12-07-2013, 08:51 PM | #1 |
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My top ten favorite books which I read ever (so far)
This is the thread in which we list our top ten favorite books.
*** The title of the present thread together with the above statement seems self-explanatory. If you feel that you do not follow them you may read the following rules: 1. Publish here the list of your top ten favorite books. If you cannot name ten books then list less books than ten. If you cannot close the list at ten books name a few more. 2. You do not have to sort the books from the best one to the worst one because it may be difficult to sort a few books that way. In such a case simply do not number the books on your list. You may sort them according to the alphabetical order. 3. Do not publish here any “Top 100” lists found in Internet. There are the other threads for these purposes on our forum. You may publish here the list of top ten or so favorite books made by someone else. In such a case reveal who is the author of this particular list. 4. Do not comment here the other forum members’ tastes. They like the other books and you like the other ones. That is good. To condemn someone because of his or her taste is not good at all. To praise someone’s taste seems purposeless. 5. It does not matter whether the books from your list are accessible now in some electronic format or in English translation. If they are not available now they may be accessible in the future. This thread has two purposes. First: you may publish here your own list of books to show your taste to the other people. Second: someone else can read your list – if he or she finds that he or she likes five books from your list and does not know the other five books which you named he or she may assume that these books may be interesting for him or her as well. *** The following updated rule was added December 10, 2013 and was inspired by speakingtohe and kennyc: 6. If you feel that you love to the same extent much more books than ten (let us say one hundred or one thousand) you may list them all here. “Love” has a lot of the meanings. Someone loves just one person (himself or herself) while someone else loves the whole humankind. The following updated rule was added December 13, 2013 and was inspired by Pablo and spellbanisher: 7. Some people read different literary genres – such as non-fiction and fiction or prose, poetry, and drama – and they have the favorites in the range of each of them. If you are such a person simply put into the same post or in a few consecutive ones your top ten lists for each literary genre which you like. The following updated rule was added December 16, 2013 and was inspired by carpetmojo: 8. After you choose ten books you may continue the challenge choosing just one and only one book to keep it with you when all the other books disappear. That may be a book from your main list or some other one. Last edited by w1k0; 12-15-2013 at 10:47 PM. Reason: Rules: #6, #7, and #8 |
12-07-2013, 08:55 PM | #2 |
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My top ten favorite books (so far):
● Samuel Beckett, Watt ● Alfred Bester, The Stars My Destination (aka Tiger, Tiger) ● Mikhail Bulgakov, The Master and Margarita ● Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, Don Quixote ● Philip K. Dick, Ubik ● Neil Gaiman, American Gods ● William Gibson, Neuromancer ● Joseph Heller, Catch-22 ● Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., Breakfast of Champions, or Goodbye Blue Monday ● Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., The Sirens of Titan The following books do not fit my top ten list but they are very important for me so I decided to add them to my basic list: ● Ray Bradbury, The Martian Chronicles ● Ladislav Fuks, The Cremator ● Daniel Keyes, Flowers for Algernon ● Gabriel Garcia Marquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude ● Venedikt Yerofeyev, Moscow-Petushki All above books except for Flowers for Algernon I read in Polish translations (three of them in two or three alternative translations) – the novel by Daniel Keyes I read in English because it was not translated into Polish so far. *** On the fourth page of this thread carpetmojo told about the British TV format “Desert Island Disc”. The people have to choose ten discs to stay with them on the desert. After they finish that task they are asked about one disc which they would like to save after the cataclysm on the desert. I met this challenge. Here is my only one book which I would like to save after the disaster (it is not a book from the above lists): ● James Joyce, Finnegans Wake Last edited by w1k0; 12-15-2013 at 10:31 PM. Reason: alternative translations; one book |
12-07-2013, 11:16 PM | #3 |
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Vikram Seth - A Suitable Boy
Rohinton Mistry - A Fine Balance Catherynne M. Valente - The Orphan's Tales John Steinbeck - Cannery Row James Dickey - Deliverance Roddy Doyle - The Barryton Trilogy Douglas Adams - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Coupland - Generation X Annie Proulx - The Shipping News Ray Bradbury - R is for Rocket Probably wrong on many counts, but definitely some of my favourite reads over the years. |
12-08-2013, 12:44 AM | #4 |
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This is very difficult for me. My favorite books shift over the years and depending on my mood. But I'll give it a go --
Robert Pirsig - Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Douglas Hofstadter - Godel, Esher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid Neal Stephenson - Snowcrash (and his Baroque trilogy) Tim Powers - The Drawing of the Dark Charles Stross - Singularity Sky (or possibly Glasshouse) Roger Zelazny - Lord of Light (or possibly his Amber series) Iain M. Banks - Consider Phlebas (his whole Culture series) Michael Connelly - Angels Flight (his whole Harry Bosch series) Robert Ludlum - The Bourne Identity Joseph Campbell - The Power of Myth I suppose I am going to go over the limit because I'll also pick Frederik Forsythe - The Odessa File (I don't think FF gets enough credit these days) Damn, not enough room for John le Carre or ... |
12-08-2013, 02:00 AM | #5 |
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Can't do it. Get caught in an infinite loop going "that one, and that one, no, no, not that one". Intervention was required, and I am sure I will be doing this in my dreams
I could possibly do a best remembered, which isn't necessarily liked, or an anything by list. Helen |
12-08-2013, 06:04 AM | #6 |
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Stephen King - Under the Dome
Stephen King - the stand Andrew Davidson - The Gargoyle Suzanne Collins - Hunger Games Suzanne Collins - Catching Fire Suzanne Collins - Mockingjay Stephanie Meyer - Twilight Stephanie Meyer - Eclipse Stephanie Meyer - New Moon Stephanie Meyer - Breaking dawn I also love and reread the Kelley Armstrong series (13 of them ) |
12-08-2013, 07:00 AM | #7 |
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Wow. That's difficult. It's very difficult to compare across genres. Even just counting the books I have read and have in calibre (which is only my last dozen years of reading), I need to pick just 1 in 200. Since I don't have time to do a book-by-book comparison, I'll just have to pick those that come most readily to mind.
Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice Clifford D. Simak: Way Station James Hilton: Good-bye, Mr. Chips Lawrence Watt-Evans: The Misenchanted Sword Rudyard Kipling: Kim Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman: Good Omens J R R Tolkien: The Hobbit Lois McMaster Bujold: The Spirit Ring Robert Louis Stevenson: Kidnapped Diane Duane: So You Want To Be A Wizard? I've re-read all of these at least once. That probably biases my list against recent books, since I won't have re-read any of them yet. Last edited by pdurrant; 12-08-2013 at 07:05 AM. |
12-08-2013, 07:01 AM | #8 |
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Fiction:
1. Merchanter's Luck [The Company Wars], C. J. Cherryh 2. Cugel's Saga [The Dying Earth], Jack Vance 3. Grass [The Arbai Trilogy], Sheri S. Tepper 4. Shadow of the Torturer [The Book of the New Sun], Gene Wolfe 5. Neuromancer [The Sprawl], William Gibson 6. Axiomatic, Greg Egan Non-fiction: 1. Animal Liberation, Peter Singer 2. Gödel, Escher, Bach; Douglas Hofstadter 3. Proofs and Refutations, Imre Lakatos 4. Rain Without Thunder, Gary L. Francione I had to limit myself to one book per author, otherwise C. J. Cherryh alone would occupy most of my top ten: The Company Wars, Cyteen, The Chronicles of Morgaine, Faery Moon, Rusulka, The Paladin, Fortress in the Eye of Time; the woman is just brilliant. |
12-08-2013, 07:04 AM | #9 |
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Legend - David Gemmell
Midnight Falcon - David Gemmell Kings of the Morning - Paul Kearney Captain's Fury - Jim Butcher Centurion - Simon Scarrow Sharpe's Waterloo - Bernard Cornwell Sabbat Martyr - Dan Abnett Enemy of God - Bernard Cornwell Wounds of Honour - Anthony Riches The Hero of Ages - Brandon Sanderson |
12-08-2013, 07:31 AM | #10 | |
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Quote:
J.R.R. Tolkien: The Lord of the Rings Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky: The Brothers Karamasov Steven Erikson: Malazan Book of the Fallen Alexandre Dumas père: The Three Musketeers & The Count of Monte Cristo Steven pressfield: Gates of Fire Joseph Conrad: Nostromo Mary Gentle: Ash Jonathan Swift: Gulliver's Travels Kenneth Grahame: The Wind in the Willows Stephen Donaldson: The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose & Focault's Pendulum Ernest Hemingway: For Whom the Bell Tolls & The Old Man and the Sea Guy Gavriel Kay: pretty much everything Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol: Dead Souls Iain M. Banks: every Culture novel and most others Charles Dickens: pretty much everything Michael Moorcock: every Eternal Champion novel Miguel de Cervantes: Don Quixote Ken Kesey: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest OK, so I couldn't keep it down to ten after all. The order is arbitrary and has no bearing on preference, except in the case of The Lord of the Rings, which will likely remain my favourite book for as long as I continue to breathe. |
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12-08-2013, 08:09 AM | #11 |
The Dank Side of the Moon
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We've done this a few times..I see you are new here - Welcome!......I'm not going to follow your overly specific "rules'.....always good to update though...
Here's my favorite novels list: The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany Foundation Trilogy - Issac Asimov Dune - Frank Herbert Breathing Lessons - Anne Tyler Lord of the Rings - J R R Tolkien City - Clifford D. Simak Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein Prince of Tides - Pat Conroy A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving The Road - Cormac McCarthy Top 10 SF: In no particular order after the first two. Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany Foundation Trilogy - Issac Asimov Dune - Frank Herbert City - Clifford D. Simak Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein The Road - Cormac McCarthy Ringworld - Larry Niven The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. LeGuin The Handmaids Tale - Margaret Atwood My favorite Short Story Collections "You Must Read This" "The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction: 50 North American Stories Since 1970" And since you said books, not just fiction The Immense Journey - Loren Eiseley The Demon Haunted World - Carl Sagan The Lives of a Cell - Lewis Thomas My Favorite Essays (can be found in various books and collections) Many in: Touchstone Anthology of Contemporary Creative Nonfiction Or - In Fact: The Best of Creative Nonfiction The Brown Wasps - Lauren Eiseley The Dream Animal - Lauren Eiseley The Slit - Lauren Eiseley The Judgment of the Birds - Lauren Eiseley The Star Thrower - Lauren Eiseley Lives of a Cell - Lewis Thomas Suspended - Joy Harjo The Deck - Yusef Komunyakaa The Fourth State of Matter - Jo Ann Beard Three Spheres - Lauren Slater The White Album - Joan Didion Moving Water, Tucson - Peggy Shumaker Heaven and Nature - Edward Hoagland Embalming Mom - Janet Burroway Visitor - Michael W. Cox Leap - Brian Doyle Small Rooms in Time - Ted Kooser Enough Jam for a Lifetime - Maxine Kumin Remembering I was not there - Anne Panning Fury and Grace - Pattiann Rogers The Indian Dog - N. Scott Momaday Dogged - Barrie Jean Borich Work - Kim Barnes and my current short story list (sort of in favorite order) available in various collections, anthologies or single author books: The Prophet from Jupiter - Tony Earley The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas - Ursala K LeGuin (Incredible Story) The Story of Your Life - Ted Chiang (also Hell is the Absence of God...and others he is an excellent short story writer) Wild Horses - Rick Bass Frost and Fire - Ray Bradbury The Jilting of Granny Weatherall - Katherine Anne Porter Rescue Party - Arthur C Clarke The Star - Issac Asimov A Rose for Ecclesiastes - Roger Zelazny A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens Cathedral - Raymond Carver Flowers for Algernon - Daniel Keyes. The Lottery - Shirley Jackson The Fall of the House of Usher, The Cask of Amontillado, The Tell-Tale Heart - Edgar Allen Poe A Boy and His Dog - Harlan Ellison An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge - Ambrose Bierce The Hills Like White Elephants - Ernest Hemingway The End of Something - Ernest Hemingway A Clean Well Lighted Place - Hemingway A Rose for Emily - Faulkner Chicxulub - T.C. Boyle Bullet in the Brain - Tobias Wolff Where Have you Been, Where are you Going - Joyce Carol Oates The Ceiling - Kevin Brockmeier Last edited by kennyc; 12-08-2013 at 08:17 AM. |
12-08-2013, 08:11 AM | #12 | |
The Dank Side of the Moon
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Quote:
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12-08-2013, 08:45 AM | #13 |
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I can't possibly give a "definitive" list of my top-10, but amongst them would certainly be:
"Bleak House" - Charles Dickens. "Great Expectations" - Charles Dickens. "Pride and Prejudice" - Jane Austen. "King Solomon's Mines" - Sir Henry Rider Haggard. "The Count of Monte Cristo" - Alexander Dumas. "The Lord of the Rings" - J.R.R. Tolkien. "Magician" - Raymond Feist. "The Belgariad" - David Eddings. "The Hound of the Baskervilles" - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. "A Thousand Miles Up the Nile" - Amelia Edwards. "The Odyssey" - Homer. |
12-08-2013, 08:47 AM | #14 |
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Little Women Louisa May Alcott
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas And Then There Were None Agatha Christie The Hobbit J.R.R. Tolkien The Thorn Birds Colleen McCullough The Book Thief Markus Zusak Blood Song Anthony Ryan Percy Jackson and the Olympians Rick Riordan His Dark Materials Philip Pullman Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption Laura Hillenbrand |
12-08-2013, 09:41 AM | #15 |
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Just a small FYI for readers new to that book: it's an impossible listen as an audiobook. Proper nouns that need to be seen to comprehend. Until I switched to a visual read, I was floundering. Like no other audiobook experience.
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