What are your favourite books of all time?

Question

For me, it's Moby Dick (1851) and Les Miserables (1862). I like the classics.

zeitgeist057 · Accepted Answer

Les Miserable was good, but too long for me to want to read it regularly. I might read it once more before I die, lol. It was pretty good.

Cryptonomicon is my favorite book by my favorite author, Neal Stephenson. I'm also quite a fan of Snowcrash, Anathem, Reamde, and The Diamond Age.

Accelerando by Charles Stross had a lot of very interesting ideas about what post-humanity could look like.

The Expanse (series) by James Corey

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

A Little Life by Hanya Yanajihara

The Game of Thrones (series) by George Martin, but I am on a strike until he finishes the series. I stopped after book three when I realized it wasn't done.

The Lord of the Ring (series) by J. R. Tolkien

I realize a lot of these choices are mainstream typical, but also there's a reason they are. But I do want to add that there are a lot of popular books that I thought were rubbish. Dan Brown's NYT top sellers are a great example. They are pulp fiction, fast paced, but essentially vapid, and only suitable for middle school/high school.

The Manual of the Warrior of Light by Paulo Coehlo (I like a lot of his books)

Noam Chomsky (author) - a lot of his "books" are simply transcription of his conversations with interviewers.

9 Princes in Amber (series) by Roger Zelazny

William Gibson (author) - Mona Lisa Overdrive, The Peripheral, and All Tomorrow's Parties, a few of his many excellent books

Robert Heinlen (author) - Starship Troopers and A Stranger in a Strange Land, amongst several others

The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

Kurt Vonnegut (author) - I friggin' LOVE this guy. Prolific, but hard to go wrong with anything he wrote.

Tom Robbins (author) - another one who never fails to please.

I could go on, but I won't for now. I have an appointment :)

What are your favourite books of all time?

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KostasKouvalis · Accepted Answer

Journey to the Center of the Earth

Around the World in 80 Days

Magic Tree House series

Goosebumps series

Series of Unfortunate Events series (film adaptation was horrible)

Journey to the Center of the Earth I was actually reading in third grade and the teacher saw how much it intrigued me, and when he realized I wouldn't finish it before summer vacation, he gifted it to me. I still have it. I never thought a book could have such an impact on my life.

The original 1950s film adaptation was brilliant, but we do not speak of the Brenden Frasier one.

The Around the World in 80 Days with Jackie Chan was hilarious, albeit strayed far from the original.

I fucking LOVE Jules Verne! Mysterious Island. They're the only none series books I ever really got into. I never could finish 20,000 Leagues. I don't read at all anymore, but maybe I should get the other Vernes novels. The balloon one sounds interesting. Don't care much for the moon one. Yeah, I think I'll get the balloon one.

Rei13 · Accepted Answer

I really love Pride and Prejudice. It is probably my favorite book of all time. I like the tv show and movie adaptations for it too for the most part and think different adaptations are stronger in some areas than others with bringing the characters and story to life. I also just enjoy Orson Scott Card books in general (Ender’s Shadow was great), Lord of the Rings, IT, Pachinko, and a ton of others. As far as movie adaptions go I think LOTR did well with it mostly cause it cut out my least favorite parts of the first book in particular but the newer True Grit was a really good adaption that felt like they followed the book perfectly and then Memoirs of a Geisha did well too

Jennz6 · Accepted Answer

Yeah I love 💕 those and what @simslover92 said Jane Eyre plus “The Old Man and the Sea” don’t forget to read the Bible too

Miristheiss · Answer

WOW.

Moby Dick? It was torture for me to read that. I would have stopped 50 times if I were a quitter. I wanted to finish it though. It took me 4 months to read that because I could only bear a few pages at a time.

I didn't ever think I'd run into someone who had that as their favorite.

1/3 of the book, the part that actually detailed the story of the hunt for the whale was ok, it was the other 2/3's where Herman went on all of these endless tangents about 20 other topics that wore me out and lost me.

Anyway, back to the question, my favorite books?

Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen), Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë), Tale of Two Cities (Charles Dickens), The Talisman (Stephen King/Peter Straub, Ghost Story (Peter Straub), Without Remorse (Tom Clancy), Velocity (Dean Koontz), The Analyst (John Katzenbach), Six Years (Harlen Coben), The Girl on the Train (Paula Hawkins), The Last Juror (John Grisham), Airframe (Michael Crichton).

lightbulb27 · Answer

For the sake of all living things - first time I read a book and had feelings... of despair and connect with others pain. This book about the killing fields.

When Rabbit Howls - True story of Trudy Chase... I could tune into the suffering of a child when for me, I was quite shut down from early life and being a sensitive kid.

... not sure on others, more fact than fiction.

Living with your heart wide open - reading now. excellent concise depiction of problems and solutions.

DryGermanGuy · Answer

Daniel Defoe - Robinson Crusoe

Jules Verne - Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas

Jules Verne - Journey to the Center of the Earth

Jules Verne - Around the World in Eighty Days

Thor Heyerdahl - Expedition Ra (nonfiction)

Umberto Eco - The Name of the Rose

JRR Tolkien - The Lord of the Rings

Frank Herbert - Dune

Robert Harris - Enigma

Michael Crichton - Jurassic Park

Constatine · Answer

In my bookcase i have

a Trilogy " His dark Materials " by Philip Pullman. book titles : The golden compass, the subtle knife, the amber spyglass

Fantastic Beasts by J. K. (Joanne Kathleen) Rowling

I do like fantasy / adventure stories

AmeerX · Answer

Short stories and books by Leo Tolstoy. I especially like his books because they feel like where my current society is now especially Anna Karenina. Munshi Premchand's Novels and stories, Saadi and Rumi's books, Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov is also good.

Phoenix98 · Answer

Iliad by Homer

Odyssey by Homer

The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi

Art of War by Sun Tzu

Secrets of the Tsil Café by Thomas Fox Averill

Voyage of the Slaves by Brian Jacques

Tao of Jeet Kune Do by Bruce Lee

This is Karate by Masutatsu Oyama

The Rifle by Gary Paulsen

Those are some of my favorite books.

LiamJHayden · Answer

Asimov's Entire Robot/Galactic Empire/Foundation series.
Tolkien's entire saga from The Silmarillion to The Return of the King.
C. S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia
A Tale of Two Cities
Cien años de soledad
The Pilgrim's Progress
A Wrinkle in Time
I could go on and on.

DJB72 · Answer

Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and the Narnia chronicles by CS Lewis have been favourites since I read them as a child and I see new Truths reading them as an adult beyond the stories. I struggled with Dickens as a student but did enjoy the Canterbury Tales in the original Middle English they were written in.

Paris13 · Answer

My Published Play. I love Plays!!! xxoo

Bricealan · Answer

Not my favorite, BUT TRYING TO READ Ian Rand - Atlas Shrugged, only because of it being a classic also.  I do like Michael Connelly- Fair Warning"  I suppose I do not have a 'favorite of all time"

zagor · Answer

Yes, generally movie adaptations are far inferior to the books, the more so the more complex the book is.

There are exceptions, usually for beach-reading types of books like Jaws and The Shining. OK maybe Jaws isn't good for beach reading...

I really liked 1984, which I read a couple years ago. Also Of Mice and Men.

I bought War and Peace but it is kind of intimidating to start..

exitseven · Answer

I liked the Dune trilogy, the Sun Also Rises, and Travels With Charley.

tfan1 · Answer

The original book of Charlie and the chocolate factory - where the movie Willy Wonka and the chocolate factory came from with gene wilder 👍🙂

Anonymous · Answer

I spent my entire life reading as I am a lifelong social outcast. I've read thousands of books probably.

Harry Potter will always be my favorite. I even re read it sometimes. I've read the series like 15 times now.

Simslover92 · Answer

Jane Eyre and Rebecca definitely for me. I like the classics too.

virtualwasp · Answer

A Brief History of Neoliberalism by David Harvey  & The Man Who Touched His Own Heart: True Tales of Science, Surgery, and Mystery by Rob Dunn

Mansearching · Answer

To Kill a Mockingbird is my favorite. 2nd is Lord of the Flies.

normalice · Answer

The Scholomance trilogy (Novik), The Curse of Challion (Bujold), Sunshine (McKinley), and the Summoners trilogy (Yates).  (I may have spelled authors' names wrong)

Anon120498 · Answer

My favorite book of all time is probably A Thousand Splendid Suns. It’s been years since I read it and I still think about it all the time, especially with everything happening in Afghanistan right now

FunkyMonkee · Answer

Probably, "The Real Animal House" by Chris Miller.

Nikki1989 · Answer

I grew up reading Henry Miller books, weird, I know.

BourbonAndBacon · Answer

Anything by Don Winslow. If he wrote the phone book it would be interesting

BigDog1989 · Answer

I used to read all the time. I wish i still did but, they got boring, and big. I blame textbooks for that

OfMiceandMen · Answer

One's really obvious... my profile name. I also loved Moby Dick and Mary Shelley's, Frankenstein.

Andres77 · Answer

Lord of the Rings. The Long Walk. The Lost Patrol. The Frontiersmen. I have a whole library in my house.

007kingifrit · Answer

IT, by stephen king and against all enemies by tom clancy

DerekC321 · Answer

Crime and Punishment Lord of Light The Silmarillion The Demon Princes The Song of Kali Postwar

Anonymous · Answer

dont have a fave its a puerile question. The black monk sprang to mind though

A_Bell · Answer

Watership Down

BLP11520 · Answer

1984, Fahrenheit 451, I Robot, All of John Grishams work, Child 44, Micheal Crichtons books

boobliker · Answer

1984, the hikers guide to galaxies and kamasutra.

WhitneySnow · Answer

Shakespeare is awesome

Luopio27 · Answer

I love films and hate books!

Bitterness · Answer

I don't read books.

Anonymous · Answer

I don't read books,. I give reason to the world write book on me.

TonyMetal___86 · Answer

Asterix & Obelix, Tin Tin et Milou, Oui Oui...

AngryCarl2 · Answer

Too many to list here.

Deserter2 · Answer

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

strateguy632 · Answer

best is hobbit Tolkien

Lolahah · Answer

I love Pretty Women

justabuddy · Answer

The adventures of Tom soyer and Huck Finn.

HighValue · Answer

The Star Wars Darth Bane trilogy.

sheikalana · Answer

Signs.  I may be wrong.

bowenw · Answer

A Christmas Carol.

jimmy2 · Answer

In grade school it was Timothy Tuttle lol

DarkLegacy · Answer

The Harry Potter books and The Famous Five

KrakenAttackin · Answer

Red Storm Rising by Tom Clancy.

you_asked · Answer

Everybody poops.

elianmuse · Answer

The holy bible.

eagle1951 · Answer

not a reader

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