What's your favorite book and why? (Unofficial Book Recommendation Thread)

[queenlives]

i don't have a favorite book or author, but in the past month have enjoyed reading (and learned from):

* animals make us human
* snowball
* what would google do?
* the longest trip home

i didn't care much for grisham's recent "the associate".

on the recommendation of an acquaintance, tomorrow i'll begin reading "the brain that changes itself". based on john@msft's post, i downloaded that free book and will take a swing at it too.

(i've read a number of the books previously listed in this thread - the one that stood out to me was "surely you must be joking"... a very bright and entertaining read.)

 

[Ski_Banker]

Atlas Shrugged

Bought this yesterday on recommendations elsewhere on Prime. It's a 3 lb.-er, so my weekend is pretty much booked up. :tongue:

 

[ca2822]

1984 by George Orwell for its timeless lessons on media, government, technology, and human nature.

I second that - one of my absolute favorites. Also:

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Another raunchy, but suprisingly amazingly funny book: I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell by Tucker Max. I highly recommend this book if you want to suffocate yourself while laughing so hard.

 

[DRIFTER]

Anything written by Chuck Palahniuk! His stories are so twisted and vulgar keeps me entertained from beginning to end.

Fight Club was good to read even after seeing the movie and knowing the ending. This is the first book that got me hooked.

I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell

That is the next book I’m going to get after I finish Rant.

 

[Eclipsed]

I have some pretty random reading habits,

Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy = Douglas Adams

The Divine Comedy - Dante Alighieri

Paradise Lost - Milton

 

[ExCfive]

"The Journeyer" by Gary Jennings......Marco Polo as a boy through adulthood
fantastic adventures!

"A Garden of Sand" by Earl Thompson

"Tattoo" by Earl Thompson

"The Devil to Pay" by Earl Thompson

 

[Tom239]

Why I am not a Christian by Bertrand Russell.

I read it when I was 16. It started me thinking for myself in areas where I had previously just accepted what I had been taught as a child.

 

[Miner]

The Grapes of Wrath - Steinbeck
Such a story about America, the great depression and humanity.

To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
The ultimate story about character and integrity
Also the greatest movie of all times.

 

[H-carWizKid]

Another raunchy, but suprisingly amazingly funny book: I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell by Tucker Max. I highly recommend this book if you want to suffocate yourself while laughing so hard.

I have to agree- this was a great book for my inner juvenile maniac. I howled with laughter.

Just don't let the kids read it.

P

 

[ca2822]

I have to agree- this was a great book for my inner juvenile maniac. I howled with laughter.


P

Yeah, I usually pick up a new book to read while I'm at an airport, and I had recalled looking at Tucker Max's web page and reading an obnoxious story of his. It was on the best seller list, so I bought it and let me tell you I could not control my laughter. I almost felt guilty because I was sitting next to a lady on the plane and I could see her out of the corner of my eye eyeing the book cover in disgust.

But i think the book, if it is in fact all true, has more to say than just "Tucker Max is a raging asshole"... some of those stories have some pretty "classy" girls - sarcasm.

 

[willabeest]

"chickenhawk" robert mason.

it is the only book i have ever wanted to read more than once. i wish spielberg would make a movie from it.

"animal farm" george orwell.

this book is supposed to be a criticism of russian communism but i think it is the best satire of large corporate social structure ever written. should be required reading for anyone trying to thrive as an employee of a big american corporation.

 

[LJSB]

Besides the Bible I love these three books!

The Power of Positive Thinking: Norman Vincent Peale

Autobiography of a Yogi : Paramhansa Yogananda

The Conquest of Gaul: Julius Caesar

A really hilarious standout and oft overlooked book is:
A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole

 

[tnguyen]

The Tales of the Otori by Lian Hearn. Well it's not a book but it's a trilogy (and a prequel).

The Lord of the Flies by what's his name.

Yeah those have got to be my top

 

[theman1990]

Shantaram by Gregory Hines I think... AMAZING book with a lot of elements of truth set in late 1970's Bombay. 900 or so pages that FLY by!

 

[davidf]

While it may sound lame I read "Of Mice and Men" as a kid and I still love that story.

 

[Tom239]

This thread asks "and why".
I like hearing the reasons why; just naming titles doesn't say as much.

 

[Mr Payne]

Finance:
Fooled by Randomness - Nicolas Nassim Taleb. The book that told me why financiers are incredibly overpaid.
Why Most Things Fail - Paul Ormerod. Another sage book.

Fiction:
Red Storm Rising - Tom Clancy. Best book on World War III ever written.

Other:
The Bell Curve - Hernstein/Murray. A good book at pissing people off.
The Prize - Daniel Yergin. History of the oil industry.

Automotive:
Formula 1 Technology - Wright. Intermediate level of understanding required, excellent technical background for F1.
Life in the Fast Lane - Matchett. Great read.

 

[queenlives]

a friend of mine loaned me "millionaire next door" last saturday. interesting read that i'll recommend to friends who would benefit from reading it.

 

[valenzul]

WTF?! is this place turning into an Oprah book gathering?

 

[ChongLee]

Autobiography of a Yogi : Paramhansa Yogananda

I would say that is also one of my few favorites.

 

[robr]

The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny

Never before have I encountered an author that paints such a vivid picture and creates characters with so much depth in so few pages.

 

[Ski_Banker]

Ok... my new fav (thanks Prime!).

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. She was precisely 52 years ahead of her time in writing a book about socialism, the decline of a productive society, and the leech-like effects of apathy and disenfranchisement on the U.S.

 

[NemesisX]

Ok... my new fav (thanks Prime!).

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. She was precisely 52 years ahead of her time in writing a book about socialism, the decline of a productive society, and the leech-like effects of apathy and disenfranchisement on the U.S.

Ski Banker,
Im very glad you enjoyed that book, its absolutely scary how true to detail she got so much right..

Now you can read "the fountainhead"...different but good and a bit quicker read.

 

[NemesisX]

Ok... my new fav (thanks Prime!).

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. She was precisely 52 years ahead of her time in writing a book about socialism, the decline of a productive society, and the leech-like effects of apathy and disenfranchisement on the U.S.

Ski Banker,
Im very glad you enjoyed that book, its absolutely scary how true to detail she got so much right..

Now you can read "the fountainhead"...different but good and a bit quicker read.

 

[exNSXer]

"The Autobiography of Malcolm X - As told to Alex Haley"

Although I don't agree with everything Malcolm X stood for, the man sincerely stood up for what he believed in, even in his death. For that, I admire his persistence and presentation.