I don't read much (just began to actively read a few months ago), but it's a tie between The Giver by Lois Lowry and Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami for me. I read The Giver in 5th grade and was really loved it at the time, so much that I try to read it one a year now. Norwegian Wood is something I read over the summer while trying to get into reading more often, and it really took my by surprise with its simple writing and great story. To be sure, it probably isn't an absolutely amazing book, but it was a great, easy read to pique my interest in books again.
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Anonymous2009-03-01 15:02
The Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevsky.
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Anonymous2009-03-01 16:21
Lolita, Nabokov
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Anonymous2009-03-01 18:33
Catch-22. It's the only book I've ever read that actually entertained me.
Johnny Got His Gun. I read that book in 7th grade and bawwwed. Then in 11th grade and bawwwed again.
Slaughterhouse-Five and The Plague Dogs are also up there.
>>2
Oh man...I recently loned Notes From Underground to somebody. That's the only Dostoevsky book I've read, but holy shit. I needta read moar from that guy.
Notes from Underground is pretty win as well. I find his religious philosophy a little too idealistic, but that doesn't stop me from liking his work. Herman Hesse's Steppenwolf is somewhat similar to NfU (it's a lot better than Siddhartha)--you might want to give it a try.
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Anonymous2009-03-02 16:43
Cloud Atlas is the most involved I've ever been with a novel. I can read through it several times and it'll never lose it's spark.