Book Favourites

Post by **GLCQuantum** » Sat Oct 06, 2007 6:14 pm

Seeing as JW started a thread about all time favourite movies I thought it might be nice to see everyones all time greats for books.

Now I know mine will not be to most people's taste but as I started the thread I will put my top five.

1. Once: James Herbert
2. When The Wind Blows: James Patterson
3. The first book and a half of Phillip Pullmans "His Dark Materials"
4. Lord Of The Rings Trilogy: J.R Tolkien
5. Welcome To Hell: One Man's Fight For Life Inside Bangkok Hilton: Colin Martin.

Post by **Randy Cornhole** » Sat Oct 06, 2007 6:41 pm

My fav's are, in no particular order -

1. Riding the iron rooster - Paul Theroux
2. Notes from a small island - Bill Bryson (any of his books are worth a read)
3. Three men in a boat - Jerome K Jerome
4. My family and other animals - Gerrald Durrell
5. The Kenneth Williams Diary's - Kenneth Williams
6. Moab is my wash pot - Stephen Fry

Bet I have forgotten some classics...

Post by **BaaBaa.** » Sat Oct 06, 2007 6:46 pm

Randy Cornhole wrote:Notes from a small island - Bill Bryson (any of his books are worth a read)

Agree, just a shame he's never done any on Asia.

Post by **redzonerocker** » Sat Oct 06, 2007 7:07 pm

so many to choose from, so, in a sort of particular order;

1- fingerprints of the gods - graham hancock
2-lord of the rings (trilogy) - j r tolkien
3-no one here gets out alive (jim morrison autobiography) -jerry hopkins & dan sugarman
4-by reason of insanity -shane stevens
5- the rats/domain - james herbert

Post by **STEVE G** » Sat Oct 06, 2007 8:18 pm

My all time favourite is The Quite American by Graham Greene followed by Alan Sillitoes-Saturday Night, Sunday Morning. I also enjoy anything by John Le Carre or James Clavell. I think one of the most powerful books Iâ€™ve read is Steinbecks-Grapes of Wrath.

Post by **GLCQuantum** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 9:59 am

Just bumping this thread back.

Would like to see some more favourites of the board members.

Post by **DawnHRD** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 10:21 am

Mine are split into childhood books and adult books. Many of my childhood favourites, I would still very happily read today.

childhood favourites
Watership Down
Black Beauty
Alice in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass
More or less any Roald Dahl children's book
All of the Harry Potter books
The Lion, the witch and the wardrobe
Little Women
Good Wives
Jane Eyre
1984
The Lord of The Flies
Brave New World
Shogun - James Clavell

* not all of these are books for children, but with the exception of the Harry Potter books, they are all ones I read as a child or young teenager.

Present day favourites
QBVII - Leon Uris
Insomnia
Rose Madder
The Talisman
Four past midnight
All of the Dark Tower books (all of the above Stephen King)
The Power of One - Bryce Courtenay (anything by him, actually)
The Plague Dogs - Richard Adams
Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
Harry's Game
The Fighting Man - both Gerald Seymour
The Shape of Snakes - Minette Walters
Kara's Game (can't remember author, sorry)
One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey
East of Eden - Steinbeck

That's just off the top of my head...

Post by **poisoner** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 4:55 pm

Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
The Kite Runner - Khalad Hosseini
The Damage Done - Warren Fellows
Dark Fire - CJ Sansom
Emperor Series - Conn Iggulden

Would love to hear from others if they've read any of these?

Post by **chelsea** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 8:17 pm

Dawn, I see with interest that you have put Harry's Game as one of your favourites.
I chose that as one of my favourite movies. Did you ever see the movie, if so how did it compare to the book.

Post by **DawnHRD** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 8:25 pm

In virtually every case of book vs movie, I think the book wins hands down, including Harry's Game. The only exception that I can think of is "Cuckoo's Nest". Despite it being told from a different perspective in the movie, it still works. Maybe because it's a short book.

I like the movie of Harry's game, but the book is superior, IMO.

Post by **PeteC** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 9:02 pm

I agree with Steve G. about Clavell. If you want to get lost in some good fiction about Asia, there's not much that can touch his works IMHO. All mine have fallen apart from numerous readings. One, I think King Rat, I've never read. Two of the movies/series they made, Taipan and Shougun were very entertaining as well, after you read the books.

If you're into China history, White Swans - 3 Daughters of China by Jung Chang is great.

Any Western fans, Lonesome Dove is a great read. No so the TV series, although I didn't find it that bad. Pete

Post by **klikster** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 9:40 pm

No order

Tales of the South Pacific - James Michener
Hawaii - James Michener
Aztec - Gary Jennings
The Journeyer - Gary Jennings
A Confederate General from Big Sur - Richard Brautigan

Post by **migrant** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 9:42 pm

prcscct wrote:I agree with Steve G. about Clavell. If you want to get lost in some good fiction about Asia, there's not much that can touch his works IMHO. All mine have fallen apart from numerous readings. One, I think King Rat, I've never read. Two of the movies/series they made, Taipan and Shougun were very entertaining as well, after you read the books.

Hi Pete,

King Rat is also a good read, like the other Clavell books some of the characters are in his other books.

They also made a movie of King Rat, pretty old I believe. I haven't seen it in a while, but I remember it in black and white (perhaps due to the artistic bent vs the age, but it is still older).

Robert (Richard?) Elegent (again spelling?) wrote a couple large Clavell type books, Manchu and Saigon, that were pretty good Asia books.

Post by **PeteC** » Sun Oct 07, 2007 10:01 pm

I think very soon there will be a new thread linking our "age" thread to reading habits.

For example, "At what age did you find yourself curling up with a good book and falling asleep in 15-30-45-60 minutes?"...LOL.

I can say one thing for certain, as I've spanned the time frame. I used to read books like a maniac here in Asia before the days of the internet. Not so much anymore unless a description of a book gets into my head and I can't get it out.

Also, I seem to be more physically active now and on the go. I guess that's a good thing as you get older.

We also don't have many grey, cold and snowy days by the fireplace! Pete

Post by **STEVE G** » Mon Oct 08, 2007 4:54 am

Pete, you should read King Rat, I don't know if you are aware of this, but Clavell was interred in Changi prison, Singapore during the second world war and this novel is based on his experience of that. This also brings to mind J.G. Ballards, Empire of the Sun which was based on a similar background as Ballard was also interred following the fall of Shanghai; this was made into a pretty good movie by Spielberg.