Required reading for humans. [Archive]

mcnuggets300

2008-06-17, 07:54 AM

List books that you think everyone should read and why, the longer your list (though quality over quantity is recommended) the more helpful it will be for everyone.
Post a description of the book if you like. (not the obvious joke- 'well, its got pages... and a cover. ha....ha...ha.)
I'll start.

•'Fight club' - Chuck Palahniuk
an amazing read, my favorite piece of printed matter

•'Fahrenheit 451' - Ray Bradbury
For a novel that you can read in 1 or 2 nights, its a real eye opener. Apparently it cost the author $9.50 to write on a hire typewriter in a library basement, and was written in just 9 days.

•'Catch - 22' - Joseph Heller

•'First Blood' - David Morrell
Short and cool.

•'The theory of nearly everything' - Robert Derter
Elaborates the standard model, which is a theory encompassing most everything.

•The harry potter series
Good for getting younger readers interested...

•'Animal Farm' - George Orwell
Read this when i was ten, still think its a great book.

•'1984' - Orwell

•'The Raven' - Poe
I admit, this poem is amazing.

•'Headcrusher' - Garros Evdokimov
From Russia, with love. Simply the most gruesome novel ever written, graphically disgusting in its descriptions, and mind-blowingly fast paced. This novel is about a man struggling with the money goals of capitalist Russia, and what happens when you pass the point of no return. If you can find it, read it.
This novels tag-line is:
'Q: Money-driven aliens are invading your world, what do you do?
A: Fight back.'

•'Diary - A novel' - Chuck Palahniuk

•'Invisible monsters' - Chuck Palahniuk (i love chuck)

•'Brave new world' - Orwell

•'The adventures of Huckleberry Finn' - Mark Twain

Thats all that come to mind right now, ill add some more later.

ivan

2008-06-17, 08:47 AM

Brave New World is Aldous Huxley, not Orwell.

And I prefer Thomas Sawyer to Huckleberry Finn, personally.

Just off top of my head:

Hitchhiker's Guide To the Galaxy - Douglas Adams

For Whom The Bell Tolls - Hemingway...

Ehhmm... There are so many, It'd take ages listing them all. Besides, there is already this threa (http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37872)d.

catinabag1

2008-06-17, 08:50 AM

brave new world is an amazing book. i didn't actually read the whole thing but sparknotes and what we talked about in class got me all the info. same with catch 22 and this one is funny, especially the ending. i also enjoyed the series by ted dekker: black, red, white. those three books are sweet. but the best book of all time is shade's children. it's utterly amazing. it's about a future society where overlords bread humans to have create creatures that are used to battle for sport. it's one of the few books i actually read and the only book i read twice and i want to read it again. utter perfection.

john_childs

2008-06-17, 09:00 AM

This is a U.S.A. centric book. So consider it required reading for humans residing in the U.S. of A.

Free Speech for Me--But Not for Thee: How the American Left and Right Relentlessly Censor Each Other (http://www.amazon.com/Free-Speech-Me-But-Not-Thee/dp/0060995106/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213693097&sr=8-1) by Nat Hentoff

catinabag1

2008-06-17, 09:02 AM

shade's children (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shade's_Children)

mcnuggets300

2008-06-17, 10:08 AM

Brave New World is Aldous Huxley, not Orwell.

excuse me, i had a mindfart :o

ntappin

2008-06-17, 12:03 PM

The only one I have seen here that I have read that I would strongly disagree with is the Harry Potter books. I hate them and I think they were better off as movies than books. I admit that I only read the first one in its entirety but I just found them way to simple to be classified as amazing reads. To me they are on the same playing field as goosebumps and RL. Stein books.

My favourite books, although I really don't think that they should be required reading are:

Trainspotting
The Acid House, both by Irvine Welsh.

Trainspotting is a full novel and The Acid House is a compilation of short stories and a novelette at the end.

An interesting note that my brother told me (he has read more Welsh than I have and knows more about him) is that apparently Irvine writes himself into his books as the character Spud.

I think his books are by far some of the best written books I have ever read, and although quite often very depressing, they are usualy pretty great stories too.

Battle Royale by Koushun Takami (I forget the name of the translator but he did an amazing job)

This book is very much overshadowed by the movie, but it is way more in depth and quite interesting in comparison to the classic Japanese gore flick associated with it.

Not a whole lot else comes to mind, I can think of a few other books I have read that I really enjoyed but they were just fun reads and not quite as amazingly written as the previously mentioned stories.

GILD

2008-06-17, 02:42 PM

i didn't actually read the whole thing but sparknotes and what we talked about in class got me all the info.

Maybe you should stick to discussing maths?

Seager

2008-06-17, 03:02 PM

Two amazing books I think everyone should read that I was just exposed to this year are:

The Alchemist - by Paulo Coelho
A great (and short) novel about choosing your own destiny (more or less.)

Kaffir Boy - by Mark Mathabane
A book about growing up in SA apartheid. Mind blowing. An excellent book for highschoolers to read because it puts their life into persepective.

harper

2008-06-17, 03:04 PM

sp4rky-m4rky

2008-06-17, 03:05 PM

Readings for sissies :p

zfreak220

2008-06-17, 03:15 PM

Dante's Equation by Jane Jensen
I'm surprised this book doesn't have a more mainstream following. The characters really make the story in this one. I would say better than The Davinci Code.

Christ Clone Trilogy by James BeauSeigneur
Again, another underrated series. Crazy plot twists make this a great series.

Rubix

2008-06-17, 04:40 PM

A few of my 'must read' books..

Bravo 2 Zero
Its about a british SAS team behind the lines of Iraq, and need to get to friendly territory. Really inspriating.

Black Hawk Down
The book is way better than the movie could ever be. Again, a real inspriation

1984
Sometimes, in order to stick it to the man, you have to be the man

Catch-22
Going insane is the right thing to do

Catcher in the Rye
Its a classic, enough said

dudewithasock

2008-06-17, 05:12 PM

The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
I'll admit that not everyone enjoys a good fantasy story, but I think that this one is just the definition of epic and really sets the standard for similar books.

Lord of the Flies.
A fascinating look at the baser instincts of man. I found it to be a really good read.

The Giver (along with Anthem and 1984)
My favorite post-apocolyptic novels. The Handmaid's Tale isn't bad either.

That's just a few....there are more but these come to mind first...

1-wheeled-grape

2008-06-17, 05:41 PM

HAHA after reading this I have realised I haven't choosen to read a book in atleast a year! I do like the Alex Rider series, by Anthony Horowitz. Its like a 15 year old that is forced into being a spy. It's cool! There was a film version of the first book out a little while ago . (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZgepEziqwI)

JJuggle

2008-06-17, 05:52 PM

Here's my list of must-read books (http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37872&highlight=books) as well as those of several others. I would recommend the SEARCH FUNCTION as a must-read feature of these fora.
Greg, a couple of points. The list(s) to which you point are prefaced with a question mark clearly labeling the whole endeavor as possessing some uncertainty and indecision. This thread does not suffer from self doubt. Secondly that list is merely of must-read books. It could be for cows, fish, venus fly traps, whatever. This list is for humans only which distinguishes it from that one.

adjuggler

2008-06-17, 10:32 PM

Read To Kill a Mocking Bird!

Nimbusnut

2008-06-18, 01:36 AM

The Kamasutra.

MuniAddict

2008-06-18, 03:17 AM

Mad magazine.:p

mcnuggets300

2008-06-18, 05:50 AM

Battle Royale by Koushun Takami

yes!
that book was great, even though its primary appeal was the idea behind it. I believe the book was much better than the movie

tobbogonist

2008-06-18, 06:46 AM

The complete works of Lewis Carrol

The complete works of A. A. Milne especially the Christopher Robin Verses

The meaning of liff - Douglas Adams (and someone else).

James Thurber - almost anything, examples: The Owl in the Attic and Other Perplexities, The Thurber Carnival (anthology),
I have not read all his work as there is TO MUCH!

An amazing little book called Jonathan livingston seagull by Richard Bach.

James Finn Garner, either of his 'politically correct' set

Rob Grant - Colony

Tom hodgkinson, most of his work.

there is to many, just listing the ones recently read (or re-read)

ivan

2008-06-18, 06:53 AM

The complete works of Lewis Carrol

Lewis Carrol was once invited to an audience with the queen. There she expressed her love for Alice in Wonderland and insisted that he must send her a copy of his new book when it comes out. In due time, she got the book in the mail. Imagine her disappointment, when after reading the first few chapters she realised that the book was all on advanced mathematics.

Are you leading others that way too, Tom?

tobbogonist

2008-06-18, 07:36 AM

Hey, i have no beef with you sir.

my collection does not include that mathematics book.

The Complete FICTIONAL works of Lewis Carrol.

ntappin

2008-06-18, 10:05 AM

yes!
that book was great, even though its primary appeal was the idea behind it. I believe the book was much better than the movie

I really enjoyed how each chapter broke down how each character basically caved under the pressure differently. Some people were really clear headed then the second they saw someone they just flipped out. Others tried to not freak out at all and make peace, while others just instantly decided to kill everyone.

I think my favourite chapter was the very short one when the girl just goes insane, thinking she is a warrior and listening to her crystal or something like that (it has been quite a while since I read the book) she then starts to sneak up on someone to kill them when suddenly that person shoots her in the head and the chapter is over. It was like a five page long chapter, but you get so much out of it.

uni57

2008-06-18, 02:53 PM

Mad magazine.:pLOL!!!

This thread is your chance to show everyone how sophisticated you are. You blew it! :)

GILD

2008-06-18, 02:55 PM

He might well be the only one who didn't...

MuniAddict

2008-06-18, 04:06 PM

Here's almost 800 to choose from. I like 3, 7, 15, 43, 47..... they're all great in there own way.:)

http://bluepyramid.org/library/bookcomp.htm

ntappin

2008-06-18, 04:29 PM

LOL!!!

This thread is your chance to show everyone how sophisticated you are. You blew it! :)

I think this is more a thread to show what you are interested in, or what your values are. Sophistication doesn't really play into it for me at least when it comes to reading, I'm too young to try and be sophisticated, as are most of the posters here.

1-wheeled-grape

2008-06-18, 04:35 PM

Haha I cant even spell Sophistication (that was copied and pasted:rolleyes:) Yet alone being it! I prefer to watch stuff than read sometimes.

thejdw

2008-06-18, 04:42 PM

Power of five- antony horowitz and the curious incodent of the dog - unknown

mornish

2008-06-18, 04:49 PM

I mostly (if not only) read fantasy, but I think that there are some fantasy books out there that everyone should read.

My favorites are:

The Sword of Truth series (Terry Goodkind),
The Wheel of Time series (Robert Jordan),
The Inheritance Cycle (Christopher Paolini),
The Pendragon Books (D.J. MacHale),

thats all for now, Ill add more to it when I come back.

Rubix

2008-06-19, 03:56 AM

http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/title.html

here are some classics that are free and online!

mornish

2008-06-19, 04:17 AM

http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/title.html

here are some classics that are free and online!

Most of the classics that I have read I have hated:rolleyes:

GILD

2008-06-19, 08:50 AM

the curious incodent of the dog - unknown

The Curios Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime - Mark Had (http://www.amazon.com/Curious-Incident-Dog-Night-Time/dp/1400032717)don.

Incredible book.

Read it.

kington99

2008-06-19, 09:51 AM

The Curios Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime - Mark Had (http://www.amazon.com/Curious-Incident-Dog-Night-Time/dp/1400032717)don.

Incredible book.

Read it.

I was just about to mention this one, not least becaue my life is affected by Asperger's Syndrome.

Also Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card.

burjzyntski

2008-06-19, 06:40 PM

Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
Classic.

Mutant Message - Down Under - Marlo Morgan
Incredible book about Australian aboriginees, how they live the same way they've lived for tens-of-thousands of years, how they appreciate what they have, only take what they need, and take nothing for granted. I highly recommend this book.

Breakfast of Champions - Kurt Vonnegut
Great book. Very interesting writing style. A recent favorite. Not "required reading", but certainly enjoyable.

Anything by Carlos Castenada will blow your mind.

I've read Mutant Message a number of times, and it is probably one of my favorite books of all. There is really a lot to be learned from it.

_Ground_Zero_

2008-06-20, 02:07 AM

The Stand by Stephen King- over 1,000 pages of Stephen King about an apocalypic surreal scenario. Nough said.

uni57

2008-06-20, 05:10 AM

over 1,000 pagesAh, you reminded me of something...

Otherland, by Tad Williams. It's one long story broken into about five volumes totaling about 3400 pages. I read it twice so far.

Also, anything by Larry Niven, my favorite author. His Known Space series is my favorite (Ringworld, World of Ptaavs, Protector, etc). Also, Oath of Fealty, Lucifer's Hammer, Legacy of Heorot / Beowulf's Children.

Okay, so I've listed some of my must-read books. But what good does that do? Just listing them will not entice anyone to read them. This seems to be a thread that is more fun to write than to read. Maybe I should include short descriptions? How do you work this thing?

mcnuggets300

2008-06-20, 08:08 AM

The Stand by Stephen King- over 1,000 pages of Stephen King about an apocalypic surreal scenario. Nough said.

i just borrowed that, ill be reading it sometime in the next few days

ntappin

2008-06-20, 10:32 AM

Ah, you reminded me of something...

Otherland, by Tad Williams. It's one long story broken into about five volumes totaling about 3400 pages. I read it twice so far.

Also, anything by Larry Niven, my favorite author. His Known Space series is my favorite (Ringworld, World of Ptaavs, Protector, etc). Also, Oath of Fealty, Lucifer's Hammer, Legacy of Heorot / Beowulf's Children.

Okay, so I've listed some of my must-read books. But what good does that do? Just listing them will not entice anyone to read them. This seems to be a thread that is more fun to write than to read. Maybe I should include short descriptions? How do you work this thing?

Short descriptions are always good, or just put why you like them. You wrote down a lot of books so I'm sure someone would appreciate knowing where to start or something about them. At the moment I have no desire to read any of them or even glance at them because I know nothing of them other than they sound like fantasy books.

mycatisonfire

2008-06-20, 10:56 AM

Terry Prachett - Theif of Time
Why hasnt Prachett been metioned more??
Such a good writer and such a good imagination.

kington99

2008-06-20, 02:04 PM

Terry Prachett - Theif of Time
Why hasnt Prachett been metioned more??
Such a good writer and such a good imagination.

alas he's no longer writing. I think that he hasn't been mentioned because his writing is hardly ground breaking. I'm a big fan but it's hardly life changing stuff.

Also i've read about 30 of his books and that one is far from the best.

Mikefule

2008-06-20, 09:49 PM

"Must read" books, or just favourite books?

Books everyone ought to read to help them understand their place in the world:

Letters from a Stoic (compiled letters of Seneca)
Existentialism and Humanism (Sartre)
The Open Society and its Enemies (Karl Popper)

Of course, these are from the Western tradition, and I may have missed some important books from the East.

Books everyone should read to enjoy the novel at its best:

All six of Jane Austen's complete novels written as an adult.
Any but not all of P G Wodehouse's output.

Comfort reading when ill, tired or bored:

All the Sherlock Holmes stories, but mainly the earlier ones.
All the Para Handy Stories by Neil Munro
Anything by P G Wodehouse.

Avoid:

Anything that says "comparable to Tolkien at his best" on the cover.
Anything that says, "Book 1 of the... saga" on the cover.

evil-nick

2008-06-20, 10:04 PM

+1 for Ender's Game and the rest of it and Bean's stories...

Any of Pratchett's books with Sam Vimes: Guards! Guards!, Men at Arms, Feet of Clay, Jingo, The Fifth Elephant, Night Watch, Thud!, and Where's My Cow? Did Pratchett stop writing? I know he was diagnosed with Alzheimers, but last I heard he was still writing (I know Making Money just came out last year).

Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson, not "comparable" to Tolkien, but I would say an epic of at least the same depth and scope... just in WWII and present day time periods.

kington99

2008-06-20, 10:43 PM

Did Pratchett stop writing? I know he was diagnosed with Alzheimers, but last I heard he was still writing

yes i have heard from various sources that he has stopped due to his illness.

dudewithasock

2008-06-20, 11:13 PM

Avoid:

Anything that says, "Book 1 of the... saga" on the cover.

This one I disagree with...seems like a pretty rash generalization to make. I usually enjoy the 'sagas', means you get to spend more time in the author's realm.

Mikefule

2008-06-21, 08:03 AM

This one I disagree with...seems like a pretty rash generalization to make. I usually enjoy the 'sagas', means you get to spend more time in the author's realm.

I find it usually means the book is formulaic, and also that if you don't read books 2, 3 and so on, then you only get part of the story.

The worst case was a book I got from the library a few years ago which didn't say anywhere on the cover or in the flyleaf that it was "book 1 of the saga". It was only when I got to the last page that I found out, because it ended with a cliff hanger and an invitation to buy book 2!

dudewithasock

2008-06-21, 05:12 PM

I find it usually means the book is formulaic, and also that if you don't read books 2, 3 and so on, then you only get part of the story.

The worst case was a book I got from the library a few years ago which didn't say anywhere on the cover or in the flyleaf that it was "book 1 of the saga". It was only when I got to the last page that I found out, because it ended with a cliff hanger and an invitation to buy book 2!

Well the formulaic thing isn't a huge deal to me, I enjoy fantasy cliches. And I like to read multiple books of the same story, since I always end up feeling sad when I finish a particular plot. I miss the characters!

Though that is unfortunate what happened in your situation, that's just bad marketing.

uni57

2008-06-21, 06:33 PM

And I like to read multiple books of the same story, since I always end up feeling sad when I finish a particular plot. I miss the characters!Me too!

That's why I read the 3400 page Otherland (by Tad Williams) twice. It was a huge commitment of time, because I read that sort of thing fairly slowly. But I enjoyed having the company of all the characters again. The first time I read it, as I neared the end of the book, I couldn't understand how they could wrap up such a complicated plot in just a few more pages. Then I realized (and the mistake was on my part, not any evil marketing) that the set of books constituted one very long novel. The character development was deep, needless to say.

Also, Larry Niven's Knows Space series of science fiction novels has some of the same characters appearing in various stories. He's my favorite author. All the Known Space books take place at various times and places in his created universe (ours, but far in the future). You get to know the various alien planets and cultures and technologies over the course of many books. Best place to start is his most famous... Ringworld.

khwannabe

2008-06-22, 01:13 PM

WHAT???? People still READ these days??? Whoa....

uni57

2008-06-22, 06:39 PM

WHAT???? People still READ these days??? Whoa....We sure do. Especially the ones who don't own TVs.

mornish

2008-06-22, 06:56 PM

We sure do. Especially the ones who don't own TVs.

why would you need a tv? Books are like movies but you can take them anywhere.

uni57

2008-06-22, 07:16 PM

why would you need a tv? Books are like movies but you can take them anywhere.TV rots your brain and takes up all your time. Kill your TV and read your portable movies!

Once I was trying to remember what movie a particular scene was from. It was an action scene of a disaster in progress. Anyway, the scene was so vivid in my mind. I went through all the movies I had seen recently. And then I remembered -- it was from a book I had read! Books can be better than movies.

BillyTheMountain

2008-07-19, 08:53 PM

TV rots your brain and takes up all your time. Kill your TV and read your portable movies!

Once I was trying to remember what movie a particular scene was from. It was an action scene of a disaster in progress. Anyway, the scene was so vivid in my mind. I went through all the movies I had seen recently. And then I remembered -- it was from a book I had read! Books can be better than movies.

Wow!

You should be a movie director, with that kind of imagination!

Most people prefer movies. Most of us leave many books unfinished, but few movies.