random books I like
Submitted by kbuxton on Tue, 02/20/2001 - 10:01
Tags:
- The Illuminatus Trilogy by Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea
- Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut
- The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
- Sewer, Gas & Electric by Matt Ruff
- Stardust by Neil Gaiman
- Axiomatic by Greg Egan
- Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins
- Microserfs by Douglas Coupland
- River-Horse by William Least Heat Moon
- Blue Highways by William Least Heat Moon
- the Fermata by Nicholson Baker
- A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters by Julian Barnes
- Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges
- the Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins
- Lunatics by Bradley Denton
- Foucalt's Pendulum by Umberto Eco
- Catch 22 by Joseph Heller
- A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
- A History of Reading by Alberto Manuel
- Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore
- Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami
- Galatea 2.2 by Richard Powers
- The Gold Bug Variations by Richard Powers
- A Quantity Theory of Insanity by Will Self
- The Roaches Have No King by Daniel Evan Weiss
- White Noise by Don DeLillo
- Coin Locker Babies by Ryu Murakami
- The Kid by Dan Savage
- Wicked by Gregory Maguire
- Oscar & Lucinda by Peter Carey
- The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
- Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
- Cry the Beloved Country by Alan Paton
- Outside the Dog Museum by Jonathan Carroll
- Roots by Alex Haley
- The Shadow of the Sun by Ryszard Kapuscinski
- My Name is Asher Lev by Chaim Potok
I absolutley love anything Tom Robbins writes. Jitterbug Perfume is no exception. If you liked that one, try Another Roadside Atraction. Actually try any of his books they're all wonderfull.
I've actually read all of his novels. I just didn't list them all. (Another Roadside Attraction was the first one I read).
I'm now eagerly awaiting his new novel which is supposed to be out sometime in the spring according to his fan page
did you read Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman? i just wondered how Stardust compared...
The books were very different but both quite good. Stardust has been accurately described as a fairy (literally) story for adults.
Nice to see The Fermata popping up on a list. Isnt that imaginative?
Yup. I always kinda wished I could stop time for everyone else. :) It's my favorite of the Baker books I've read. When I saw him speak though it was somewhat disappointing because he seemed to be trying to distance himself somewhat from both The Fermata and Vox
Have you read anything else by Julian Barnes? I read A History several years ago and thought it was very interesting. I've wondered if his other books were as good, or if this was his best?
I've read a few of his novels, and while I've enjoyed them I haven't liked them as much as I did A History. I've got several more of them sitting here and I plan on reading them when I get the chance.
The title THE GOLD BUG VARIATIONS brings to mind both J.S.Bach's "The Goldberg Variations" and E.A.Poe's "The Gold Bug" - does it have anything to do with either?
Both :)
I really loved Wicked...have you read Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister? I don't know much about it (besides the obvious!).
I haven't yet, though I picked a copy up. Friends said that it's decent but not as good as Wicked.
...And speaking of Wicked, there's a musical based on the book due on Broadway in Fall of '03. I rather expected we'd see a movie at some point...I wasn't expecting a show! The guy behind it has done some pretty big productions: http://www.musicalschwartz.com/wicked.htm
I randomly picked up The Illuminatus Trilogy in a bookstore yesterday and didn't put it down until I'd finished the first fifty pages or so. Needless to say, I bought it and have a feeling I'll end up really liking it.
I've also been staring at a copy of Foucault's Pendulum for a few weeks, but hopefully I'll get moving on it soon enough...
Johnny Waco
Wow. I've read Illuminatus multiple times but the first time I didn't get through it :)