Help! Any good book recommendations?

[Flaxbee]

I need a good, solid, interesting book. I've read so many mysteries this summer I can't stand it -- but I'm at this point beyond the need to numb my brain - the last few months I've been going thru some very high-pressure work stuff and when my life is rough, I need fluffy books. Things aren't as stressful with work right now, and I'd like to read something with a little heft.

So, what have you read that's good lately? I mostly escape into fiction, but do enjoy history too.

Any suggestions? Thanks!

[tuvor]

1. The only fiction I've been able to enjoy is...

The Catcher in the Rye and Generation X.

Can't you find a lot on the Web to sate your appetite?

[Flaxbee]

4. yup, lotsa web stuff...

but there's something about settling in bed with a good book that I just love. Have to read some every night before I turn the lights out or I have a hard time sleeping...

[Heidi]

This is a heavy read . . .

but I learned a lot about myself and my culture from it. It's one of the best non-fiction books I've read in the last 20 years:

"War Against the Weak: America's Campaign to Create a Master Race," by Edwin Black.

www.waragainstheweak.com

[khashka]

2. The Gate To Women's Country

by Sheri Tepper. Kinda heavy at points.

Steel Beach by John Varley. Although it's about suicide it's one of the funniest books I've ever read. The first line is priceless: "In five years the penis will be obsolete", said the salesman.

Or anything by Tom Robbins.


Khash.

[Flaxbee]

6. thanks... I'll check them out.

I'm sorry about the heartbreak in your thread... I hope you feel better.

[Wetzelbill]

3. "Fools Crow" by James Welch

LA Times Book Award Winner in the mid 80s. Gorgeous novel. Partly historical. It's the story of a young Blackfeet Indian growing up just right after the Civil War. It leads up to the events of the Baker Massacre. So great you have to read it to believe it.

I believe this has an excerpt here too.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0140089373/104-7171417-9411141?v=glance

[JVS]

5. Group Portrait with Lady by Heinrich Boell

[Aristus]

7. "Discovering America" by James Laxer.

He is a college professor in Canada, and a frequent visitor south of the border. He has many interesting things to say about America, some flattering and admiring, some not so flattering or admiring. But he is a captivating writer.

[NoSheep]

8. Praying For Sheetrock. non-fiction story about a small rural town in

coastal Georgia and the Civil Rights movement. Inspiring. Hilarious. Moving. Can't put it down. I promise, you will not regret the read.

[WCGreen]

9. The Red Tent....

A great book about the biblical story of Jacob....

[BQueen]

10. "A Prayer for Owen Meany" by John Irving

One of my favorite books, and relevant now (parallels Iran/Contra and Vietnam, bemoans Americans' short memories for their own history) At many points pee-your-pants funny, yet I always cry near the end no matter how many times I read it.

In honor of Hunter S. Thompson's recent lift-off, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."


If you can get into it (a big undertaking) "Infinite Jest" by David Foster Wallace is hilariously weird, but it's about 1000 pages with 100 of that endnotes (frequently hysterical). Set in the near future, the years no longer have numbers, but are sponsored, eg, "The Year of the Frank Perdue Wonder Chicken" "The Year of the Depends Adult Undergarment". Basically about all forms of addiction, including addiction to 12 step programs, and about an entertainment/continuous loop video so addictive that once lured into viewing it, people will not do anything else, and will do anything to continue watching. If you crave resolution of all loose ends, you will be diappointed...

edit to add, a friend of mine highly recommended "The Life of Pi" but I haven't picked it up yet.

[Flaxbee]

11. Thanks, all, who have posted and will post...

I don't think I can keep up with all the posts b/c I'm going to bed soon, but I appreciate all the input!

Am going to surf thru powells.com with everyone's suggestions in the morning...

'Night!

[NYC]

12. You Can't Go Home Again

by Thomas Wolfe.

[IntravenousDemilo]

13. "Perfume" by Patrick Suskind

It's a wild book, set in pre-revolutionary France. The bizarre main character is named Grenouille and has the most well-developed sense of smell in human history, yet no smell of his own. The book begins with his birth and spans his entire life. The opening passage is one of the most evocative I've read, describing in nauseating detail the almost hellish smell and filth of Paris of the time.

Apparently there's a movie version due out soon, directed by Tom Tykwer, who directed "Run Lola Run".

[NYC]

15. I read that about a month or two ago.

Strange concept about the smell.

[Reciprocity]

14. My two picks.

I really enjoyed reading this book.
Non-fiction.
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0887308554.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,45,-64_AA240_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.gif
by Robert X. Cringely
The book is a witty look at the origins of the personnel computer.

Fantasy
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0345335511.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,45,-64_AA240_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg
Loved all the books in this series.
It’s the age story of Garion, a young boy in an old world, who grows up on a farm only to discover that there was quite a bit more to him than he expected.

[unhappycamper]

16. Here's two non-fiction books that are really good:

Blink: the power of thinking without thinking / Malcolm Gladwell.

Frozen earth: the once and future story of ice ages / Doug Macdougall.

[caty]

17. "The Devil in White City"

This was the most fascinating book I ever read. Actually took a day off to finish reading this book--it was that good!---

“A dynamic and enveloping book….this truth really is stranger than fiction.”—The New York Times

It could be mistaken for the novel of the year—but Erik Larson’s The Devil in the White City is no tall tale. Hard to believe, when you consider the elements that make up this compelling historical drama: a master architect, a cunning killer, and the great fin de siècle spectacle that would indelibly alter the American psyche.

The main attraction at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair was the sprawling fairgrounds itself, dubbed the White City for its ephemeral beauty. While Daniel Hudson Burnham struggled to build this monumental project, H.H. Holmes (another “architect” of sorts) constructed his “World’s Fair Hotel”—a torture chamber complete with dissection table, gas chamber, and 3000-degree crematorium.

Rich in historical detail, shocking in subject matter, and peopled with vibrant characters (including Thomas Edison, Clarence Darrow, and the Archduke Francis Ferdinand), The Devil in the White City is a historical page-turner of the first order—and a fitting metaphor for the forces that would shape the 20th century into an age of towering achievement and unimaginable evil.

[flamingyouth]

23. That's a great book.

:thumbsup:

[Richardo]

34. Love that book. Larson's 'Isaac's Storm' is also excellent.

Covers the 1900 hurricane that destroyed Galveston, Texas and killed 6,000-10,000 people.

[Flaxbee]

18. Any more input from the day crowd?

Thanks again to all who made suggestions last night...

[LouisianaLiberal]

19. You may think I'm kidding here...

But lately for relaxation I read Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I find myself laughing at the footnotes! It is so perfectly written in a very unique manner that I am often in awe of its brilliance.

It rambles, pontificates, scorns, postulates - everything you ever wanted in a book.

Oh, and don't read the abridged version. If you can find it, get the complete seven volumes with footnotes. You won't be sorry. And you won't finish it this summer!

[yellowdogintexas]

20. George R R Martin's series "A Song of Ice and Fire"

Begin with A Game of Thrones,
A Clash of Kings
A Storm of Swords

and when you have finished these, A Feast For Crows may be released.

These books totally rock.

Fun fiction: Midnight Louie Mysteries

anything by Carl Hiaasen
Anything by Jeffrey Deaver

[fishnfla]

21. several

1. "the Tender Bar" which is a new one coming out in Sept.
2. Freakonomics
3.Ugly Americans
4.Bringing Down the House
5. Trawler

I cant recall the writers off hand

[fishnfla]

24. The Last True Story... By John Crawford

about the current war. read some excerptd today in the paer, sounds pretty good

[steely]

29. Jon Stewart seemed to genuinely like it

He interviewed Crawford, and I jotted it down to buy - I'm glad you reminded me.

[CBHagman]

22. Several nonfiction selections.

The Last Duel by Eric Jager. An account of trial by combat in medieval France. I read it the way I'd read a mystery novel, my heart in the my mouth the whole time.

Triangle: The Fire That Changed America by David Von Drehle. Yes, it's about the Triangle shirtwaist factory fire, but it's more than a sad recounting of the tragedy. Von Drehle brings the whole Lower East Side immigrant experience to life, and people are individuals, not statistics, to him.

I just finished Anne Lamott's Plan B, which I highly recommend for anyone who's left-wing, spiritual, AND irreverent. Just the thing to read between peace vigils and driving your teenager to the mall.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

25. The Historian

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

26. 'Lord of Light' by Roger Zelazny.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0380014033/qid=1124941260/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-8068239-4307925?v=glance&s=books

It's Sci-Fi, but it's hugely entertaining and will make you laugh with the extremely witty dialogue. The story is imaginative--it's epic in scope, and fundamentally political.

Zelazny is a treasure, I've purchased extra copies of this book and given it to multiple people as a gift.

[Debbi801]

31. I've never read anything but the Amber series...

How does this stack up?

I loved the Amber series, BTW. Actually re-reading it right now.

[Writer]

27. Here's my list:

Any Harry Potter book. Rather, I recommend the entire series as written thus far.

"The Shipping News" by Annie Proulx
"Smilla's Sense of Snow" by ... can't remember his name
"The Seven Secret Senses" by Amy Tan
"The Mists of Avalon" - I'm reading that now! Wonderful fantasy writing.
"The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck

and if you really want to get heady:

"The First Amendment: A Reader" by Garvey and Schauer.

[Reciprocity]

39. If the book "The Shipping News" is half as good as the movie was.

Then it will be a good read. "The Mists of Avalon" great read as well.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

28. The Juvenilia of Jane Austen, found in 'Minor Works'.

Jane Austen was extremely gifted, and wrote some whimsical, very funny writings even at age 14. Highly recommended ones include "A Brief History of England" and the short satirical novella "Love and Freindship" (her misspelling).

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1414500017/qid=1124941528/sr=1-7/ref=sr_1_7/104-8068239-4307925?v=glance&s=books
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0140432671/qid=1124941528/sr=1-3/ref=sr_1_3/104-8068239-4307925?v=glance&s=books

[SCDem]

30. Memoirs of a Geisha

I know it's been out for a while but I just finished it and loved it.

[Richardo]

32. I just finished '1776' - Excellent.

More non-fiction: 'Blink', 'Freakonomics', 'The Great Influenza'

Fiction: 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time'; 'California Girl'; 'The Closers'; 'Life of Pi'

[Debbi801]

33. Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons, if you want decent fluff....

Other decent fiction:
Secret Life of Bees
Girl with the Pearl Earing
Reading Lolita in Tehran
Shipping News

For fluffy misteries...
Anything by Jonathon Kellerman
Faye Kellerman
Janet Evanovitch

:hi:

[HEyHEY]

35. The Ginger Man is pretty cool

[Dora]

36. Kite Runner

My mom loaned it to me this spring and I couldn't put it down. It's historical fiction.

I understood Afghanistan much better after reading it.

[justabob]

37. Horse Heaven

I can't think of the author right now, but it is nice and light about horses and their people told (mostly) from the point of view of the animals.

on edit: Jane Smiley author
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0449005410/002-4837560-3689602?v=glance

[Tyrone Slothrop]

38. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

I still maintain that that's the best book that's come out in the last 10 years.

Fascinating story of a family that actually manages to encompass a fair amount of the important history of the 20th Century.