Books That You Would Recommend To Others

[mikey4444]

Further to the last entry in this section of AB, what books would you recommend to others ?

My list would have to include ::

Anything by Neville Shute, but especially "A Town like Alice" and "On the Beach"
"The Cruel Sea", by Nicholas Monsarrat
"Dance to the Music of Time" by Anthony Powell
"Beyond this Place" by A J Cronin
Any travel book by Paul Theroux
The Balkans Trilogy and the Lavant Trilogy, by Olivia Manning
The "Foundation" trilogy, by Asimov ( actually 7 books ! )


So many books ...so little time !

[woofgang]

The wheel of time by Robert Jordan
Anything by terry Pratchett
The science of the disc World Series
The Peter Whimsy novels by Dorothy Sayers
Eye contact by Fergus McNeill
The Irish RM by Somerville and Ross
The Elliot's trilogy by Elizabeth gouge, also the herb of grace by the same author and the cities of bells trilogy ditto
Most of Guy Kaye although I think he's gone off a bit lately

[Canary42]

Many of the books in the last entry would be in my recommended list, which is too long to go into at present, but would include most of Dickens, quite a few Hardy, several George Eliot, all of Austen, most of the Brontes, some Anne Tyler, Stegg Larssen, most of Alan Bennett, most of Sue Townsend, Tolkein, Rowling... brain burning out .

[paddywak]

To kill a Mockingbird.
The Cruel Sea.
Any thing by Lee Child
Any thing by Terry Pratchett.
Most Dickens, but for some reason could never get into Great Expectations.

[nungate]

Adriana Trigiani's Big Stone Gap Trilogy
Any of the Lord Peter Wimsey books (even the ones by Jill Paton Walsh)
The Sun King by Nancy Mitford
The Magic Apple Tree by Susan Hill
Any of the Agatha Raisin books by MC Beaton
101 Dalmatians - Dodie Smith
All Lindsey Davis Falco books
Persuasion by Jane Austen
All of Quintin Jardine's "Skinner" books
Fred Basset cartoon books
And for reading to my grandchildren (if I ever get some)
Each Peach Pear Plum Janet and Allan Ahlberg
The Little Bear books by Martin Waddell

is that enough? I could go on...

[chaptazbru]

Anything by Douglas Kennedy - brilliant thrller writer.

Also Tess Gerritsen books.

[Huderon]

I'll add a few, though I agree with a lot of the suggestions posted already ...

The power and the Glory, Our Man in Havana and Monsignor Quixote by Graham Greene
Adam and Eve and Pinch Me by A E Coppard (it's a collection of short stories, though that particular story is available online somewhere)
Three Men In A Boat by Jerome K Jerome

For Sci-Fi fans :
A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M Miller Jr.
The Chrysalids, The Day of the Triffids, Chocky, Trouble with Lichen and The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

For children's books :
Anything by Dr Seuss
Anything by Janet and Alan Ahlberg
Slobcat, Over the Steamy Swamp and The Cross With Us Rhinoceros by Paul Geraghty
Lullabyhullabaloo by Mick Inkpen

[askyourgran]

Any Peter Robinson's books of Detective Alan Banks. (not the TV series)
The Master of Rain = Tom Bradby
The Riddle of the Sands - Erskine Childers
The Thomas Covenant Series of books = Stuart Donaldson
Books by Harlen Coben
Travels with Bill Bryden

[mikey4444]

I have really enjoyed peoples posts on this subject. I especially like Huderon...I too had enjoyed John Whydham but had forgotten to include on my list !

[barbara1835]

All the Poldark saga by Winston Graham.....brilliant characters and setting at the time of the Napoleonic Wars.

All of Lee Child. .....(Jack Reacher books)

Harlan Coben......especially the recent ones

Alan Bennett novellas

Jane Gardam

And an all-time favourite....if you can find them....Barbara Pym, who wrote only six books, but so enjoyable with their gentle satire and humour.

[excelsior-1]

i only have one to really recommend
'my family and other animals' by Gerald Durrell

although i do like reading 'moby dick' and 'great expectations'

[grasscarp]

All four engines have failed by Betty tootle
This is about the volcanic ash incident in Jakarta.
This is the only book I ever read that you cannot put down.

[China Doll]

Filth
Diary of an Agnostic Dwarf
We Need to Talk about Kevin
Monster Love
Perfume
Dracula
Sense & Sensibility
Persuasion
Frankenstein
The Psychopath Test
How the Dead Live
Grotesque

Plus a whole heap of nordic noir by writers that I can't spell.

[sandyRoe]

Sword of Honour trilogy by Evelyn Waugh. It's one of the best books to come out of WW11

[bibblebub]

a good dictionary - everyone should have one

[Jeza]

Mikey4444. Have you read Requiem for a wren, or Whatever happened to the corbetts. both excellent books by N Shute.

[DaisyNonna]

Neville Shute, apart from On the Beach.
The Skallagrigg (unfortunately out of print)
Anne McCaffrey novels
Phil Rickman novels
Barbara Erskine
Kate Moss
et al

[maggiebee]

Think all of my favourites have been mentioned:
Nevil Shute - Town Like Alice and In the Wet particular favourites
Quintin Jardine "Skinner" series
Ian Rankin "Rebus" series
Steig Larsson - The Millenium Trilogy
Anything by Terry Pratchett
Anything by Alexander McColl Smith
Val McDermid
The Wallander series

Will take a note of other authors mentioned here

[Spoonboy]

I would highly recommend that you read The Persian Boy - Mary Renault. It is about a real person called Bagoas who, in the reign of Darius III was sold into slavery and castrated. He becomes the catamite of Darius who is defeated by Alexander, and whom later Bagoas becomes his lover, often above Hephaistion Alexander's boyhood friend and lover. It is exceptionally well written, and gives an insight of what life may have been like for Bagoas.

[DTCwordfan]

Hesse - The Glass Bead Game
Asimov on the Foundation
Shokolov - And Quiet Flows the Don series...
James Joyce - Ulysses
Jonathan Spence - The History of China
Henry Kissinger - Diplomacy
Adam Smith - The Wealth of Nations
Richard Nixon - Memoirs of Great Leaders
Gerard Helferich - Humboldt's Cosmos
there are so many......

[maggiebee]

DaisyNonna, the Skallagrigg by William Horwood is on Amazon. May not be the same one but it's an unusual title.