Today is National Book Lovers Day. I won't ask you what your favorite book is, because if you're like me, you have many. So I'll ask instead, what book or books have touched you most, or which have you reread many times, or which would you recommend to everyone?
I'll start. Markus Zuzak's The Book Thief is one of the very, very few books that has actually moved me to tears. I remember being in the final chapters and running off and locking myself in my bedroom, yelling first to my family that I was Not To Be Disturbed.
I love all of Neil Gaiman's works, but American Gods especially blew me away.
In the realm of nonfiction, I'd definitely recommend Eric Larson's Devil in the White City. It's about the history of Chicago, the 1893 World's Fair, and a serial killer.
Jeez, I haven't even mentioned some of my favorite authors--Allende, Twain, Garcia Marquez, Vonnegut--and I haven't touched entire genres that I love. But this is a start.
Please, share. What's on your list? (They can be fun reads or guilty pleasures too--no intellectualism requirement here!)
Author Kim Fielding talks about her books and whatever else catches her fancy
My daughter absolutely adores "The Book Thief," but I have never gotten around to reading it. I also have a number of friends who love "American Gods," but again, it's one I haven't gotten to read yet. It's on my bookshelf, along with a billion other books on the "to read" list.
ReplyDeleteFor me, my first love is "The Stand" by Stephen King. That is one book that I will never, in my life, forget. There are bunch of other books that I love, but that is one that will always get me.
My "to read" list grows faster than I can possibly keep up.
DeleteI love Stephen King too. That man cam really draw me into a story.
"American Gods" is a fantastic novel. Though I think I love it most for the parts that take place at House on the Rock.
ReplyDeleteFor me, "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls stands out as a truly powerful memoir. I couldn't put it down. It was absolutely, positively enthralling.
Another nonfiction that I would put at the top of my list is "Touch the Top Of the World: A Blind Man's Journey To Climb Higher Than The Eye Can See" by Erik Weihenmeyer.
Other loves include the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling.
I loved "The Glass Castle" too--and Harry Potter. :-) I haven't reas that other book. I'll have to check it out.
DeleteI think my favourite fiction is "Five Quarters of the Orange" by Joanne Harris. It is absolutely incredible with all this history and sumptuous details and symbolism! For nonfiction, I think my favourites are anything by Eleanor Herman-- "Sex with Kings," "Sex with the Queen," and "Mistress of the Vatican." These historical works are written so lovingly and beautiful that every historical figure is just brilliant, vile, endearing, mad, and all too human. Quite a few passages in each one can bring tears to my eyes just thinking about them.
ReplyDeleteRecently, I read Ian Mortimer's "The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England: A Handbook for Visitors to the Fourteenth Century," and I love it completely. It's such a good reference for fiction writers dealing with that time period, but it's also great for cultural historians as well. I can't wait to reread it. XD
I haven't read any of these and they all sound fantastic. I do love historical stuff.
DeleteSome of the above mentioned books, I know to be great. Others I’m not familiar with and will have to read some day.
ReplyDeleteHere are a couple of my favorite books all of which have moved me and/or sent my feelings on a roller coaster:
"Spark of Life" by Erik Maria Remarque: 509 is a political prisoner in a German concentration camp. For ten years, he has persevered in the most hellish conditions. Deathly weak, he still has his wits about him and he senses that the end of the war is near.
"The Farseer trilogy" and the two other trilogies in the same universe by Robin Hobb: The boy Fitz grows up as the unwanted bastard son of the king. I love the world, how her characters grow, the magic, the sadness, the beauty, and the romance(s).
"The Black Jewels Trilogy" by Anne Bishop. Once again a fantasy universe. I have read this particular trilogy so many times that my poor omnibus version is in tatters. The characters are so rich, so much in pain and so full of love. The male characters are to die for! Daemon and Lucivar are centuries old pleasure slaves and their interaction, their feelings, how they yearn for something more, something good, and pure is just heartbreaking. And fun!! All the characters are pretty amazing, really. Warning – pretty dark at times.
“Kushiel” trilogy by Jacqueline Carey. Fantasy. Not for the squirmish.
"Dolores Clayborne" by Stephen King.
I've just added several things to my Amazon wishlist. :-)
Delete¡Hola, cuánto tiempo sin oír de tí!!
ReplyDeleteTengo que confesar que adoro cualquier cosa de Stephen King. Creo que me he leído todos sus libros, es mi héroe.
Recuerdo que era muy joven -estaba empezando a vivir por mi cuenta- cuando leí “it”. Pasé toda la noche leyendo. Terminé a las 8 de la mañana y estaba tan “acojonada” que antes de acostarme tuve que mirar debajo de la cama del miedo que tenía
En Galicia -que es la parte de España de donde provengo- somos personas supersticiosas y las cosas del mundo sobrenatural las tenemos muy presentes. Aún creemos en brujas, trasgos y almas en pena.
Pues ése libro me curó el miedo a lo sobrenatural.
“Dolores Clayborne” que cita alguien más arriba es absolutamente fantástico. Ahí, King demuestra que no sólo sabe escribir novelas de terror. Me encanta, demás es mi tocaya.
Pero haciendo esa salvedad, mis favoritos de siempre son muy clásicos. Por cierto, estos libros no los leí; me los bebí como si fuera un “mojito”.
Gabriel García Márquez – 100 años de soledad /100 years of solitude
Noah Gordon – El médico/The doctor
Michael Ende – La historia interminable/Die unendliche Geschichte
John Case – The Genesis Code
Pablo Neruda – Confieso que he vivido
Amin Maalouf – León el Africano/Leon l'Africain
Isabel Allende - Las casa de los espíritus
Laura Esqivel – Como agua para chocolate
Robin Cook – Cromosoma 6/Cromosome 6
John Boyne - El niño con el pijama de rayas/The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
Sólo por nombrar unos cuantos. Leer es una de mis pasiones; creo que nací con un libro en la mano y ya no tengo espacio en mi casa para más libros :( porque me gusta sentir el libro entre mis manos cuando leo.
Ya ves soy una antigua ;)