# Top 5 of your favorite books



## Palestinian Jew (Jun 17, 2004)

I thought this would be kind of fun, plus I won't have to look around the bookstore for an hour. 

1) My first pick is high above all of the others. I first found it 5 years ago and have read it four times since, "The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien. I love it because of the characters and the classic good vs. evil story. Reading this book really is like reading about another world with its own history, songs, languages, and people. 

2) Orson Scott Card has made himself one of the best sci-fi writers, and "Ender's Game" is in my opinion his greatest book.

3) "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coehlo will be one of those books that every teacher in America uses in their classroom because it is about a young shepard that is trying to find his destiny, with plenty of symbolism thrown in for good measure.


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## Annie (Jun 17, 2004)

I'll go with the Alchemist excellent read.
Which for some reason reminds me of one of may fav. high school books, The Metamorphosis by Kafka.
High school reminds me of two books, de Tocqueville's, Democracy in America and Thoreau's, Walden Pond. I still like Rand's  Atlas Shrugged, and now I'm out of choices.


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## Isaac Brock (Jun 17, 2004)

Fiction

1. Count of Monte Cristo or any of the Three Musketeers series - Alexandre Dumas (classic tales)
2. Red Storm Rising, Debt of Honor or Execuitive Orders - Tom Clancy (just fun)
3. Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown (Crazy symbolism)
4. The Illiad - Homer (Different literary style)
5. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich - Alexander Solzhenitsyn (Fascinating and real view of a gulag)

Non-Fiction

1. Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fate of Human Societies - Jared Diamand (Brilliant description of cultural evolution of humans based on environmental factors)
2. Sacred Balance - David Suzuki (Great book on the environment by one of the world's foremost environmentalists)
3. Pale Blue Dot - Carl Sagan (Our place in space, but one of astronomy's greatest supporters)
4. Why I Hate Canadians - Will Ferguson (Good commentary on Canada)
5. Brief History of Time - Stephen Hawking (Complex subject, easy to read)


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## Enthused (Jun 18, 2004)

1. Chronicles of Narnia 
2. Reviving Ophelia 
3. The Chrysalids
4. Life of Pi 
5. A Separate Peace


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## Annie (Jun 18, 2004)

> _Originally posted by Enthused _
> *1. Chronicles of Narnia
> 2. Reviving Ophelia
> 3. The Chrysalids
> ...



Welcome, Enthused. I love A Separate Peace.


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## Enthused (Jun 18, 2004)

Thanks for the welcome.

I remember pretty vividly all the books I read in high school, I was such an English nerd.


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## menewa (Jun 21, 2004)

I hate making superlatives of anything artistic but I'll try.

The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey
Ishmael by Daniel Quinn
The Adventures of Huck Finn by Mark Twain
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Cosmos by Carl Sagan


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## musicman (Jun 21, 2004)

1. Slouching Towards Gomorrah - Robert Bork. The definitive work on America's most dangerous enemies - the sixties counterculture, which grew up, donned suits and ties, and now run some of our most vital institutions - to our detriment.

2. The Godfather - Mario Puzo. As great as the movies were, they couldn't hold a candle to the book. So much wisdom. So much depth.

3. The New Thought Police - Tammy L. Bruce. An unexpected gem. Bruce was the head of the L.A. chapter of NOW during some of it's most tumultuous times, and felt the wrath of the P.C. Establishment to a degree usually reserved only for the most heinously unapologetic conservatives. A smart, funny book.

4. 1984 - George Orwell. The sound of scales falling from the eyes of a well-meaning socialist dupe. Terrifyingly relevant to current events, for anyone with eyes to see.

5. With Reagan - Edwin Meese. The side of Iran-Contra we never got to hear. Given a more balanced hearing in the press ( see sixties couterculture...now running some of our most vital institutions...), Jim Wright and the Democrat house of Representatives would have been shown as, at best, dangerously naive Daniel Ortega groupies. At the worst, they'd have been unmasked as traitors.


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## leojoeyjoe (Jun 21, 2004)

in no particular order and omitting hundreds of others that i could just as easily name:
A happy death: kaffka
V-thomas pynchon
anything by foucald
portrait of a lady: Henry James
The Universal Baseball Association Inc. J. Henry Waugh Prop.: by robert coover
honorable mention: Belfast confetti by Cirian Carson
someone mentioned tolkien and orson scott card...both excellent..invisible man does rule too...as does the narnia books...I like C.S. lewis' other books better....love d.h.lawrence....
nietzche, hegel, barthes, rousseau...jesus i'll stop or go on forever


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## Dan (Jun 21, 2004)

1) A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
2) Rebel Without a Crew
3) Life After God
4) High Fidelity
5) Song Book


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## leojoeyjoe (Jun 21, 2004)

AND CRAP!! I don't know how but I left off ANYTHING BY JAMES JOYCE (which goes without saying really)
also american psycho
JR by Gaddis
etc.
etc.


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## NATO AIR (Jun 26, 2004)

forgive me, i LOVE books... when i have the time to read them

fiction:

1) the things they carried (tim o'brien)- deals with Vietnam, gives back humanity to the often demonized and misunderstood Vietnam veterans.
2) the fall (albert camus)- enthralling existentialist writing
3) cry, the beloved country (alan paton)- my favorite place in the world and its finest novel from its most troubled time
4) the dangerous summer (ernest hemingway)- adventure in Spain from the greatest 20th century
5) Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (john la carre)- a gripping novel about counterespionage during the Cold War


non-fiction:

1) shake hands with the devil: the failure of humanity in rwanda(lt. gen romeo dallaire)/we wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed along with our families (phillip gouvetich)
  the former, an incredible firsthand account of what happened in rwanda, from the tortured soul of the leader of the doomed UN peacekeeping mission there, a man who led his unsupported, undermanned and underequipped multi-national troops as best he could through 100 days of hell on earth, where over 800,000 innocent people were massacred by the terrorist HUTU power organization. the latter, an exhausting overview of what happened before, during and after, as well as answering why it happened in the first place.

2) last man standing: the tragedy and triumph of geronimo pratt (jack olsen)- INCREDIBLE account of how the purple heart winner turned Black Panther was framed and spent over 25 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit.  i don't agree with a lot of his politics, but the courage and poise of this guy is amazing throughout all he went through and his story is a must read for anyone who wants to see a man overcome enormous adversity.

3) the fifty year wound: how america's cold war victory shapes our world (derek leebaert)- comprehensive account with tremendous amount of detail (especially of the eisenhower and reagan years) in how the cold war was fought and what it cost the US in many more ways than just money.  offers information and ideas useful to all political spectrums, above all, the author despairs at what might have been if america's incredible promise had it not been forced into defending the world from communism.

4) the man who tried to save the world (scott anderson)- the mystery of a missing american hero, fred cuny, an ingenious and brave texan who innovated many improvements in how humanitarian aid work is done.  he went missing in chechnya, was he killed by corrupt russian soldiers or chechen fighters?  the mystery overshadows his incredible life spent helping others while having a hell of a time doing it.

5) anti-americanism (jean francois revel)- french journalist of legendary stature offers his take on why europeans are giving in to petty jealousy and insecurity and hating america.  above all else, its a reasoned plea for sanity and appreciation for why america's example should be followed by europe.  you won't believe a french centrist wrote this, but he did and it is a damn good read for all americans who want to know why their euro neighbors are being so petty and selfish.

honorable mentions

a problem from hell: america in the age of genocide (samantha power)- sweeping in its account of how the US has over the past century not ignored genocide, but made it a policy to not get involved for whatever reason.  if you've ever wondered what leaders were thinking during the armenian, jewish, cambodian, iraqi, bosnian and rwandan genocides, this is the book to read.  without bashing those who chose to avoid stopping genocide, it nevertheless presents an honest and frank portrait of them.

a mighty heart (mariane pearl)- daniel pearl's wife gives her account of his kidnapping and the aftermath. heartbreaking but affirming in the end, its a great story of a strong woman and her husband, who has justly become a hero in the afterlife to many in the world.


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## Semper Fi (Jun 26, 2004)

> _Originally posted by Enthused _
> *5. A Separate Peace *



I have to read that book for my english class this fall. I dont particularly enjoy it so far, but havent really given it a chance. What do you think is good about it?


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## Enthused (Jun 27, 2004)

I enjoy everything about it.

Thematically it is an amazing book.

John Knowles use of war imagery is very profound.


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## Semper Fi (Jun 29, 2004)

Alrighty, I'll gice it a shot then.


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## opewon (Jul 1, 2004)

1) The Foundation series
2) The Stand
3) Robinson Crusoe
4) The Hobbit trilogy
5) Sum of all  Fears

 Got to throw in the mix basically all of the Harry Potter books, my kids turned me on to them and I think they are great reading for all ages.


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## leojoeyjoe (Jul 1, 2004)

the stand kicks arse.


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## dilloduck (Jul 1, 2004)

guess I'll start with 

The Book : On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are  &    The Wisdom of Insecurity 

both by Alan W Watts


Kurt Vonnegut Jr.    Slapstick  &   Welcome to the Monkey House    (short story collection)


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## Zhukov (Jul 26, 2004)

The Stand
War and Peace
Dune
God Emperor of Dune


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## Moi (Jul 27, 2004)

Zhukov said:
			
		

> War and Peace


I read War and Peace so long ago!  It was so difficult for me to read...I was a freshman in high school at the time.  I hated it then, but as I look back on it all these years I realize that it was a great book.  

Someday I hope to read it again.

My favorite books used to be anything spy related...didn't have to be fiction...The Puzzle Palace (wish I could remember who wrote that), Bourne Identity (anything by Robert Ludlum, really), one about a guy who worked for UC Berkely and solved the most famous hacker case of the 70/80's (wish I could remember the title or author of that!), etc.

Now, having a 3.5 year old, I'm lucky if I can finish the reading of my work stuff.  But I've made time for Harry Potter...those books are very good.


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## musicman (Jul 31, 2004)

Moi:

Did you ever read Ludlum's "The Holcroft Covenant"? What a great story. The movie kind of stunk in comparison, but, then, that's usually the case.


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## Moi (Jul 31, 2004)

musicman said:
			
		

> Moi:
> 
> Did you ever read Ludlum's "The Holcroft Covenant"? What a great story. The movie kind of stunk in comparison, but, then, that's usually the case.


hmmm...the last one I read was the Paris Option.  I don't know if the one you suggest is before or after...gotta make a trip to the local library to check that one out!


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## clumzgirl (Aug 12, 2004)

1. Jane Eyre

2. 1984

3. The Woman in White (if I go on for a PhD my disseration will be on Wilkie Collins!)

4. The Bell Jar

5. The Da Vinci Code (I know, I know, the writing sucks, but the research and ramifications are unbelievable...it's made me think.)


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## leojoeyjoe (Aug 12, 2004)

dilloduck...the wisdom of insecurity rules


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## popefumanchu (Aug 12, 2004)

The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan : BEST FANTASY SERIES EVER!!

The Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind, esp. Faith of the Fallen book 6:  Most philosophical fantasy I have ever seen.  All political types should read it, especially liberals.  You will see just how wrong you are.

Reading Dune now, I can't believe I waited so long.  Beautiful!

Anything by Douglas Adams


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## Bern80 (Aug 19, 2004)

1) (and far above any other )Atlas Shrugged
2) The Millionaire Next Door: Basically everything you "know" about the rich is wrong
3) Rich Dad, Poor Dad.
4) Lord of the Rings
5) The Sum of all Fears


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## Zhukov (Aug 19, 2004)

Bern80 said:
			
		

> 1) (and far above any other )Atlas Shrugged




Ya know.....I was really enjoying that book right up until the end, the whole kidnapping, daring rescuing, sci-fi evil noise machine thing......just seemed out of place.

Certain parts, including the long argument about the intrinisic worth of money, were just brilliant.


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## popefumanchu (Aug 19, 2004)

When I was in college, there was a personal ad in the campus paper from some obviously very lonely guy who was looking for someone who was into the philosophy of Ayn Rand.  It was in there every day for years.  Sad.


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## Zhukov (Aug 20, 2004)

popefumanchu said:
			
		

> When I was in college, there was a personal ad in the campus paper from some obviously very lonely guy who was looking for someone who was into the philosophy of Ayn Rand.  It was in there every day for years.  Sad.



Sure it wasn't an ad for meetings for Objectivists?


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## popefumanchu (Aug 20, 2004)

Zhukov said:
			
		

> Sure it wasn't an ad for meetings for Objectivists?


Dunno.  Seemed kinda like a personal ad.  Was looking for a (singular) person.
It actually made the parody version on April fools day for a couple of years.


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## Semper Fi (Aug 29, 2004)

Semper Fi said:
			
		

> Alrighty, I'll gice it a shot then.




Update: Finished it. The relation to the war was unnecessary, the authors usage of WWII really disappointed me. Too much detail, and I hated the main character, Gene. He couldnt make up his mind, until he killed someone, then even still he didnt know what the hell he was doing. I can see how one would like it, if they liked those kinds of books. I'll stick the the Barenstein Bears.


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## Enthused (Aug 29, 2004)

You missed the point!!
The war was used to show loss of innocence  and the journey from boy to man.
Gene killing Phinneas represented inner evil, and how you must make a decision to supress it, to achieve peace.


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## Bonnie (Aug 30, 2004)

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?  by Philip K. Dick
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte'
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe
Pillars of The Earth by Kenneth Follet
The Allienist  by Caleb Carr
The Martian Chronicles  by Ray Bradbury
The Dolorous Passion  by Catherine Emmerich
City of God  by St Thomas Aquinas
Faranheit 451
Lord of The Rings -  JR Tolkein
The Hobbit

many more ---   Sorry I couldn't pick just five


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## dilloduck (Aug 30, 2004)

January
Febraury
March
April 
May


hell  someone had to do it !


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## KarlMarx (Sep 2, 2004)

Some favorites and some recent reads:

1. The Supremacists - Schlafly
2. Rise and fall of the Third Reich - Shirer
3. Treason - Coulter
4. Legacy - Lowry
5. The Elegant Universe - Green
6. Lord of the Rings - Tolkein
7. Basic Economics/Applied Economics - Sowell


Some recent ones that I've listened to (makes the commute to and from work more enjoyable!)

1. Slander - Coulter
2. Federalist Papers - Hamilton, Jay et al
3. Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire - Gibbon
4. Common Sense - Paine
5. A Brief History of Time - Hawking
6. The Prince - Machiavelli
7. The Republic - Plato


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## Bonnie (Sep 2, 2004)

KarlMarx said:
			
		

> Some favorites and some recent reads:
> 
> 1. The Supremacists - Schlafly
> 2. Rise and fall of the Third Reich - Shirer
> ...



 I see You enjoy Ms Coulters work, both those books are great!

Basic/Applied economics...Is that Thomas Sowell?


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## KarlMarx (Sep 2, 2004)

Bonnie said:
			
		

> I see You enjoy Ms Coulters work, both those books are great!
> 
> Basic/Applied economics...Is that Thomas Sowell?



Yes, actually I dare anyone (that is conservative) to read anything by Ann Coulter and not laugh or chuckle. She has a wit that is hard to match!

I neglected to mention that Basic/Applied economics are actually two separate book  and yes, both books are by Thomas Sowell....

Plus Ms. Coulter is coming out with another book in October 

"How to Talk to a Liberal (If You Must) : The World According to Ann Coulter"

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400054184/anncoultedoto-20/ref%3Dnosim/002-8010551-6395213]Ann Coutler's new book[/ame]


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## Bonnie (Sep 2, 2004)

KarlMarx said:
			
		

> Yes, actually I dare anyone (that is conservative) to read anything by Ann Coulter and not laugh or chuckle. She has a wit that is hard to match!
> 
> I neglected to mention that Basic/Applied economics are actually two separate book  and yes, both books are by Thomas Sowell....
> 
> ...



Im putting her new book on my to buy list right now!!


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## rtwngAvngr (Sep 2, 2004)

Sweet Valley High #4
Sweet Valley High #10
Sweet Valley High #23
Sweet Valley High #33
War and Peace


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## William Joyce (Sep 3, 2004)

Libertarian:

1. The Road to Serfdom, Hayek

2. The Incredible Bread Machine, Grant

3. Theory and History, von Mises (actually, I haven't read this book. but it's on my shelf and the title sounds intimidating.)

Racial Reality:

1. The Dispossessed Majority, Wilmot Robertson (incredibly elegant summation of what has happened to whites in America since the Revolution.)

2. Race:  The Reality of Human Differences, by Sarich and Miele (highly recommended for those looking for scientific but accessible eviscerations of the 20th Century's biggest lie:  racial equality.)

3. One Sheaf, One Vine:  Racially Conscious White Americans Talk About Race, by Griffin (yours truly is one of the chapters).

Conservative Humor:

1. Parliament of Whores, P.J. O'Rourke

2. Give War a Chance, P.J. O'Rourke

3. Age and Guile Beat Youth, Innocence and a Bad Haircut, P.J. O'Rourke


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## Zhukov (Sep 3, 2004)

> Age and Guile Beat Youth, Innocence and a Bad Haircut, P.J. O'Rourke



I loved the story about throwing quarter sticks of dynamite out on the farm.


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## William Joyce (Sep 4, 2004)

Yeah.  Peej doesn't write much anymore, but man, he was great.  I first read him as a young punk in Rolling Stone, along with HST.  That's pretty much what got me into conservatism.  I thought of "conservative" as "lame, straitlaced, humorless, pointlessly cruel, dorky and weird" (thanks to my parents and media influence).

But then my man started talkin' sense about personal responsibility, the better flavors coming from free markets and the hypocrisy of the libs.  I was intrigued.


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## padisha emperor (Sep 8, 2004)

fantastic, SF : 

 - *Lord of the Rings*, by JRR Tolkien
 - Cycle of *Dune* (7 books), by Frank Herbert
 - *Silmarillion*, by JRR Tolkien
 - *Dracula*, by Bram Stocker
 - *2001, Space Odyssey*, by A.C. Clarke
 - *Les Fourmis* (trilogy), *Les Thanatonautes*, *L'Empire des Anges*, *L'Ultime Secret*, by Bernard Werber.
 - *Illiad* and *Odyssey*, by Homère

History, Politic Philosophy : 
 - La Guerre d'Indochine (Indochina war), by Georges Fleury
 - Legendes de la Mythologie Scandinave (legends of scandinavian mythology), by Jean Mabire
 - Histoire militaires des Guerres Puniques (military history of the Rome/Carthage wars), by Yann Le Bohec
 - Histoire de la Guerre de Secession( history of the US Civil war), by Bernard Michal
 - Pensées, by Blaise Pascal
 - La Bataille de l'Atlantique (The Battle of Atlantic), by Léonce Peillard
 - La Guerre du Peloponnèse, by Thucydide.
 - La Seconde Guerre Mondiale (WWII), by Anthony Kemp



plus other I have probably forgotten.


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## William Joyce (Sep 9, 2004)

padisha emperor said:
			
		

> La Guerre d'Indochine (Indochina war), by Georges Fleury
> - Legendes de la Mythologie Scandinave (legends of scandinavian mythology), by Jean Mabire
> - Histoire militaires des Guerres Puniques (military history of the Rome/Carthage wars), by Yann Le Bohec
> - Histoire de la Guerre de Secession( history of the US Civil war), by Bernard Michal
> ...



Boy.  The French sure do write about war a lot.


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## padisha emperor (Sep 9, 2004)

Quote:
Originally Posted by padisha emperor


> La Guerre d'Indochine (Indochina war), by Georges Fleury
> - Legendes de la Mythologie Scandinave (legends of scandinavian mythology), by Jean Mabire
> - Histoire militaires des Guerres Puniques (military history of the Rome/Carthage wars), by Yann Le Bohec
> - Histoire de la Guerre de Secession( history of the US Civil war), by Bernard Michal
> ...



Anthony Kemp, the author of the book about the WWII, is british. Thucydide is greek.
the others speak of world known wars or war concerned France.



(US wrote about gastronomy, but USA are not world-known for their good gastronomy. No ?     )


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## onedomino (Sep 16, 2004)

In no particular order:

Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
The Sound and the Fury, William Faulkner
Intruder in the Dust, William Faulkner
Siddhartha, Hermann Hesse
Moby Dick, Herman Melville

"Call me Ishmael."


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## onedomino (Sep 16, 2004)

Bonnie said:
			
		

> Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?  by Philip K. Dick
> Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte'
> Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin
> Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
> ...




City of God, one of the most brilliant, and sometimes crazy, books ever written. It was, however, written by St. Augustine.


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## padisha emperor (Nov 6, 2004)

"Les Rois Maudits", Maurice Druon (in english, it is probalby "the damned kings", or "the cursed kings".

Good books, seven parts, it is the romanced story of some kings of France, from Philippe IV le Bel, end of his rule (1314), to Jean II Le Bon - 1356 - .
It is really interesting, on an historic point of view, and also for the litterature, the author write well.
It is quite famous, and traslate in the wide world.
If you like the XIVth century, read it !


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## Shattered (Nov 6, 2004)

Little Women
The entire Little House series (Hey, I loved that show - sue me)
20,000 Leagues Under The Sea
Anything by Johanna Lindsay
Almost any cookbook I can get my hands on.
Piers Anthony - Xanth series
Grimm's Fairy Tales


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## pennyville73 (Nov 6, 2004)

The Stand-  ALL TIME favorite- I've read it about 20 times

Anything written by John Grisham

Streetcar Named Desire

The Catcher in the Rye

The Vampire Chronicles

And, as much as I hate to admit...lol....anything by Jackie Collins

I could go on and on...not a big fan of political books...but love to read true crime


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## Shattered (Nov 6, 2004)

Oh yeah - definitely gotta get the Vampire Chronicles in there.  

True Crime, as well - House of Secrets was *awesome*.


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## theim (Nov 6, 2004)

_Timeline_ , Micheal Chriton (the movie sucked, but the book rocked)
_Angels and Demons_ , Dan Brown
_The Lord of the Rings_ , JRR Tolkein
_The Illiad_ , Homer
_A Seperate Peace_ , I forget who wrote it, but I first read it in High School and it was pretty good.


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## Bonnie (Nov 7, 2004)

pennyville73 said:
			
		

> The Stand-  ALL TIME favorite- I've read it about 20 times
> 
> Anything written by John Grisham
> 
> ...



Vamp Chronicles...great book!!


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## UsaPride (Nov 7, 2004)

All of Sue Grafton's ABC series!! Gotta love mysteries!


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## JohnGalt (Nov 11, 2004)

1. The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy--- Douglas Adams
2. Atlas Shrugged --- Ayn Rand
3. All the trouble in the World---P.J. O'Rourke
4. The Definitive Book of Pick-Up Lines---- Tucker Max
5. Belligerence and Debauchery; The Tucker Max Stories ---- Tucker Max

The first book that I ever read seriously was Time Quake in the third grade. I don't remember who wrote it... but it rocked my world. Totally propelled me into the world of literature.


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## ciplexian (Dec 16, 2004)

In no particular order

Gone With the Wind --- Margaret Mitchell
Guns, Germs, and Steel --- Jared Diamond
Anything by Robert Caro
The original Doppleganger saga by V.C. Andrews
The Count of Monte Cristo --- Alexandre Dumas Sr.


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## padisha emperor (Dec 19, 2004)

> The Count of Monte Cristo --- Alexandre Dumas Sr.



Do you read "Les 3 Mousquetaires" (don't know the english title) ? and  "Le vicomte de Bragelonne" ?


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## Said1 (Dec 19, 2004)

padisha emperor said:
			
		

> Do you read "Les 3 Mousquetaires" (don't know the english title)



Yes, I read the Three Musketeers, and the Count of Monte Cristo, excellent, excellent books! But you know that right?


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## hylandrdet (Dec 21, 2004)

5. Animal Farm  
4. Profiles in Courage
3. Paradise Lost
2. The Art of War
1. The Bible- I'd told people before that athiests can achieve positive and tangible results, in their lives, from reading and utylizing the instructions within this book. In layman's terms, the bible can still help you, even if you don't believe in GOD.


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## padisha emperor (Dec 24, 2004)

yes, I read them, maybe 5 years ago, when I was about 14
Classical french litterature books


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## no1tovote4 (Dec 24, 2004)

5. Dune
4. Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Trilogy
3. Speaker for the Dead
2. Shogun!
1. Dhammapada


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## padisha emperor (Dec 24, 2004)

> 5. Dune


yeah !
great !
we have at least one common point


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## GWBfan (Dec 26, 2004)

The best book I've ever read was The Stand by Stephen King. I read it in my early twenties and it had the largest impact on me as any novel I've ever read.


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## pegwinn (Dec 26, 2004)

I have read too many books to narrow it to five.
So I will say that I prefer Clancy, Crighteon (sp?), Coyle, Cussler, Heinlein in no particular order.


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## no1tovote4 (Dec 28, 2004)

GWBfan said:
			
		

> The best book I've ever read was The Stand by Stephen King. I read it in my early twenties and it had the largest impact on me as any novel I've ever read.




That book made me so angry!

Taking those three across the desert, one gets injured the other two get there and are being crucified only to end the way it did?!!!!  The HAND OF GOD?!!!!!!!!!!  What is wrong with this guy?

If you don't know why you are taking them across the desert, don't feed me half of the damn book about their travels and tribulations in getting there.  There was no reason to waste my time with those three if they had no impact on the end of the story.

This is the kind of ending you get when you have passed your contracted date several times and cannot figure out why you had those guys do that.


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## Said1 (Dec 28, 2004)

no1tovote4 said:
			
		

> That book made me so angry!
> 
> Taking those three across the desert, one gets injured the other two get there and are being crucified only to end the way it did?!!!!  The HAND OF GOD?!!!!!!!!!!  What is wrong with this guy?
> 
> ...



LOL, they should have had a big show down in Vegas at least!


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## no1tovote4 (Dec 28, 2004)

Said1 said:
			
		

> LOL, they should have had a big show down in Vegas at least!




At least have them do something!  Aaaaaargh!


Well, in attempting to come up with one book overall that actually changed the way I looked at the world I came up with "Stranger in a Strange Land" by Heinlien, or maybe "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress".  There are so many good books out there, I have read thousands, I go through about 5 per month.


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## fuzzykitten99 (Dec 29, 2004)

1. HP & Prisoner of Azkaban
2. HP & Order of the Phoenix
3. HP & Goblet of Fire
4. HP & Chamber of Secrets
5. HP & Philosopher's Stone

and soon to be added 7/16/04 ... HP & The Half-Blood Prince


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## Said1 (Dec 29, 2004)

no1tovote4 said:
			
		

> Well, in attempting to come up with one book overall that actually changed the way I looked at the world I came up with "Stranger in a Strange Land" by Heinlien, or maybe "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress".  There are so many good books out there, I have read thousands, I go through about 5 per month.



I don't have time to read what I want anymore, and a list of five is very hard, but if I had to pick I guess I would say:

1. Siddhartha - Hermann Hesse
2. East of Eden (or just about any Steinbeck novel except for The Pearl) - John Steinbeck 
3. Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe
4. All books form Updike's "Rabbit" series
5. The End of The Line: The Siege of Khe Sanh - Robert Pisor
6. The Count of Monte Cristo - Dumas (appeals to my vengeful side!)

Ok, more than 5. I've read most of those books more than once so they're high on my lists of favs. What are you reading now?


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## no1tovote4 (Dec 29, 2004)

Said1 said:
			
		

> I don't have time to read what I want anymore, and a list of five is very hard, but if I had to pick I guess I would say:
> 
> 1. Siddhartha - Hermann Hesse
> 2. East of Eden (or just about any Steinbeck novel except for The Pearl) - John Steinbeck
> ...



Saga of the Seven Suns -- Hidden Empire (The first book in the series).  I have a signed copy from the Author.

I am also reading Shogun for like the seventh time.


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## Said1 (Dec 29, 2004)

no1tovote4 said:
			
		

> Saga of the Seven Suns -- Hidden Empire (The first book in the series).  I have a signed copy from the Author.



Wow, how cool is that!!



> I am also reading Shogun for like the seventh time.



I've never read that, although I've picked up about 20 times in used stores, I'll have to read it one of these days!

I planned to read "Reflections of a Siamese Twin" - John Ralston Saul while on holidays,  but I haven't read more than three pages!


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## no1tovote4 (Dec 29, 2004)

Said1 said:
			
		

> Wow, how cool is that!!
> 
> 
> 
> ...




I would say that Shogun is probably one of the best novels written in the US.  Fantastic reading...

Isn't "Reflections of a Siamese Twin" a comparison of the US and Canadian cultures?  I haven't heard very good things about this one..


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## Said1 (Dec 29, 2004)

no1tovote4 said:
			
		

> I would say that Shogun is probably one of the best novels written in the US.  Fantastic reading...
> 
> Isn't "Reflections of a Siamese Twin" a comparison of the US and Canadian cultures?  I haven't heard very good things about this one..



Yes it is. Ralston isn't my favorite author, but he does inspire debate, which is kind of why I read his stuff. I'm surprised Voltaire's Bastards didn't fall apart from being pitched across the room so many times.  :bangheads


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## padisha emperor (Dec 31, 2004)

Too many favourite books to class them and give only 5... but maybe : 
- JRR Tolkien - The Lord of the Rings (3 books)
- JRR Tolkien - The Silmarillon
- Frank Herbert - Cycle of DUNE (7 books)
- Maurice Druon - Les Rois Maudits (the damned kings) (7 books)
- Bernard Werber's books : "Les Fourmis" (the ants) (3 books), "Les thanatonautes" (the thanatonauts) & "l'empire des anges" (the empire of angels) ; "le père de nos père" (the father of our fathers) & "l'ultime secret" (the ultimate secrecy).
A real good author, and his books are really excellent 
You should read them


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## IControlThePast (Jan 20, 2005)

1.  Catch-22--Joseph Heller
2.  The World According to Garp--John Irving
3.  Dune--Frank Herbert
4.  The Sirens of Titan--Kurt Vonnegut
5.  The Adventures of the Good Soldier Svejk--Jaroslav Hasek

I am sure you have heard of all of these, except for the last one.  Svejk is by a Czech author and deeply influenced Heller to write Catch-22 and is listed as one of the top 100 novels of the 20th Century.  My avatar is of Svejk.

Also I liked 1984, but I found these other books more enjoyable to read.


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