Whats the best book you've EVER read?
It really depends on what you're in the mood for. If you are thinking romance then one of my favorites is "Envy" by Sandra Brown. It has some mystery , so it's not too gooey. If you're feeling more historical - the "Outlander" series by Diana Gabaldon - the main story revolves around this woman who traveled in time from 1947(ish) back 200 years and sort of stuck around. I'm not especially fond of the last one in the series "An Echo in the Bone", but all preceeding are pretty great with the first one "Outlander" being my favorite in the series. For sci-fi you really can't beat Stephen King. Some of my favorites of his are "Dreamcatcher" (aliens), "Duma Key"(ghosts) and "Salem's lot" (vampires - non sparkly kind). For humorous fiction you can't beat Janet Evanovich. The whole Stephanie Plum series is pretty hillarious. Starts with "One for the money". And if you're feeling really weird and philosophical then try "The Master & Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov. It's about Satan visiting Moskow in 1930's. Think - heavy duty. Totally out there, of course, with philosophy, religion, corruption and paranoia, but also unlike anything else I've ever read and very memorable. Really makes you use the grey matter. Though if you yourself are a teenager - forget I even mentioned it, it's too heavy for a young mind. I hope some of these will strike your fancy. Oh yeah, and my age group - let's just say I'm grown up (mostly), not a teenager, that's for sure.
What are the must read novels before you die?
1. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper LeeA child’s-eye view of racial prejudice and freaky neighbours in Thirties Alabama.2. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas AdamsEarth is demolished to make way for a Hyperspatial Express Route. Don’t panic.3. One Thousand and One NightsA Persian king’s new bride tells tales to stall post-coital execution.4. The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von GoetheWerther loves Charlotte, but she’s already engaged. Woe is he!5. Midnight’s Children by Salman RushdieThe children of poor Hindus and wealthy Muslims are switched at birth.6. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le CarréNursery rhyme provides the code names for British spies suspected of treason.7. Cold Comfort Farm by Stella GibbonsHilarious satire on doom-laden rural romances. “Something nasty” has been observed in the woodshed.8. The Tale of Genji by Lady MurasakiThe life and loves of an emperor’s son. And the world’s first novel?9. Under the Net by Iris MurdochA feckless writer has dealings with a canine movie star. Comedy and philosophy combined.10. The Golden Notebook by Doris LessingLessing considers communism and women’s liberation in what Margaret Drabble calls “inner space fiction”.11. Eugene Onegin by Alexander PushkinPassion, poetry and pistols in this verse novel of thwarted love.12. On the Road by Jack KerouacBeat generation boys aim to “burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles”.13. Old Goriot by Honoré de BalzacA disillusioning dose of Bourbon Restoration realism. The anti-hero “Rastingnac” became a byword for ruthless social climbing.14. The Red and the Black by StendhalPlebian hero struggles against the materialism and hypocrisy of French society with his “force d’ame”.15. The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas“One for all and all for one”: the eponymous swashbucklers battle the mysterious Milady.16. Germinal by Emile ZolaWritten to “germinate” social change, Germinal unflinchingly documents the starvation of French miners.17. The Stranger by Albert CamusFrenchman kills an Arab friend in Algiers and accepts “the gentle indifference of the world”.18. The Name of the Rose by Umberto EcoIlluminating historical whodunnit set in a 14th-century Italian monastery.19. Oscar and Lucinda by Peter CareyAn Australian heiress bets an Anglican priest he can’t move a glass church 400km.