Can Anybody Recommend Some Classic Works Of Literature That Appeal To You?

[Number 8]

If some TTC members could recommend some Vonnegut, Kafka, Steinbeck or any books of classic works of literature that make a statement and you enjoyed i'd appreciate it. :happy:

 

[Number 8]

I'll check 'em out! Thanks! 😎

 

[Wade1]

Slaughterhouse-Five is the top of the heap, Vonnegut-wise. If you read only one Vonnegut, read that... and if you've never read Vonnegut, for God's sake, read that!

Other good ones include Bluebeard and Cat's Cradle. Welcome to the Monkey House is great, too, if you're into short stories.

 

[Dr. Bill Kobb]

I had quite a time trying to get through Cat's Cradle, although others love it. I can vouch for all the others mentioned, though. I was so pleased to hear Bluebeard mentioned, as I really enjoyed that one, but couldn't recall the title as i was browsing down the thread.
Thank you, Wade. :]

 

[Number 8]

Slaughterhouse-Five is the top of the heap, Vonnegut-wise. If you read only one Vonnegut, read that... and if you've never read Vonnegut, for God's sake, read that!

Other good ones include Bluebeard and Cat's Cradle. Welcome to the Monkey House is great, too, if you're into short stories.

I just bought Slaughterhouse Five at Barnes and Noble about 3 hours ago. Thanks again and why do you guys like Vonnegut? I never read him but was recommended. 😎

 

[Dr. Bill Kobb]

Who has the time anymore? :|

That said, when I DID read for enjoyment, I found Vonnegut to be thought-provoking, whimsical, imaginative, wry and wise.

Enjoy Slaughterhouse Five. It's a powerful work.

 

[Wade1]

He's got a narrative voice that's completely and distinctively his, and a quirky style that doesn't date as badly as some other canonized fiction writers of his generation. He has a terrific sense of humor (not a given among novelists) which is married to a well-earned sense of the arbitrary and devastating barbarity that life and humanity are capable of, so his mordant wit rarely comes across as flip or shallow.

The flipside of his distinctive style is that, over the course of reading many novels, there's a feeling of sameness--but he's hardly the only writer of whom that can be said, and at least his lesser works are nearly always readable.

Anyway. That's what I think. So it goes.

 

[Dr. Bill Kobb]

Bingo!

Wade nailed it above. And don't worry about the flipside effect. That usually only occurs when you make the mistake of reading 4 or more of his novels in a solid succession, over a very short timespan, like I made the mistake of doing.

 

[Number 8]

Any other classic works of litertature that hold a special place in people's hearts? Preferably the less christian the better no offense to christians. I found Moby Dick to be WAY to christian and preachy about religion.

 

[Betchass1]

I've been profoundly moved by:

"A Hunger Artist" by Kafka
"Notes from Underground" by Dostoevsky
"Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne (very ironic towards Christianity, and very under-loved)

 

[Wade1]

"As I Lay Dying" by Faulkner is great, and very funny in a dark, dark way.
"Babbitt" by Sinclair Lewis is a winner too.
I recently reread Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath" and Voltaire's "Candide" and was surprised by how relevant they both were (in very different ways)... and how much better they are than I thought they were when I was in high school.
Joyce's "Dubliners" rocks, but you can't read it fast.
And believe or not, you can't go wrong with Jane Austen. That must be my feminine side comin' through...

 

[Violetta]

Dude! I was so gonna suggest "As I Lay Dying." Wonderful book, and a fun read.

I also liked "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad. Far far far more interesting and entertaining than a certain 'Nam war movie that it inspired. >_>

If you wanna go reeeeally classic, read "Rime of the Ancient Mariner." Granted, it's a poem and not a novel or something, but I really got into it.

Yeah, I'm just pulling stuff from my high school English classes. n_n;;

 

[Wade1]

Dude! I was so gonna suggest "As I Lay Dying."

Soulmate!!

 

[cletus-factor]

Well being through high school and a college writing degree here are the few books that on my own time I've discovered and truly loved.

If you're not into sci-fi or fantasy skip this part:
Lord of the Rings by Tolkien
Dune by Frank Herbert
The Postman by David Brin
Earth Abides by George Stewart
Anything by Ursula K. LeGuin
Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card

For other fiction I loved a lot of what lies in older Brit Lit stuff, but I also liked Raymond Carver and Flannery O'Conner.

 

[TKLVR181]

Yeah, you can't go wrong with the LOTR series, they're just so darned interesting, and WAAAY better than the movies.

I'm a dork, but I read The Three Musketeers by Dumas every other month or so. It's got everything; action, romance, intrigue, politics, comedy, close-knit buddy friendships...😍

~K

 

[Violetta]

I personally couldn't stand trying to read Lord of the Rings. I absolutely loved "The Hobbit" though. That book was brilliant and actually fun to read.

Of course it's not hard to be better than those movies. They sorta summed up everything that's unfair about being in the movie producer's side of things. If they had been true to the books, then they would've been longer and more boring than they were. If they'd made them shorter and more interesting, then they would've had to lose even more content.

 

[Number 8]

If you wanna go reeeeally classic, read "Rime of the Ancient Mariner." Granted, it's a poem and not a novel or something, but I really got into it.

Yeah, A great Iron Maiden song as well! :super_hap

 

[Violetta]

Anything Iron Maiden is great. 😉

 

[Cbarton]

Any other classic works of litertature that hold a special place in people's hearts? Preferably the less christian the better no offense to christians. I found Moby Dick to be WAY to christian and preachy about religion.

Ok...I will omit my list then...

 

[Journia]

I am partial to Brian Aldiss's The Malacia Tapestry.

 

[Timewarp]

When I was in highschool, we had a program that forced us to read books. I didn't mind reading books like A tale of Two Cities and The Jungle. But then when you're force to anwser questions on a test on the book you read, referencing the most mundane and uninteresting parts of the book, your passion for reading dies faster than a man on fire in a house soaked in gas. But if you'd like something interesting...The Jungle. I like it cause it shows a immagrant trying to get through early depression America. Works at a slaughter house, becomes a traveling hobo, get's arrested......I forget the rest but I was interested.

 

[Number 8]

Anything Iron Maiden is great. 😉

Hell yeah! I think I found a soul-mate!! :redface:

 

[Number 8]

When I was in highschool, we had a program that forced us to read books. But then when you're force to anwser questions on a test on the book you read, referencing the most mundane and uninteresting parts of the book, your passion for reading dies faster than a man on fire in a house soaked in gas. .

Good point Timewarp. That's why I mostly read Star Wars novels. :super_hap