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| User | Post |
| Ziff Posts: 1146/1800 |
Oh. My. God.
The House of Leaves. Amazing. |
| ziffhasnoaim/password Posts: 291/292 |
I've read it more than a few times. I think I had just heard so much about it as if it were the VERY HEIGHT of American literature. All of my friends it was brilliant, life changing, subversive. The you could relate to Holden and that you may not like him, but you can relate. When I first read it...I liked it. I didn't think it was anything special. The character was loathsome and his bluntness wasn't even realistic. The book highlighted what I dislike in literature for character development. That said I'd suggest the read because some people can relate to him. I think that is the strength of the book. It is a play and ploy on middle-America.
However, for those who suggest Ayn Rand, this link is effectively all you need to know right here |
| Danielle Posts: 5438/6737 |
I tink that's WHY I like him so much. He doesn't try and pretend he's perfect, he doesn't try and pretend everyone else is perfect, he's blunt. He has his worries that really get to him, we all have those. He has his own struggles that seem so minor to us, but so believable with how they bother him. He's just... believable. Relatable.
You may not agree with me, but it's worth the read, at the very least. |
| ziffhasnoaim/password Posts: 288/292 |
But in the terms he was he was just irritating, paranoid. Couldn't stand him. I think it is a teen culture thing. |
| witeasprinwow Posts: 426/613 |
Originally posted by ziffhasnoaim/password Most people are brats, that's why. He was just honest about it, and didn't lie to himself about being a brat. My books came today. I was planning to read The 48 Laws of Power first, but then I realized it is 500 pages, with huge pages and tiny font. I might go for Sperm Wars first instead. I'm interested in that evolutionary psychology stuff. |
| ziffhasnoaim/password Posts: 285/292 |
Holden was a brat though. I didn't like him at all through the story. I don't understand why so many people love it so much. |
| Danielle Posts: 5409/6737 |
You never read Catcher in the Rye, Colin?
This makes me feel sad for you.  If you EVER want a book to read, I really recommend that one. It's without a doubt my favorite book. The main character Holden can relate with anyone, and he's believable. You don't see that very often in books anymore. |
| ziffhasnoaim/password Posts: 274/292 |
Stephen Colbert's Alpha Squad 7: Lady Nocturne: A Tek Jansen Adventure |
| drjayphd Posts: 807/1170 |
Originally posted by ziffhasnoaim/password Brave New World is a brilliant everything. We'd read that and 1984 in high school senior year, and I think most of the people liked the latter better. I was Team Brave New World all the way. |
| ziffhasnoaim/password Posts: 272/292 |
Brave New World, for what its worth, is a brilliant exposition on drug culture. I like how many people read it and assume Huxley was rallying against drugs. Of course he was part of the team that came up with the term psychadelic. |
| witeasprinwow Posts: 407/613 |
Originally posted by Super Danielle First off, I completely back her reccomendation of The Catcher in the Rye. The main character is so incredibly human that he alone makes it worth the read. If the author was any less honest about human emotion, this book would have totally flopped. Also, I'll second Animal Farm (But have a Cliff's Notes or something handy to help interpret it; it's about Stalin and Hitler and the like), and also reccomend Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. The book has changed with age; some of Huxley's predictions for the future are obviously wrong now. However, the main question the book proposes is still extremely relevant - "Is a pre-ordained life of stupid happiness, or would you accept pain and suffering in exchange for depth of emotion?" |
| ziffhasnoaim/password Posts: 254/292 |
On The Road Again by Jack Kerouac
Anne Karenina by Leo Tolstoy * Crime and Punishment by Doestovsky * The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius Summa Theologica by St. Thomas Aquinas * Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (or ANYTHING by Steinbeck) * Rouse Up O Young Men of the New Age by Oe * The Metamorphisis or The Trial by Franz Kafka English Patient by Michael Ondaatje Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood Anything by Mordechai Richler (duddy kravitz being my favourite) A Fine Balance by Rohington Mistry * I will add a * for the ones I think are most important The first two stars relate to my adoration of Russian literature. A good starting point, if not a little dense but less daunting, is Ivan Turgenev's Fathers and Sons. I absolutely adore St. Thomas Aquinas dry and sensicle take on the renewal of Aristotlean ideals during the First Reinassance. Steinbeck is my favourite thing to come from America. I absolutely love everything he has done. I read Of Mice and Men about 400000000000000000000000^2 times during Gr. 11. We only had to read it once, but I loved it. Kenzaburo Oe is a brilliant author. If you think you know shit about Japanese culture you need to read this man. I read this book twice in a day...Twice. Rohington Mistry will expose a whole new world to you. You will read this lengthy and be filled with adoration and shock. It really just shows the versatility and amazing strength of the Canadian literary style. |
| Cynthia Posts: 3869/5814 |
The only one of Danielle's that I would echo would be Animal Farm; if you know the idea behind the book, it's a great depiction of what Orwell's trying to get across. If not, then you're in for a treat.
I never did The Catcher in the Rye in high school.  Nor did I do Romeo & Juliet, believe it or not. (Merchant of Venice, yes; Macbeth, yes... but not that) |
| Danielle Posts: 5324/6737 |
I'll throw out some suggestions, but I'm sure you've read at least some of them before 
That Catcher in the Rye (I'm sure you read this in grade school, but if you didn't, damn it get it) by JD Salinger Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (biography type book about an adventurous guy, extremely inspiring) Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (if you haven't read it yet) Animal Farm by George Orwell (seriously, this is a classic) And on a side note, I tried reading Catch-22, and I couldn't get into it. I read over 50 pages, and... no. It wasn't working with me. |
| Teddylot Posts: 206/286 |
You only like that book 'cause I told you to read it, Toxic. =o
Anyway, I recommend some of the books I'm reading right now: "An Enemy of the People" by Henrik Ibsen (adapted by Arthur Miller) Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (I happen to be re-reading it at the mo') Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand Also on the same list is Rand's The Fountainhead which I read previously this year. |
| Jomb Posts: 308/448 |
For books, I'd reccommend just about anything by Kurt Vonnegut, that is my favorite author. I've never been let down by him, my favorites are "Sirens of Titan", "Cat's Cradle", and "Slaughterhouse-Five". If you like horror books I'd reccomend HP Lovecraft's work, it's the most compelling stuff i've ever read in that genre.
If you want to read something which will shock you, read "The Naked Lunch" by William Burroughs. I read it not too long ago, and it's still very jarring 50 or so years later. But dont read it if you are easily offended or repulsed. If you take it with an open mind it is really very imaginative in an ugly way. |
| Toxic Posts: 149/251 |
If you haven't already, Catch-22 is my favorite novel, and has seriously influenced my day to day life. If black comedy, satire, or breathing tickles your fancy, pick it up. |
| drjayphd Posts: 801/1170 |
Originally posted by witeasprinwow Winner. Let's stick with stuff of the paperback or hardcover persuasions, yes?  Comics/manga are different beasts and probably should get their own thread. |
| Dr_Death16 Posts: 118/970 |
I just got the original The Stand by Stephen King on eBay today... I'm going to reread that when it arrives. And that's about it for me. |
| witeasprinwow Posts: 372/613 |
I was really talking about books or anything book-like, but whatever. I'm used to my threads getting completely hijacked here.
I have coming in the mail: The Autobiography of Malcom X Sperm Wars (Robin Baker) The 48 Laws of Power (Robert Greene) All of these are much heavier reading than my last two. I'll let you guys know how they go as I finish them. |
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