What books to read?

[Robo]

Before you start yelling; yes, I did search threads about books. None were like this.
~
I (sometimes) love reading books. I like fantasy, non-fiction, fiction. Now, I don't read much, but if I do, I'd like to know some good books. I'm interested in poems, literature, fantasy, things like that.
~
series I have read:
Percy Jackson and the Olympians books 1-5
~
I'd like to mostly read books to expand my vocabulary.
-
I'd also like this thread to be not only for me, but for all of you bookworms out there. (If it ever gets popular, that is.)
~
Discuss!

 

[Duffie]

I read occasionally.

Novels I've read personally;
Animorphs by K. A. Applegate
From what I've read, which is a couple random volumes, it's a really good book series. I mean, just the idea of being able to transform into animals (including humans,) is such an awesome idea. <3

The Last Apprentice by Joseph Delaney
Read from book one to book eight. Love this horror series. This better damn well make it to Hollywood.

Mangas I've read personally;
Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya
I've seen most of the anime, but I've read books 3 ~ 6... Which is most of the anime I've watched. It's a manga made for female readers, but damn it, it got me into these kind of things. So much better than action... Sometimes.

Koe no Kitachi by Ooima Yoshitoki ~ http://www.mangahere.co/manga/koe_no_kitachi/c000/
A very sad manga... At least, from the start. It's about a deaf girl who gets bullied in a public school. This is one manga I demand you read.

Stories and books I've read in class that I've enjoyed;
Hamlet by Shakespeare
The best Shakespearean play, in my opinion.

Some comics I've read online and really enjoyed;
El Goonish Shive by Dan Shive ~ http://www.egscomics.com/
A really great comic series, full of magic, mystical beasts, and alternate realities... All coexisting in our universe. It's a great comic, but be aware of the comical switching of genders in this one.

Sins by Adam Schlosser ~ http://www.sincomics.com/index.php
So, imagine you find this gauntlet. You put it on, and suddenly, you see the 7 Deadly Sins, manifested into physical forms... And they're under your control. Sure, you lost your soul as soon as you put on the gauntlet... But you have the power of the 7 Deadly Sins. How bad can it be?

Generating Level by Krystian Pacholczyk and NotJess ~ http://genlevcreative.thewebcomic.com/
A Minecraft comic. It's quite nice.

Mabinogi: Remnants by NaniRoxy ~ http://remnants.smackjeeves.com/
A Mabinogi comic about a world after Mabinogi, where a door appears in the soul stream, speaking of a whole new world to explore... But rumored to take away your powers as a Milletian. The main character stays in Erinn, keeping his powers, while pretending to be a normal elf.

Sparkling Generation Valkyrie Yuuki by Kittyhawk ~ http://montrose.is/sgvy/
A mature comic in the later chapters, but I thought it was a nice read. Doesn't seem to be getting updates, though... Oh, and the main characters is actually a guy. Who turns into a girl. With superpowers. Yup.

Ensign Sue Must Die by Kevin Bolk ~ http://interrobangstudios.com/comics-display.php?strip_id=989
A comic that takes place in the Star Trek universe, where Sue joins the lovely crew of Captain Kirk. Quite funny, and I feel like I'd enjoy it more if I got the Star Trek references.

I Dream of a Jeanie Bottle by CDRudd ~ http://jeaniebottle.com/
Based around the hip show back in the day of I Dream of a Jeanie, an average guy finds a bottle, opens it, and turns into Jeanie the genie. Some mature moments, but nothing explicit.

... Yeah, I tend to read more comics than novels. xD

Out of these, I'd suggest Hamlet, if you haven't already. Dunno if it would appeal to you, though.

 

[Robo]

G

I read occasionally.

Novels I've read personally;
Animorphs by K. A. Applegate
From what I've read, which is a couple random volumes, it's a really good book series. I mean, just the idea of being able to transform into animals (including humans,) is such an awesome idea. <3

The Last Apprentice by Joseph Delaney
Read from book one to book eight. Love this horror series. This better damn well make it to Hollywood.

Mangas I've read personally;
Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya
I've seen most of the anime, but I've read books 3 ~ 6... Which is most of the anime I've watched. It's a manga made for female readers, but damn it, it got me into these kind of things. So much better than action... Sometimes.

Koe no Kitachi by Ooima Yoshitoki ~ http://www.mangahere.co/manga/koe_no_kitachi/c000/
A very sad manga... At least, from the start. It's about a deaf girl who gets bullied in a public school. This is one manga I demand you read.

Stories and books I've read in class that I've enjoyed;
Hamlet by Shakespeare
The best Shakespearean play, in my opinion.

Some comics I've read online and really enjoyed;
El Goonish Shive by Dan Shive ~ http://www.egscomics.com/
A really great comic series, full of magic, mystical beasts, and alternate realities... All coexisting in our universe. It's a great comic, but be aware of the comical switching of genders in this one.

Sins by Adam Schlosser ~ http://www.sincomics.com/index.php
So, imagine you find this gauntlet. You put it on, and suddenly, you see the 7 Deadly Sins, manifested into physical forms... And they're under your control. Sure, you lost your soul as soon as you put on the gauntlet... But you have the power of the 7 Deadly Sins. How bad can it be?

Generating Level by Krystian Pacholczyk and NotJess ~ http://genlevcreative.thewebcomic.com/
A Minecraft comic. It's quite nice.

Mabinogi: Remnants by NaniRoxy ~ http://remnants.smackjeeves.com/
A Mabinogi comic about a world after Mabinogi, where a door appears in the soul stream, speaking of a whole new world to explore... But rumored to take away your powers as a Milletian. The main character stays in Erinn, keeping his powers, while pretending to be a normal elf.

Sparkling Generation Valkyrie Yuuki by Kittyhawk ~ http://montrose.is/sgvy/
A mature comic in the later chapters, but I thought it was a nice read. Doesn't seem to be getting updates, though... Oh, and the main characters is actually a guy. Who turns into a girl. With superpowers. Yup.

Ensign Sue Must Die by Kevin Bolk ~ http://interrobangstudios.com/comics-display.php?strip_id=989
A comic that takes place in the Star Trek universe, where Sue joins the lovely crew of Captain Kirk. Quite funny, and I feel like I'd enjoy it more if I got the Star Trek references.

I Dream of a Jeanie Bottle by CDRudd ~ http://jeaniebottle.com/
Based around the hip show back in the day of I Dream of a Jeanie, an average guy finds a bottle, opens it, and turns into Jeanie the genie. Some mature moments, but nothing explicit.

... Yeah, I tend to read more comics than novels. xD

Out of these, I'd suggest Hamlet, if you haven't already. Dunno if it would appeal to you, though.

Props to you for having to type all that. Also, people, don't forget to suggest some books to help vocabulary too.

 

[Duffie]

Props to you for having to type all that. Also, people, don't forget to suggest some books to help vocabulary too.

Shakespearean plays have some words you might find to expand your vocabulary, good sir.

 

[Nillbugwtw]

My primary suggestions are largely sci-fi. In no particular order:

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card (especially if you haven't seen the movie yet)
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (again, it's significantly better than the movie)
The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury (it's a bit of a heavy read, but well worth it, as most of Bradbury's stuff is)
---Not sci-fi---
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving (Deep book, on so many levels. Definitely recommend.)
Will edit in others if and when I think of them.

 

[Jayfeather]

So, assuming you're about the age to read Percy Jackson, may I suggest:
Magyk
uh there's another percy jackson series about the romans or something?
probably Ranger's Apprentice
Eragon
Artemis Fowl
Hunger Games
Game of Thrones

That's about all I got for you, good luck ^_^

Edit: All of these are series, I rarely read something that isn't a series

 

[Da Jinks]

There are more books in the Percy Jackson series (heroes of Olympus? Haven't reread one in ages ), beyond that you may like the Kane Chronicles if you liked Percy Jackson.

 

[Sploorky]

So, assuming you're about the age to read Percy Jackson, may I suggest:
Magyk
uh there's another percy jackson series about the romans or something?
probably Ranger's Apprentice
Eragon
Artemis Fowl
Hunger Games
Game of Thrones

That's about all I got for you, good luck ^_^

Edit: All of these are series, I rarely read something that isn't a series

Artemis Fowl was the shiiiiit!

When I was 13-14, I read The Demonata and The Saga of Darren Shan(both written by Darren Shan), they're a horror/supernatural series, each at least 10 books. Demonata got pretty gory iirc, just throwing that out as a forewarning, but I like that series more than the other one ^_^.

Harry Potter I started reading when I was 6, and it's a really great book series in my opinion.

I used to own a book called Ship Breaker, by Paolo Bacigalupi. I can't really explain the plot, it's been a couple of years since I read it, but it was fiction, and pretty enjoyable.

I'm not sure how old you are, so some of these may not interest you, but 1984, Animal Farm, The Catcher in the Rye, and Lord of the Flies are all books I loved reading in school. You may read all those for school in the future, but if it's your interest, they're very thought provoking.

 

[Da Jinks]

1984, Animal Farm,

Been considering reading these, pretty much confirmed I'll pick 'em up next time I'm at the library!

Also, Chronicles of Narnia is the best.

 

[Oak Milk]

The Inheritance Series (Eragon) by C Paolini
The movie made of the first book does this series no justice, there are 4 books in this series and they are truly a delight to read.

 

[Robo]

Also, Chronicles of Narnia is the best.

Yus! I've been reading those. Well, I got the first book at the library, returned it, haven't read the series since.
My mom owns all of the books in the series, here at home. I've just been procrastinating reading them.

 

[iheartboomer]

Looking For Alaska by John Green
Still haven't gotten over how good I found that book.

13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Typical dystopian thingy. Very good however.

 

[_ChoasLego_]

(Who needs books when you have Fanfiction.net!)

Just kidding, a few good books I have read so far this month are:

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

 

[Jubjubers]

jube recommends;

American Psycho - Bret Easton Ellis

The Brothers Karamazov - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Trainspotting - Irvine Welsh

Lolita - Ivan Nabokov

The Idiot - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

The Foundation Series - Isaac Asimov

• Prelude to Foundation
• Forward the Foundation
• Foundation
• Foundation and Empire
• Second Foundation
• Foundation's Edge
• Foundation and Earth

Catch-22 - Joseph Heller

Ulysses - James Joyce

Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut

Breakfast of Champions - Kurt Vonnegut

The Anarchist Cookbook - William Powell

The Dark Tower - Stephen King

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S Thompson

The Hunt for Red October - Tom Clancy

The Men Who Stare at Goats - Jon Ronson

Earth Abides - George Franklin Stewart

Harrison Bergeron - Kurt Vonnegut

Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand

The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand

 

[JtTorso]

I quite enjoyed Barney's Version - Mordecai Richler.

The novel is about a wealthy man named Barney Panofsky retelling his life experiences through various mental states at the end of his life. A lot of it is fragmented and out of order as he remembers different events and each chapter is mostly centered around each of his three ex wives. The man is very crude and in many ways deplorable and it shows a lot through his retelling of his life and his acknowledgement of his own sins. I actually highly recommend it.

 

[Damer_Flinn]

A neat one to read that I keep going back to is Space Cadet by Robert A. Heinlein

 

[Awwwyea]

I have a request myself, since this is a book thread.
Basically, gotta do an essay prompt over a book every so often, this one's due this Friday.

Problem? I haven't started a book yet. You guys should totally direct me to a short-ish book with a plot that is actually decent. :)

 

[nitasu987]

Currently reading Allie Condie's Crossed, the sequel to Matched. It's a teen dystopian romance novel if yer into that. I loooved Magyk, And I also like the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series.

 

[Prizyms]

teen dystopian romance novel

I tend to stay away from those myself, especially if Roboboy here is looking to expand his vocabulary through reading.

Modern classics are classics for a reason. Catch-22, Fahrenheit 451, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, Foundation series, Brave New World - those should keep you busy for a while.

 

[Jubjubers]

Modern classics are classics for a reason.

not quite.

 

[Jivvi]

Looking for Alaska and The Fault in Our Stars are pure brilliance, but prepare for some sads. Both by John Green, so I assume his other books (Paper Towns, etc) are great

Blood Red Road by Moria Young is a nice read, although it certainly won't improve your vocab. (It's written from a first person perspective, down to the protagonist's poor grammar.)

Insignia by S.J. Kincaid is one I like, it has a unique concept and it written quite well.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Go read this now. No questions.

I'm in the middle of the Gone series at the moment, and they are quite good.
(Gone, Hunger, Lies, Plague, Fear, Light).


Wait just realised Choas beat me to The Fault in Our Stars. :C Oh well.

Oh oh and probably the best books I've read.
Once, Then, Now, and After

These are written from the perspective of Felix: a 12-year-old Jewish boy who escaped from the Nazi's by chance during the Holocaust, and is now on the run. He meets a little girl named Zelda, and they attempt to find out what happened to their parents. It's truly deep and powerful, don't let Morris Gleitzman's other children titles fool you: this one one powerful story. Really, really good series.

Also, Now is set sometime after, told by Felix's granddaughter, but After continues off the plot of Once and Then.

 

[nitasu987]

I tend to stay away from those myself, especially if Roboboy here is looking to expand his vocabulary through reading.

Modern classics are classics for a reason. Catch-22, Fahrenheit 451, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, Foundation series, Brave New World - those should keep you busy for a while.

Yeah, I agree. I really liked F451 myself.

 

[Fiestaguy]

Read the ranger's apprentice series by -John Flanagan and all three Hunger games books by -Suzanne Collins. Not much to read. We only have a small assortiment of english books in our library. The rest are all dutch >.>

Why can't they make books about the SCP foundation. 1 with the 2000+ main series and one with the stories.

 

[Undefined User 7]

I have a request myself, since this is a book thread.
Basically, gotta do an essay prompt over a book every so often, this one's due this Friday.

Problem? I haven't started a book yet. You guys should totally direct me to a short-ish book with a plot that is actually decent. :)

Defining short as 'under 200 pages' I can recommend you a few:

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie (180 pages)
It is the early days of Mao's Cultural Revolution, and all city students are sent to the fields to be 're-educated' by the peasants. The story follows two boys who were sent to a mountain village from a city. They discover a secret stash of books and become lost in other worlds and an escape from the harsh life of Maoist China. This is a really good book to start off in the genre of Asian and Chinese literature.

Candide by Voltaire (150 pages)
Candide is a young German prince who was raised to always expect everything was 'for the best'. After his home is destroyed, his family murdered, and he escapes being sold into slavery by an invading army, he goes on a long journey to find his love. The story is a vicious but hilarious attack on optimism. Truly a classic of literature.

Our Town by Thornton Wilder (100 pages)
This short play is an excellent example of allegory. I warn you ahead of time it's a bit of a difficult read, but I managed to get through it myself. This details the events of a small American town a few centuries back, and the question of what comes after death.

 

[Awwwyea]

Candide by Voltaire (150 pages)
Candide is a young German prince who was raised to always expect everything was 'for the best'. After his home is destroyed, his family murdered, and he escapes being sold into slavery by an invading army, he goes on a long journey to find his love. The story is a vicious but hilarious attack on optimism. Truly a classic of literature.

This sounds perfect, considering all the prompt options are over things characters struggle with. It's also 130 pages shorter than my fall-back novel (Metro 2033), so I thank you greatly Biblius! :)