Book Recommendations

Former Member

I just started my English Lit AS Level & apparently have to read some books out of college as part of a wider reading thing? So anyone got any good book recommendations for me? Plz!
Loadza Luv
Stephie x

Former Member

Well as i flunked english lit at O and never attempted A i dunno if you wanna go with these, but really liked Paradise News, Nice Work and (espec) Out of the Shelter by David Lodge. I dunno if acceptable but Bridget Jones' Diary and The Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding are VVVVVV funny:)

Former Member

Yeah as far as i know it dont matter what type of book it is! Ive read Bridget Jones' Diary before & loved it but never really bothered with The Edge Of Reason, im not sure why but will prob check it out!:D

Former Member

What kind of books do you like to read? I can rattle off a good few titles, but it'd be good to know if there is anything in particular you are looking for.

Former Member

the only books ive ever read & not liked were Jane Eyre & The Hobbitt! Im not really into Sci-Fi types but apart from that i like pretty much any type of book as long as it has a good story that i can get really into & not want to put down!

Former Member

Originally posted by Stephie
as long as it has a good story that i can get really into & not want to put down!

ANY book by Stephen King!! I find it impossible to put one of his books down once i've started!! Misery and The Shining are probably the best!!

Former Member

Ok, well if you're wanteing to read them outside of your course it is still probably best to read some things that your teacher would approve of. Why don't you ask them? Out teacher used to give us two or three books a week that he would have loved us to check out, however only a few of us did and we benefitted from it!

How about trying some Nick Hornby, Zadie Smith, Charles Dickens, Orwell....

Just go to the library and pick some things up. Also try to vary what you read. Don't read a lot of those 'chick lit' books with nice, interesting covers. They are ok for a quick read but in all seriousness if you are taking AS level English Lit you should be reading something a little more challenging!

Former Member

It's no literary classic but theres this book called
"Just Friends" by Robyn Sisman

Its a nice read and v. funny at times.

Also Phantom of The Opera is a fantastic book.

Hope thats of some help.

Former Member

Cuba Libre by Elmore Leonard, good book, same person that wrote 'Get Shorty'.

Former Member

I think the best thing to do is go to a library or bookshop (waterstone have an offer on at the moment - half-price 'cult classics' which are worth a look) , pick up a book that catches your eye, read the first page. if you like the style, keep reading, if not, move on.
If you don't like a "classic" don't force yourself to read it. Read for pleasure. The mere thought of reading 'War and Peace' brings me out in a cold sweat. I hated Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights made me want to put my head in a vice. I found A Clockwork Orange mediocre.
I loved Catch 22, Brave New World and 1984. I still can't decide whether I like To Kill a Mockingbird.

Recommendations are tricky, so don't come running to me if you hate them.

Divine Comedy, Dante Aligheri
Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas, Hunter S Thompson
Naked Lunch, William S Burroughs
Slaughterhouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut
No Logo, Naomi Klein
The Dice Man, Luke Rhinehart

Anything by Terry Pratchett and Margaret Atwood.

Try some poetry from your local library, also have a look and see if they have a copy of 'Good Reading Guide' by Kenneth McLeish - it may introduce you to some new authors.

Former Member

Oh, and while I'm traipsing all over this thread - I asked a similar question yonks ago, there were some good suggestions if you want to have a look.

Former Member

1984 is a fantastic book, i did that for GCSE english and also the chrysalids by John Wyndham (same bloke who did the day of the triffids)

Former Member

Anyway, when you say 'apparently' you have to read other books, surely you knew you would have too? After all it is English Lit! And surely you want to?

Former Member

Thank You

Thankz for all you ideas i'll definately check some of them out! A couple of you mentioned '1984' which ive never even heard of! Whats it about & who is it please?

Originally posted by BumbleBee
Anyway, when you say 'apparently' you have to read other books, surely you knew you would have too? After all it is English Lit! And surely you want to?

I did realise i would be expected to read other books, i just didnt realise my teacher would be expecting us to read at least one book a week as well as the ones im reading for my course! :crazyeyes

Anyway thankz again

Former Member

1984 is one of the most famous works of fiction ever written! George Orwell is the author.

The whole concept of the (awful) reality TV show 'Big Brother' is based upon notions put forward in this book.

What kind of Lit student are you?! I think your teacher would be ashamed of you!!

Former Member

Originally posted by BumbleBee
1984 is one of the most famous works of fiction ever written! George Orwell is the author.

The whole concept of the (awful) reality TV show 'Big Brother' is based upon notions put forward in this book.

What kind of Lit student are you?! I think your teacher would be ashamed of you!!

oops! lol Im ashamed of me too!!! Oh well i think i better make that book a priority! Thankz for lettin me know!

Former Member

:yes: Good for you!

Former Member

I know that I always mention this book, when having threads with good books/book recommendations, but it has to be mentioned; Hermann Hesse- "Demian".

My all-time favourite book. It's quite easy to read, and still contains so much. Almost a year after having read it for the first time, there are still themes in it which I am wondering about.

At the moment I am reading Tom Clancy's "Without Remorse". Only began today, but it seems to be pretty good so far. I like his style of writing, descriptions and the characters. It's quite long, and he seems to use prof's language, and I really don't know anything about the mechanical and technical stuff which is mentioned, but that should definitely not be an obsticle for reading it.

Please tell us what you think of the books which you will try out:)

Former Member

Having got an A in English Lit, I'll tell u the books that helped me to it.

The Perks of Being A Wallflower - Stephen Chobrsky
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D Salinger
1984
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (A modern classic!)
Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks the man who wrote Charlotte Gray. It's perhaps the most fantastic book I've ever read. It's a bit naughty, but by the end I had tears rolling down my cheeks

Former Member

has to be Maya angelou's "i know why the caged bird sings" im reading it now for a-level after trying to find the cheats way out of not reading it but it is sooo good and its all a true story. guarenteed to make you cry tho!

Former Member

Books are excellent. Only rediscovered the pleasure of reading last year after not picking up a book in ages and always have one on the go now.

If you like humourous books but with a bit of depth go for

White Teeth - Zadie Smith
The Buddha of Subburbia or The Black Album - Hanif Kureishi
The Dice Man - Luke Reinheart

Otherwise just go to any second hand bookshop and ask the assistant for some recommendations cos its difficult to browse for books if you don't know too much about authors.

Former Member

I dont read much, but someone said if I read the book

" A boy called it " I wouldnt put the book down. Anyway I read it and sure enough I didnt want to put the book down. Its a true story about a boy who was abused as a child, to be honest at times I was crying reading it, to me it was very powerful. It has a follow on book called " a Man Named Dave " and there was a 3rd title to conclude it but ive forgotten the title.
I assure you that these books make really good reading, you wont want to put the book down. It covers his life, very traumatic life in fact but as he gets older basically makes something good of himself, I will be honest some of the story is really horrible ( I mean the abuse he suffered) but I knew that in the end this fella made something good out of himself.

Not sure if its any good for exam material like, but for any book lover its a must.

Former Member

Yep. 1984 is a must read really. It's about all kinds of issues. You could also try Brave New World (Huxley) though I'm not that impressed by it myself. Pratchett does good comedy, which parodies many of the classics. Iain Banks does good stuff, you may find they are hard to follow until about half way through when the story becomes clear, he also writes sci-fi stuff as Iain M Banks. I've got The Dice Man in my pile of books to be read too, my friend read it and was quite impressed. Tom Clancy writes good political / military fiction and I've read most of his books but they are heavy going.

Former Member

the dice man is quite good, if a little gimmicky; I mean, the idea is infinitely more interesting than the actual book.
Not to sound like a literature snob, but I don't reckon your english etacher will be that impressed by tom clancy.
it'd be great to read things relevant to your course - so if you're doing 1984 read Brave New World, if you're reading henry IV part 1 read Henry IV part 2, if you're reading ted hughes read slyvia plath. all that context malarkey.
regardless of that a few of my fvaourite books are, and this'll probably be much longer than I intend because I'll keep finishing and thinking 'ooh! that one too!':
john steinbeck - anything but a short and deeply moving and accessible read is of mice and men
jane austen is actually very gossipy and fun and also brilliant - like 'chick lit', but written by someone with enormous talent
ernest hemingway is amazing - old man and the sea, for whom the bell tolls, fiesta, and so on
tom jones by henry fielding is long, but incredibly readable, a proper 18th centruy romp
if you fancy some coming of age type stuff...
catcher in the rye (cliche, I know)
the go between by LP Hartley
Beach Boy by ARdashir Vakhil

my 3 favourite writer at the mo are Ray Carver, Richard Ford, and JOyce Carol Oates. All american realists of the past 20 years, all amaizing. If you're looking for something long but hugely rewarding try The SPortswriter and Independence Day by richard ford, but they all, especially Carver, write fantastic short stories which can be much easier going.

If I was in a desert island, I'd probably take 'Where Im calling from', which is Carver's collected short stories. ALl brilliant.
Have to go to bed

Former Member

Originally posted by Citizen_Bertie

Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks the man who wrote Charlotte Gray. It's perhaps the most fantastic book I've ever read. It's a bit naughty, but by the end I had tears rolling down my cheeks

I loved that book too! I haven't read Charlotte Gray yet though.
I also really enjoyed the Harry Potter books, despite initially turning my nose up at the idea of reading them.
I enjoy Jane Austen and loved 'The Bell Jar'.
Another favourite at the moment is 'A Child Called It'. Haven't read the other two books yet, but I fully intend to do so!
My all time favourite book though (and here the vast majority of you will snigger) is 'A Little Princess' by Frances Hodgsen Burnett; the tears just run down my face every time at a certain part.

Former Member

" A child called it " did I get the title wrong? what was the last book called Crazy?

Former Member

It goes, 'A Child Called It', 'The Lost Boy' (or something) and 'A Man Called Dave'.
But I'm not sure!

Former Member

Yeah thats it thanks:)

Former Member

The Beach - Alex Garland
Birdsong - Sebastian Faulkes
Twelve Bar Blues - Patrick Keate

Er, I can't think of anymore at the moment - they're the ones that stand out as worthwhile reading.

Former Member

Oops, musnt forget Captain Correllis Madolin and the significantly better Spanish trilogy ( 'The War of Don Emmanuel's Nether Parts', 'Senor Vivo and the Coca Lord' and 'The troublesome Offspring of Cardinal Guzman') by Louis de Bernieres.

Former Member

1984
catcher in the rye

and for a bit of education (seriously though, i loved these books, even though they were techincally 'text books')

american democracy: promise and betrayl - 2nd edition (darris i think)
a peoples history of the united states (howard zinn)
also nearly anything by howard zinn, in my opinion is worth reading