Binge Reading

[Nightshade]

Im planning to Binge read (is that even the right word) as soon as my exams are finished and I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions.
The only criteria I have is that they have a happy ending and are not too 'worthy' or complicated. Also decipite the obvios merits its sales figures would suggest not Mills and Boons style romantic mush please as Though I read anything and everything these I tend to fall back on when there is abasaloutly nothing else available!It doenst matter if its real or e-book
Thanks!
**edit** By worthy read classics as they tend to take time and concentration and I would hate not to give them the merit they deserve.

[Molko]

A Clockwork Orange - its an interesting read and short :)

[Rachy]

Rebecca-Daphne Du Maurier
Treasure Island-Stevenson
I would say The Iliad, but you said nothing too complicated! Hope this helps!

[Nightshade]

humm already read Treasure Island and the simplifised version of Homers illiad
but thanks

[Snukes]

I love Binge Reading! I have that on my schedule ALLLLLL summer. Usually I'll read anything I can get my hands on. You get some winners and some losers that way...

For one-gulp books, I'd recommend:

Jasper Fforde: first one is the Eyre Affair - there are three others if you like that
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. : especially his short stories if you're looking for something a bit lighter, but I also like Timequake and Breakfast of Champions a lot
Christopher Moore : really great for giggle-out-loud silliness. Start with Bloodsucking Fiends, I think...
Douglas Adam's: Hitchhikers trilogy is excellent, of course.
Gregory Macguire: rewrites fairy tales into adult quality novels. Really good. I especially liked Wicked
Janet Evanovich: mysteries with a heroine who doesn't take herself too seriously. Also giggle out-loud stuff.
Tom Robbins: is a hoot and a half. He writes solely for the purpose of using desperately extended, totally bizarre metaphors. I'd start with Jitterbug Perfume

I should stop before I get carried away... :rolleyes:

[Nightshade]

For one-gulp books
yes!!thats exactly what Im talking about!!!!
Ive read the Eyre affaire and the second one I think but them and the Evanovich novels are already on my reading list so thanks Snukes and more please this is my survival we are talking about!
BTW what genre is FForde's books?

[Snukes]

Errr... I stick Fford under "Novels" in my Read-Books list... which is pretty much anything that is fiction without being any one subgenre. In ye-olde bookstore, you'll find him under Fiction. Surrealist Fiction, maybe? :p

If you like historical fiction (a bit more thought-provoking than my list above, but really nice anyway), I recommend Isabel Allende, a Chilean author. House of the Spirits is wonderful, as is Portrait in Sepia. I haven't read her others.

I confess a secret enjoyment of Piers Anthony. :p I really liked his Incarnations series (starts with On a Pale Horse), which is a strange combination of magic and religion. I also liked some of his independent novels, like Mercycle and And What of Earth?

Jeffrey Archer writes wonderful short stories (especially A Twist in the Tale).

Robert Asprin is good for seriously silly fantasy (with a hero named Skeeve, how could it be anything else?)

Jonathan Livingston Seagull, by Richard Back is a very very short novel that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy.

The Davinci Code (by Dan Brown), despite having become something of its own cult, is a very speedy read and good fun as long as you know better than to take it seriously...

I adore anything by Orson Scott Card (especially the Ender's Game series) and C.S. Lewis (if you haven't read Narnia yet, do it! And read them in the OLD order, not the one they're publishing them in now. Sheesh.)

Michael Crichton's older stuff is very good. I swallowed Sphere whole, Jurrasic Park, Congo, and Eaters of the Dead are also really great.

Read some Roald Dahl if you want to get back in touch with your inner child. :) Any of them. All of them!

I really got into Stephen King's Dark Tower series. I haven't finished it yet, but I gobbled the first four. I also really like his short stories. Not such a fan of his other novels, for the most part. I've been hearing lots about The Stand lately. Might have to give that a try.

Anne McCaffrey is another of my guilty pleasures. In truth, she's not the world's most brilliant author, but her ideas are truly captivating and I couldn't read them fast enough. Start with Dragonflight.

Katherine Neville's The Eight is a good (bizarre) adventure/historical fiction story.

James Rollins writes totally brainless trash-archaeology novels (in fact, my favorite genre :D See also Auel, Crichton, Card, etc. ;)), usually involving some sort of whacky twist. Amazonia is a good one to start with.

Well, I must say, Harry Potter is a very fast easy read, if you haven't already.

Alexander McCall Smith writes bite-sized mystery novels set in Botswana that are nice. The first is The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

Lemony Snicket's books are also worth reading. Even if you didn't like the movie. ;) They're silly and short and I have a hunch there's something more substantial lurking just beneath the surface, but it's still not really possible to tell...

Okay! I'm going to stop incriminating myself, and if that isn't enough books to keep you busy this summer, then tell me what you liked, and I'll give it another go. :D I soooo miss this part of working in a book store...

[Scheherazade]

IJanet Evanovich: mysteries with a heroine who doesn't take herself too seriously. Also giggle out-loud stuff.

Yay!!! Finally someone who shares my liking for Stephanie Plum (Evanovich's heroine)!! :D

http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showpost.php?p=68700&postcount=31



Nightshade,

I am not sure how old you are but since you have mentioned exams, you are still at school? Here are some feel-good classics I remember (Sorry if you have already read them) :

Oscar Wilde's plays such as Importance of Being Earnest

Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0486423670/qid=1117057080/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_3_1/202-5431351-8960645

Pygmalion by Bernard Shaw http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0486282228/qid=1117057026/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_3_1/202-5431351-8960645

Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1842226150/qid=1117056513/sr=1-4/ref=sr_1_10_4/202-5431351-8960645

Man and Boy
One for My Baby by Tony Parsons http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0006512135/ref=pd_sim_b_dp_1/202-5431351-8960645

Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0140621334/qid=1117057381/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_3_1/202-5431351-8960645

Anything by Agatha Christie

A Painted House by John Grisham http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0099416158/qid=1117057612/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_2_1/202-5431351-8960645

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0099419785/qid=1117057685/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_3_1/202-5431351-8960645

My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0140282599/qid=1117057778/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_11_2/202-5431351-8960645

The Garden Party and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0141182814/qid=1117057907/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_3_1/202-5431351-8960645


I think all the suggestions in the thread are very good. Let us know which books you read and what you think of them! :nod:

[SleepyWitch]

Great Expectations by Dickens. it's a classic but not too difficult to read. .. but the original ending isn't really happy.. not unhappy either though... there's also an alternative happy/ open ending.

[Nightshade]

Oh Ilike Piers anthoney and Mccaffrey too as well as Evanovich if I could just get hold of one for the money!
I also like historicals alot too!
Sher, Im still at school yes but about to leave FOREVER (bring out the dancing nanas :banana: :banana: :banana: ) I studied an Ideal husband and so being the curious person that I am traked down and read most of his other plays ( I have yet to see the movies though!) and haven read Dorian Grey!
The Pollyanna book and sequl are avialble online at gutemberg along with somthing like 7 other books their all good though just david was a bit plotless I think!

Anyway Thank you all Ill probably read all the books I can get my hands on so thanks

By the way what are the Tuppence and Tommy Agathat christie books in order? Ive already read Young adventures Ltd and by the prickling of my thumbs! :D

[Scheherazade]

By the way what are the Tuppence and Tommy Agathat christie books in order? Ive already read Young adventures Ltd and by the prickling of my thumbs! :DTommy and Tuppence Beresford:

Secret Adversary, The (1922)
Partners in Crime (1929, ss)
N or M? (1941)
By the Pricking of My Thumbs (1968)
Postern of Fate (1973)

Poirot is my favorite...

You can find more about Christie's books and detectives here. (http://www.agathachristie.com/booksplays/poirot.shtml)

[Taliesin]

Pardon, but what does "binge" mean?
Our online-dictionary says that it means the same as "booze-up" but for some reason we don't think so.

[Nightshade]

Tailsin: Actually it means to go on a sudden enourmous bout of drinking, or eating.
Eg someone is on a diet and has finally lost weight so great they can now eat chocolate so what do they do they eat 20 or 30 bars to make up for what they missed when thgey were on the diet!!
Sleepy witch; alrady read Great expectations but thanks
sher : I have to disagree with you i HATE poirot he annoys the life out of me, on the plus side though ( I have to say ssomthing nice) some of his books have the best ie hardest to figure out plotlines I belive!

[Scheherazade]

sher : I have to disagree with you i HATE poirot he annoys the life out of me, on the plus side though ( I have to say ssomthing nice) some of his books have the best ie hardest to figure out plotlines I belive!
:D
I agree that his quirks are quite annoying but still makes him an interesting character and I have learned a lot from his thinking methods... And like you said, his stories are the best usually... I canNOT stand little old Miss Marple (reminds me of myself too much I guess ;)).

Have you read The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. It is one of the best and I remember reading somewhere that it holds the title of being the only book in a certain category in crime Literature. However, I won't reveal you what as it would ruin the book for you if you decide to read.

One of the most controversial mysteries ever written, this book broke all the rules of detective fiction and made Agatha Christie a household name. http://www.agathachristie.com/booksplays/bookpages/1970.shtml

[Nightshade]

yes I read The Murder of Roger Ackroyd its the first Poirot book i read and its quirkinest ( the reason it broke the laws) really upset me which may be why I dont like poiriot! hey I was only 9 or ten at the time!
I love little miss marple especially in the books where she doesnt really do anything like the pointing fingure.
But perhaps my faviorte Christie book has to be Death comes as the end. The one set in Ancient Egypt. Great storyline i think! Plus of course its historical always a plus in my book!

[mister_noel_y2k]

david sedaris is great fun to read, id recommend santaland diaries as theyre easily digestible short stories (i read it in 5 hours) and his other two books i read of his, me talk pretty one day, and dress your family in corduroy and denim, are autobiographical but great nonetheless.

[metaxy99]

Not sure of your reading preferences, even from the posts in this thread. Here is some light reading that is still good lit:

Paul Auster
Nicholson Baker
Thomas Pynchon
Phillip K. Dick
Ryu Murakami

A lot of people seem to love Don DeLillo, though I haven't read him.

I just read a fun little book by Paul Watkins called The Story of My Disappearance and would recommend that.

I'm also in the process of recommending Denis Johnson's Jesus' Son to anyone who will listen. And I will always always recommend Jayne Anne Phillips' short stories and her novel Machine Dreams, to anyone, anytime, anywhere.

[Taliesin]

Terry Pratchett and his Discworld series.

[Nightshade]

Okay people Im ordering books (only tommorow to go!!) :santasmil :nod:
Im reading Isabell allende's House of spirits
The man and boy and man and wife books by Tony Parson
Another fine Myth by Robert Asporin
The life of Pi
Criem and Punishment
Jasper FForde's books
One for the money
Eats shoots and Leaves
Making the cat laugh
the man who mistook his wife for a hat
Edward Payson Roe books
Some Rinehart books
Yupp that should keep me busy for a couple of weeks
:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :cool:

[Jack_Aubrey]

My suggestion is to read anything and everything. You need to be more outgoing, don't be fearful of books that are "complicated," the more complicated books you read the less complex they become. Become an omnivorous reader.

[Nightshade]

Im not afraid I just want to read alot of books in a very small time frame because I start work on monday which means I wont have time to read 4 or 5 books a day!
So I ll save the complex ones for then

[Mark F.]

Douglas Adams Hitchhiker's books and Terry Pratchett's discworld novels are all very fast to read and will make you laugh.

[Koa]

I'm soooo in the mood for some relaxed reading... A friend gave me 'American Psycho', dunno if it'll be any good but I feel like I want to read it, it's a change from the usual classics and so on (and it's in English :))... But I have to be brave and wait another couple of weeks till I do the last exam... I'd feel really bad if I started that now cos I need to read a few essays for that exam and I want to do well...so no relaxed reading for now...

Night, I enjoyed House of Spirits so it's a good choice... Have you read 100 years of loneliness? Allende reminded me a bit of that, but not as good.
And Crime & Punishment is a great classic, I hope you'll love it :)

[Nightshade]

nah I have read 100 years of solitude or lonliness or whatever its called but its on my reading list ;)
:D
Mark F. : Ive read the Hiche hikers guide and most of the Disc workld books and yes I agree with you they are great!

[Koa]

nah I have read 100 years of solitude or lonliness or whatever its called but its on my reading list ;)


Yeah I can never remember if it's loneliness or solitude... What would be the difference by the way?

[Fango]

The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger

[Jack_Aubrey]

A Farewell to Arms-Ernest Hemingway. Short, vintage Hemingway.

[poetru_fanatic]

Hey. If your looking for some good reads I'd really look in V.C. Andrews books if you havn't already read them.. If you decide to try em out I suggest reading Flowers in the Attic first since it's the first book in the first series. Her books arn't complicated and they suspencfull if you read that kind of stuff. They open your eyes to things you'd never intirely think of going on in the world in this modern day world. But their really good novels. Just thought I'd let you know.

-Jenna

[Hyacinth Girl]

Yeah I can never remember if it's loneliness or solitude... What would be the difference by the way?
IMHO, I think the difference is that loneliness can have several meanings, but in the majority denotes isolation by choice or circumstance, feeling separate even when within a social group, etc. and implies a longing to be part of a group, whereas solitude basically is simply isolation from others and does not imply a longing for companionship, understanding or otherwise.

[Miss Smilla]

I know you've already compiled your list, but please allow me to add another. I was cruising through a bookstore recently and got chatting to a staff member and she reccomended a book called 'Q&A' by Vikas Swarup.
I bought it and loved it. Its a quick easy light read. It's beautifully crafted and set out in short, digestable chunks. Its about a young indian streetkid turned waiter with no formal education who goes on the Indian version of who wants to be a millionaire and takes out the grand prize. The network then promptly has him arrested for cheating. The novel starts in the jail cell where the protagonist begins explaining to his lawyer how certain events in his (rather eventful) life have served to give him the answers to even the most difficult questions on the night.
It is vivd and happy and sad and moving and consistently funny. Highly reccomended, especislly for a light read.

[vrianto3]

If you're done with all of those great old books, try something not so old, like "Jonathan Strange and Mr.Norrel". Ignore the zillions footnotes (until you actually find them irresistable).