+1 for Grapes of Wrath and Fahrenheit 451

Don’t think anyone’s mentioned:

The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini

also some short and powerful books:

The Old Man And The Sea – Ernest Hemingway

Jonathan Livingston Seagull – Richard Bach

The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

And a timeless comedy classic that had me in stitches:

Don Quixote – Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

Louis De Bernières has been mentioned already, for his excellent South American trilogy, but the best book I’ve ever read is his “Birds Without Wings”. Breathtaking, heartbreaking, joyous, philosophical, melancholic, it tells the story of the inhabitants of a small (fictional) Anatolian village during the early 1900s who are swept along inexorably by the tumultuous events of the period. I recommend it to everyone asking for a book, and even just thinking about it now – maybe 5 years since I last read it – is bringing up that feeling of… saudade that we don’t quite have a translation for.

Other than that, I’m thoroughly enjoying Dostoevsky’s The Karamazov Brothers at the moment. Always enjoyed the Iain (M) Banks books. I liked Money by Martin Amis, Paul Auster’s New York Trilogy, Snow Falling On Cedars by David Guterson, and The Human Stain by Philip Roth.

Some great books already mentioned,especially American psycho.&ian banks.
I’d like to suggest Homer’s Odyssey and Dostoevsky’s The Idiot. Both books struck major chords with me. 🙂
For the past two years all I have read is Brian Clough’s bio someone left in the tearoom at work! 🙁

Just finished Lawrence IN Arabia by Scott Anderson

A dense book covering a lot of ground but a great intro to the Middle East in WWI.

Not classic by any sense but I’ve liked Ben Aaronovitch’s Folly series. Potter for adults? ❓

all I have read is Brian Clough’s bio someone left in the tearoom at work

Reminds me, someone left Koushun Takami’s Battle Royale here, so I er, borrowed it for my library.. Really good read!

Speaking of Japanese books

47 Ronin by John Allyn is a cracking read. (Damn you keanu Reeves, your film is shit! 😆 )

1Q84 and The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

Glad Hemingway finally got some love on the 3rd page!

The Old Man and the Sea
A Farewll to Arms

Definitely on-board with the Birdsong haters. I thought it was terrible. Try-hard chick lit desperately seeking to appear profound. Same goes for The Kite Runner (which was great in the first Act, then dreadful in the other 2).

American Psycho – Brett Easton Ellis
Galapagos – Kurt Vonnegut
1984 – George Orwell
The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald
The Wind up Bird Chronicles – Haruki Murakami

couple of classic war books:
Fields of Fire – James Webb
From the City From the Plough – Alexander Baron

I think someone here recommended this to me years ago; “Lonesome Dove” by Larry McMurtry is truly fantastic.

And I always recommend “Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell” to anyone who’ll listen.

Nominally sci-fi but way more than that in my opinion are the ‘Hyperion’ novels by Dan Simmons.

+1 for Iain M/Iain Banks Having gone through his sci-fi collection I moved onto his real world with Whit & Complicity. Crow road is next and need to order a few more

Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones

deluded – Member

At The Mountains of Madness – H.P. Lovecraft

This is a great book.

Thought slaughterhouse 5 was very underwhelming.

The Third Policeman by Flann O Brien

is unlike any other book i’ve read. Brilliant.

Zorba the greek
The book thief
Extremely loud and incredibly close
One hundred years of solitude
Fugitive pieces
Lonesome Dove
The Son by Phillip Meyer

Clavels Shogun is a good read,
As is everything written by Bernard Cornwall, Michael Crichton, George Macdonnel Fraser (Flashman),