I need a good book to read - for me

[scrapbabe]

I want an interesting book to read. I can't find anything that sounds intriguing to me. I don't like fluff. Some books I've read and enjoyed are: Jane Eyre, Laddie, Lonesome Gods, Pride and Prejudice, Wives and Daughters, North and South, The Chosen.

 

 

Anyone have any good books they just couldn't put down... but that might be considered a Classic?

 

Thanks,

Shalynn

[memmerrill]

Hi Shalynn,

 

A few summers ago I read Little Women & really enjoyed it. It reminded me of growing up with my two sisters. I enjoyed it so much that i filled my husband in on every detail of the book so much that he thought recently that we read it together. haha! I don't know if it's too fluffy for you or not, but I thought I'd throw it out there.

 

Also, if you're a christian, I'd rec Pilgrim's Progress if you haven't read it already. Not fluffy IMO, but very enjoyable.

 

Good luck finding a great read!

[Melinda in VT]

If you liked The Chosen, have you read any other books by Potok? In the Beginning was the first of his books that I read, and it remains my favorite.

[Jen+4dc]

I want an interesting book to read. I can't find anything that sounds intriguing to me. I don't like fluff. Some books I've read and enjoyed are: Jane Eyre, Laddie, Lonesome Gods, Pride and Prejudice, Wives and Daughters, North and South, The Chosen.

 

 

Anyone have any good books they just couldn't put down... but that might be considered a Classic?

 

Thanks,

Shalynn

 

Chaim Potak also has a great follow-up to the Chosen called The Promise. I also really enjoyed his "My Name is Asher Lev" and its sequel "The Gift of Asher Lev." Both very similar to The Chosen, the same kind of themes throughout the books.

 

If you liked Lonesome Gods L'Amour also wrote a fabulous book called "The Walking Drum" that you might enjoy.

 

Happy Reading!:)

[i.love.lucy]

Sounds like you are into historical fiction?

 

I have recently read and loved:

 

The Pillars of the Earth - Follett

People of the Book - Brooks (also plan to read her book on the plague called The Year of Wonders)

Innocent Traitor - Weir

Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Illuminator and it's sequel The Mercy Seller - Vantrease

The Other Boleyn Girl

Portrait of an Unknown Woman - Bennett

House at Riverton - Morton

 

I lurve hist fiction, especially middle ages/medieval/Tudors. Innocent Traitor was fabulous. Pillars was a looonnnnnngggggg read but enjoyable. People of the Book is about a very ancient book and how it has changed hands and influenced people through time and cultures. Fascinating.

 

HTH! I have lots more if you need more suggestions. I typically browse through Amazon by going to the hist fiction link and then looking for titles or authors that I might like and reading reviews.

[ScoutTN]

Some non-fluffy books/authors I've liked:

 

Complex, non-trashy historical fiction: Dorothy Dunnett, Hilary Mantel and even Rosemary Sutcliff, though she's a much easier read.

 

Mysteries by Josephine Tey

 

C.S. Lewis' space trilogy

 

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

The Lord of the Rings by J. R.R. Tolkien

The Killer Angels by Michael Shara

The First Circle by Alexandr Solzhenitsen

 

The Aubrey/Maturin novels by Patrick O'Brian

[Narnian]

You might like The Professor and/or Villette by Charlotte Bronte; there are quite a few similarities between the two books, but the ending of The Professor is more satisfying (in my opinion). Great Expectations and David Copperfield (Dickens) were thoroughly enjoyable.

 

If you like fantasy--I'm not generally a big fan of the genre myself, with the exceptions of the books I'm mentioning here--I just finished reading The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings for the first time, and it is one of the best books I've read. Ever. I'm not sure what to read next because, really, what can you read after a masterpiece? (Lesson learned: don't judge a book based on the movies!) Stephen Lawhead has also written several good series: The Pendragon Cycle (Arthurian legend with a Celtic slant), and the King Raven Trilogy (a Welsh version of Robin Hood).

[Mrs Mungo]

Have you read Rebecca?

[Mothersweets]

Have you read Rebecca?

 

 

Great suggestion! Here are a couple more:

 

Middlemarch by George Eliot

 

The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

[Mothersweets]

You might like The Professor and/or Villette by Charlotte Bronte; there are quite a few similarities between the two books, but the ending of The Professor is more satisfying (in my opinion).

.

 

 

I have read Villette and was so, so disappointed in the ending! I mean, it was a good read but come on! AAaaaarrgh! I wanted to pull my hair out! I'll have to look for The Professor; I haven't heard of that one. :)

[FairProspects]

How about The Woman in White?

[LostSurprise]

Yes, The Woman in White or The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins are wonderful!~

 

I'm reading Cloudsplitter (historic fiction @ John Brown), A Thread of Grace (literary fiction WWII Italy), The Bride Price (African fiction) right now. I'd recommend any of them.

[AMDG]

Have you read Rebecca?

:iagree:

 

One of my favorites.

 

I also like Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh.

[rhrice3]

What about any of Willa Cather's books? I am an Austen addict. I enjoyed all the books you mentioned, and I have read everything that Cather has written and enjoyed them.

 

Also, The Keeper of the Bees by Stratton Porter. I loved that book and my son just read it and loved it, also!

[scrapbabe]

Have you read Rebecca?

 

Is the author Daphne Du Maurier? Never even heard of it.

 

Thanks for all the ideas ladies... keep 'em coming. I'll have lots of books to read now.

 

I have been trying to read Lord of the Rings (loved the movies) but it's so slow moving and drags on forever! I thought I would shoot myself if I had to read about Tom Bombadil for one more page! Maybe I need to give it another go.

 

Smiles,

Shalynn

[MariannNOVA]

Is the author Daphne Du Maurier? Never even heard of it.

 

Yes - Excellent book.:)

[Jen in NY]

I loved People of the Book, too.

 

A book I read and loved this summer is The Help - I couldn't put it down!

[Joy at Home]

Roots by Alex Haley

[Janie]

I have one. Island of the World (O'Brien). Best book I've read in a long time, or, at least, since the last Wendel Berry.

 

It's long (800+ pp) and I thought it would take me a long time, but I finished it quickly. So, so good. It lingers with you long after you've closed the cover.

 

If you do read it, please come back and tell me how you liked it.

[Joy at Home]

What about any of Willa Cather's books? I am an Austen addict. I enjoyed all the books you mentioned, and I have read everything that Cather has written and enjoyed them.

 

Also, The Keeper of the Bees by Stratton Porter. I loved that book and my son just read it and loved it, also!

 

 

Haven't read Keeper of the Bees, but LOVED Girl of the Limberlost by Stratton Porter.

 

On a side note, just read Anne of Green Gables for the first time and adored it (wanted to read it before dd did, but ended up really loving it myself)

[LauraGB]

I second both David Copperfield and To Kill A Mockingbird (which I am currently reading and finding it fabulous). A more recent fantastic book suggestion would be The Book Thief. How about some Lord Peter Wimsey stories by Sayers?

[mama2cntrykids]

I love fiction. But I have a problem with it...if it's good, I have a really, really, really hard time getting ANYTHING else done. I'm serious. So, I have to stay away. Why did I open this thread anyways ;)?

[Joy at Home]

Sounds like you are into historical fiction?

 

I have recently read and loved:

 

The Pillars of the Earth - Follett

People of the Book - Brooks (also plan to read her book on the plague called The Year of Wonders)

Innocent Traitor - Weir

Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Illuminator and it's sequel The Mercy Seller - Vantrease

The Other Boleyn Girl

Portrait of an Unknown Woman - Bennett

House at Riverton - Morton

 

I lurve hist fiction, especially middle ages/medieval/Tudors. Innocent Traitor was fabulous. Pillars was a looonnnnnngggggg read but enjoyable. People of the Book is about a very ancient book and how it has changed hands and influenced people through time and cultures. Fascinating.

 

HTH! I have lots more if you need more suggestions. I typically browse through Amazon by going to the hist fiction link and then looking for titles or authors that I might like and reading reviews.

 

 

Wow, my kindred spirit - we love all the same books. Have you read Sharon Kay Penman novels? When Christ and his Saints Slept was excellent.

 

Re-reading Pillars of the Earth before watching the new mini-series (on Starz).

 

Dd and I just read To Try Men's Souls, a very good novel about George Washington's crossing the Delaware.

 

So many books, so little time . . .

[KathyBC]

Have you read the Aubrey and Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian? Completely engrossing, not fluffy at all.

[i.love.lucy]

Wow, my kindred spirit - we love all the same books. Have you read Sharon Kay Penman novels? When Christ and his Saints Slept was excellent.

 

Re-reading Pillars of the Earth before watching the new mini-series (on Starz).

 

Dd and I just read To Try Men's Souls, a very good novel about George Washington's crossing the Delaware.

 

So many books, so little time . . .

:D I love to find someone who likes the same books I do! I didn't even know about the Pillars mini-series until recently and now I am freaking out because I don't get Starz. :svengo:Will have to wait for it on Netflix! I have even had that book on my shelf for a couple of years and didn't dig into it because when I get a good book it makes all life around me stop. I easily read until 4am.

 

Did you watch The Tudors on Cinemax? Ohhhhhhhh I loved it. Not always very accurate and very racy, but I love costume-y dramas like that!

 

Other books on my hist fict To Read list:

The Kite Runner (I know, shoulda read that by now)

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet (abt WWII Japan)

When We Were Gods (abt Cleopatra)

Outlander (I tried once and didn't get into it, but I should try again)

I, Elizabeth - Miles

Katherine - Seton

Birth of Venus - Durant

Beneath a Marble Sky - Shors (about the building of the Taj Mahal)

Hummingbird's Daughter- Urrea (abt 1800's Mexico)

Lavinia - LeGuin (Troy and Rome)

Blood of Flowers - Amirrezvani (17th cen Iran)

The Source - Mitchener

 

So you can see that I have a lot to do.:001_huh: And yes, I have the Penman novels on my list too. I checked one out but didn't finish something else I was reading and had to give it back. I should do that next I suspect.

 

Have you read Follett's World Without End yet? Or A Thousand Splendid Suns?

[KnitWit]

La's Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith

[prairiegirl]

My suggestions aren't classics but they might become one someday. :D

 

The Elegance of a Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. I have heard a few people say they did not like this book but I thought it was beautifully written and my kind of book.

 

Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry. This is the only book of Berry's that I have read but I would think any Berry book would be a great read.

 

The Classics that I have read and was blown away by is Frankenstein (that book struck deep with me) and Wuthering Heights (I'm not sure why but dark and disturbing books seem to be my favourites. Hmmm.)

[Critter]

I just finished The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver and I really loved it.

[Cindy in the NH Woods]

A. S. Byatt? I particularly enjoyed Possession.:)

 

I also found a trilogy by Conrad Richter (The Trees, The Field, The Town) very compelling; these might be something different for you to try.

[Caitilin]

I second both David Copperfield and To Kill A Mockingbird (which I am currently reading and finding it fabulous). A more recent fantastic book suggestion would be The Book Thief. How about some Lord Peter Wimsey stories by Sayers?

 

:001_wub::001_wub: Lord Peter. Some of my very favorite books ever; they stand up to rereading in a way we don't expect mysteries to be able to. Highly recommend them.

 

ETA: Agree with previous poster about Byatt. Very interesting books. Possession is superb.

[KathyBC]

La's Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith

 

This author's No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series is enjoyable and well-written.

[MBM]

Flannery O'Connor.

[Violet Crown]

A wild suggestion: Solzhenitsyn's Gulag Archipelago. My dd14 and I just read it together. (So many of my books end up with two bookmarks progressing through the pages simultaneously....) The subject matter and the size (600+ pages, and that's only Parts I and II!) are off-putting, but not only is it a page-turning read, Solzhenitsyn maintains a tone of gallows humor throughout that makes reading details of the murderous insanity of the Soviet regime more than bearable. I am so, so grateful for picking this up off the bargain table on a whim. Very educational, and I promise that you just can't put it down.

Edited July 29, 2010 by Sharon in Austin

[scrapbabe]

Thanks so much for all the replies! Most of these are books I've never heard of it. I have some researching and buying to do.

 

 

Smiles,

Shalynn

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Chaim Potak also has a great follow-up to the Chosen called The Promise. I also really enjoyed his "My Name is Asher Lev" and its sequel "The Gift of Asher Lev." Both very similar to The Chosen, the same kind of themes throughout the books.

 

 

:iagree: 100%

[WarriorMama]

I love fiction. But I have a problem with it...if it's good, I have a really, really, really hard time getting ANYTHING else done. I'm serious. So, I have to stay away. Why did I open this thread anyways ;)?

 

This is my problem too! I can't put a good book down and everything else gets totally neglected. I've had to cut WAAAAAAY back on fiction since having kids. ;)

[Nakia]

Historical fiction is my favorite genre! I love anything by Anya Seton. So keep those historical fiction suggestions coming. :D And I don't mind a little fluff or a little risque'.

 

I just recently read The Help by Kathryn Stockett, and it was amazing. One of my favorite books ever.

Edited July 30, 2010 by Nakia

[freethinkermama]

Lonesome Dove is wonderful. It's the only western to have ever won a Pulitzer. Even if you don't like western, just think "Pulitzer" and you'll be glad you did.

[shanvan]

Jane Austen, then you will probably like...

 

 

anything by Maria Edgeworth

 

George Mac Donald (The Princess and the Goblin) wrote some Christian fiction that has a very Austen like feel. I discovered them at a thrift shop.

I also enjoyed The Mysteries of Udolfo by Anne Radcliffe

 

These will only be available online (sadly).

 

I'll second the recs for David Copperfield, The Woman in White, and Anne of Green Gables.

 

I'm in the middle of a James Herriot obsession right now myself. I'm reading right through all his books. I've never read them :001_huh:. I find myself laughing out loud at times! I love how he really gives you the feeling that you are in Yorkshire. They are relaxing, but not stupid reading. Perfect for summer.

 

Shannon

 

 

I want an interesting book to read. I can't find anything that sounds intriguing to me. I don't like fluff. Some books I've read and enjoyed are: Jane Eyre, Laddie, Lonesome Gods, Pride and Prejudice, Wives and Daughters, North and South, The Chosen.

 

 

Anyone have any good books they just couldn't put down... but that might be considered a Classic?

 

Thanks,

Shalynn

[IrresistibleGrace]

They would be more in line with The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, but Andrew Peterson has two good ones: On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness, and North! Or Be Eaten! (the third one is one the way)

[kahlanne]

I love Bodie Thoene books especially The Zion Covenent Series. This series is set in Hitler's time. I have read almost all of her books and can say she is my favorite author.

[holdoll]

I suggest:

 

The Fountain Head

and

Atlas Shrugged

both by Ayn Rand

 

You won't believe how much she wrote about back then that pertains to so much going on now. Atlas Shrugged was published in 1957 and is second only to the Bible in copies sold. Copies sell more each year than the year before.