Final read of the summer. Suggestions?

[greg_s]

I'm looking for one last fantastic read before grad school starts. So this may be my final read for pleasure in quite some time. I am looking for a novel. I read a lot of classics and only a handful of contemporary authors. If you had to pick one book to read what would it be?

[Standard_Deviance]

Letters to Wendy's, by Joe Wenderoth. You're welcome.

[BB]

One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

[greg_s]

I'll look into Letters to Wendy's. One Hundred Years of Solitude is a fantastic book. Marquez is a masterful writer.

[Cannon]

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. TIME Magazine selected it as novel of the decade and added it to their Best Novels of All TIME list. Also been made into a film with Keira Knightley, Andrew Garfield, and Carrie Mulligan.





Haven't seen the film, but most people say it is done in a way that makes it a great companion to the book, but isn't really meant to be an alternative, so book first, then movie.

[tomservo]

Some more contemporary stuff I enjoyed. Brief Wonderous life of Oscar Wao - Junot Diaz


Ron Currie Jr - probably my favorite young author


Anything by Michael Chabon


Anything by Dave Eggers

[greg_s]

Oh I'll look into that for sure. I really enjoy Japanese writers. Shusaku Endo is a great one if you like Japanese literature.

[bruschetta]

greg_s, the d'Artagnan romances.

[ChrisW]

Anything by Cormac Mccarthy, I recommend either The Road or All the Pretty Horses.

[greg_s]

@chris, love McCarthy. I've read the road and am in the middle of Blood Meridian right now.

[AlanR]

Gates of Fire - Steven Pressfield


Easily one of my favorite reads. It follows the Spartan 300 and their stand against Persia. Slow starter but well worth the time.

[LakeCharles]

Totally second Letters to Wendy's, great call @Standard_Deviance.


Also, I'd recommend Great Plains by Ian Frazier.

[Lewis Hollow]

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, Michael Chabon. One of my favorite modern novels. And it even won the Pulitzer in 2001.


http://www.amazon.com/The-Amazing-Ad.../dp/0312282990

[maccoinnich]

Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov. It really is a slog to get through-you'll be flicking back and forth between pages the whole time you're reading it-but I highly recommend it. The book works on so many different levels. At first, it seems like it's an epic poem, with a forward and editor's notes. As you progress though it, it's clear that the editor isn't particularly interested in proving any useful commentary. And then it gets really interesting, and more and more bizarre.

[JEH]

@greg - how are you liking Blood Meridian? I've casually read about 2/3 of it over the past 3 years, but just keep setting it aside. I think it's the way it's written, almost in a sort of verse?