What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most? Which novels, autobiographies, science fiction, etc, had a turning point in your life? Care to write a brief summary? I'm interested in reading a good book. Does anyone here have in mind a good book that they would recommend?
Thanks,
Edward
Hummingbear
10-25-2007, 10:39 PM
What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most? Which novels, autobiographies, science fiction, etc, had a turning point in your life? Care to write a brief summary?
Turning points in my life were, mostly, a long time ago, so the books that most affected me may seem like old hat now.
When I was 16, Hesse's Siddhartha gave me an entirely new template for who I might become, and Thoreau's Walden gave me another. A couple of years later, Allen Ginsberg's Howl gave me a view of what can happen to people who cannot resolve the conflicts between who they need to be and what society will allow them to express; up to that time, in my protected bourgeois bubble, I never would have imagined such demons. All this was great preparation for becoming a hippie.
Some memorable science fiction, which might not have formed "turning points" but certainly have offered a great deal of depth for appreciating the turns already taken (and which have been worth rereading at least twice):
Ursula LeGuin, The Left Hand of Darkness. What the world could be like if we weren't attached to having gender!
Samuel Delany, Dhalgren. A young man who has lost his memory and his name wanders into a city which has lost all connection with the outside world, including any sense of time or even its own history. In addition to being existentially and socially provocative, it has great scenes of bisexual polyamory, if you like that kind of thing (I sure do).
Octavia Butler, Xenogenesis. (the more recent edition of the trilogy calls it Lilith's Brood).
The story follows human survivors of an apocalyptic war as they are joined and genetically altered by extraterrestrials who have an affinity for strangers. This has been the least-appreciated of Butler's works, I think because uncompromisingly evokes the revulsion that we naturally would feel if our DNA were under attack--but that is by no means the end of the emotional issues she takes us through. There is no other book that looks at genetic engineering this way, and probably never will be. I am in awe of how deeply it challenges me to question "what is 'human'?"
Finally, an excellent philosophical study in the form of a murder mystery set in Tibet--recommened to me by WaCCo's own Mark (hi Mark!)-- which has offered a more profound sense of what it means to be committed to spiritual truth than perhaps anything else I've ever read:
The Skull Mantra, by Eliot Pattison.
I'd better just round off my list by reminding you that the best American novel of the 20th century is still Grapes of Wrath. You already knew that, but just in case you'd forgotten--it's certainly as relevant today as it was in 1930-something, and maybe getting more so.
joshuamorris
10-26-2007, 08:27 PM
What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most? Which novels, autobiographies, science fiction, etc, had a turning point in your life? Care to write a brief summary?
I have a little extra time (but not too much) on my hands now until mid January. I'm interested in reading a good book, especially one authored by Gore Vidal. Does anyone here have in mind a book written by Vidal that they would recommend?
Thanks,
Edward
John Lilly, M.D., *The Center of the Cyclone: An Autobiography of Inner Space*
Dylan Thomas' "green fuse"
Colin Wilson, *Dreaming to Some Purpose*
Stanislav Grof, M.D., *When the Impossible Happens*
Jane Roberts, *The Nature of Personal Reality*
Braggi
10-27-2007, 11:18 AM
Some great recommendations already appearing here!
"The Alphabet Versus the Goddess: The conflict between word and image"
by Leonard Shlain.
An amazing book. Gives an explanation for just about every religious conflict.
Clearly predicts our current situations in the Middle East and here in the US.
Should be required reading for every high school kid.
I don't think the author is claiming to absolutely prove anything. It's a compelling read, however, it allowed me to synthesize everything I've learned in life into a new, more complete world view. That I think is quite valuable.
I was astonished at some of the narrow minded reviews of it on Amazon. They are worth reading just to see how limited some people can be. It's interesting to see how many one star and five star reviews there are on Amazon.
-Jeff
Valley Oak
11-02-2007, 11:19 AM
I've started Gore Vidal's "Point to Point Navigation" and I cannot put it down. I strongly recommend it as an excellent read.
Edward
Willie Lumplump
11-02-2007, 06:55 PM
What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most? Which novels, autobiographies, science fiction, etc, had a turning point in your life? Care to write a brief summary? I'm interested in reading a good book. Does anyone here have in mind a good book that they would recommend?
Thanks,
Edward
My favorite book of all time was John Gardner's "Grendel," which was published around 1970. The story of the hero Beowulf and the monster Grendel was, I believe, the first legend ever written in the English language. Gardner's "Grendel" presents the same legend but tells it from Grendel's point of view, and it is both poignant and absolutely hilarious. Grendel is outraged at the stupidity and repulsiveness of the humans that he encounters. His favorite comment is, "They [the humans] must be crazy!" And it's easy to empathize with Grendel because there is something crazy and repulsive about the humans. During the first half of the book, Grendel holds her own against the humans, but somewhere along the line she begins to experience an existential crisis which eventually proves her undoing at the hands of Beowulf.
Gardner is a master of the English language, and every words counts for effect throughout the entire book. This is the book that I wish I had written.
scorpiomoon
11-07-2007, 03:48 PM
What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most? Which novels, autobiographies, science fiction, etc, had a turning point in your life? Care to write a brief summary? I'm interested in reading a good book. Does anyone here have in mind a good book that they would recommend?
Thanks,
Edward
Hmm If I go back a ways I see the first book that really scared the crap out of me and it wasn't sci fi or anything. It was the Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. I think there was a movie that came out later using the book as a framework, maybe it was Apocalypse Now?? Not sure because I was too frightened to see it!!! I think I read this at 15, and really I do not remember much of the plot I only remember the "feeling" I got from the main character.
Progressing into right now I just finished reading a biography of Frances Wallsingham which was very fascinating. He was Queen Elizabeth's henchman and loyal servant. I got the feeling we might all be Catholics if not for him.
Today at some point I am going to pick up Understanding Power, the Indispensable Chomsky. A groovy read if you can handle THE TRUTH which, sometimes I can only go about 25 pages and stop to digest it. I don't know if anyone will know the answer to this, but, I was talking yesterday,with my dad, his response to this book, was to tell me that Osama Bin Laden had recommended Naom Chomsky in his last message. I wonder, Is it true or was he pulling my leg???
Willie Lumplump
11-07-2007, 04:57 PM
Hmm If I go back a ways I see the first book that really scared the crap out of me and it wasn't sci fi or anything. It was the Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. I think there was a movie that came out later using the book as a framework, maybe it was Apocalypse Now?? Not sure because I was too frightened to see it!!! I think I read this at 15, and really I do not remember much of the plot I only remember the "feeling" I got from the main character.
Progressing into right now I just finished reading a biography of Frances Wallsingham which was very fascinating. He was Queen Elizabeth's henchman and loyal servant. I got the feeling we might all be Catholics if not for him.
Today at some point I am going to pick up Understanding Power, the Indispensable Chomsky. A groovy read if you can handle THE TRUTH which, sometimes I can only go about 25 pages and stop to digest it. I don't know if anyone will know the answer to this, but, I was talking yesterday,with my dad, his response to this book, was to tell me that Osama Bin Laden had recommended Naom Chomsky in his last message. I wonder, Is it true or was he pulling my leg???
Yes, it was "Apocalypse Now." Brando was superb; I'm sure that Conrad would have approved.
No, it wasn't Bin Laden, it was Hugo Chavez who recommended reading Chomsky. I would read Chomsky at Chavez's recommendation and Chavez at Chomsky's recommendation. I love both of these guys. I had expected to see Chomsky in December at the Peninsula Peace and Justice Center, but Chomsky's wife fell gravely ill and he had to cancel all of his engagements. I'm not really much of a follower, but it's nice having someone to look up to, and both Chavez and Chomsky fill that need for me. By the way, did you catch Cheney's recent gaff calling Chavez the "President of Ecuador"? What a jerk.
Braggi
11-08-2007, 08:13 AM
Oh Gods! Another book I have to read right away? I recently saw the trailer for the upcoming movie, Beowulf. I doubt it follows the myth very closely, but the special effects will be stunning. Looks like there will be lots of blood and gore, so fair warning. The hero is a gorgeous babe of a man. The monster looks pretty cool too.
I'll have to go by myself. Pat and Freya aren't interested.
Let's see if I can find a link ... here you go: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0442933/trailers-me60340887
-Jeff
My favorite book of all time was John Gardner's "Grendel," which was published around 1970. The story of the hero Beowulf and the monster Grendel was, I believe, the first legend ever written in the English language. Gardner's "Grendel" presents the same legend but tells it from Grendel's point of view, and it is both poignant and absolutely hilarious. Grendel is outraged at the stupidity and repulsiveness of the humans that he encounters. His favorite comment is, "They [the humans] must be crazy!" And it's easy to empathize with Grendel because there is something crazy and repulsive about the humans. During the first half of the book, Grendel holds her own against the humans, but somewhere along the line she begins to experience an existential crisis which eventually proves her undoing at the hands of Beowulf.
Gardner is a master of the English language, and every words counts for effect throughout the entire book. This is the book that I wish I had written.
Lisa W
11-08-2007, 11:00 PM
Well Edward, I, being a mature adult, actually was quite caught up in a young adults series by Philip Pullman. The Golden Compass, the Subtle Knife and the Amber Spyglass (not nec. in that order) are spiritual fantasy woven with sci fi and the theme is something I suspect devout Catholics would decry as blasphemy. This makes it all the more interesting to me. In fact, the Golden Compass is coming to town as a movie a few weeks before Santa. on Dec. 1 in our area. (Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.) hee hee. Maybe it will be your cup of tea, let me know if you like it.
What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most? Which novels, autobiographies, science fiction, etc, had a turning point in your life? Care to write a brief summary? I'm interested in reading a good book. Does anyone here have in mind a good book that they would recommend?
Thanks,
Edward
Valley Oak
11-16-2007, 03:53 PM
Does anyone have a personal recommendation on books by William Faulkner? I mean a book by this author that you have read. I already went to Wikipedia and read about him and his work. I would like to hear someone's personal preference and reference.
Edward
scorpiomoon
11-16-2007, 07:09 PM
[recommendation on books by William Faulkner]
Darn!! I just got back from the Library. You know I think I have read quite a few of his works but without giving away my age, honestly Edward, I don't know if I remember much from them. On Faulkner, his house is in Oxford Mississippi and its close enough to the town where the SNICK kids were killed so we went to Oxford too. His place was a hemp farm back in the day. One of his short stories is written in pencil all over the bathroom walls --scrawled disheaveled like, sideways here to there. It may have been "The Bear" or "As I Lay Dying. " I say lets pick one and read it at the same time. I'd go for that. Also
if you want scary southern commentary Flannery O'Connor
's "A Good Man Is Hard To Find" very scary I was looking for Flannery and ended up with Kurt Vonnegut this afternoon. Sometimes he is the ticket. Anyway, I think the "SOund and the fury "is a little thick. By that I mean if I am reading three books I can't really do that. Its more a language of its own, like Joyce
but, its been awhile so I will be in the library again. If you haven't decided I will pick one of Faulkners and start it, see how it goes.
Valley Oak
11-17-2007, 10:08 AM
Kurt Vonnegut is a great author himself. He died not long ago, either earlier this year or the last, I believe.
If you are hip to Vonnegut, do you have any favorites of his work?
Thanks again for your input,
Edward
[recommendation on books by William Faulkner]
Darn!! I just got back from the Library. You know I think I have read quite a few of his works but without giving away my age, honestly Edward, I don't know if I remember much from them. On Faulkner, his house is in Oxford Mississippi and its close enough to the town where the SNICK kids were killed so we went to Oxford too. His place was a hemp farm back in the day. One of his short stories is written in pencil all over the bathroom walls --scrawled disheaveled like, sideways here to there. It may have been "The Bear" or "As I Lay Dying. " I say lets pick one and read it at the same time. I'd go for that. Also
if you want scary southern commentary Flannery O'Connor
's "A Good Man Is Hard To Find" very scary I was looking for Flannery and ended up with Kurt Vonnegut this afternoon. Sometimes he is the ticket. Anyway, I think the "SOund and the fury "is a little thick. By that I mean if I am reading three books I can't really do that. Its more a language of its own, like Joyce
but, its been awhile so I will be in the library again. If you haven't decided I will pick one of Faulkners and start it, see how it goes.
Clancy
11-17-2007, 10:36 AM
What are your favorite books?
Far too many to list, but John Steinbeck's novels are among the best I've ever read.
scorpiomoon
11-17-2007, 10:39 AM
Reading favorites, Vonnegut?? I'm almost finished with this one here so its "A Man Without A Country" and I like it. Not to avoid your question on favorites but I'll have to get a few more read and let you know. I also checked out Al Franken's "Lies and the lying liars who tell them." Has anyone read it yet?
Willie Lumplump
11-17-2007, 10:33 PM
Kurt Vonnegut is a great author himself. He died not long ago, either earlier this year or the last, I believe.
If you are hip to Vonnegut, do you have any favorites of his work?
Thanks again for your input,
Edward
For reasons I don't completely understand, I was fascinated by a book written by Mark Vonnegut, Kurt's son. The book must be 30 years old by now and out of print. It was a true account of MV's descent into madness and his slow recovery. I think "Midnight Express" was the title, although I'm not sure.
Valley Oak
11-18-2007, 08:56 AM
I looked up Mark Vonnegut in Wikipedia. It is an interesting entry although short:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Vonnegut
Edward
For reasons I don't completely understand, I was fascinated by a book written by Mark Vonnegut, Kurt's son. The book must be 30 years old by now and out of print. It was a true account of MV's descent into madness and his slow recovery. I think "Midnight Express" was the title, although I'm not sure.
Sara S
11-19-2007, 05:29 AM
There may be two books of the same title, but the "Midnight Express" I know of is a book by Billy Hayes, a true story, made into a film of the same name, about some wannabe drug smugglers who got busted and spent some awful time in a Turkish prison.
An amazing book about severe depression and wrongly prescribed anti-depressants (and other drugs) is "Darkness Visible" by William Styron.
I have so many beloved books that I haven't been able to narrow the field yet to contribute to this topic, but one book that I have read (in) almost daily for a few years is "365 Tao" by Deng Ming-Dao.
I love Anne Lamott, too.
For reasons I don't completely understand, I was fascinated by a book written by Mark Vonnegut, Kurt's son. The book must be 30 years old by now and out of print. It was a true account of MV's descent into madness and his slow recovery. I think "Midnight Express" was the title, although I'm not sure.
Braggi
11-19-2007, 06:52 AM
The book in question by Mark Vonegut is "The Eden Express."
My wife read it and found it fascinating.
What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most? Which novels, autobiographies, science fiction, etc, had a turning point in your life? Care to write a brief summary? I'm interested in reading a good book. Does anyone here have in mind a good book that they would recommend?
Thanks,
Edward
The Mark Vonnegut book was "The Eden Express" and it was co-written by his father, Kurt. One of my favorites for many years now
Some other of my favorite books, both recent and all-time:
"Water for Elephants" by Sarah Gruen
"The Persistence of Vision" by John Varley (as well as all his other works!)
"East of Eden" by John Steinbeck (everything he wrote is excellent, but this is my favorite)
"The Word for World is Forest" by Ursula K. LeGuin (and every other word she's written)
"The Kite Runner" and "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
"The Time Traveler's Wife" by Audrey Niffenegger
"Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind" and "Not Always So" by Shunryu Suzuki
Willie Lumplump
11-19-2007, 08:39 PM
The book in question by Mark Vonegut is "The Eden Express."
My wife read it and found it fascinating.
Yes, that was it. "The Eden Express." I read it twice long ago, and if I ever find it in a bookstore, I'll read it again.
Valley Oak
12-30-2007, 08:57 PM
I just finished reading Gore Vidal's second autobiography (yes, his second one), "Point to Point Navigation." The book is good, generously sprinkled with juicy and worthwhile tidbits of information such as a new insight into the Kennedy assassination, his professional relationship with Italian director, Federico Fellini, his election campaigns for the House in 1960 and the U.S. Senate (representing California) in 1982 where he came in second to Jerry Brown for the Democratic nomination. Vidal also talks about his friendship with author Tennessee Williams, Vidal's 40 year or thereabouts sojourn in Italy, Vidal's homosexuality and its social consequences for him personally and as a writer, and many other fascinating adventures, facts, recollections, and political commentary.
However, I would reserve this reading for true Vidal fans, such as myself, and not to the general public, unless you are a speed reader who can lick a book in a single afternoon. Vidal's first autobiography, "Palimpsest," is a better read, very well written, and surprisingly insightful. Point to Point lacks the literary robustness of Palimpsest.
Anyone care to comment?
Edward
Zeno Swijtink
12-31-2007, 12:51 AM
I just finished reading Gore Vidal's second autobiography (yes, his second one), "Point to Point Navigation." The book is good, generously sprinkled with juicy and worthwhile tidbits of information such as a new insight into the Kennedy assassination, his professional relationship with Italian director, Federico Fellini, his election campaigns for the House in 1960 and the U.S. Senate (representing California) in 1982 where he came in second to Jerry Brown for the Democratic nomination. Vidal also talks about his friendship with author Tennessee Williams, Vidal's 40 year or thereabouts sojourn in Italy, Vidal's homosexuality and its social consequences for him personally and as a writer, and many other fascinating adventures, facts, recollections, and political commentary.
However, I would reserve this reading for true Vidal fans, such as myself, and not to the general public, unless you are a speed reader who can lick a book in a single afternoon. Vidal's first autobiography, "Palimpsest," is a better read, very well written, and surprisingly insightful. Point to Point lacks the literary robustness of Palimpsest.
Anyone care to comment?
Edward
Plowing through C.P. Snow's 3000p+ Strangers and Brothers myself. It's rather tedious but has these great illuminating insights every thirty pages that just make it worthwhile, or at least keep me going. Expect nobody here to even have heard of it.
As to Vidal: I am surprised you did not comment on his coming out, etc. Must have been in your headlights, not?
Frederick M. Dolan
12-31-2007, 05:36 AM
What are your favorite books? Which ones do you recommend the most?
Always a great question. The recommendations offered so far are terrific.
For the last couple of weeks I've been catching up with Philip Roth. Just at the level of the sentence itself the novels provide great pleasure, but brilliant craftsmanship is on display on all other levels as well. They're emotionally harrowing, so be warned. The very latest, "Exit Ghost," is beautiful.
On the topic of harrowing, Cormac McCarthy sould be mentioned. His latest, "The Road," is great; "Blood Meridian" is awesome -- but by no means to everyone's taste.
If the task were to recommend something that seems to have been unjustly forgotten, I'd say Lawrence Durrell's "Alexandria Quartet."
Good reading,
Fred
Valley Oak
12-31-2007, 08:07 PM
Thanks for the recommendations, Fred. I'm sure they're great books but I looked up the plot summary in Wikipedia for "The Road" and, well, having to fight for my life against a world of cannibals in an incessantly hopeless situation with a son to protect as well, no food, housing, only two bullets left, etc, well, it's not my cup of tea. But thanks anyway; I appreciate the reference.
I also looked up "Exit Ghost" and that seemed to be a little more up my alley although I don't feel I got enough of a plot summary to really know if I want to read it.
Thanks again.
Edward
Always a great question. The recommendations offered so far are terrific.
For the last couple of weeks I've been catching up with Philip Roth. Just at the level of the sentence itself the novels provide great pleasure, but brilliant craftsmanship is on display on all other levels as well. They're emotionally harrowing, so be warned. The very latest, "Exit Ghost," is beautiful.
On the topic of harrowing, Cormac McCarthy sould be mentioned. His latest, "The Road," is great; "Blood Meridian" is awesome -- but by no means to everyone's taste.
If the task were to recommend something that seems to have been unjustly forgotten, I'd say Lawrence Durrell's "Alexandria Quartet."
Good reading,
Fred
Valley Oak
12-31-2007, 08:33 PM
Sounds like an interesting read. I might pick it up myself someday.
Regarding Vidal, he's never 'come out' in the traditional sense of the term but on the other hand he has never attempted to hide it or deny it either. Vidal is well known for his homosexuality as well as his literary work with this subject as a central theme, most notably, his novel, "The City and the Pillar" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_City_and_the_Pillar). Although he had published two previous works, The City and the Pillar launched Vidal's career as a writer at age 23 when it was published in 1948. The book was a scandalous success resulting not only from its quality writing but also because of the open nature in which the author wrote about homosexuality, a huge taboo in that day.
Vidal explains in his second autobiography, 'Point to Point Navigation,' that he just never could accept coming out in public because it makes him feel very uncomfortable and that's the way he was raised. On the other hand, anyone who knows Vidal to any extent at all as being a writer will also know that he is proud and has countless times lead the charge to defend human sexual freedom; Vidal has done it all except to say literally in public, 'I am gay.' Vidal also refuses to accept labels including, interestingly enough, being pigeon holed as 'gay.'
I suppose that each person has their eccentricities and I also suppose there is merit in not defining oneself or another with the philosophy in mind that once you label something you automatically create boundaries for it and therefore limit its potential, whether it be a person or a thing.
Edward
Plowing through C.P. Snow's 3000p+ Strangers and Brothers myself. It's rather tedious but has these great illuminating insights every thirty pages that just make it worthwhile, or at least keep me going. Expect nobody here to even have heard of it.
As to Vidal: I am surprised you did not comment on his coming out, etc. Must have been in your headlights, not?