Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)[my fan page!] is a book about Christianity taking over the old pagan religions in Arthurian England. It retells the old legend in a very realistic way, from the view point of Morgan le Fay. It�s a tear jerker, you really feel for the vivid characters in the novel..
Anything by Jane Austen !! [my fan page!] I love her witty, ironic novels. Her writing is neat, brief and stylish. The plots are very similar, dealing with middle class gentry girls trying to find husbands, but there are larger themes involved- first impressions, emotionalism, the importance of correct and unselfish behavior.
Here�s list of some of my all time favorite books- in no particular order. Okay, here goes.
Mere Christianity ( CS Lewis) is the most fabulous book, it makes Christianity totally logical. It proves step by step that God does exist, etc. CS Lewis is an Oxford professor who was an atheist that converted to Christianity and became a great modern apologist. He wrote a ton more books that are also good, including his famous children�s series the Narnia Chronicles. He was also a good friend of Tolkien�s.
Lord of the Rings (JRR Tolkien) is a magical trilogy that tells the adventures of a mixed up group of hobbits, wizards, men, elves and dwarves who fight to keep Sauron, the Dark Lord, from conquering the Middle Earth. To finally defeat him, a powerful magic Ring must be destroyed... Funny and exciting, the three books in the trilogy are full of descriptive, poetic language that bring the Middle Earth to life... Lord of the Rings was first totally ignored, then became a cult favorite. People would write "Frodo lives!" in the New York subway!
the Bible- what can I say? Here�s a book you will never get tired of. God�s letter to Christians!
Catch-22 ( Joseph Heller) is a cool novel with quirky characters, relentless irony and a bunch of anti-war stuff.. A typical sentence from the book is: "He was a cheerful, well adjusted and generous guy. No one could stand him."
The Bell Jar ( Sylvia Plath) is a book about a girl struggling with depression, and is based on SP�s own life story. It�s about the struggle of an aspiring young writer against madness. "Much madness is divinest sense to a discerning eye/ much sense the starkest madness.. She is a poet, so there are a bunch of good descriptive passages and stuff in her book that make the plot more artsy and entertaining. Heartbreaking and poignant.
Sophie�s World (Jostein Gaarder) is the cutest book! it�s a mystery novel with an entire history of philosophy (Sophie! get it?) buried inside it. You learn a LOT of stuff, but it�s not boring at all. I was flipping pages till the surprise ending...
The Crucible ( Arthur Miller) okay okay, so it�s not exactly a book. Book/ play same thing. I love the story of course, but I also love the poetic language, like "I made a bell of my honor, I have rung the doom of my good name.." and the themes of truth and falsehood, revenge and honor.
For Whom the Bell Tolls (Ernest Hemmingway) is the story of an American helping the Spanish guerillas fight against fascism. It is a tragic love story, written in Hemmingway�s typical understated prose.. it�s sooo sad! read it and weep.
Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte) is the story of a plain governess who wins the heart of the bold Mr. Rochester. But who knew he has a terrible secret? It shows the triumph of love, girl power and nerds. woohoo. Go Jane!
All Quiet on the Western Front (Erich Maria Remarque) is an anti-war book that follows a group of young German soldiers in WW1, and shows the brutality of war and how the young men have their whole futures taken away from them. It�s so sad and ironic! I love it even though I had to read it for English and write essays on it, which just shows how good it is.
Gone with the Wind (Margret Mitchell) is the classic romantic epic novel. Set in the Civil War, Scarlet O�Hara must survive the hard times that follow the war for the Southerners. Stripped of their slaves and their wealth, plundered by Yankee soldiers, and all their menfolk dying in the war, the women of the South must find a way to survive... Some people think Scarlet is a brat, but I like her anyway. The book is much better than the movie!
Slaughter House Five ( Kurt Vonnegut) is a typical KV book, sarcastic and seemingly simple, but a powerful anti-war message. KV uses bizarre story lines with aliens and wacko people that somehow seem normal..
Eat the Rich ( PJ O�Rourke ) is a hilarious book about.. economics!! yes, that�s right. and it IS funny. PJ is the only guy who bothers to make his acknowledgments humorous. It takes on his typical pro-capitalism, pro-Republican type themes, and does a darn good job. He also has a section about Shanghai that�s very funny and true. PJ also speaks of that great figure, whose bland smiling visage stares out all over the country. Some say he caused the death of millions, while others say his military reputation is exaggerated.. that�s right, it�s Colonel Sanders.