Please help...This's my last resort...I'm desperate...

[rsk635]

Hello,
I'm a college junior majoring in bioengineering. Being in a school surrounded by mainly engineering and science students everyday, I find myself getting more and more confused and frustrated by the day. Well, long story short, I've always had a natural penchant for languages and literature. (Actually, I speak English as a foreign language and only began learning it seriously for several years.)

A few years ago (when I was in high school), I used to read lots of great things because I had so much time and was very motivated to improve my English abilities. I've read many of the classics (such as Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Bronte and Dickens) and have a general comprehension and appreciation of British literature in its chronological sequence.

Nowadays, I hardly read anything anymore. This is partially due to the demanding curriculum at my university, but most importantly, I have the faintest ideas when it comes to the place one should go in order to discover great literatures. For instance, if I walk in a bookstore, browsing through the best-seller sections, I usually find nothing I'm seriously interested. Perhaps, I'm rather skeptical about them because I believe the true value of a book is not necessarily vindicated by its popularity among the mass (oftentimes gullible) audiences. And to make matters worse, there is almost not a single person among my acquaintances who happens to be an authentic and knowledgeable book lover.

Those are the main reasons I turn to this forum with the hope that somehow I would be lifted out of my present "miseries" caused by a prolonged famine of the mind and soul. So my dear friends, would you please kindly provide me with your conscientious guidance in a matter of this sort and allow us to share the delights and satisfactions we commonly derive from engaging in such a joyful activity. Remember, your recommendations and comments are always appreciated!

[email protected]

PS I currently live in the US in case you happen to wonder.

[Logos]

Hello rsk

I'm not sure what you're asking specifically? for recommended books to read?

Hang around and peruse the forums, I'm sure you'll come across a topic that you'd like to participate in.

[rsk635]

Some clarifications to my original message: I'm not really seeking your opinons on some particular books you think that are interesting or valuable, but instead, I'd more like to learn the WAY you usually use in order to find those great books that are out there within our easy reach yet seemingly elusive at times. (i.e. How do you exactly discover new books that are worth reading on a regular basis, not just once or twice through some lucky findings.)

However, of course, if you just want to recommend a particular book for me, that'll also be nice. I think it may get me started and is enough to satisfy my hunger for some time, but I really hope I could learn the means so I'll be able to find my own meals (that suit my personal taste) next time.

Thanks a lot!!!

[Logos]

Ah ! okays..

For me the process is basically.. if I've got a favourite author I work chronologically through their works. Like Aldous Huxley. Unless I learn that their work is intolerable and I can't continue. That's my historian/anal retentive process.

My curious/intuitive approach is.. I end up hearing something about an author's real life that causes me to investigate the works they wrote at that particular time. For instance Mario Vargas Llosa started out as a journalist, but his first novel was written about his experience at a military academy. His Aunt Julia.. is semi-autobiographical as well, (highly recommended by the way! ) so there is usually the biographical element to me wanting to read something because I want to learn more about the person themselves.

These are the main reasons I pick up a book

[RobinHood3000]

I agree, if you have any favorite authors, I would start there. Otherwise, there's really no substitute for a library card and trial and error. Happy hunting!

[Anna Seis]

[, I'd more like to learn the WAY you usually use in order to find those great books that are out there within our easy reach yet seemingly elusive at times. (i.e. How do you exactly discover new books that are worth reading on a regular basis, not just once or twice through some lucky findings.)

Hello rsk, I will tell you how I find new books: After reading a book I enjoyed, I look for authors quoted in it and read them. If the experience is satisfactory I go on. If it is not so, at least I've learnt that I don't like them because I have readed them. Another way of find is serendipity. Looking at used book stores, I sometimes find what I didn't seeked; and in that way I have had acquitance with writers interesting or/and unknown. Desperate but methodic search in libraries is also a fantastic hobby.

[Xamonas Chegwe]

Here's a suggestion - Try adding something that you know you really like to your basket in Amazon - you don't need to actually buy it! - and see what comes up in the "people that liked this, also liked..." section - then read the reviews to see if they seem like your kind of thing.

[EAP]

Messageboards. Reading Lists. Word of mouth. Favorite authors of my favorite authors. Themed Literature.

[Logos]

Although I rarely buy *new* books, sometimes a cheap-o price tag lures me in

Definitely like what Anna mentioned, authors I already like make lots of references to authors they like, so I will add them to my list to check into.

[Wendigo_49]

I would go with favorite author. Then, I would see on amazon.com what other books customers bought that also bought your favorite author. However dumb luck doesn't hurt. I found my favorite novel because I liked the name Beckett.

[A Hard Rain]

start with how to read a book by alder and van doren, then read the illiad or the odyssey.

[BSturdy]

I have taken up several really good hints from the forum (am reading 'Master and Margerita' by Bulgakov - its brilliant)

Find a good (maybe used is best) bookshop - talk to them

but why not try:

'The periodic table' by Primo Levi - He was a chemist (half the Biochemistry!). It is a compulsive read - the story of a holocaust survivor.

Or, 'The food of the gods' by H G Wells - very appropriate to your field.

You are involved in a fascinating area and will surely meet others with similar interests - don't worry

[Petrarch's Love]

To begin with, don't worry too much about finding the "right" book. Reading books is a little like meeting different people. You need to just go out and read a lot of them and pretty soon you'll find you're striking up a "conversation" with a pretty great writer and you'll want to continue to get to know his or her works. Don't get too hung up on whether something's a classic or a current best seller. Just read something that seems to speak to you in some way, something you enjoy. You may read a few losers, but, with an open mind, you'll probably find more than a few winners. I find exploring one of the great joys of reading. (You might read some short stories by an author you think you might like if you're afraid of reading an entire novel and then disliking it). A large store such as Barnes and Noble or Borders should have plenty of both classic and contemporary works in the 'Literature' section of their shelves. Start with some authors you've liked before.

Also, if you're at a university you may want to think about taking an introductory survey course in Literature or another Lit. class that looks interesting. If you don't have the time in your schedule to take the course for formal credit, most professors don't mind an interested student auditing or sitting in on their course as long as you give them the heads up ahead of time or on the first day of class (sitting in would mean you could put as much or as little work as your schedule allowed). It could give you some great reading suggestions and the lectures would provide you with information on the life and times of the authors, insights into the style of the writing, etc. An added bonus is that you might meet some new friends who share your love of reading and could give you some of their own reading recommendations! Your campus probably also has some book clubs or reading groups that could work for you too.

[ryan24]

i like to go to amazon.com and find a book i loved, then look at the lists people made with that book in them, see what other books the people that liked that one like.

[mike-eustace]

i always read introductions at the start of novels. these always mention other books and i then look out for them. an index card with books i'm on the lookout for is always in my wallet.