Non-fantasy/SF recommendations thread (literary, non-fic etc)

[Tookie Clothespin]

Non-fiction

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard - 1975 Pulitzer Prize for Gen. Non-fic

It's somewhat a cross between personal essay and travel essay with a POV that can zoom into the tiniest dandelion clock then zoom out to cover the expanse of mountains. I found her way of describing what might at first look mundane (like a creek at her backyard) into a rich complex web of wildlife exhilarating. And her insights into the human spirit is reverent without being overbearing.

an excerpt:

... something pummels us, something barely sheathed. power broods and lights. we're played on like a pipe ...

[Trident full of Dogs]

Oh man, anything by the Beats. On The Road The Original Scroll is just so great I could take it toand island and just. Stay. There.For a long long time! I also love more of Kerouac's work specially Desolation Angels but On the Road kills me. After I read it I also watched that Sean Penn movie, Into the Wild since I was in such a "road" mood. And then I decided to read Catcher on the Rye for the first time (in my forties) because I heard it delt with this guy travelling away too (allright he went to NY but thats still travelling!) and dealing with soul searching issues, which is what got me hooked on the Beats in the first place. And I absolutely loved it... Holden Caulfield is my original Beat.

It must seem funny to most people in this forum that I discovered Catcher on the Rye so late in life, as the majority of forum members are Americans - am I right or wrong, does anyone know since I'm not sure its just my impression. But I live in a non-english speaking country and I never got much American Literature in High School just Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn and Uncle Tom's Cabin that I remember, almost all of our reading assignements in school were national authors (Brazilians) and also Portuguese ones. And I had never heard of Holden Caulfield untilI was an adult. And actually I read On the Road when I turned 39.

Really I can say my life changed when I met (read) Kerouac, wh touched me deeply evdn if he is such a depressive guy. And then ALLEN GINSBERG wow that's someone I also had never heard of until two years ago and am so sorry for it, cause and I he only died in 1997 and I only got to read his stuff now. His poems crack me up they're so funny but can also be very serious and political. My favourite is Father Blues which he wrote when his Dad passed away and is actuallynot a poem but a song. Also love Burroughs and Corso. What can I say, really truly theses dead guys changed my life and keep me going on.

Ah and also... FRODO LIVES! (meaning I also feel very strongly about Lord of the Rings which also I only discovered thanks to Petet Jackson).

It's amazing how many books that I love fiercely today are novelties for ke, even if they are well-known classics in other countries. Must he the same everywhere else, I bet there's a ton of timeless classics in every language and we won't get to read most of them in our life time. SAD!

If any of you are interested in books originally written in portuguese I can reccommend Monteiro Lobato who was a great children's books author, also Grande Sertao Veredas by Guimaraes Rosa which is a fantastic, haunting book and all of Eca de Queiroz's books specially Os Maias and A Reliquia (this last one is sooooooo funny although it might be a bit offensive if you are too serious about your religious convictions).

Kudos great thread!!

[Trident full of Dogs]

Sorry I got carried away and wrote a too long post an its not structered as asked in the rules... Wont do it again!

[Thyrza]

This is a really nice thread!

I've already read some of the suggestions here, I'll toss a coin for Alexandre Dumas in general (The Count of Monte Cristo was recommended here, but also The Three Musketeers). Another suggestion from this topic I've enjoyed is Shogun, though it requires a strong stomach. I think the Sookie Stackhouse series is enjoyable to start with, but some of its charm wears off after a while.

Some new suggestions:

Herman Wouk, The Winds of War

Herman Wouk: War and Remembrance

Herman Wouk: The Caine Mutiny

Kathryn Stockett: The Help (the movie was all right, but the book is much better)

Wilkie Collins: Woman in White

Lucia St. Clair Robson: Ride the Wind

Agatha Christie: anything, really, but especially her autobiography.

[Thyrza]

For those who like historical fiction, another book I quite enjoyed (though it only scratches the surface of the historical background) is:

Anne Perry: The Sheen on the Silk

I also quite enjoyed Daphe du Maurier's books, e.g.:

Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca

Daphne du Maurier: The King's General

A thoroughly-good read (I still re-read the book every now and again, just to get a new angle) is:

Mikhail Bulgakov: The Master and Margarita

[Sun]

Literary historical fiction:

Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel -

Thomas Cromwell as you've never seen him before. Possibly the best contemporary novel I've read in recent year. The writing style is a thing of beauty, especially for a story written in present tense.

Bring Up The Bodies - Hilary Mantel -

A sequel to Wolf Hall

My Name is Red - Orhan Pamuk -

A murder mystery, wrapped in philosophical thriller, exploring the art and artistic meaning with in civilization. Written in POV chapters, where animals, inanimate objects, and even death get a POV. An amazing book.

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet - David Mitchell -

So much more than just a love story in 18th century Japan.

[Phaing]

Does Richard Adams still get any love?

The best of them was Maia, but Watership Down and Shardick are still up there.

NOT girl on a swing, however. Never that one!

Non-fiction; Shelby Foote's series on the Civil War... but only if you are really into it. Brilliantly written but very, very involved.

[Cheshire Rat]

Literary historical fiction:

Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel -

Thomas Cromwell as you've never seen him before. Possibly the best contemporary novel I've read in recent year. The writing style is a thing of beauty, especially for a story written in present tense.

Bring Up The Bodies - Hilary Mantel -

A sequel to Wolf Hall

My Name is Red - Orhan Pamuk -

A murder mystery, wrapped in philosophical thriller, exploring the art and artistic meaning with in civilization. Written in POV chapters, where animals, inanimate objects, and even death get a POV. An amazing book.

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet - David Mitchell -

So much more than just a love story in 18th century Japan.

I'll second the first two and add that my favorite book of Mantel's was A Place of Greater Safety. But my all time favorite book was Atonement by Ian McEwan, I can't say enough good things about it.

[Phaing]

I'll second the first two and add that my favorite book of Mantel's was A Place of Greater Safety. But my all time favorite book was Atonement by Ian McEwan, I can't say enough good things about it.

All-time fav, eh?

Can you tell us anything at all about it?

[Sun]

I'll second the first two and add that my favorite book of Mantel's was A Place of Greater Safety. But my all time favorite book was Atonement by Ian McEwan, I can't say enough good things about it.

Not read APoGS, yet, it's on my "to read" list. And I agree with you, Atonement is a gorgeous piece of work, enjoyed every syllable of every word.

[holzy1139]

Does anyone have any recommendations for someone who is into the book The Outsiders but is looking for a more adult version? Like gritty drama about street gangs (not modern, more like the kind in Outsiders and West Side story, with switchblades and all that)

[TempusFugit]

Does anyone have any recommendations for someone who is into the book The Outsiders but is looking for a more adult version? Like gritty drama about street gangs (not modern, more like the kind in Outsiders and West Side story, with switchblades and all that)

Last Exit to Brooklyn by Hubert Selby, Jr.

[KOM]

Blood Meridian. Cormac McCarthy. - Follows a series of mauraders and pillagers in the old west. Brutality rivals GRRM. Top quality prose. Epic character in The Judge.

Absalom, Absalom! Faulkner. - Multi-POV story set in US South and Civil War, lots of intrigues. Ornate language. Great characterization and wonderful enactment of storytelling. Forbidden love and fatherhood themes just like GRRM!

Suttree. Cormac McCarthy. - Story of a drifter in Memphis. It's McCarthy so the language/prose is over the top.

[Lord Tyrion]

Currently reading The Shallows by Nicholas Carr. Love it.

Just ordered this book:

[Serious Callers Only]

Does anyone have any recommendations for someone who is into the book The Outsiders but is looking for a more adult version? Like gritty drama about street gangs (not modern, more like the kind in Outsiders and West Side story, with switchblades and all that)

http://en.wikipedia....Web_of_the_City

One the original covers

[rondo has three heads]

Cormack mcarthy's Blood Meridian is the best book I have ever read. It is a fictionalised account of a boys life as he runs away and ends up with the Glanton gang and the truly horrifying Judge Holden. It has to be read to understand just how good it is but is has been called the greatest modern novel.

Second this and would especially recommend it to readers of ASOIAF simply because they have demonstrated some of the dedication it takes to get through BM. Wow. What a book. I haven't read anything like it and can only say you probably haven't either.

McCarthy has a few excellent books. His early stuff like Outer Dark kind of has a fantasy element to it, but outside of BM my favorite is THE CROSSING. It gets aimless in the middle, especially if you have already read BM or ALL THE PRETTY HORSES, but the first part about a boy returning a wild wolf to Mexico is beautiful and ferocious writing.

I would also check out MIDDLESEX by Jeffrey Eugenides. It tells the tale of three generations in a Greek family that immigrates to Detroit after the burning of Smyrna. The story is narrated by and eventually meets up with Cal, an intersex child and second-gen product of incest.

Similar to CAV & CLAY, Eugenides packs so much into one story, going from 1922 to modern day, making tons of Greek and literary allusions, going into gender roles, psychology and metaphors for intersex people and so much more...his prose is gorgeous on top of it all

[Bronson]

The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk

[Lord Tyrion's Whore]

In the category of "Literary fiction" I'd recommend a couple of Nabokov's books.

Despair by Vladimir Nabokov - A lot of people are hesitant to read Nabokov because his work is thought of as "serious literature", but he's actually one of the most entertaining reads in fiction. This book is a great starting place, if you're interested in getting into his stuff, because while it has a lot of the trappings of his later work (unreliable narrator, doubles, tricksy wordplay) its also a lot lighter, having originally been a serial in a magazine.

Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov - If you read Despair and want something along similar lines but ten times better, check out this book. It takes the idea of the Unreliable Narrator to heights pretty much unmatched in fiction. The book broken into two main parts, a 999 line poem by a fictional poet named John Shade, and a very extensive commentary by a critic named Charles Kintobe. This leads to a lot of back and forth page flipping, if you want to read the commentary along with the poem, and I recommend you do, but its worth it.

[Citadel_acolyte]

In no particular order:

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murikami

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

[Darth Richard]

Eh, Two of those are considered SFF.