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oLahav said:

Some people have a favorite book they’ve read lots of times. Others change their favorite book once a month. So what’s your favorite book right now? And why?

My favorite book which I keep reading over and over again is The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. It’s hard to say which part I like best (it’s a trilogy in 5 parts), but I think the 4th one, Life, the Universe, and Everything is the best. I just like the humor and all the underlying messages about humanity and British people. In case you’re wondering, yes, Marvin is my favorite character, because he reminds me of myself sometimes.

Anyway, shout out and let me know what’s your favorite book… because sometimes I feel like I’m talking to myself here.

lechuck said:

My favorite books are actually a series of books by the same author Raymond Chandler. These include titles like The Big Sleep, Farewell, My Lovely, The Long Goodbye, Playback, and The Lady in the Lake. All fantastic books if you enjoy the Noir, Romantic, Murder Mystery.

I’m currently reading Oil!—There Will be Blood was based off this book. It feels completely different than the movie and is really long winded. None the less, it is still an amazing book and I am pretty glued to it whenever I get the chance to read it.

@Oren – I have to agree the Hitchhikers books are pretty fantastic and a great style of written humor. Have you ever read any Terry Pratchett books? They are a medieval fantasy style of writing with the same kind of British humor. They are some of my favorite books as well.

lala said:

I also love the Hitchhiker’s Guide. Even though it was written for young adults, I liked Garth Nix’s Abhorsen Trilogy. I liked his inventiveness in creating the various environments. The contraptions, personalities and the good vs the maybe not so good action. Also, I’m glad I found a page here where the last post wasn’t 4 months ago!

oLahav said:

Sorry, I have to add another incredible book I forgot about, the best whodunit there is: The murder of Roger Ackroyd, by Agatha Christie. It’s absolutely the best crime novel out there, it’s thrilling, and the ending will bomb your head off. And it features the great detective Hercule Poirot.
I’m pretty big on crime novels (and movies, you can tell reading my top 10 movies list). If you’re into it too, you really must read this novel. But note that every crime book you read afterwards will disappoint you, since it won’t be as good. Oh well, everything has a down side.

lala said:

AHH! I am so thankful for your recommendation. I also like murder mysteries. I’ve been reading the Sister Fidelma mysteries by Tremayne. He is an historian and has set the stories in ancient Ireland. I can’t wait to read The murder of Roger Ackroyd. Thanks.

windwind said:

My favourite book? Omy! there are so many…Rebecca by Daphne De Maurier I guess. All of her books are excellent always with a twist.. touching something very sinister and very dark. No book is like the other. Also her short stories are excellent.

oLahav said in response to:

My Mother keeps trying to make me read that book, Rebecca. I just don’t want to, it sounds like such a girly sort of book… my sisters don’t read much, so I’m the only one she can give reading tips to, which leaves me with stuff like Gone with the Wind. Guys shouldn’t read that sort of stuff, sorry.

oLahav said in response to:

A quick correction- I was talking about So Long, and Thanks for all the Fish, not Life, the Universe and Everything. That’s the one that ends with G-d’s message… it’s funny and powerful at the same time.

There also less Zaphod in that one, and I never really liked him all that much. Plus, So Long contains the David Bowie reference. And that’s why it’s the best in the series. Would anyone like to argue on that?

mcaers said:

One of my all time favourite authors is Haruki Murakami, a Japanese author. I love his books because his writing style and subjects are so unique. If you are looking for something new and different try:

“A Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World”

Another great read and possibly my favourite is

“The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle”

These are both award winning novels and once you start you won’t want to put them down.

windwind said:

I don’t know about “girly” books-sounds sexist and certainly chauvinistic! Rebecca is a cool book, sorts of touches on a dark side of the soul. I didn’t read Gone with the wind” only watched the movie and liked it. “The birds” is also by Daphne de Maurier and is certainly not girly.

windwind said:

I don’t know about “girly” books-sounds sexist and certainly chauvinistic! Rebecca is a cool book, sorts of touches on a dark side of the soul. I didn’t read Gone with the wind” only watched the movie and liked it. “The birds” is also by Daphne de Maurier and is certainly not girly.

oLahav said in response to:

I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to be chauvinistic. You’re right, girly isn’t the best term to describe the books… it’s just not my cup of tea.

Peter Blomert said in response to:

If you love Raymond Chandler, what about Dashiell Hammett? – For me he is the king – black, realistic and dry to the bone…

serjo said:

I can see everybody here prefer novels….I have no patient to read novels. I prefer reading philosofy essays. biographies and so on…To be interesting, a book must be based on real life. I’ve read “Undaunted Courage” from Ambrose,Stephen E. It’s a wonderful book about Jeferson’s time and the voyage that Lewis and Clark made after the Louisiana’s purchase…I really loved it!

hcraig said:

I love my short story collections. Since I’m an addictive reader (can’t put books down once i start) it helps that each story is about a chapter long and I can get the ending I want, and a good night’s sleep.

Switch Bitch is my favourite collection of Roald Dahl’s adult fiction.

Inspecting the Vaults I’ve been reading this a few times a year since my OAC year (2000). Eric McCormack is morbid and creepy and I love it. Especially since all his major works tie into each other, it’s like being apart of an inside joke.

lala said:

Oren, I finally read, the Murder of Roger Ackoyd. It was fantastic. I was a little clued in on who it was because you had said you didn’t see it coming. So I was looking for something strange. It was my first Agatha Christy. I’m hooked now. Thanks for the tip. I just finished another “who done -it” that was very interesting. The Leper’s Bell. By Peter Treymane. I’ve read maybe ten books in the series I am very interested in the characters and the period of ancient Ireland. The author has written Scholarly books on ancient Irish texts. The main character, Fidelma, is very modern in her attitudes and very intelligent.

lala said:

Sorry about the strikethrough, I’m not sure what I did, there. Oh Well…..Lala

renjiv said:

The Brothers Karamazov, Idiot and Memoirs of my melancholy whore are my fovourite novels.Now I am reading Godfather.

oLahav said:

Lala- I’m glad you enjoyed Ackroyd. Agatha Christie has some great books (and some not-so-great ones, but since she has so many it’s acceptable). I haven’t read The Leper’s Bell, but I may look it up at some point.

Renjiv- I enjoyed the Godfather book even more than the movie (although some people disagree with me). Let me know what you think.

zainvi_sf said:

I love books by Robert Schuller, Kenneth Blanchard, Napolean Hill, and Norman V Paele. I have read “Magic of Big Thinking” and “One Minute Manager”. Presently, I am reading “Think and Grow Rich” and “Tough Times Never Last but Tough People Do”.

lala said:

Oren, The Murder of Roger Akroyd was great. You tipped me off by your own surprise at the ending. I agree it is a good “Who Done It?”

misnomer17 said:

I didn’t know Daphne Du Maurier wrote The Birds. Wow. The screenplay for The Birds was written by another great author, Ed McBain (aka Evan Hunter) who wrote the 87th precinct crime novels. I love anything by Ruth Rendell. She’s great at drawing the plot’s tension from within the character’s twisted perceptions so that when everything hits the fan, you think “that wouldn’t have happened if so-and-so hadn’t been so [fill-in-characteristic here: paranoid, shy, obsessed, or . . .].

acrosstheuniverse said:

I loved White Oleander and The Kite Runner.

White Oleander was so beautifully written, and it was really a pleasure to read. It’s a narrative fiction and it’s written so poetically. The movie made after this book is very good too, and actually stays real to most of the book.

The Kite Runner is one of the best books I’ve read for a while. It is exciting, touching and thought-provoking. It’s one of those books that you can’t put down. I’m scared to see the movie because I don’t want to taint the amazing experience I’ve had reading this tale!

renjiv said:

olahav, sorry for being late.i enjoyed book more than movie

oLahav said in response to:

Great to hear that I’m not the only one who thinks that way. A lot of people just watch the movie though and don’t bother with the book.. it’s a bit long, true, but it’s a good book.

renjiv said:

In almost every cases novel to film translation lack the poetic beauty of the novel. i think novel to drama translation is better than novel to film translation since drama can retain the charm of the novel.

chandra_avinash said:

I sort of disagree with your point about dramatics being a more effective medium than movies are.

When we read, we tend to draw images in our minds and no matter how much CGI you put in, in a movie – you seldom match up to the mental images that readers can conjure up. The novel is also superior because it allows us to read it at our own pace and spread it over a year if we want to – and yeah, you wont lose much over it. Also, in a movie, you bear witness to an actor’s interpretation of the character and the portrayal thereof. While in a novel, it’s just you who judges. All the food for thought is yours.

Oh, by the way my favourite(s) – The Silmarillion (Tolkein), The Glass Bead Game (Herman Hesse) and a few others that I am not able to recall.

lala said:

Another favorite book is the Pagan Rabbi by Cynthia Ozick. Her images are incredible. She wrote the Messiah a short book about people tracking down old books and manuscripts; hoping to decipher who the messiah will be. Sad at the end, but kind of quirky-which I like. Chandra-I liked Herman Hesse novels too; although, it has been a while since I read them. Oren, thanks for creating this site! I have so many good reads ahead of me now. We should all read something together (something short) and talk about it.

oLahav said in response to:

lala- I didn’t create this site at all, LearnHub has great development and content teams behind it that’s been here long before me, and they’ve done an incredible job, so all credit should go to them.

I did start this community though, and I’m glad I did, I found some reading suggestions here and I’m happy others did too.

As per your comment- I never read Herman Hesse, but I’ve been meaning to. Which is his best book in your opinion? I could already find two in this thread…

acrosstheuniverse said in response to:

Herman Hesse is a great writer. I read Siddhartha a while back and it was a joy to read.

chandra_avinash said:

Ah well, Herman Hesse!

Siddharta is certainly a joy to read.

The Glass Bead Game is definitely heavier and reading it put me in awe of Hesse’s intellect.

You might also give Narcissus and Goldmund a shot – people call it a work typical of Hesse’s style – same issues mulled over, that is. In case you haven’t read Siddharta, I would recommend it. Also, you can find it online – I guess project gutenberg has a copy of it.

Cheers!

lucyinthesky said:

A couple of my favourite books is The Reader by Bernhard Schlink, and The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pène du Bois. I know the latter is more aimed towards children (and I did read it when I was younger), but I think the way it is written is extremely imaginative.

Jack Kerouac`s On the Road is also one of my favourites, and seems to be one of those books that changes your perspective on the way you live your life.

swadhina said:

Actually when someone asks me about my favourite books, i become confused, ‘cause i have a lots of favourite books. As I love to read various types of books, so that the list of my favourite is a little longer. When I read I book, I just forget the world around me, and if the book touches my heart, it is enlisted into my the list of my favourites autometically.