Looking for a great book to read are you? Who isn't! 5 I've read, 5 I'm gonna read and reader recommendations.
Grade 6 was as good a time as any to become a woman. There I was standing in the grocery store aisle, long blonde hair pulled into two ponytails secured with big pink bobbles looking down at my dirty running shoes. I had no idea what I was doing. Before me was row upon row of unusual choices, none of which seemed to make any sense to me.
But I was a grown up now and I had to pick something. I'd asked around a little bit so I had a few recommendations but ultimately this was going to have to be a personal decision. All I knew was I didn't want some product marketed to kids, I wanted the adult version.
As it turns out, the decision I finally made changed my life.
I went with The Amityville Horror. The first grown up book I ever read. It was absolutely terrifying. There's no way in hell I should have been allowed to read that thing in grade 6. But I'd finished all the Judy Blume's so ....
That little paperback from the local grocery store scared the SHIT out of me. Because of The Amityville Horror, my first job wasn't eating other people's potato chips and babysitting like every other teenager, it was slogging away packaging sunglasses for a friend's father. Who did not provide potato chips.
Babysitting? Stay in a stranger's house while their kids slept? Um, no. I mean, I knew things now. Houses could not only be haunted, they could try to kill you.
You see, at the time, The Amityville Horror was marketed as a true story. It was based on the real life experiences of a family who moved into a home where the previous owner went nuts and shot 6 members of his family. Enter the next family to move into the house and cue the paranormal activity. Rooms filled with flies, people levitated, glowing eyed pigs romping through the house. It was quite a step up from The Bobbsey Twins; Secret at the Seashore.
That book did two things. It really did scare me to the point that I knew I was going to require therapy later in life.
And it made me understand what a page turner was. The book was so scary I knew it was scarring me, but for some reason I couldn't stop reading it. I was compelled to read it every chance I got, mental health be damned.
I'd say every 3 or 4 books I read now are ones I consider page turners. The kind of books you find yourself thinking about throughout the day wondering when you can acceptably get in your pajamas and go to bed to read.
These next 5 great books are all page turners, but one of them is a STAND OUT.
5 Great Books (I've read)
1. A Prayer for Owen Meany - This book captivated me when I first read it. I can't remember when that was but it was probably 30 years ago. ACK. What a horrible thing to say. That's when the book was originally published. As is often the case with John Irving novels, this one is based around a very unique character; Owen Meany. An incredibly small boy with a squeaky voice who believes he is a conduit of God. A Prayer for Owen Meany is my second favourite book of all time. My favourite book is the Pulitzer Prize winning Western, Lonesome Dove. It took me 3 or 4 cracks at it before I could get through the first chapter but once I did? Wow.
2. A Man Called Ove - Here we go. THIS is the book. The page turner, the exceptional, the STAND OUT. I read A Man Called Ove after watching the movie based on it. The book follows the life of Ove, a cranky older man. It is funny, touching, insightful and sad. If you can only buy one book make A Man Called Ove the one.
3. Let's Explore Diabetes With Owls I love David Sedaris. If you like funny you'll love him too. Sedaris has a dry humour that can sometimes bubble up from nowhere until you're crossing your legs praying not to pee yourself. His books are usually a conglomeration of autobiographical short stories. Essays. If you *haven't* read David Sedaris before start with Me Talk Pretty One Day.
4. Manhattan Beach This was a, Yeah, it's a pretty good book, to me. It got great reviews and according to the amount of stars it has on Amazon people mostly loved it. I did look forward to reading it every night but ... it was just missing something for me. Not a lot. If it was a person it wasn't missing a major organ, just ... maybe some necessary fluids.
5. Middlesex The most critically acclaimed novel on this list, not only did Middlesex win the Pulitzer Prize, Amazon readers give it close to a 5 star rating. The book, published in 2007, which is when I read it, focuses on Callie a young Greek girl who at the age of 14 discovers she's Intersex (formerly known as a hermaphrodite). It's then that she becomes Cal.
5 Great Books (I'm gonna read)
1. A Prayer for Owen Meany Yup. I'm gonna read it again. Like I said, it's been almost 30 years since I originally read this book and declared it one of my all time favourites. I feel like it's time to read it again. I've reread lots of books, but this one I'm rereading on purpose so I won't be surprised when I get halfway through it and think "Hey. I feel like I know *exactly* what's going to happen. HEY. I'VE READ THIS BOOK ALREADY!"
2. Eventide This book was on my books to read list LAST TIME. I keep saving it. It's one of those "I want to save it books". Not everyone is an "I want to save it" kind of person, I realize. I was also the kid who would still have Halloween candy by mid-June. Eventide is the follow up to Kent Haruf's Plainsong. He has a quiet, subtle voice that allows even the most dramatic scenes to be told with a whisper, not a scream.
3. A Visit From the Goon Squad Written by the same author who penned the aforementioned "yeah, it's a pretty good book" Manhattan Beach. I'm giving author Jennifer Egan another go with this, the novel that won her the Pulitzer Prize. It's about an ageing punk rocker and record executive. Based on that, chances of me not liking this novel are very slim.
4. Sing, Unburied, Sing Set in Mississippi's past and present, Sing, Unburied Sing, is the portrait of a struggling family and the hope we all have to continue on no matter how miserable things get. This is one of those critics darlings novels which can go either way for me. I'm usually on board when it comes to critically praised books but most critically acclaimed movies leave me with the dry heaves.
5. Theft by Finding I mentioned that David Sedaris writes autobiographical short stories (essays). The reason he can do this so accurately is because he began recording his life in a diary at the age of 20 and hasn't missed a day of writing since. Last year he published Theft by Finding, the first half of his edited diaries (1977-2002). Yay!
I'm super-dignified in case you were wondering.
I just wanted to mention as a side note, that the people who lived in the Amityville Horror house? The ones who claimed to have had all these paranormal experiences in the house? Well, a couple of years after the book was published and people started to suspect it wasn't actually true the couple agreed to take lie detector tests. The husband and wife submitted to tests performed by 2 of the top Polygraph experts in the United States. There was no indication of lying.
EeeeEeeeeekkkkk!!!!
O.K., you know what to do now. It's time for you to give us your book recommendations. Feel free to include the first book that really grabbed you. Metaphorically speaking of course. I hope.
Have at it.
Elaine Abshire
I found a first edition Lonesome Dove signed by Larry McMurtry at a resale shop several years ago and although it isn't priceless by any means, I am as proud of that as if it were! I saw the mini-series with Tommy Lee Jones and Robert Duval before I read the book, but just couldn't get enough of the whole masterpiece. My favorite, too. Have read it a few times and I'm sure I'll read it again.
Also, love The Prodigal Daughter and Poisonwood Bible - both thought provoking and interesting studies of human nature.
My daughter and I read Red Dragon many years ago - before the first movie came out - and were mesmerized. Evil personified! I'm currently reading a lot of crime/mysteries and highly recommend the Lucas Davenport and/or Virgil Flowers novels by John Sandford. Read them in order if you can, as they follow Lucas from his time as a beat cop to a detective to state/federal level. Anything Lee Child writes in fascinating. And James Lee Burke will make Louisiana unforgettable. His writing is unforgettable.
Pam
I too have read A Prayer for Owen Meany (twice) and agree - it is a book to keep and re-read. I'd also suggest The Endurance by Caroline Alexander supplemented with Endurance by Frank Arthur Worsley and/or Endurance by Alfred Lansing and Nathaniel Philbrick. The utterly amazing and inspiring story of a crew that set sail for the South Pole and how they all survived months living on ice and rock.
Kim
Karen- Just finished A Man Called Ove. Loved it. Laughed and cried a little too. Thank you for the recommendation!
Karen
Isn't it great?! So glad you liked it. ~ karen!
Ann
Read the Wind in the Willows every spring !!
Celeste
I have never read "A Prayer for Own Meany" but will now, with so many great recommendations. One of my favorites of all time is "City of Thieves" by David Benioff. It is about the seige of Leningrad during WWII, an event that wasn't publicized for years. It is fiction that is both heart-breaking and uproariously funny. I also love "The Stand" by Stephen King and the mystery series by Jussi Adler-Olsen. The Adler-Olsen books are translations that are truly so well written that they flow much better than some originally written in English.
I have tried Confederacy of Dunces and Watership Down and just could not finish either.
Kristina
So many books, so little time!! Some I always recommend are Christopher Moores Lamb-The Gospel according to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal (Moore, to me, is only second in humor to David Sedaris), The River Why by David James Duncan (absolutely joyous), Stones From the River by Ursula Hegi (epic novel with a part about white asparagus you'll never forget) and Peter Matthiessen's odyssey The Snow Leopard (and why I became quite fascinated with snow leopards).
Thanks, as always, for your recommendations. x
Meliss
I'm so glad I read this! I didn't know David Sedaris had some new books out. I guess I haven't even looked. I started with Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, and couldn't help but laugh out loud through the whole thing. He has such a great insight into human behavior. The friend who gave me the book said if I enjoyed reading it so much I had to get a book on tape and actually hear his voice. So I think I must have grabbed Santaland Diaries - OMG! Hilarious!!! Highly recommend a book or two on tape, too!
Also loved A Man Called Ove. Will make you laugh and cry!
Thanks for the book reviews/recommendations!
Tina W
I second Sourdough, or Mr Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore if you haven't read that yet.
Also:
- The new Phillip Pullman, La Belle Sauvage
- Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
- Pachinko
- Word by Word (Secret life of dictionaries)
- The Name of the Wind
- Evicted: Poverty and Profit
CJ
Knew you'd love "A Man Called Ove". It is one of the most touching stories I've ever read.
Maureen Elliott
I do not read anymore... After I got trifocals all the fun came out of reading. Far too hard to get the words into the right focal range. I'm ok with that. There's sooo much to enjoy on the internet and Pinterest has managed to suck me in. Sometimes I lose an entire day on that.
I do need to tell you that the "Subscribe if you like to sweat, swear and do stuff banner at the top of the page is a pain. Not liking that at all, though I've been told that I'm not a fan of change.
KD
To add to the EEK...
When I was little, I sometimes dreamed of a red-eyed friend outside my window, who wanted me to come out and play. One night I woke up and had to go to the bathroom, so I went downstairs. My parents were watching TV and I looked at the TV and said, "Jodie!"
My mom shut that TV off so fast...
Gay Sullivan
Owen Meany and Watership Down are 2 of my all time favorite books. My book club introduced me to “All Quiet on the Western Front”. This book really struck a nerve and hit home and although it’s from WW1, it is very relevant today.
Sherri
Sitting here trying to narrow down the books I would recommend is a bit hard since my list of favorite authors is quite large. I just wrote a page and a half of authors before I quit. I think i would start out with The Book of Proverbs by Solomon. A lot of very useful bits of wisdom in there. The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis. The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tokien. Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art by Madeline l'Engle, opened my eyes to seeing the Creators fingerprints in more places than I had previously considered. I read for two reasons, well three, information, encouragement and distraction. Don't read serious work very often I have been through enough downers in life that I know one can overcome if you are a mind to overcome. I do like to read apocalyptic stories, Mark Tufo's Zombie Fallout series being my favorite because the people are real, family is important, they laugh, cry, struggle and even fail, and keep moving on doing whatever they need to do for their friend, pets, family and stranglers they pick up along the way. I like Lincoln and Childs, Pendergast series. nothing like a good mystery. Clive Cussler's adventure books. Elizabeth Peter's Amelia Peabody series, archaeological family romping around Egypt solving mysteries. LM Montgomery's Anne series. Frances Hodgson Burnett The Secret Garden and The Little Princess. Most anything by Dean Koontz. Most any thing by Seanan McGuire (Mira Grant), specializing in scientific experiments gone horribly wrong.
I like humor, love that is more than just hearthrob that fades, but real love that lasts. There is so much more but I will stop.
I enjoy your blog
Carol
Loved, loved, LOVED Ove (and thought they did a great job with the movie, too); agree with you wholeheartedly on Manhattan Beach (meh) and David Sedaris (lol); and while I read Middlesex 10-15 years ago, it's stuck with me. I found it fascinating.
Rene Walkin
Oh I've just spotted someone posting about The Poisonwood Bible which I have read twice as well as all of Barbara Kingsolver's books. It was my first and what an amazing read!
Rene Walkin
I recently read A Prayer for Owen Meaney again and enjoyed it even more than the first time around. In my teens I was a sucker for Ayn Rand and the book Atlas Shrugged rocked my world. I also loved Sophie's Choice which was a particularly harrowing story but so well written. More recent reads include A Man called Ove which was a movie recommendation from you but was unavailable in the U.K. then so I read the book instead-just wonderful. I also love David Mitchell's work-Cloud Atlas (there is a movie which I did not see but I think it got poor reviews. Quite a difficult subject to transfer to film-sometimes books just have the edge.) Also The Bone Clocks by the same author. I am currently reading The Tattooist of Aushwitz which is actually a love story. The tattooist now lives in Australia and his story has been told by somebody else. He and the woman who became his wife were among the few survivors of that terrible period of history. The other book about survival in a concentration camp, called Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankel is an incredibly uplifting tribute to the spirit of man under circumstances most of us cannot even imagine, and how some individuals still manage kindness and show humanity even when tested beyond their very limits. On a lighter note-although again a wartime story was All the Light We Cannot See, set in occupied France about a blind girl and her grandfather and how the townsfolk in small ways sabotaged the German Occupation of their lovely town. Just fabulous.
Linda
LOVED "A man called Ove" and just finished his next book "Bear Town", also highly recommended!
So far this year couldn't put down "The Clay Girl" by Canadian author Heather Tucker...and "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas
Debbie
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver,
The Power of One, by Bryce Courtenay (The audio version is so good) It is not a self help book!
If you like horses... The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, The Horse That Inspired a Nation, by Elizabeth Letts
Colleen Quesada
I loved The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. This is the first of 3 books. I read them all several times.
susan gill
the entire series by Louisa Penney (sp?) Canadian mystery-seems like Brigadoon to me - just loved all the characters