Time for part 3 already?
Yes it is!
Hopefully you're enjoying the list, but since I am enjoying writing it too bad even you don't.
The beatings shall continue until moral improves!
How did we get here?
Well, I looked up top book lists and they were all hot garbage.
So I've made my own list.
Many books are worthy but had to be excluded because I have not read them.
I limited myself to using each author only once, but if you like them you should keep reading, almost all of them have many works to chose from.
This list is mostly fiction because its what I read.
This list is designed to make you both well read and interesting at parties, and is in no particular order.
21. Kurt Vonnegut - Slaughterhouse Five
Genre: Fiction
Vonnegut is another oddball in this collection. I think there is something worthwhile about his writing but I'd be hard pressed to tell you exactly what is it. I picked Slaughterhouse Five because I have forever after been repeating "So it goes." one of the mantras of the novel. Again he's got plenty of works out there so if he suites your taste theres lots to dive into.
22. Robert Heinlein - Starship Troopers
Genre: Sci-Fi
Obviously theres the fighting of the war against the bugs but more interesting is the political reality Heinlein posits, that in order to gain voting rights one must serve in the military. Indeed the characters spend a good amount of time discussing ideas. Maybe you agree, maybe you don't but the ideas are interesting to explore.
23. Joe Haldeman - The Forever War
Genre: Sci-Fi
Taking time dilation seriously leads to some gnarly consequences in warfare on a galactic scale. By the time you get there the you may have the latest and greatest in tech but then a wave of enemies comes in with the next best thing and you are suddenly working with antiquated tech. Not to mention that when you go back home everyone you know is dead and society has moved on without you in directions you can't fathom.
24. John Sclazi - Old Man's War
Genre: Sci-Fi
An interesting premise with a rocket powered plot this story is a great time. What do you do with all your old people? Why you send them into space to fight your wars. Great story, great story telling, all round fantastic and he's written many follow on books in the same world.
25. Orson Scott Card - Ender's Game
Genre: Sci-Fi
I think Card is an underrated author. I found the dynamics between his characters and how people relate to one another fascinating, but more importantly: they rang true to me. Card his in finger on the pulse of something fundamental to human nature, that he can also spin a captivating tale is an added bonus. And make no mistake, I loved everything about the plot and story, it was just the psychology that put this over the top. I didn't read further into the Ender's series because I heard they got pretty trippy but I the concurrent Bean series was excellent.
26. Ernest Cline - Ready Player One
Genre: Sci-Fi
Want a hard dose of 80's and 90's nostalgia? Lord knows I didn't catch all the references this guy was throwing out but it was a rollicking good story. Not so keen on his other works. I read Armada and it just screamed of some publisher realizing how hot this author was and just throwing him buckets of money to throw out whatever half baked manuscript he had lying around. It was not good. Ready Player One on the other hand was polished and a great time, a summer blockbuster type of fun.
27. Lev Grossman - The Magicians Trilogy
Genre: Fantasy
WOW.
Point one, this guy is clearly well read, there are references all over the place.
Point two I am biased toward this series because the central character Quintin has so many of my own failings, foibles, and flaws that I just can't look away. Its always fun to follow a group of hyper intelligent people and that's who all of these type A characters are. Amidst the fun of magic there are some deadly serious messages in this, you should read all 3, each one is worth it in its own right.
28. Adrian Tchaikovsky - Children of Time
Genre: Sci-Fi
Modern day classic. When I first read this I actually thought it was much older than it was and somehow escaped my notice, but no it is relatively recent (2015). Not to give things away but the portions of the novel that followed Portia were by far the most interesting to me. I haven't yet had time to read his other works but this one is fantastic. A slight note of caution is that it might not be for the arachnophobes among us.
29. James Clavell - Shogun
Genre: Historical Fiction
Now the Lord of the Ring movies are old enough now that I don't have to play my hipster card
but with the Hulu Shogun recently out I have to say it:
I liked Shogun before it was cool.
That said James Clavell is stupendous, every Clavell novel I've ever read I have to spend the first quarter of the book sorting out who exactly all the characters are. Clavell is just a master of multitudes, he will introduce 20 main characters all of different backgrounds and motivations, all weaving together to create a constantly shifting narrative that keeps you on edge. Truly master level stuff.
I've read all the way through Whirlwind but was never able to get myself over the hump of jumping into the middle east, the weakest of his works was I think Noble House? Only because of the bizarre 80's thinking about psychological programming at the very end.
30. Shakespeare - Romeo and Juliet
Genre: Play
Romeo and Juliet is just a stand in here.
You should read as much Shakespeare as you possibly can.
He is the greatest English writer ever.
No one can rival Shakespeare, he was a genius pure and simple.
Read his plays, read his poems, go to see his plays performed, especially if you don't follow all the language which even I don't, it will help immensely to see it acted out and it will make you a better, more thoughtful person.
Ok, that was a lot of Sci-Fi, but hopefully I spread things around a bit.
Anyone on this section of the list you think doesn't belong?
Anyone you think still hasn't been mentioned that needs to be?
Let me know.
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