# Books you want to read **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 30, 2002, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-you-want-to-read/106553 "2002-04-30T21:09:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fionn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Fionn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fionn)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2002, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-you-want-to-read/106553/1 "2002-04-30T21:09:48Z")
Until I get done with this year’s coursework, I’ve given myself a ban on new reading material. Until then, I’m amusing myself by thinking of books I would get if I were turned loose in a bookstore. _Cherry_ by Mary Karr I have a copy ready and waiting for the minute I’ve turned in my experimental psych paper. A friend is keeping it in protective custody at her house so I won’t be distracted. _At Swim, Two Boys_ by Jamie O’Neill _Culture Shock! India_ I love the Culture Shock! series. So far, I’ve read about Great Britain, France, Italy, Turkey, Iran, and Ireland. _Culture Shock! USA_ I’m curious about what kind of etiquette and customs advice is offered to visitors in my home country. _Culture Shock! USA The South_ I really curious about what advice is offered for a region that apparently merits its own book. I also want to see if they say anything about the beef/pork barbecue schism. _The Fifth Elephant_ by Terry Pratchett _The Woman Who Walked Into Doors_ by Roddy Doyle ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2002, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-you-want-to-read/106553/2 "2002-04-30T22:00:48Z")
Okay, here’s my (much shorter) list: _Ariel_, by Steven R. Boyett. I think that’s his name. Anyway, he wrote _The Architect of Sleep_ many years ago, and it’s always been one of my favorite books, despite the fact that it ended on a HELL of a cliffhanger, and there’s almost a zero chance that he’ll ever finish it. Still, so good it gets me misty-eyed every time I’ve read it (12 times, so far). Out of print. _Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?_, by John R. Powers. I read one of his other books, _The Unoriginal Sinner and the Ice Cream God_, back in high school, and actually did two book reports on it. Damn good, as I recall. Both are out of print. I need to make more money, so I can afford to buy faster than I read. ---
**Author:** ![tachyon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/50afbb/32.png) [@tachyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tachyon)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2002, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/books-you-want-to-read/106553/3 "2002-04-30T22:54:00Z")
_American Tabloid_ and _The Cold Six Thousand_ by James Ellroy _The Selfish Gene_ by Richard Dawkins _The Executioner’s Song_ by Norman Mailer