Book Recommendations?
In less than two weeks I'll be on vacation. I'm taking two full weeks off this time. First, as is usual, I will be finishing up my school project (this class it's a big ole paper on IPv6 - don't even try to tell me you're not jealous!), then I will be indulging in excessive amounts of sleeping. And then?
Well, then I'm going to go a couple places, assuming I feel up to it. I'm due for a trip to the coast as it's been nearly a year since I was last there and Rennie needs to get her little paws in the sand! I've also made plans to head north to visit my friend, The Conductor, and at some point I need to fit in a hair cut and a pedicure.
However, while I'm in Olympia I plan to do nothing but sit around looking at The Conductor's beautiful view. And read books, and knit and maybe cook a good meal or two for The Conductor and myself as a thank you for letting me crash in his spare bedroom.
So now we come to the point: books. I want to read a really, really good novel. And by good novel, I mean, captivating, can't-put-it-down, need-to-just-read-this-next-page, fiction. I do enjoy a good biography, but even that's not what I want. I want something meaty, that will take me a week to read, but that's easy enough to get into that I'm sucked in and hooked from the get-go.
You'll remember I made a list of books I was interested in reading at some point. The problem is that, though I do want to read all of them, I'm not sure they all fit the above criteria. (In fact, I'm quite sure a large portion of them do not.) So I'm seeking suggestions, input, jeering, cheering, or anything else you want to throw my way with regard to reading material. All ideas will be considered.
To start things off, here are a couple of the books I'm considering:
Daniel Deronda (George Elliott)
The Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
Middlemarch (George Elliott)
A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
Skinny Legs and All (Tom Robbins)
Things Fall Apart (Chinua Achebe)
Vanity Fair (William Makepeace Thackeray)
Comment at length on the above or suggest others!
Oh, and in the "shameless plug" department, my dad's new website, created by yours truly, is finally up. Take a look!
Comments
WooHoo!!! Goody, goody for you! Vacation AND a good book...ah, deeee vine...
Have a good one. Oh, and BTW, since I'm practically illiterate, I've got nothing to suggest in the novel department...sorry.
LD
Posted by: Linda D. | May 30, 2007 03:02 AM
i've read life of pi, lovely bones, a prayer for owen meany, and things fall apart, and they were all excellent but i don't know that any of them fit your criteria. of those four, i think "owen meany" would make the best vacation reading. but i might be biased because it is the second to last book i read.
i went back through my blog to see what books i loved the most last year:
--"the history of love" by nicole krauss
--"fury" by salman rushdie
--"a sport of nature" by nadine gordimer
--"do androids dream of electric sheep?" by philip k. dick
they are all very engaging but i don't know that they are "can't-put-down."
when i think of a page-turner, i think of stephen king. i recommend going old school with "carrie," "cujo," or "night shift" (actually short stories, not a novel, but it's a page-turner for sure).
if SK is too lowbrow for you, how about margaret atwood? i love all of her books but for your purposes, i recommend "the blind assassin."
Posted by: jen | May 30, 2007 05:49 AM
i just checked your dad's website... i didn't know your dad is a musician! that is so cool. i guess that's where you get your musical talent from. do you ever play popular music, or just classical?
his music is great. i love "big cow."
oh yeah, great job on the website too!
Posted by: jen | May 30, 2007 06:03 AM
Owen Meany's a good bet for a deeply engaging read. It's slow to get started, but by the time you reach the end you'll feel so attached to the characters that you're sad it's over.
Posted by: hollie | May 30, 2007 07:30 AM
Things fall apart is really good - I read it in HS, but it's not that long and I don't think it will keep you busy all week long, but put together with another book say, The Life of Pi, maybe you could fill the week up.
I'm an Irving fan, but never really got into A Prayer for Owen Meany, but to each their own!
Posted by: Ra | May 30, 2007 07:31 AM
Okay well I'll give you the one we talked about last night to you on Friday. A few other books I liked are:
The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
Seabiscuit By Laura Hillenbrand (way better than the film)
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
Kisses!
~F
Posted by: FrancesM | May 31, 2007 10:21 AM
had another idea! it's not a novel, but it will keep you glued to your seat until you finish the book: "into thin air" by jon krakauer.
Posted by: jen | June 1, 2007 06:37 AM