Books
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Books worth reading
Tom Jones
Tom Jones is rightly regarded as Fielding's greatest work, and one of the first and most influential of English novels. Attacked at the time as `A motley history of bastardism, fornication, and adultery', it overflows with a marvellous assortment of prudes, whores, libertines, bumpkins, misanthropes, hypocrites, scoundrels, virgins, and all too fallible humanitarians.
Itts enormously and magnificently intricate plot is one of the greatest ever, seeming so dense that the characters cannot escape, yet so loose as to allow them to have a good time. At the centre of the plot stands a hero whose actions were, in 1749, as shocking as they are funny today. Expelled from Mr Allworthy's country estate for his wild temper and sexual conquests, the good-hearted foundling Tom Jones loses his money, joins the army and pursues his beloved across Britain to London, where he becomes a kept lover and confronts the possibility of incest.
This is a very funny book, brilliantly attacking hypocrisy and immorality. Only its length could be cast against it for the modern reader - but believe me, getting through it is definitely worth it. The plot keeps cranking up right till the end.
Great Expectations
Great Expectations charts the progress of Pip from childhood through often painful experiences to adulthood, as he moves from the Kent marshes to busy, commercial London, encountering a variety of extraordinary characters ranging from Magwitch, the escaped convict, to Miss Havisham, locked up with her unhappy past and living with her ward, the arrogant, beautiful Estella. In this compelling story, Dickens shows the dangers of being driven by a desire for wealth and social status. Pip must establish his own sense of self against the plans which others seem to have for him, and thus discover a firm set of values and priorities. Whether such values will allow one to prosper in the complex world of early Victorian England is, however, the major question posed by Great Expectations, one of Dickens's most fascinating and disturbing novels.
Charles Dickens makes the case for there being the potential for good in everyone. Evil and sin follow from a combination of being self-absorbed and selfish. What is remarkable about the way these themes are handled is that they are clearly based on an assessment of human psychology, long before that field was established.
The Maltese Falcon
THE MALTESE FALCON (1930) set the standard by which the private eye genre is judged. Sam Spade is hired by the fragrant Miss Wonderley to track down her sister, who has eloped with a louse called Floyd Thursby. But Miss Wonderley is in fact the beautiful and treacherous Brigid O'Shaughnessy, and when Spade's partner Miles Archer is shot while on Thursby's trail, Spade finds himself both hunter and hunted: can he track down the jewel-encrusted bird, a treasure worth killing for, before the Fat Man finds him?
Ulysses
This book is very funny and very beautiful. Written over a seven-year period, from 1914 to 1921, this book has survived bowdlerization, legal action and controversy. The novel deals with the events of one day in Dublin, 16th June 1904, now known as "Bloomsday". There are three main characters. The book presents us with Stephen Dedalus, a young would be writer and Leopold Bloom, a middle aged advertising space salesman, with the final chapter being given to the nocturnal thoughts of Bloom's unfaithful wife, Molly. During the day Bloom attends a funeral, faces down a racist bigot, masturbates and saves a drunken Stephen from two British soldiers before taking him home. The books famed mythic parallels, it's symbolism, puzzles, allusions etc are all very well when one has made some headway into the book - and it is a book one goes back to, but the nervous reader is more concerned with its difficulty.
When reading this book, do not get too bogged down when one does not understand something. Skip with impunity. Do not give up stumped at chapter three - we've all been there and it is worth pressing on. The difficulty lies partly with Joyce's 'internal monologue' technique particularly when the thoughts being set down in this abbreviated form are those of the erudite (and pretentious) Stephen - and partly (especially in the second half of the book) with the plethora of styles Joyce uses to mirror the action of the book - parody, pastiche and musical and rhythmic devices. Yet in these styles lie so many of the book's joys - one is again and again stopped in one's tracks by a perfectly shaped sentence ,a piece of intriguing wordplay or a sly shaft of wit.
If you persevere with this book you will find your own reasons for going back to it. This book in a very strange and subtle way, is a lifechanger.
Lolita
Lolita is full of subtleties and nuances, comedic psuedonyms for the many quirky characters, colourful dialogue, exploration of the blurry line between love and lust. Comedy and tragedy combine in this beautiful, original, witty love story.
The main chacrater, Humbert inspires respect, and even awe, in the societies in which he's lived. The type of reader who can pick his way through the labyrinthine prose automatically identifies with Humbert's literary accomplishment. Yet the book is about banal and sordid self-obsession. Humbert analyzes and reanalyzes his life and lusts. He laughs at his therapists yet 'blames' his childhood misfortune for his predilection for nymphets. His failure to escape from the monster he's made himself has disastrous consequences for a young girl, struggling to come to terms with her own sexuality under difficult circumstances. This book tells us a lot about love, but only because one can't help catching distorted glimpses of oneself in the mind of the monster. The combination of darkly humorous perception and profound sincerity is terrifying.
The Decameron
Boccaccio's 'Decameron' is a rich and diverse collection of stories and anecdotes. They often amount to little nuggets of medieval smut which can be highly amusing in themselves. There's also much to be gleaned about everyday life among the rich and the poor in medieval Tuscany; a shaft of light is thrown on ordinary fourteenth century problems such as the dangers of travelling between cities. Between stories, Boccaccio inserts details about the story-tellers, and their attempts to flee the plague in Florence, all written in elegant humanist prose. In short, six hundred pages and a hundred stories represent no hardship for the reader.
Faust
The legend of Faust grew up in the sixteenth century, a time of transition between medieval and modern culture in Germany. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) adopted the story of the wandering conjuror who accepts Mephistopheles's offer of a pact, selling his soul for the devil's greater knowledge; over a period of 60 years he produced one of the greatest dramatic and poetic masterpieces of European literature.
Doctor Zhivago
"Doctor Zhivago" is a classic love story set in Russia at the time of the revolution. Yuri Zhivago, physician and poet, wrestles with the new order and confronts the changes cruel experience has made in him, and the anguish of being torn between the love of two women.
The Prince
This famous treatise on statecraft , first published in 1517, holds such power to shock 'men of goodwill' that at one time Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) was identified with Satan himself. In his own turbulent times, however, Machiavelli was concerned, not with lofty ideals, but with government that would last. He drew on his own experience of office under the Florentine Republic. Using as his model Cesare Borgia, a Florentine prince who stopped at nothing to achieve political position, Machiavelli describes, even recommends, ruthless despotism, cunning magnaminity and cruelty for successful government. Here he states uncompromisingly what, in some degree, most governments do but fail to profess.
Captain Cook's Voyages
Cook's voyages are unparalleled in the age of sail. Told mostly in Cook's own words, this book describes the adventure of sailing into the unknown, of scientific experiment to fix a method of establishing longitude, and of the botanical curiosities that were collected by Joseph Banks.
Seven Pillars of Wisdom
Seven Pillars of Wisdom remains--like its enigmatic creator--brilliant and controversial. Written between 1919 and 1926, this text describes, in the words of E. M. Forster, 'the revolt in Arabia against the Turks, as it appeared to an Englishman who took part. Round this tent-pole of a military chronicle T. E. has hung an unexampled fabric of portraits, descriptions, philosophies, emotions, adventures, dreams. It tells of the campaign against the Turks in the Middle East, encompassing gross acts of cruelty and revenge, ending in a welter of stink and corpses in a Damascus hospital.
He has brought to his task a fastidious scholarship, an impeccable memory, a style nicely woven of Oxfordisms and Doughty, an eye unparalleled . . . a profound distrust of himself, a still profounder faith.'
'The dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act out their dream with open eyes, to make it possible. This I did.'
The Pillars of the Earth by Kenn Follet
Set in medieval Britain, this story, which covers two generations, tells of a group of men and women whose destinies are fatefully linked with the building of a 12th century cathedral.
When you first hear about this book, you think - monks and masons - how on earth can someone write over 1000 pages about this. Once you pick the book up, it adopts magnetic properties - you just cannot put it down! This novel has everything from love to hate and every thing in between. The passion and drama of that age is captured with evocative narrative and the characters are rich and colourful - you really feel for some of these people. From the opening address through to its storming conclusion, the reader is drawn in to its subtle twists and tales. A real page-turner.
The Eye of the Needle by Kenn Follet
His weapon is the stiletto, his codename: "The Needle". He is Henry Faber, Germany's most feared agent in Britain. His task is to discover the Allies' plans for D-Day, and get them to Germany at all costs. A task that he ruthlessly carries through, until Storm Island and a woman called Lucy.
It combines suspense and history about WWII. the plot is conclusive
and the characters are plausible. it won't take long to read it. although
the beginning is slightly long-winded the entire story is a very solid
espionage thriller. people who are interested in this area should definitely
read this book just as people who haven't read espionage books.
I was slightly disappointed after reading 'Pillars of the Earth', a
novel that captivated me throughout its 1000 plus pages. The characters
in 'The Eye of the Needle' seemed too two dimensional and unbelievable.
But, this is a different genre to the epic novel and could not really
be compared.
The War of the Worlds
An English astronomer, in company with an artilleryman, a country curate, and others, struggle to survive the invasion of Earth by Martians in 1894
Wells' vision of aliens, striding forth to subjugate humanity in hundred-foot tall fighting machines that sprint at 60mph and lay the countryside waste with nerve gas and death rays, is awesome today; I cannot imagine the impression this book must have made a hundred years ago.
Wells starts with just one outrageous idea - that of alien invasion - and then makes sure it never gets out of control. The locations are real, the panic feels real, and the battles are superbly described. Humanity even gets the odd one back against the Martians - one fighting machine is blown to rags by a lucky artillery hit; another is rammed and "sunk" by a brilliantly-handled destroyer when it rashly wades into the Channel. It's not just a melodrama, of course. The fragility of civilisation is what really interested Wells, here and elsewhere, and you get a chilling feel for how rapidly the conquered here are ready to line up and work for the victors in the War of the Worlds. Despite this, there is poignance as well in the way the story ends
Crime and Punishment
From this book's opening pages, Dostoyevsky attaches us unreservedly to his hero, creating an intimacy that is claustrophobic, full of tension, and as haunting and relentless as a love affair. The novel is concerned with the psychology of a crime and the processes of guilt.
This book is a superb piece of literature, Dostoyevsky's style - intentse, vivid, compelling - draws you into the inner world of the protaganist, the introspective student Raskolnikov, as he rationalises and debates with himself, before, during and after his terrible crime. Once you are drawn into this inner realm, Dostoyevsky leads you deeper and deeper spiraling into the dark recesses of the mind.
Not only is the book multi-layered, tackling many issues: moral, judicial, cultural, social and providing an excellent expose of the human psyche, but it is a book with a page turning plot.
This combination of Dostoyevsky's prose and the issues with which he deals and the tense story line results in a compelling, gripping and absorbing read.
1984 (George Orwell)
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A satire on the horrors of totalitarianism, "Nineteen Eighty-Four" is set in a society run by Big Brother where people are made to conform to orthodoxy by the Thought Police. Winston Smith yearns for truth and liberty, but he comes to realize that he cannot outwit the forces at work. This book is truly outstanding, it is a timeless political satire that demands to be read to be fully appreciated. Nineteen Eighty Four is a chilling portrayal of totalitarianism with a Nietzsche philosophy --that there are no facts, only interpretations-- from the book we have: '"Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else," says O'Brien. " . . . In the mind of the Party, which is collective and immortal. |
Whatever the Party holds to be truth is truth."'. The importance of this book is demonstrated when you discover that phrases such as, Room 101 and, Big Brother originated in this publication.
Fahreneit 451
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First published in 1953, Fahrenheit 451 is Ray Bradbury's, frightening vision of the future, where firemen don't put out fires--they start them in order to burn books. Bradbury's vividly painted society holds up the appearance of happiness as the highest goal--a place where trivial information is good, and knowledge and ideas are bad. Fire Captain Beatty explains it this way, "Give the people contests they win by remembering the words to more popular songs.... Don't give them slippery stuff like philosophy or sociology to tie things up with. That way lies melancholy." |
Guy Montag is a book-burning fireman undergoing a crisis of faith. His wife spends all day with her television "family", imploring Montag to work harder so that they can afford a fourth TV wall. Their dull, empty life sharply contrasts with that of his next-door neighbour Clarisse, a young girl thrilled by the ideas in books, and more interested in what she can see in the world around her than in the mindless chatter of the tube. When Clarisse disappears mysteriously, Montag is moved to make some changes, and starts hiding books in his home. Eventually, his wife turns him in, and he must answer the call to burn his secret cache of books. After fleeing to avoid arrest, Montag winds up joining an outlaw band of scholars who keep the contents of books in their heads, waiting for the time society will once again need the wisdom of literature.
Thus Spoke Zarathustra: A Book for Everyone
and No One
(Friedrich Nietzsche)
Nietzsche's most accessible and influential work. Without doubt one
of the greatest works of philosophy and thought. Though all of Nietzsche's
works are grand it is this one above all that fully captures his intense
and positive belief in the potential for the future of man. It also
reflects a self examining and lonely side of the sickly philosopher.
Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) has often been misquoted and misrepresented.
His utterance, 'God is dead', his insistence that the meaning of life
is to be found in purely human terms, and his doctrine of the Superman/Ubermench
and the will to power were all later seized upon and unrecognisably
twisted by, among others, Nazi intellectuals. This translation of Thus
Spoke Zarathustra, a spiritual odyssey through the modern world, is
therefore extremely valuable in enabling us to judge for ourselves a
brilliantly original thinker who has had such a powerful influence upon
such writers as Shaw, D. H. Lawrence, Mann and Sartre.
Nietzsche loathed mediocrity; his chief purpose in writing was to restore
the quality of any individual's life. His ideas are often harsh and
uncompromising, but rarely negative in intent.
This book effectively communicates that life is a song and a dance.
That everything is goodness, and that it could never be any less. Even
when Zarathustra walked through the valley of death it was merely a
prelude to something greater. His shadow that he leaped over, that shadow
that will always remain behind him....his friends and animals that were
waiting at the cave. The fool at the city gate who warned of entering
the city but did not leave himself...
The magic and spiritualism of the book is enough to unsure that anyone
who reads the text will not be the same person upon completion as they
were when they began. Though he may come to certain conclusions that
others may feel a need to disagree with, its honesty and intelligence
shines through and we are reminded that Nietzsche would have wanted
us to challenge what he was saying.
Beyond Good and Evil: Prelude to a Philosophy
of the Future
(Friedrich Nietzsche )
From the preface to its closing pages "Beyond Good and Evil" is fired by a passion which expresses itself in an idiom of poetic metaphor. Yet this is philosophy. It covers almost the whole range of Nietzsche's philosophical interests, from the "will to power" to the psychology of religion, and belies its aphoristic structure with an idiosyncratic system of logical and linguistic links.
Beyond Good And Evil" was written immediately after Nietzsche's "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" and contains none of its elaborate metaphors and imagery. "Zarathustra" was literature compared to this book. For anyone venturing into Nietzsche for the first time, there is no better introduction than 'Beyond Good and Evil'. 'Thus Spoke Zarathustra' should not be attempted until at least this has been understood. This is mature Nietzsche, the philosopher, at his most witty, most serious, and most perpetually devastating.
All of the classic Nietzsche themes are present here; most notably and consummately the Will To Power. Chapter 4 consists of 122 razor-edged aphorisms, each only one or two sentences in length, which slice through the skin of human ulterior motive and the flesh of psychology, right down to the bones of mankind. Other chapters deal with the prejudices of philosophers, history of morals, people and nations, religion and "free-spirits" with the same healthy scepticism.
Nietzsche never entangles the reader in nets of abstract philosophical systems or lengthy and boring dissertation as most philosophers are compelled to do. "Beyond Good And Evil" is always to the point and the density of the language is far outweighed by the prolific content and profundity of thought. What at first glance may seem to be lead is revealed as pure gold with a scratch to the surface. For the uninitiated reader, all it takes is a little patience, (and perhaps, occasionally, a dictionary!) to unlock the books undeniable value for those "philosophers of the future" to whom "Beyond Good And Evil" is dedicated.
Nietzsche went on to outline his philosophy further in other truly great books, but "Beyond Good And Evil" represents a pinnacle in his work and is the best introduction to his philosophy. Nietzsche challenges his readers; he does not command but bids us to take a look through different eyes, and then to view ourselves, our wise men, and the world. And, above all, enquire.
The Bell Jar
(Sylvia Plath)
Plath was an excellent poet but is known to many for this largely autobiographical novel. The Bell Jar tells the story of a gifted young woman's mental breakdown beginning during a summer internship as a junior editor at a magazine in New York City in the early 1950s. The real Plath committed suicide in 1963 and left behind this scathingly sad, honest and perfectly- written book, which remains one of the best-told tales of a woman's descent into insanity.
The book relates to a student from Boston who wins a guest editorship on a national magazine, and finds a new world at her feet. Her New York life is crowded with possibilities, so the choice of future is overwhelming. She is faced with the perennial problems of morality, behaviour and identity.
On the surface, this thinly-disguised autobiographical novel about wide-eyed
young college student Esther Greenwood's experiences working in a summer
job at a top New York magazine office appears to be a light, humorous
read; but the hidden depths soon crack open as the story spirals disturbingly
downwards into the black depression of Esther's breakdown, failed suicide
attempt and subsequent psychiatric treatment.
I ordered it from amazon two years ago and this book must be one of the best novels thatI i have ever read. Plath exericses an ability to draw you into the novel until what is unnormal gradully sneaks into our minds. I found myself almost being addicted to this book and I loved how major changes in the main character are not really noticed by us as the reader because we become so involved that we see everything from one perspective. This really is an excellent read, but at the same time could shock an audience with its hypnotic effects.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
(Ken Kesey)
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Since its first publication in 1962, Ken Kesey's astonishing first novel has achieved the status of a contemporary classic. Into the all-powerful mental institution comes McMurphy, a brawling gambling man of immense charm, who wages total war on behalf of his cowed fellow inmates. What follows is at once hilarious and heroic, tragic and ultimately liberating, as McMurphy's war is first won, then lost. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is one of the classic books of the 20th century, standing out at a key point in American literature alongside works such as Catch 22, Herzog & Slaughterhouse-Five. |
The book was made even more popular by the Milos Forman film of the same name. The book is very different to the film in a number of ways- partly due to the, admitidly brilliant film, being written by two screenwriters from a theatrical adaptation by Dale Wasserman. Kesey was reportedly unhappy that his book had become so associated with the film; still, it was seeing the film that made me want to read this book...
The language has a distinct modernist meets beat feel, Kesey not afraid to experiment- though the perspective is given in a disembodied first person by Chief Bromden. The characters are quite different- Cheswick an ambulance chaser, Harding more likeable & closer to McMurphy & there is more made of the staff- from the student doctors making pseudo-psychological definitions to the black staff forced to carry out the chump work.
The book is a much darker prospect than the film, though it shares a heavy dose of black comedy- such as some of McMurphy's acts of revenge on Nurse Ratched (the insults backwards & placed under the seat killed me. Several times...). Kesey offers a bleak crystalline prose in this novel, which was written in a Keroauc-inspired spell of a few days.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a true American classic, probably Kesey's best work- though the epic Sometimes a Great Notion is well worth reading if feeling more adventerous.
Slaughterhouse Five
An anti-war novel in which Billy Pilgrim, prisoner of war, optometrist and time-traveller is the hero. This is a story of innocence faced with apocalypse.
It took Vonnegut more than 20 years to put his Dresden experiences into words. He explained, "there is nothing intelligent to say about a massacre. Everybody is supposed to be dead, to never say anything or want anything ever again." Slaughterhouse Five is a powerful novel incorporating a number of genres. Only those who have fought in wars can say whether it represents the experience well. However, what the novel does do is invite the reader to look at the absurdity of war. Human versus human, hedonist politicians pressing buttons and ordering millions to their deaths all for ideologies many cannot even comprehend.
Flicking between the US, 1940's Germany and Tralfamadore, Vonnegut's semi- autobiographical protagonist Billy Pilgrim finds himself very lost. One minute he is being viewed as a specimen in a Tralfamadorian Zoo, the next he is wandering a post-apocalyptic city looking for corpses. Slaughterhouse Five-Or The Children's Crusade A Duty-Dance with Death is a remarkable blend of black humour, irony, the truth and the absurd.
The author regards his work a "failure", millions of readers do not. Released the same time bombs were falling on South East Asia, this title caused controversy and awakening. Essential reading for all.
Comparisons with Catch 22 are germane as both are 2nd World War satirical anti-war books, though I found Slaughterhouse 5 punchier and funnier than Heller's work (which is fantastic as well). The misfortunes that befall the hapless pacific Billy Pilgrim (he doesn't do anything- things just happen to him) operate as a neat parody of the horror and injustices of war. And the sci-fi element brought to my mind the cameo appearance of aliens in Monty Python's The Life Of Brian. Brutal, clever humour. But of course it delivers a thought-provoking message about human nature too.
Cat's Cradle
"Cat's cradle" is a book that forces you to like it. It will eventually put a smile on your face through sheer persistence in its vision which is pervasive, cynical and at times very very humourous.
The story, which follows directly from "Ice Nine", revolves around a man's hunt for the missing pieces of the substance, after he accidentally discovers that they exist and how to go about locating them. During his trip, he comes across an immense array of characters, all of which have something profound to reveal, whether they realise it or not.
There is not a lot to say about the book's dogma, as it doesn't seem to have a central point. Rather, it is a collage of several ideas, expressed strongly, though often vaguely, by the assortment of memorable characters featured. The author displays a witty and sharp writing style with emphasis on dialogue and minimal waste of paper, although I found his prose somewhat lacking in terms of literature.
All in all, "Cat's cradle" is an honest, straightforward book with more good moments than bad, aimed at leaving the reader entertained, satisfied and, possibly, this bit wiser.
In this novel, the author spatters the targets of religion and science as the hunt for the three children of Dr Felix Hoenikker, one of the fathers of the atomic bomb, draws towards the end that, forall of us, is nigh.
Along with Edmund Cooper's "The Overman Culture", one of the science fiction books I remember reading most avidly as a child, books which stay with you throughout your life. "Cat's Cradle", for me, is amongst Vonnegut's best.
Vonnegut topples his targets like bowling pins. The self-consciously epic sweep of the narrative is signalled by its cheeky references to Moby Dick -- "Call me Jonah" is the first line, and there are a massive 127 chapters crammed into its tiny 179 pages -- but what could be more epic than the end of the world anyway? Vonnegut not only thinks up a new and unusual method of destroying the planet, he invents a cynical new religion, a cast of extraordinary characters, and a very human and very flawed narrator. There's love, sex, death, high farce and the meeting of souls.
"Cat's Cradle"'s abiding popularity can be demonstrated by the number of words and phrases which are now part of everyday language - "busy busy busy", ice nine, boko-maru, foma, karass and so on. Genius is an overused word, but this is clearly the work of genius. It may just seem to you like a book full of cruel jokes in which ultimately everybody dies, but that's the world we live in. The central conceit of the invented religion Bokononism is that its followers know it's all rubbish. Worshipping Bokononism is like reading a good novel. "Don't try," Vonnegut tells us about life on page 115. "Just pretend you understand." These are words to live by. You won't regret buying this book.
