Jagged Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Just Curious do you think the greatest book ever written was? I have thought long and hard on this and can not really decide on anything. Note Religious text do not count. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werthead Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 The Silmarillion. 60 years in the writing, two entire languages created alongside it and the biggest-selling novel of all time is merely its coda. Simply astonishing as a feat of literary creation and as a work of the imagination. Other books may be easier or more fun to read, or offer deeper insights into the human condition, but the sheer scale and melancholy of The Silmarillion is unmatched. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Winter Wolf Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 The Silmarillion. 60 years in the writing, two entire languages created alongside it and the biggest-selling novel of all time is merely its coda. Simply astonishing as a feat of literary creation and as a work of the imagination. Other books may be easier or more fun to read, or offer deeper insights into the human condition, but the sheer scale and melancholy of The Silmarillion is unmatched. Don't forget incredibly boring. No doubt respectable, but best book ever? Hardly. Probably Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. Well written, more accesible than Ulysses. The only contenders I can think of are The Grapes of Wrath or the Great Gatsby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jagged Posted November 8, 2005 Author Share Posted November 8, 2005 Don't forget incredibly boring. No doubt respectable, but best book ever? Hardly. Probably Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. Well written, more accesible than Ulysses. The only contenders I can think of are The Grapes of Wrath or the Great Gatsby. No, not the Great Gatsby I don't think I could get behind that it was just missing something that I could never put my finger on but knew was there. The Grapes of Wrath was a great book but the best ever...I don't know. It's a good suggestion. I have never Read Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man but maybe I should. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Ronnet Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I'd nominate David Copperfield. Dickens weaves a beautiful tale with many varied and multi-faceted characters that you (or at least, I) could not help but like (or despise). Then again, he's my favorite writer and I'm a big fan of bildungsroman stories, so I'm probably biased. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KinSlayerImp Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I would say A Catcher in the Rye. That book is truly the best I have ever read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser_Denys Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Don't forget incredibly boring. No doubt respectable, but best book ever? Hardly. Probably Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. Well written, more accesible than Ulysses. The only contenders I can think of are The Grapes of Wrath or the Great Gatsby. Ulysses blows away Portrait. And Finnegans Wake just blows (at least the two pages I read did). But Ulysses is great. This is way too hard for me to come up with one answer. All books mentioned so far are worthy contenders. My sugestion would be Moby Dick or Huckleberry Finn - but those are strictly American Greats. Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov or Notes From Underground would also be worth a mention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhaegar's Son Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I'll second the Brothers K. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crow's Eye Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 "The Sound and the Fury" - William Faulkner "1984" - George Orwell "A Clockwork Orange" - Anthony Burgess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Marquis de Leech Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Another vote for The Silmarillion. Yes, it has been likened to "an Elvish telephone directory", but in terms of sheer epic mastery it is unbeatable. The Two Trees, the Silmarils, Beren and Luthien, Fingolfin vs Morgoth, the Nirnaeth Arnoediad, Turin, the Fall of Gondolin, the list just goes on. All described in Tolkien's magnificient high writing style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kli Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Complete Works of William Shakespeare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sleestak Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I have no idea what the greatest book ever written is, but I doubt its been recommended by Oprah. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perspicacious Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Hey, 100 Years of Solitude was recommended by Oprah, and I think it's up there! This is such a personal question, it's hard to answer. And tough too, because then you have to defend it! I think the Silmarillion is one of the worst books I've ever read (okay, maybe a slight exaggeration, but I'm not a big fan of it), but hey, if you guys think it's the best, good for you! I'd have to say Lolita by Nabakov. He's an absolute wordsmith, that man. It's beautiful and disturbing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stego Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 My opinion on this changes from day to day...perhaps minute by minute.....but right now it's either The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Chabon or Dune by Herbert. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legarous Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Catcher in the Rye was my first instinct, but I'll go with Huckleberry Finn instead. From a Stictly American point of view. maybe the Iliad? USA TODAY did a thing a few years ago where Atlas Shrugged was voted the most influential book ever (behind the Bible, but the criterea here is no religious texts) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaxom 1974 Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 My first instinct is still for The Great Gatsby... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Targaryen Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I'll put in a vote for Catch-22. That book is utter hilarity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAH Muad'Dib Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 i always think that the greatest book ever written is "1984". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isis Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I find it hard to be truly objective and say: this book is the best written book ever and not just my favourite book. What are the criteria for 'the best book ever written'? Perhaps it's kinder to have a top three. My vote pre-coffee goes to The Sil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeanMrMustard Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 I'll narrow it down to best novel by a living American author and say Blood Meridian. A disturbingly conservative choice, but it is that good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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