What are your "MUST READ" books?

[mahreez]

my favorite book of all time is:

you can find inspiration in everything by paul smith...a must-have for would-be fashion designers

 

[Kaki]

Wow - I'm so glad to see all of the Ayn Rand fans, as her books seem to be met with such resistance! ^^ I concur to:
- Atlas Shrugged
- The Fountainhead
- We the Living
all by Ayn Rand, as well as "Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand" by her "intellectual heir" Leonard Peikoff.

Atonement by Ian McEwan is one of the most complex and well-written books (albeit one of the most depressing), and I think anyone with a love for the English language would enjoy it.

I also love:
- Ninety-Three by Victor
- Ender's Game, Ender's Shadow (& rest of the series) by Orson Scott Card
- His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman

 

[Behan]

The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov
Notre-Dame de Paris - Victor Hugo

 

[kismine]

collected short stories by flannery o'connor

 

[Gincat]

collected short stories by flannery o'connor

Oooh yes, I second this recommendation, particularly A Good Man is Hard to Find.

I'm going to buy The Master and Margarita tomorrow (motivated in part by this thread ). Can someone suggest which is the best english translation, in terms of tone, etc.? Thanks.

 

[Marvystone]

Probably anything by these men:

• Tennessee Williams
• Emile Zola
• Junichiro Tanizaki
  

 

[eternitygoddess]

Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld. This may sound like blasphemy to some, but I think Prep > Catcher in the Rye when it comes to explaining the anst of teenage years.

 

[ChrissyM]

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee... just a beautiful book on so many levels

 

[dior_couture1245]

Alice in Wonderland/ Through the Looking Glass - Lewis Carroll
Cold Mountain - Charles Frazier
The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
Atonement - Ian McEwan

 

[valentinavee]

I would have chosen all of those dior_couture1245!! Amazing choices.. in addition to those I would recommend...

The Year of Magical Thinking
Crime and Punishment
The Virgin Suicides
Play it As it Lays

 

[ChrissyM]

^^i was just listening to an old podcast of joan didion's where she talks about the year of magical thinking.... that is a joan didion book right? the podcast was 3 years old so admittedly i didn't listen to the whole thing

can you expand on why you like it and recommend it?
i don't think i've read any of didion's work...

 

[valentinavee]

^^i was just listening to an old podcast of joan didion's where she talks about the year of magical thinking.... that is a joan didion book right? the podcast was 3 years old so admittedly i didn't listen to the whole thing

can you expand on why you like it and recommend it?
i don't think i've read any of didion's work...

Yes it is by Joan Didion. It is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. It's so real (because it's about the death of her husband) and not to mention, Didion's writing is absolutely flawless. The way she captures loss first hand is so beautiful, you HAVE to read it haha. I am a huge Joan Didion fan, as you can tell.

 

[ChrissyM]

passionate recommendations are always good

i'll definitely look into it...

 

[valentinavee]

passionate recommendations are always good

i'll definitely look into it...

Happy reading, hope you enjoy it as much as I did/do.

 

[Platinum Blonde]

Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates - a novel about Norma Jeane Baker/Marilyn Monroe. I have read it two times and it is without a doubt the best book that I have ever read. A real masterpiece according to me.

 

[Clementine]

Crime and Punishment is such a brilliant book, everyone should read it
In search of lost time -- quite an undertaking but well worth it
Money by Martin Amis!
Play it as it lays

Recent books I read and loved are 2666 by Roberto Bolano and anything by Stephen Amidon, especially "Human capital".

 

[dinahgrace]

The Shack
The Alchemist
East of Eden

 

[valentinavee]

Crime and Punishment is such a brilliant book, everyone should read it
In search of lost time -- quite an undertaking but well worth it
Money by Martin Amis!
Play it as it lays

Recent books I read and loved are 2666 by Roberto Bolano and anything by Stephen Amidon, especially "Human capital".

I second Crime and Punishment and Play it As it Lays... best books!
Haven't read the other two, though.

 

[Eshe]

The books that are a must read are:
Kane and Able by Jefforey Archer
The journey of socrates by Dan Millman
One flew over the cuckoo's nest


I have more but these are the first ones i thought of.

 

[dvbist]

the alchemist, wuthering heights, oracle night.