# What are your must-read book recommendations? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 28, 2001, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527 "2001-08-28T15:04:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2001, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/21 "2001-08-28T23:14:56Z")
I don’t read. It’s against my religion. Besides, even if I did read, I really don’t know if I’d ever be able to narrow it down to just _one_ book. \<-------------------- _cough_ ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2001, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/22 "2001-08-28T23:35:42Z")
If you like sci-fi, you’ve probably already read these titles. I cite them because like “Mona Lisa Overdrive”, they are both sci-fi and hard-boiled gumshoe detective fiction: “The Long Arm of Gil Hamilton” by Larry Niven “Ringworld” by Larry Niven I read few spy/war novels, but I loved these: “The Spy Who Came In From The Cold” by John Le Carre “The Hunt For Red October” by Tom Clancy If it’s not too late for a little light summer reading, try: “A Year In Provence” by Peter Mayle “Wanda Hickey’s Night of Golden Memories” by Jean Shepherd And lastly, a couple of 19th century English classics: “Barry Lyndon” by William Makepeace Thackeray “Villette” by Charlotte Bronte “Nicholas Nickleby” by Charles Dickens ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/23 "2001-08-29T00:16:20Z")
I’ve got a new one on my list. I just finished reading _American Gods_ by Neil Gaiman. ---
**Author:** ![DPWhite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d26b3c/32.png) [@DPWhite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPWhite)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/24 "2001-08-29T00:24:42Z")
I haven’t seen Moby Dick, an all time great. Read it slowly. Oh, and my friend W recommends The Very Hungry Catapillar ---
**Author:** ![DPWhite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d26b3c/32.png) [@DPWhite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPWhite)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/25 "2001-08-29T00:26:08Z")
I mean I haven’t seen Moby Dick posted. Read the book, saw the movie. Both great. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/26 "2001-08-29T00:56:33Z")
Non-fiction: **The Making of the Atomic Bomb** by _Richard Rhodes_. Superb in every way - as a set of biographies, as a history book, and as a physics primer. Fiction: **Being There** by _Jerzy Kosinski_. Read it! And, 'cause I just finished it and loved it: **Cryptonomicon** by _Neal Stephenson_. If you like codes, computers, and modern history, it’s for you. I will resist the temptation to list all my favourite science biographies eg. Turing, Bohr, Heisenberg. Let me know if you’re interested. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/27 "2001-08-29T01:18:06Z")
Just finished reading this: **The Great Arc** > **[The Great Arc: The Dramatic Tale of How India Was Mapped and Everest Was Named:...](https://www.amazon.com/Great-Arc-Dramatic-Mapped-Everest/dp/0060932953)** > > The Great Arc: The Dramatic Tale of How India Was Mapped and Everest Was Named \[Keay, John\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. The Great Arc: The Dramatic Tale of How India Was Mapped and Everest Was Named ---
**Author:** ![G.Nome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c89c15/32.png) [@G.Nome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G.Nome)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/28 "2001-08-29T07:50:38Z")
Kinflicks by Lisa Alther A Capote Reader - Truman Capote ---
**Author:** ![maryliza](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dfb087/32.png) [@maryliza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maryliza)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/29 "2001-08-29T08:03:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KarlGauss \* > **Cryptonomicon** by _Neal Stephenson_. If you like codes, computers, and modern history, it’s for you. > \*\* Agreed. I thought it was the best of Neal Stephenson’s books. Also, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, **Infinite Jest** by David Foster Wallace is one of the best books I’ve ever read. Anything by Dickens, but **David Copperfield** is one of my perennial favorites. Denis Johnson writes great books. **Already Dead** is a trip. Anything by Philip K. Dick, but especially **The Man in the High Castle**. Ok, I’ll stop now. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/30 "2001-08-29T09:59:38Z")
To anyone reading **1984** , I’d whole-heartedly recommend reading **Brave New World** as well. Also the short stories of **Anton Chekhov** are an excellent read. Though it is fairly obscure, I’d also recommend **Second Skin** by **John Hawkes** ; it’s gothic, gloomy, psychological and surprisingly humorous at the same time. ---
**Author:** ![Qwertyasdfg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/ecc23a/32.png) [@Qwertyasdfg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwertyasdfg)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/31 "2001-08-29T14:30:58Z")
\*\*The Grapes of Wrath 1984 Fahrenheit 451 ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/32 "2001-08-29T14:38:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Maeglin \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > The Secret History by Donna Tartt made me want to be a better writer, and also go back to college. It’s fascinating. > > Seriously? Several people recommended it to me, so I gave it a try. All twenty pages or so. I thought it was unbearable. \*\* Well, I’m not a big literary genius so I’m not used to knowing what’s good and what isn’t. 😃 It did take a while for me to get INTO the Secret History, but I liked it a lot. It’s about people. My husband is ‘making’ me read Pillars of The Earth right now. That book is about fighting over stones…but I suppose it’s a classic jarbaby ---
**Author:** ![Chance\_the\_Gardener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@Chance\_the\_Gardener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chance_the_Gardener)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/33 "2001-08-29T14:38:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KarlGauss \* > > Fiction: **Being There** by _Jerzy Kosinski_. Read it! Heh… I don’t know how I forgot to put this one on my list. Actually, I don’t read… ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/34 "2001-08-29T14:49:56Z")
_Fermat’s Enigma_ by Simon Singh. It’s about the questo to prove Fermat’s Last Theorem. Good even if you don’t like math - especially if you don’t like math, in fact, since it’s very accessible and a nice guide to how beautiful math can be. _The Floating Opera_ by John Barth. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Wright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Steve\_Wright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Wright)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/35 "2001-08-29T15:01:14Z")
First ones that popped into my head: John Gardner’s _Nickel Mountain_ (this is _not_ the spy-story John Gardner, this is the other one - the one who persuaded me that “American literature” wasn’t an oxymoron after all.) Umberto Eco, _The Name of the Rose_. Lawrence Durrell’s _Alexandria Quartet_. And his brother Gerald’s _My Family and Other Animals_. ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/36 "2001-08-29T15:07:42Z")
[guilty pleasure voice] The Saint-Germain books, by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro [/guilty pleasure voice] I _really_ like the Guy Gavriel Kay books… his Tapestry series is fantastic. A Case of Need, by Michael Crichton (under his pseudonym Jeffrey Hudson) and Travels by M.C. I second 1984 and Brave New World, and raise you Animal Farm. Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley) is always a perrenial favorite at the Bobkitty House, as is the prequel The Forest House. I’ve recently ordered new copies of Maus and Maus II (Art Speigelman) and am eagerly looking forward to re-reading them. I’m sure there are more, but I’m away from my seven overflowing bookcases at the moment. Perhaps I’ll post more later. 🙂 -BK ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/37 "2001-08-29T15:11:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Steve Wright \* > **Umberto Eco, _The Name of the Rose_.** DAMMIT!!! There’s one now!!! And _Foucault’s Pendulum._ ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/38 "2001-08-29T15:25:05Z")
> [@](#): > > Well, I’m not a big literary genius so I’m not used to knowing what’s good and what isn’t. It did take a while for me to get INTO the Secret History, but I liked it a lot. It’s about people. > > My husband is ‘making’ me read Pillars of The Earth right now. That book is about fighting over stones…but I suppose it’s a classic. Malarky. 😃 You have no problem whatsover forming and justifying your opinions. Shit, I’m no literary genius but I am as judgmental as one ought to be. Besides Tartt’s wasted erudition, I just didn’t find the _people_ compelling. Or even remotely real. To me the SH seemed like a pretentious comic book. Then again, I would know all about stuff like that. 😉 I have read Pillars of the Earth. A pretty good story, but also nothing exactly to write home about. Ken Follett’s a decent storyteller, but as far as I am concerned, there ain’t much redeeming about his work. MR ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/39 "2001-08-29T16:04:46Z")
All the Pretty Horses - I doubt the movie’s worth a damn but the book was great. Adventures of a Bystander - Peter F. Drucker The Immense Journey - Loren Eisley ---
**Author:** ![Many\_Crows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/35a633/32.png) [@Many\_Crows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Many_Crows)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2001, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527/40 "2001-08-29T16:19:07Z")
Anything by Orson Scott Card Almost anything be John Steinbeck “Whoever heard of a horse in the house” by Jacqueline Tresl, yup, exactly what it sounnds like, they take in a sick foal and it never makes it back to the barn. I’m printing this list and I’m going to start reading them all. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-your-must-read-book-recommendations/78527.md?page=3)