteric thriller.

For some reason the Island of the Day Before sat perfectly with me. I loved it.

I've never read Baudolino nor The Myserious Flame of Queen Leona. Although I did check both out of the library & started them.

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

ooohhh, forgot about l'engle. delightful writer. love her work.

Me too. Well at least Wrinkle in Time as that is all that I have read by her.

 

[red]

Right.

"Dharma Bums" - Jack Kerouac
"The Old Man and the Sea" - Ernest Hemingway

Told you I'd be back .

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

Sirens of Titan - Kurt Vonnegut

You mean Kilgore Trout do you not.

I've read nearly every Vonnegut book. He's one of the all time bests!

I'm particularly fond of Breakfast of Champions as that was the first one that I read as a young teen. Hooked me right away.

I will read anything by Tom Robbins.

• Another Roadside Attraction (1971)
• Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1976)
• Still Life with Woodpecker (1980)
• Jitterbug Perfume (1984)
• Skinny Legs and All (1990)
• Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas (1994)
• Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates (2000)
• Villa Incognito (2003)
• Wild Ducks Flying Backward (2005) — a collection of non-fiction essays, reviews, and short stories.
• B Is for Beer (2009) ISBN 0061687278

I just looked up his bibliography & noticed that I didn't know about the last two.

 

[red]

You mean Kilgore Trout do you not.

Yes, sorry for the confusion .

Well, since you've read everything mr. Vonnegut wrote (and so did I), I'll try to get a Tom Robbins book. A fellow Vonnegut fan can't be wrong .

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

Yes, sorry for the confusion .

Well, since you've read everything mr. Vonnegut wrote (and so did I), I'll try to get a Tom Robbins book. A fellow Vonnegut fan can't be wrong .

Well Robbins is the euphoric antipode (to again borrow that phrase from the Island of the Day Before) to Vonnegut's biting wit.

Different beasts altogether.

 

[red]

Well Robbins is the euphoric antipode (to again borrow that phrase from the Island of the Day Before) to Vonnegut's biting wit.

Different beasts altogether.

I didn't really expect them to be the same, I just meant that it's a noteworthy recommendation coming from somebody who really appreciates Vonnegut. I'm a bit out of leads as to what to read next actually, and I take your suggestion as a bit of good luck about that. I've looked up Tom Robbins on Wikipedia and it looks like something I might enjoy.

Cheers!

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

W

I also really enjoyed the Golden Compass series by Philip Pullman and Breakfast with Buddha by Rolland Merullo.

tung

Yes, O yes! on the His Dark Materials trilogy (ie Golden Compass etc).

That series is fantastic.

Never heard of Breakfast with Buddha, but I may have to get me to a library or a bookstore & check it out.

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

I didn't really expect them to be the same, I just meant that it's a noteworthy recommendation coming from somebody who really appreciates Vonnegut. I'm a bit out of leads as to what to read next actually, and I take your suggestion as a bit of good luck about that. I've looked up Tom Robbins on Wikipedia and it looks like something I might enjoy.

Cheers!

Cool Beans!

 

[tunghaichuan]

Yes, O yes! on the His Dark Materials trilogy (ie Golden Compass etc).

That series is fantastic.

Skip the movie that just came out a while back, it really sucks. Not like the book at all. I can't really discuss the books any further as they are religious-themed.

Never heard of Breakfast with Buddha, but I may have to get me to a library or a bookstore & check it out.

Interesting book, it kind of falls down at the end, but overall an enjoyable read.

tung

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

I re-read it pretty often as well and you're right, it's still as good as it ever was.

Did you ever see the film which was directed (in part) by Chuck Jones? It could have been better, but it's not bad. It stars Butch Patrick (Eddie Munster) as Milo. Incidentally, we named our cat Milo after the boy in the book.

Yup, I've seen that film many times.

These are the films my kids grew up on:

The Phantom Tollbooth
The Yellow Submarine
The Point
The pilot for the 1960s Batman TV show.
The Adventures of Mark Twain (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Mark_Twain_(1985_film))

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

I can't really discuss the books any further as they are religious-themed.

Yup.