FAVORITE BOOKS

macbeth25 · July 28, 2009, 05:42:07 PM

I think I had good luck with my last "new topic," so I'll be brave and try another. What is your favorite type of book and who are your favorite authors? I'll list some of mine. I like science fiction -- the kind that is just beyond science fact. I believe that just about everything we enjoy today was once science fiction. Just think about that. Some of my favorite authors in this category are Asimov, Anne McCaffrey, Jerry Pournelle, Larry Niven, Arthur C. Clarke and David Feintuch, just to name a few. I also like good mysteries and police stories including Dick Francis and W.E.B. Griffin. Tom Clancy is another of my favorite writers. I really like his "Jack Ryan" series. There are a number of more, but I won't list them now. Over to you.

CrysG · July 28, 2009, 10:49:38 PM

I don't have a favorite type of books just favorite books.....

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett
Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank
The Bible
The Hitch Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Goosebumps by R. L Stine
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

Favorite Authors besides the above

Amanda Quick
John Grisham

macbeth25 · July 29, 2009, 08:47:52 AM

I've read a few of those, too, and I'll put some of the others on my list. Since I'm now living in Florida, I've been trying to figure out where the town -- can't think of its name right now -- was located. I remember the Timucan(?) river, though. Some of my favorites are:
Sector General â€" James White --a series involving an interstellar hospital
Empire â€" Orson Scott Card â€" War between the Red and Blue States
Luciferâ€™s Hammer â€" Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle â€" What happens when a comet strikes the Earth.
Midshipmanâ€™s Hope â€" David Feintuch -- the first of a series of books about Nicholas Seafort, a character who is similar to â€œHoratio Hornblower,â€ C.S. Forester, but in space.
Beyond Uhura: Star Trek and Other Memories - Nichelle Nichols â€" A good book which describes her life and talks about being â€œunder the gunâ€ when Al Caponeâ€™s brother threatened her father, the mayor of the town.

There are a lot more, but I wonâ€™t list them at this time. I also use Audible.Com for a lot of my listening. This is quite a program, if you like audible books you can save on your computer or put on an MP3 or the like. There are also many other programs which allow you to read books on line, many for free.
Would anyone like to learn how Tarzan came to be?

copperfiend · July 29, 2009, 09:11:44 AM

Moneyball by Michael Lewis

TPC · July 29, 2009, 09:21:01 AM

Some of my favorites are.
Sci-Fi/Western/Romance/Steam Punk -
Dark Tower Series by Stephen King
Mortal Engines Quartet by Philip Reeve
His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman
Western/Post Apocalyptic - Cormac McCarthy
Zombies â€" Max Brooks
Existentialism/Lucid Dreams - Haruki Murakami
Alcohol/Woman/Short Stories - Charles Bukowski

Wacca Pilatka · July 29, 2009, 09:34:10 PM

Seconded on Catcher in the Rye and Moneyball.

My favorite book is Jacksonville's Architectural Heritage by Wayne Wood, the book that galvanized my strange yet rewarding long-distance love affair with Jacksonville.

Other favorites:

1984 by George Orwell
Battle Cry of Freedom by James McPherson (Civil War history)
Loose Balls by Terry Pluto (an oral history of the ABA, briefly represented in Jacksonville with the Floridians regional franchise)
Rob Neyer's Big Book of Baseball Blunders
If I Ever Get Back to Georgia, I'm Going to Nail My Feet to the Ground by Lewis Grizzard
Dixie Before Disney by Tim Hollis
The Architecture of Henry John Klutho by Bob Broward
Jacksonville Through a Painter's Eyes by Phil Sandusky

ProjectMaximus · July 30, 2009, 02:47:57 AM

Quote from: CrysG on July 28, 2009, 10:49:38 PM
John Grisham

You know "The Brethren" was set in Jax Beach? I've never read it though...

Quote from: TPC on July 29, 2009, 09:21:01 AM
Existentialism/Lucid Dreams - Haruki Murakami

Kafka on the Shore is one of my favorites (though I'm not a huge reader, so I'm not sure that my "favorites" list is all that well-informed.

BridgeTroll · July 30, 2009, 07:32:30 AM

All Quiet on the western front
The entire Clan of the cave Bear series
Virtually any American history, biography

Favorite authors... hmm.

Almost any Sci fi classic... asimov, heinlein, clarke...

Mark Twain

E.A. Poe

Early Tom Clancy... Hunt for Red October, Red storm rising

Virtually anything by Stephen King/ Richard Bachman

Many more... the list is very long.

Gonzo · July 30, 2009, 07:44:03 AM

All-time favorite book:

Dune by Frank Herbert

Other faves:

The Stand by Stephen King
Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon
Imjica by Clive Barker
Without Remorse by Tom Clancy
Florida Roadkill by Tim Dorsey (or any of the Serge A. Storm books for that matter)

Deuce · July 30, 2009, 09:43:12 AM

Most of what I read is non-fiction but in the category of fiction, definitely sci-fi. macbeth, if you haven't read any of Bester's early work, I highly recommend it. "The Stars My Destination" is one of the best of all time. It's the precursor to cyber punk. I also like:

Brave New World
1984
Neuromancer (and the rest of the Sprawl trilogy)
Snowcrash
almost anything by PKD

Shwaz · July 30, 2009, 10:04:31 AM

Quote from: CrysG on July 28, 2009, 10:49:38 PM
I don't have a favorite type of books just favorite books.....

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett

I just saw the previews for this as a new animimated 3D movie... it looks to be a good one.

Here's my list:

Old Man and the Sea - Hemmingway
Virgin Suicides - Jeffery Eugenides
The Stand - Stephen King
The Road - Cormack McCarthy
Killing Yourself to Live - Chuck Klosterman

Growing up my favorite author was Christopher Pike... I read and loved everything he wrote.

macbeth25 · July 30, 2009, 01:23:02 PM

Quote from: Deuce on July 30, 2009, 09:43:12 AM
Most of what I read is non-fiction but in the category of fiction, definitely sci-fi. macbeth, if you haven't read any of Bester's early work, I highly recommend it. "The Stars My Destination" is one of the best of all time. It's the precursor to cyber punk. I also like:

Brave New World
1984
Neuromancer (and the rest of the Sprawl trilogy)
Snowcrash
almost anything by PKD

Iâ€™ve read several of those. Have you seen the Brave New World movie?
George Orwell really had a lot to say â€" but the year 1984 wasnâ€™t anything like his book. Things might be headed that way, though.
Brave New World was required reading one year in High School. Iâ€™ll have to take a look at "The Stars My Destination". Have you looked into Audible.com? That does cost something but itâ€™s less than buying audible books. There are several free â€œlibrariesâ€ on line as well.

CrysG · July 30, 2009, 01:57:14 PM

Quote from: Shwaz on July 30, 2009, 10:04:31 AM

Quote from: CrysG on July 28, 2009, 10:49:38 PM
I don't have a favorite type of books just favorite books.....

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett

I just saw the previews for this as a new animimated 3D movie... it looks to be a good one.

I saw the previews too. I almost fell out of my chair...I've been thinking that would make a great movie for years.....

Now only if someone made Alas, Babylon into a movie....

BridgeTroll · July 30, 2009, 02:02:14 PM

QuoteNow only if someone made Alas, Babylon into a movie....

I would like to see that!

macbeth25 · July 30, 2009, 02:25:14 PM

Agreed, Bridge Troll. I'd also like to see Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle or Pournelle's Janissaries series. If you haven't had a chance to read them, I hope you'll take the time. I think you'll enjoy them. Audible.com (http://www.audible.com/adbl/site/homepage/AnonHome.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes)also has one called Rally Cry which is pretty good, too. Here's more info on the book: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rally_Cry.