<p>Firstly, what is your purpose for reading? What are you trying to get out of a book? Is this for enjoyment? Are you trying to broaden your range of literature? </p>
<p>I composed a very thorough reading list following my junior year of high school. They were an eclectic selection. I think I needed to define my reasons for reading a selection of books. I also think that I needed to properly study the works and find out their context. I failed to do this and instead missed out on a lot. I expect to re-read these books and most of what I studied in high school.</p>
<p>read poetry, so much more useful, or so i find.</p>
<p>Anything Gabriel Garcia Marquez.</p>
<p>I second the GGM suggestion, One Hundred Years of Solitude is an amazing book. He just came out with a new book, actually, I forget the name though.</p>
<p>Ayn Rand is a bit extreme, but her books make for some interesting reading. I would start out with The Fountainhead, then go on to Atlas Shrugged. </p>
<p>The Jungle is an awesome book and if you're planning on taking any 20th century American history classes, it provides a lot of perspective on cities and labor at the turn of the century.</p>
<p><I second Gabriel Garcia Marquez
But also, this year I really discovered memoirs
I highly suggest The Woman Warrior by Maxine Kingston, even if you hate it she really demonstrates in her work how to write well which is an advantage in college.</p>
<p>
[quote]
How can anyone suggest anything from Ayn Rand? The woman is psycho.
[/quote]
Ditto.</p>
<p>She's not a psycho, but her books are thick as **** and why read them? That's torture! They aren't even that interesting.</p>
<p>quitejaded, have you read her books? if you have then your opinion is perfectly valid, but don't go around trashing an author whom you haven't even read.</p>
<p>Yeah, I read The Fountainhead and Anthem. Why would I say they aren't that interesting if I haven't read it?</p>
<p>Okay, if you like reading about the lives of extreme personalities and circumstances, it's interesting. But it was weird and boring for me and just way too long. She did not need to make it that long to get her point across, I mean for real...</p>
<p>I suppose if you take the narrow view and think of her books as purely philosophical, then it might seem boring. But I like to think of them as novels, though they clearly have a strong philosphy behind them. In general, the longer a book, the more in-depth the character development is (if the writing is good), so I usually don't mind long books.</p>
<p>I got lost in 50th page of Galt's monologue and never got back to it...</p>
<p>Read Denis Johnson-Jesus Son...it's short, but absolutely brilliant</p>
<p>I really like Richard Price...He wrote Clockers, Samaritan, etc. He's kind of a thugged out Dostoevsky</p>
<p>For something lighter, read Confederacy of Dunces...absolutely hilarious</p>
<p>I'm about to start this book Absurdistan, its supposed to be pretty dope</p>
<p>^all of the above are actually enjoyable, yet very well written.</p>
<p>Read some Don Delillo...I just read White Noise, which was excellent. He's coming out with a new book tomorrow...</p>
<p>Also read Faulkner and Toni Morrison...you might want to ask your college for suggestions, too. I know Brandeis is going to send me a novel to read over the summmer.</p>
<p>**Essays and Sketches by Mark Twain<a href="I%20literally%20laugh%20out%20loud%20in%20public%20places">/b</a></p>
<p>Pride and Prejudice Just because I'm in love with her books</p>
<p>Heart of Darkness By Josef Conrad. Very English Lit-y</p>
<p>Any of George Orwell's essays, especially his ones on grammar and english.</p>
<p>I'll think of more and post them...</p>
<p>How To Read Literature Like a Professor Hilarious - written by a UMich professor, the book explains well.. how to read a book like an English Teacher would, and how to find things like symbols, themes, etc. it's awesome!</p>
<p>i posted these on another thread: communist manifesto, on the road by kerouac, harry potter of course, don't think of an elephant (george laekoff), animal farm, and i second the vonnegut suggestion.
oh and the grand inquisitor by machiavelli</p>
<p>The Sound and The Fury- by William Faulkner </p>
<p>Best of luck! lol</p>
<p>I want to read some of these authors and titles you're all posting. I like George Orwel's writing, and his ideas on language are always interesting. He lived in an esperano community right? That must be cool-everyone you'd meet would be international and poly-lingual. Machiavelli looks boring though...I can't read him.</p>
<p>A fun book to read is 9 Princes in Amber! Great book. But the sequels aren't supposed to be that good.</p>
<p>Btw, how do you write in <b> bold </b> again?</p>
<p>Second the Atlas Shrugged...I'm no Objectivist, but I loved that book.</p>
<p>His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman have been my favorite books since I was 12...The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass.</p>
<p>1984 > Brave New World.</p>
<p>The Hitchhiker's Guide series and Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams.</p>
<p>I third Atlas Shrugged. I thought it was a very interesting read, although I admit there were a few sections I had to slog through, though worth it in the end. </p>
<p>Same for Shogun. Good book, with a few slow sections. </p>
<p>I'm a fanatic for anything by Vonnegut as well, and also Isaac Asimov, if you like Sci-Fi. </p>
<p>Personally, I hate Faulkner with a passion. But, if you like plays, a few good ones include Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and Waiting for Godot.</p>
<p>Ender's Game, anyone?</p>
<p>Heart of Darkness is a tough one.. I wouldn't recommend it unless you are a lit type. English isn't his first language so some of it is very difficult to read.</p>
<p>I recommend:
Ayn Rand, Bukowski, Kerouac</p>
<p>and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig is a must-read.</p>