The best so far?

There is, indeed, no way.

Enjoy, and let me know what you think.

Cheers

Themistocles said:

This sounds a very interesting book, your description actually reminds me of Day of the Triffids - is this a suitable comparison?

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Day of the Triffids is one of my favorites! And, yes, it's a very suitable comparison. I was describing Day of the Triffids to someone and they recommended Blindness to me.

I don't find Blindness a better book; though the writing is spectacular, I guess it depends on what you prefer. I love Day of the Triffids because of the different sci-fi elements described, the Triffids are a fascinating antagonist. Blindness is great because it gets right into the personal details of the characters and how they react to what is happening to them.

For me, the best to date would have to be Kathy Reichs' Deja Dead followed closely by Michael Marshall Smith's Only Forward. I found both gripping, interesting and well-written with nicely constructed characters and good use of language. None of which could be said about the worst book I've read this year which will remain nameless.

awwww come on! Do tell

Ehhh. Neh.
Nope.
Uh-uh.
Shan't.

I'll split my best book so far this year between "Gravity's Rainbow" and "Sons and Lovers." Pynchon's escalating chaos as a reflection on America in the latter half of the 20th Century is incredibly written and thought-provoking. The early passage about going down the toilet (very much akin to Alice going down the rabbit hole), is as rich a piece of reading as one can come by. "Sons and Lovers" is poetic and beautiful. Lawrence's lustrous descriptions of growing up and coming of age at a time when the world was changing and not necessarily for the better are so rich I felt by the end of the story I could walk Paul's house blind-folded and not put a stick of furniture out of place.

Best author of the year has to be Italo Calvino. "Cosmicomics" was my first exposure to him and I've never encountered a more imaginative writer with such an original voice.

Irene Wilde

[off-topic]

Irene, would you recommend Gravity's Rainbow to someone not from America and with a limited knowledge of America's history?

[/off-topic]

Cheers

"Gravity's Rainbow" isn't a book I would easily recommend to anyone. In the hands of someone who could appreciate its virtues, I think a basic understanding of the time in which it was written is all that is required. It was published in 1973, so it is very much textured by the Vietnam era. The more you know of America's history in the 20th Century, the more you will get from it -- everything from the some faux 1940s "snappy patter" and "musical numbers" to references to the Kennedys and Malcolm X, are woven into the books multitudinous characters and surreal situations. A working knowledge of German will also save you the many trips to google I had to take in order to get translations of various phrases used in the text. Very much like Ulysses, the more experience and knowledge you bring to this book, the more you will take from it. It is darkly comic, at times graphic, and yet, underneath that is a very frightening message. Pynchon can shock you and sometimes even disgust you, but he gets your attention and he uses it to make you think. It's also extremely well-written.

That's probably more information than you wanted, but I truly love this book, and I think it should be shared with people who will see its true character. However, I don't want to tempt anyone who would have immediate knee-jerk reactions to some of its darker moments.

Irene Wilde

Mr. Burns, feel free to jump in if you think I've overlooked something.

I heard about pynchon because of the story of byron the bulb. best fucking story, ever. there's a lonely lightbulb who is stolen and gets screwed this guy's ass, flushed down a toilet and sent out to sea while the government is trying to track him down. the worst part is, in spite of his longing for death, he's immortal.

and that would make anyone weak in the knees.

Thanks for the brilliant info, Irene!

And bobby, does he have a collection of short stories? Because that'd be brilliant, I love short stories!

Cheers

Martin, yes he does. It is called Slow Learner. He even comments on what is wrong with them.

Thanks!

Cheers

My favorite book so far this year has been Animal Farm - George Orwell.

My favorite book this year ....
*thinking hard*

That would be Catch-22 by Joseph Heller.
This book ist pretty mad and all the dialogues are absolutley crazy and therefor I love it!
It reminds me of the TV-series M.A.S.H. (mad too).


Am I the only one who is looking up the recommended books at amazon all the time?

Gizmo said:

Am I the only one who is looking up the recommended books at amazon all the time?

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Nope. Amazon is such a good resource, I feel bad about never buying anything there.

My favorite book this year is definately The fiery cross by diana gabaldon. The fifth in the series. I can find no better hero and heroine and have the tattoo to prove it.......I have a harry potter tattoo also, when the sixth book comes out it will probably be my fave of the year. Also one of my favorite things to read are some of the quotes people have. People are awesome.

'Blindness' is one of my all time Favorites

Any Place I Hang My Hat by Susan Isaacs.

I loved this novel! I'd never heard of it or her, but it looked kind of interesting and it turned out to be so well written with an extremely touching story. I found myself really feeling for the main character when she messed things up and cheering her on when she had her revelation at the end. I just loved it.

I'm loving Time Traveler's Wife too, though, so those 2 might battle for my year's favorite.

I can't really choose between "Blindness" by Saramago, "The Fall" by Camus and "One hundred years of Solitude" by Garcia Marquez