list on ED. Post the title, author, and reason for suggestion of some
of your favourite books and I'll update the list every now and then.
So suggest away!
Title: Dune (and all of the sequals)
Author: Frank Herbert
Reason: Science fantasy meets politics meets philosophy.
You will learn something by reading these books.
Title: Farenheit 451
Author: Ray Bradbury
Reason: A frightening look into the ignorance of the populace.
Title: Bloody Hell
Author: Dan Hallock
Reason: The truth about war and conflict behind the eyes of soldiers - not the government's. A must-read before considering to join the military.
Title: Ideas and Opinions
Author: Albert Einstein
Reason: A deep look into secular matters by one of the greatest thinkers ever.
Title: The Dresden Files (book series)
Author: Jim Butcher
Reason: Why wouldn't you want to read about Chicago's only professional wizard?
Title: Replay
Author: Ken Grimwood
A very good book that is about a guy who lives his life over and over again. I highly recommend it.
Title: (Series) The Wheel of Time
Author: Robert Jordan
Reasons: Umm... I've only read the first book (Eye of the World) but already it's sweet (11 books out so far)... it's basically a bunch of country kids who get caught up in some deep deep s**t, based in the past and then they find out that the world is alot bigger then they originally thought.
It's a good book(s) for those that like to laugh/ be in suspense .
DaVinci Code
Author: Dan Brown
Reason: Just a good all around book, even though its fiction it makes you think hard about what we know about Christianity and the Catholic Church
Title: Anything in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth books
Author: J.R.R. Tolkien
Reason: If you really need one...
Simply one of the best fantasy worlds of all time. Good stuff.
Title: The chronicles of Thomas Covenant
Author: Stephan Donaldson
Reason: This is in some ways similar to LOTR, in that its a magic fantasy where power is weilded through secondary objects, most notably a ring. The primary difference is the main character, Thomas Covenant, comes from outside our world, and does not believe in such things as magic. There are 2 series released at the moment, with a third coming out soon.
Title: Halo Trilogy
Author: Eric Nylund & William C. Deitz
Reason: If you liked "Halo" for the X-Box, and wanted to know more about the story behind it, then read these: Halo - The Fall of Reach, Halo - The Flood, and Halo - First Strike. The Fall of Reach tells about how the Master Chief got to be the master and how he ended up on Halo. The Flood is the story of Halo ripped right from the game except with a lot of backup storyline. First Strike is the story of what happened on Earth after the Master Chief went to Halo and lays the foundation for Halo 2. Eric Nylund is a great author, but William C. Deitz tends to be a bit melodramatic... All well worth while.
Title: An Interview with a Vampire (and all of the sequals that make up The Vampire Chronicles)
Author: Anne Rice
Reason: Great books that also throw in a lot of world history with it's romantic horror stories.
Title: Frankenstein
Author: Mary Shelley
Reason: None of this crap with hacked up corpses, etc, etc. Just the whole moral dilemma of a creator and created. It's brilliant stuff. The Frankenstein myth has become completely distorted by popular hollywood portrayls in the last 150 years.
Book: Dreams Underfoot
Author: Charles De Lint
Reason: This is the first book in De Lint's Newford collection, and it's magical. He takes things that are seen in myths, and he puts them into every day moments. Some of his stories take a turn into the darker world of lifes, and yet, when they end, it has healed. A must read if you love fantasy or short stories.
Title: Brave New World
Author: Adolf Huxley
Reason: Gives a fascinating perspective of a futuristic world where everything is decided, right down to what your job will be, before you're even born, and what happens when a "savage" with values corresponding to those of OUR time is suddenly thrust into this society
Title: The Red Dwarf series
Author: Grant Naylor
Reason: Simily put, their funny books, that any fan of sci-fi should find amusing. We all need a good laugh sometimes.
Title: The Darwin Awards Books
Author: N/A
Reason: For their education value. I'm serious. The Darwin Awards, for those who don't know, are yearly awards given to people who have managed to kill, castrate or otherwise remove themselves from the gene pool, thus improving it in line with Darwin's "survive of the fittest" theory. It provides a great deal of insight into the phenominal stupidity of humanity.
Title: Dracula series
Author: Bram Stoker
Reason: As with Frankenstein, I found the book to be more interesting and detailed than the movies, which were redone to appeal to our sense of horror, and ultimately mutilated by the mass media machine of hollywood. Additionally, Bram Stoker wrote a second vampire novel called The Lair Of The White Worm, which, while not as good, was still an interesting read. They did, however, turn it into a TRUELY horrible film.
Title: Anything by...
Author: Isaac Asimov
Reason: The father of robotic sci-fi (he was actually the first person to USE the word robotics), a number of his works, such as Bicentennial Man, have been made into movies which do not do his writings full justice. His Foundation series makes for an interesting study into the possibilities of future prediction and manipulation.
Title: Jungle Book
Author: Rudyard Kipling
Reason: Sort of a coming of age story, but for a boy raised in the wild. An absolute classic.
Title: "Hitch hikers guide to the galaxy" triology.
Author: Douglas Adams
Reason: Because it's just so completely random and warped. Another good excuse to laugh.
Book: A Rock and A Hard Place
Author: Supposedly by one 'Anthony Godby Johnson'
Reason:An insightful look into the life of a young boy with aids. Wether a true story or not, it sheds light on what are real problems in today's American society; skeletons in the closets of citizens not only in the USA but around the world.
Book: The Star Scroll
Author: Melanie Rawn
Reason: A fantastical story of dragons, magic-users, and remarkably realistic young hero. The whole series is one of my favorites!
Book: The Mists of Avalon
Author: Marion Zimmer Bradley
A semi-fictional peek into ancient Britania, the early roman empire, and old celtic religions. Again, I'd reccomend the whole series!
Book: The Annotated Chronicals aka the first 3 dragonlance books; Dragons of Autumn Twilight, Winter Night, and Spring Dawning.
Author(s): Tracy Raye Hickman and Margaret Weis
Reason: Another tale of dragons, heros, magic, battles, and fun fantasy! It's originally based off of AD&D, an advanced role-playing game, and forrunner to excelent forums like gaia itself!
Book: The Belgariad (5 Book series, Pawn of Prophecy, Queen of Sorcery, Magicians Gambit, Castle of Wizardry, Enchanters' Endgame )
Author(s): David and Leigh Eddings
Reason: Great reads, I blew through all of the books in about a month (some were checked out and not available to me..^_^) Great starter fantasy series
Book: The Malloreon (5 book series, Guardians of the West, King of the Murgos, Demon Lord of Karanda, Sorceress of Darshiva, Seeress of Kell)
Authors biggrin avid and Leigh Eddings
Reason: Continution of the Belgariad, just as good of a read as the first series.
Author: Mingfong Ho
Titles:
1) Sing to the Dawn
2) Rice without Rain
3) The Clay Marble
Reason: The author depicts the reality of the poor people in Thailand in a touching and simple yet well-developed story. Sing to the Dawn was even made into a musical.
Lord of the Isles series (currently up to four: The Lord of the Isles, the Queen of Demons, The Servant of the Dragon, and The Mistress of the Catacombs)
Author: David Drake
Story: A thousand years ago the lord and king of the Isles fell under the wake of a giant magical spell plunging the kingdom into an era of ill times. Now, the powers of the world are building up again and if it is released by a destructive mage, they'll be nothing left!
Reason: With the magic and religions in the books based on various Welsh sources, the book has a much more real than some other fantasy books out there. With this and the dynamic characters it really makes this a must read.
Title(s): Magics Pawn, Magics Promise, Magics Price (The Last Herald Mage Trilogy)
Author: Mercedes Lackey
All of Mercedes Lackey's 'Valdemar' series are good, but 'The Last Herald Mage Trilogy' is my absolute favorite. It's a story of a young boy, growing up, overcoming abuse, losing the love of a lifetime and learning to use powerful magical gifts that he never asked for to become a talented hero that saves a great kingdom. It is one of the best love stories I've ever read, filled with great plot twists, action and political intrigue. This is not a happy-go-lucky book. Mercedes Lackey loves to write Tragedies, and this is one of her best. A real tear jerker.
Jeremy Thatcher the Dragon Hatcher: It probably won't interest older audiences, but a good book to read to youngsters before bedtime. It was my favorite book during the fourth grade. The book is about a boy who bought a dragon egg from a magic shop and learns to raise it himself.
Anthem by Ayn Rand: A simple book because it is fairly short, the original edition released in England was rewritten to exclude some of the more elaborate vocabulary and details and just focus on the facts. However, this does not mean that it's an easy read. The ideas are quite advanced.
Title: Homeland (and ever single other book in the Drizzt Do'Urden Series)
Author: R.A. Salvatore
This is a series of books produced by Forgotten Realms. If you like fantasy with lots, LOTS I mean LOTS of action then these books will definitely appeal. For me The Dark Elf series has captured the essence of RPG fantasy with the characters created by Salvatore. Good vs. Evil?.... Well lets just say I LOVE the gray areas. Homeland starts out the very night our hero protagonist Drizzt Do'Urden is born. Thereafter it introduces you to the Drow society and the main players of the stories.
This first story is all about his overcoming the social stereotypes of his culture and risking everything to live by the values the HE believes to be correct.
