The best book you ever read was...

The best book you ever read was...

Author
Discussion

ApexJimi

24,860 posts

242 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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I actually find it pretty hard to choose a single favourite book, or one that I'd call the best I've ever read, however, some notables from me -


Dracula - Bram Stoker

Ayrton Senna (As time goes by) - Christopher Hilton

All Quiet On The Western Front - Erich Maria Remarque

Early One Morning - Robert Ryan

Schmeeky

4,190 posts

216 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Peter F. Hamilton - Night's Dawn Trilogy. It's such a huge and diverse story, I go back and re-read every year or so.

Tom Clancy - The Hunt for Red October. Read it first when I was about 10, and god only knows how many times I've read it since, and introduced me to the Jack Ryan character.

Ian M Banks - Look to Windward (plus all his other culture novels), amazingly detailed stories from a brilliantly realised future society.

Non-fiction - The Dam Busters, by Paul Brickhill, such ingenuity to create the bouncing bomb, and such bravery from the men who used it.

bleesh

1,112 posts

253 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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The Mote In God's Eye, by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle.
Humankind's first contact with aliens.

The book conjures up fantastic images - but of course if they made the film it wouldn't live up to the images my brain saw.

Sway

26,070 posts

193 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Schmeeky said:
Peter F. Hamilton - Night's Dawn Trilogy. It's such a huge and diverse story, I go back and re-read every year or so.

Tom Clancy - The Hunt for Red October. Read it first when I was about 10, and god only knows how many times I've read it since, and introduced me to the Jack Ryan character.

Ian M Banks - Look to Windward (plus all his other culture novels), amazingly detailed stories from a brilliantly realised future society.

Non-fiction - The Dam Busters, by Paul Brickhill, such ingenuity to create the bouncing bomb, and such bravery from the men who used it.
I'd agree with those, plus LOTR, and I'd put Vulcan 607 in the non-fiction top spot.

Particularly love Peter F. Hamilton, Night's Dawn is truly staggering in plot and scale, it feels 'real'.

His near future stuff set around Conistan Water is pretty good too.

rupert the dog

1,433 posts

216 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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hesnotthemessiah said:
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee - Dee Brown.

(For those of you who don't know). It's the story of the North American Indians told from their perspective. Not the most uplifting story as you might well imagine but it made quite an impression on me when I first read it years ago. I have read it several times since. Remarkable book. IMHO obviously.
Yes. Read it some years ago, and have re-read it several times since. One of those books that makes you sad and angry at the same time.

rupert the dog

1,433 posts

216 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Excuse me if it's already been mentioned, but Catch-22. Surreal, funny (no, hilarious), biting, sad, touching, funny again, inspired, etc., etc., etc. You can read it, read it again, and then read it again. Rather good.

theironduke

6,995 posts

187 months

Friday 26th August 2011
quotequote all
Ones that spring to mind;

Rebecca- Just something about it, i guess "haunting" is the best i can do.

Great Expectations- Favourite Dickens, amazingly easy to read (Bleak House however...)

The Fauntainhead- Currently reading it; really made me think about life, not an easy or "nice" book to read but worth the effort.

Gulag Archipelago (only Vol I so far)- We really do take a lot for granted frown

chim

7,259 posts

176 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Hyperion, Dan Simmons. Simply brilliant books.

stevemiller

533 posts

164 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Hardest read but worth every page - Life and fate by Vasily Grossman. This made me cry in a nightshift canteen full of blokes, read in private.
Best laughs - Spike Milligans "Adolf Hitler my part n his down fall"
History - Empire by Niall Ferguson
And classic - Dracula again what a book.

Digger

14,588 posts

190 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Haven't read too many books recently but one to leave a favourable impression was Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts.

shalmaneser

5,930 posts

194 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Schmeeky said:
Peter F. Hamilton - Night's Dawn Trilogy. It's such a huge and diverse story, I go back and re-read every year or so.

Tom Clancy - The Hunt for Red October. Read it first when I was about 10, and god only knows how many times I've read it since, and introduced me to the Jack Ryan character.

Ian M Banks - Look to Windward (plus all his other culture novels), amazingly detailed stories from a brilliantly realised future society.

Non-fiction - The Dam Busters, by Paul Brickhill, such ingenuity to create the bouncing bomb, and such bravery from the men who used it.
Great call, I'm a scifi lover too!

If you liked Iain M Banks give China Mieville a go - much more grimy and steampunk but a fantastically realised universe - I'm referring to His Bas Lag novels in the main though, I didn't think his others were as good.

Micra Bore

175 posts

208 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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shalmaneser said:


The Forever War by Joe Haldeman. Utterly brilliant.
Damn you're right, that's a great read. There are sequels I haven't read - any idea if they're any good?

For those saying Catch 22 - read The Slaughterhouse 5. I love them both.

For those saying The Slaughterhouse 5 - I thought The Sirens of Titan was better, and made more sense.

I like a bit of Ballard me. Doesn't matter which in particular, they're all the same really.

Schmeeky

4,190 posts

216 months

Friday 26th August 2011
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Cheers Shalmaneser! thumbup

Will look out for those.

shalmaneser

5,930 posts

194 months

Saturday 27th August 2011
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Micra Bore said:
Damn you're right, that's a great read. There are sequels I haven't read - any idea if they're any good?

For those saying Catch 22 - read The Slaughterhouse 5. I love them both.

For those saying The Slaughterhouse 5 - I thought The Sirens of Titan was better, and made more sense.

I like a bit of Ballard me. Doesn't matter which in particular, they're all the same really.
I've heard of the sequels but never read them - I don't want to destroy the magic of the original by reading some lacklustre sequels!

Dixie68

3,091 posts

186 months

Saturday 27th August 2011
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tenohfive said:
db said:
it arrived today, will get stuck in tomorrow.
I liked it but it turns a bit self indulgent at the end IMO. It did point me in the direction of a few others though:
Low Level Hell: A Scout Pilot in the Big Red One - Hugh Mills
Xin Loi, Viet Nam - Thirty-one months of War - Al Severs
The second being the better of the two. I preferred Xin Loi to Chickenhawk, but both the above equal it.
I'll have a look at those. I'm not sure Mason gets self-indulgent towards the end of his book though, to me it seems that he is slowly getting affected by PTSD.

Rocksteadyeddie

7,971 posts

226 months

Saturday 27th August 2011
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Digger said:
Haven't read too many books recently but one to leave a favourable impression was Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts.
Outstanding book. It's on my list. Watch him on YouTube. Fascinating character.

Also:

1984 by Orwell
The Alexander Trilogy by Valerio Massimo Manfredi
In Search of Robert Millar - Richard Moore

Oh, and ETA, Born on a Blue Day: A Memoir of Aspergers and an Extraordinary Mind, by Daniel Tammet



Edited by Rocksteadyeddie on Saturday 27th August 21:13

Greeny

1,421 posts

258 months

Saturday 27th August 2011
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I am in no way a book reader, but in the spirit of the thread, I, when 12, was reading Tove Jansson's Tales from Moomin Valley. Half way through reading the book, my school burnt down, a 12 year olds school boys dream!!! Whilst sifting through the ashes the next day, I found undamaged, my book, Tales from Moomin Valley. It is still with me to this day, 41 years later!

Thom987

3,185 posts

165 months

Saturday 27th August 2011
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I remember being told to read the first chapter of Animal Farm on my first day in grammar school. I ended up reading the entire book in one night. I have probably read it at least a dozen times since and can relate it to so many different political situations, including our own.

GTIR

24,741 posts

265 months

Saturday 27th August 2011
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My travels in Sweden and their Swiss language. - Mobsta

Great book.
Loads of pictures thankfully.




freakybacon

549 posts

162 months

Saturday 27th August 2011
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Another vote for Orwell with 1984 and Animal farm.

No one mentioned this one yet though?

Johnny Got his Gun by Dalton Trumbo.

I would post the wiki link but it contains spoilers. brilliant anti war novel.