Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
Mr. Eggers’ HWOSG is a great read–no matter how you say the title.
almost forgot
The Alienist by Caleb Carr and the sequel althoughI can’t think of the name of it right now
Sex Tips For Girls by Cynthia Heimel. It’s a fantastic read, dead funny and the advice is actually really good.
Excellent advice.
- Have adventures
- Give fear exceedingly short shrift
- Shun boredom
- Cultivate a deviant attitude
Eschew the trivial. Embrace the frivolous.
Plus it’s where I learned how to give a (good) blow job.
Every girl should own it.
*A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords * by George R R Martin
Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan
Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber,Voyager and Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon
I’ve recently been incrediblyimpressed with Nick Hornby’s About a Boy, and Roddy Doyle’s Barrytown Trilogy.
On my all-time must-read:
How the Irish Saved Civilization-Thomas Cahill
An Anthropologist on Mars-Oliver Sacks
Confessions of a Failed Southern Lady-Florence King
In Cold Blood-Truman Capote
Me Talk Pretty One Day-David Sedaris
The Cloister Walk-Kathleen Norris
A Star Called Henry-Roddy Doyle
Angela’s Ashes-Frank McCourt
The Dark is Rising Sequence-Susan Cooper
There are more, of course, but I can’t think of them at the moment…
The Elenium (The Diamond Throne, The Ruby Knight, and the Saphire Rose)and The Tamuli (Domes of Fire, The Shining Ones, and The Lost City) by David Eddings, two trilogies that I fell in love with. There’s also the Belgariad and the Mallorean by the same author. Really great fantasy books.
Kitty
Hmmmm
How about:
The Divine Comedy by Dante…I actually own all his works,poetry,essays,etc in one volume.
Memoirs of a Geisha-sorry can’t remember the author’s name and too lazy to go look.
White Teeth by Zadie Smith
London Fields or Experience by Martin Amis
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Cat’s Eye or the Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood
A REBOURS by Joris-Karl Huysmans.
The insidious “yellow book” that so twisted the mind of the beautiful young Dorian Gray.
Yes. He is so funny. Kind of mean-spirited, but funny.
The Phantom Tollbooth, by Norton Juster. If you’ve never read it, read it now. If you read it as a kid, read it again.
Foucault’s Pendulum, by Umberto Eco. Much better than The Name of the Rose. It’s about three editors who decide to invent a conspiracy theory out of thin air, but then it becomes real.
One of the great things about being a middle school teacher is being exposed to some wonderful books that most people never see because they are in the “young adult” section of the bookstore. Good writing is good writing, no matter who the intended audience is. You might try some of these.
Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
Holes by Louis Sachar
Jacob Have I Loved, Bridge to Terabithia, The Great Gilly Hopkins, and Lyddie, by Katherine Paterson
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
Island of the Blue Dolphins and Zia by Scott O’ Dell
A Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Newton Peck
Matilda by Roald Dahl
The Chocolate War by Rober Cormier
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh
books…how i love them…
- The Giver- Louis? Lowry
- Sofies Verden(Sofia’s world, Sofia’s Garden, something like that)- Jonstein Gaardner
- The name of the Rose- Umberto Eco
Even if you don’t buy these, get them from the library and read them:
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
And anything by Mark Twain. Life on the Mississippi, Huckleberry Finn, The Innocents Abroad, etc.
I don’t think one can count one’s self educated without owning a copy of Mr. T’s autobiography, “Mr. T: The Man With The Gold”.
Sure you may have to search around a bit to find a copy, but once you do I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised with its literary quality. And the bragging rights alone!
I’d recommend almost anything by Barbara Kingsolver, especially High Tide in Tucson or * The Poisonwood Bible*.
I’ve got lots more but, shoot, I post from work, so I can’t go look at my bookshelf. Rats!!
All are fiction except where indicated:
Jaws, by Peter Benchley
The Prince of Tides, by Pat Conroy
The English Patient, by Michael Ondaatje
CAtch-22, by Joseph Heller
The Catcher in the Rye, by JD Salinger
Nightmare of Ecstasy, by Rudolph Gray (non fiction)
A Clockwork orange, by Anthony Burgess
Planet of the Apes, by Pierre Boulle
Pastoralia, by George Saunders
A Heartbreaking work of Staggering Genius, by Dave Eggers
Happy reading. 
James Clavel is all very fine & well when you want your meat & potatoes reading. But when you want your dessert; your light-n-tasty reading that doesn’t require months to complete, I suggest The Tripods Trilogy by John Christopher.
Written mainly for teens (I believe), it never the less fascinated me about ten years ago (I was in my late 20s) and I plan on picking it up again real soon to see if it still has the same mesmerizing effect. I’d be interested in hearing others’ comments (if any).
Oh shoot. I just noticed it’s out of print. Curses. Oh well, look for it in the library or on ebay.
Into Thin Air and Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
I’m usually buyinh Egyptian history books, but a few of my favs that aren’t:
Zelazny’s Amber Chronicals, now available in one book “The Big Book of Amber”, and his “Midnight at the Lonesome October”.
The Callahan’s Crosstime Saloon novels by Spider Robinson. Also by Spider “Stardancer” and “Starseeder”.
I know there’s more, but I’m groggy from pain killers.
The books that I would die without (in order):
Jeanette Winterson’s Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
Barbra Kingsolver’s The Poisonwood Bible
Amy Tan’s The Kitchen God’s Wife
Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity
Terry Prachett’s Small Gods
Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Terry Prachett and Neil Gaimen’s Good Omens
There are probably more, but those are more along the lines of classics rather than contemporary necessities.