the world according to garp - John Irving

Well I truly love Ninja High School and Gold Digger when it comes to comics. Also Buffy:Season 8. As for books I love Piers Anthony, Terry Pratchett, C. Dale Brittain, J.K. Rowlings, Heinlein, Asimov, Robert Asprin, and I'm sure I'm missing a few.

Heavy stuff for someone your age, with the exception of "P.P. and Z.".  Kudos. I heard that they only changed about 1000 words or something from the original pride and prejudice novel. It may be a bit over that but I find that wild.

lol yeah it's pretty close to th original but still really funny

Warchild by Karin Lowachee

Close second is the second follow-up to that book (the first follow-up wasn't so great):

Cagebird by Karin Lowachee

Oh, and when you're done Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, let us know what you thought of it.  I almost picked it up the other day.

Oh! I just read a couple excerpts from PPZ for a Victorian Literature course.  It is really great for solidifying Austens writing style because despite the fact that the words he changes keep with Austen's themes (# of zombie killings = wealth, both being a way to protect your spouse) it loses her subtle nuances.  We read it beside the original P&P, closely examining the differences, it was great!

My alltime favourite books are Le Morte D'Arthur (Thomas Malory) and Lions of Alrassan (Guy Gavrial Kay).  I don't have a particular comic book I am a fan of, however, I really enjoy Superman comics.

The Complete works of Shakespeare

(ok ok I can see you all cringing over there.... )

The writings of Lao Tzu, Sun Tzu, Confucious (sp) Taoist writings, the Writings on Buddha, Philosophy, The many varied versions of the Bible I can get my hands on.

Terry Brooks. Piers Anothy, Margret Weis, Barbra Hamble (sp) Tracy Hickman, Ann McCaffery (sp), and the list is too long to post. Suffice to say.... I like many. Especially anything about The Tomorrow People.

*Peaceful Reading Enjoyment Journey*

Wolfie

^ Nothing wrong with Shakespeaere, Wolfie!

Titus Andronicus (hope I've got that right) and Othello are two of my favourite Shakespeare plays.

Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series! There is murder, mayhem, love, romance, history, war, family.......everything a person could want.

I just finished reading World Without End by Ken Follett. It is the sequel to Pillars of the Earth. Both books are awesome. You hate it when good things happen to the bad guys, and bad things happen to the good guys.

1984 and The Catcher in the Rye were amazing books!! Haven't read the other two yet but I heard they were really good.

Its hard for me to pick a favorite.... I read far too many. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen was crazy... read it and you will never lie again. I got to say I will always have a special place for To Kill a Mockingbird. Oh and the Kite Runner is really good too although I really want to read the sequal..... And I have 500 million more but I will leave it at that! haha

The Kite Runner is an awesome book. A Thousand Splendid Suns by the same author is better in my opinion. I think I liked it better because it was from the women's perspective. I do not always like when men write in a feminine first person.....he does it well and convincingly. It is not a sequel to Kite Runner though.

I read Can You Hear the Nightbird Call, by Anita Rau Badami around the same time as I read Kite Runner. It is an awesome book that starts around the time of the partition in India and ends with the Air India disaster. It takes place in both India and Canada. It is an excellent book. Her others are very good. Oh, and then there is Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. Most excellent!

wow lots of cool books ^.^ i've only read a few of the ones you peeps have mentiond tho haha (TO CHAPTERS!...after i can find me some moneys T-T)

Hello Sebb and welcome to the WonderCafe,

My favourite book is Douglas Adams' The Long Dark Tea-time of the Souls.

My favourite comic book is Green Lantern.  I was ecstatic when they brought Hal back in Green Lantern Rebirth and eagerly anticipate next month's direct to video release of Green Lantern:  First Flight as well as the launch of "The Blackest Night" story line which will be sweet.

Grace and peace to you.

John

thanks for the welcome John ^.^ i've never read the Long Dark Tea-Time of the Souls :o i'll have to google it ^  ^ i also like the Green Lantern i hadn't heard of First Flight before but just googled it, read the synopsis and now i can't wait haha

Well I have to admit I haven't read a lot of novels, I'm mainly a film fanatic, but my favorite novel so far is Greenlanders by Jane Smiley.

It was long, it was detailed, it was realistic, it was historic. I felt like I knew the characters, I was there, I was related to them. Shutting the book at the end was like being shut out of their world. I long for someone to make a film of it.

I love 1984! All of Orwell's books are great.

Right now I'm almost done the Golden Compass series. Sooo good .

yeah Orwell was a great author. I read the first Golden Compass book a few years back, it was good ^_^

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian

It tends to change with time and discovery of new authors, I must confess. Right now, if I had to pick a single favorite right off the top of my head, it would likely be Bone by Jeff Smith. And that's for both categories. It's a graphic novel series (9 books) compiled from a limited run comic book (it actually ran for many years, but did have a fixed ending unlike your traditional book). However, it's also an amazing piece of fantasy literature that stands right up there with Lord of the Rings and other classics of the genre. It's actually the first "book" that my son and I have read together (i.e. at the same time).

Mendalla

I've read the Bone series ^_^ i liked'em too

Somneone else that has read Bone; such Joy!

Anyhew (as the Master Mason told the Apprentice Mason),

if I want something new to read, I check out Clifton Fadiman's Lifetime Reading Plan

if I'm feeling melancholy, I break out Peter Beagle's A Fine and Private Place. This delicate, melancholy and beautiful tale is the most perfect thing I have ever read.

if I'm becoming too lost in dogma, I whip out something by Robert Anton Wilson (cbuh).

If I'm lost for ideas, I pick up one of Neil Gaiman's Sandman comic books.

If I want to be 'reminded' as to what the future is going to be like, I read Alan Moore's Promethea or one of Rudy Rucker's books.

If I find myself being too tough on the human race, I pick out something by Robert Heinlein or Spider Robinson or Theodore Sturgeon. And then all is good again.

There is just SO MUCH to read out there and so little time.

Just a Self-writing poem,

Inannawhimsey

Ah, I just saw your book in the bookstore recently. It has a very interesting cover. To be honest, though, I thought Catcher in the Rye was incredibly boring and reptitive. But to each his own.

My favorite books include the following:
"The Time Traveler's Wife" by Audrey Niffenegger
"The Stranger" by Albert Camus
"A Certain Slant of Light" by Laura Whitcomb

Oh I was told that "A Thousand Splendid Suns" was the sequal to the Kite Runner..... obviously I have been mislead. "sighs" darn it I really wanted to know what happened to Shorab.....

Don't let that discourage you puppypaws......I am guessing you will like it a lot. I liked it better than Kite Runner, only because it was written from the perspective of the women. It was very powerful.

Diana Gabladon's Outlander Series, not too fond of her Lord John spinoff novels though.

Jean M Auel's Earth's Childern Series (excepting the most recent one - Shelters of Stone really didn't capture the feel of the rest of the series, felt like Jean was trying to hard or something)

Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden novels.  Any SF-Fantasy fans might want to give them a go.

Pretty much anything Mercedes Lackey has ever written.  I still wish she'd done more of the Serrated Edge novels and the Di Tregard ones.

Lord John is a snack. Outlander series is a several course, formal dining experience!

My favourite comic?thats a tough one! I like several American and Japanese titles.My favourite novel would be the Sea Wolf by Jack London.Hey,I wonder if they have a comic book of that...!?

It takes an exceptional author to write outside ones own gender even in a science fiction format...it is often a source of criticism,a matter of "not understanding"the character in any real depth if the author is a man writing from a womans perspective,or vice-versa;this kind of thinking bias is even common in comics as well.Queens Blade and Witchblade,two Anime series are meant to be from the feminine perspective but are criticised for their exploitive nature towards women...but I think Im diverging far here.Not all of us guys can pull off writing from a gals perspective,is what I mean to say...

My favourite books growing up were ones by L.M. Montgomery - later that changed to books by Joyce Rupp, Beverly Lewis and Janette Oke

My favourite comics were Blondie and Archie

I know I'm dating myself!

I am reading "The Book of Negroes" right now. It is awesome. And now that you mention it, it is a male author and a female main character. Very well done. Excellent book!

When I was nine, I guess, I read a pirate novel - With Morgan on the Main. I was so captivated I read it after bedtime - with a flashlight under the covers.

I regret that I've lost a child's ability to be so captivated by a book.

graeme

The Circle Trilogy by Ted Dekker, which will no longer be a trilogy since "Green" comes out September 1st.

Elyon loves you.

Hi Sebb,

This is a hard call. 

Not Wanted on the Voyage

But very close to my heart are The Great Gatsby, The Handmaid's Tale  Life of Pi.

I loved all of Montgomery's L.I. Wilder's books when I was younger. 

The first novel that ignited my imagination was A Wrinkle in Time.

However, the first novel that shocked me to tears and one that I will always remember - because I believe that it sparked my desire to be involved forever more in areas of justice and advocacy - is to Kill a Mockingbird.

I guess I can't choose just one after all.

Archie's Digests were the comic books I read.

well mine is DADI JANKI companion OF GOD. 

its the first book i read in a long time that had something i wanted to remeber on every page. here is alittle hope it doesnt bore you '"faith in others does alot of work.it doesnt mean blind faith -observing helplessly while keeping your fingerscrossed-it means to remain alert to whats going on,andthen to fill another with the strenght of your faith to such an extent that they feel able todo whatever needs to be done. this means having faith ,but also donating the power of your faith.if the other person is honest and truthful,your faith will work for them .in this way ,wecan learn to truly help each other.

deep huh

hmm, tough one.

they would be some of the first books i ever read.  the ones that sparked my love of reading/writing:

i am rosemarie by marietta moskin (a young jewish girls story of her survival through the halocaust)

the toothpaste genie by sandy frances duncan

freckle juice by judy blume

charlotte's web by eb white

as i got older ......

the color purple by alice walker

to kill a mockingbird by harper lee

the joy luck club by amy tan

i just bought a book called the existential jesus by john carroll  --- it explores jesus through a radically altered view of christianity, and jesus asking the question "who am i?"  it explores jesus as a great teacher on the nature of being.  it's not a long read, but the chapters include:

the sower, fearing the great fear, fire on the mountain, the black stump, and it was night, the empty tomb, peter the outsider and the churches, magdalene the insider, i am not!: judas, he who learns: pilate, let him be and the two deaths.

i haven't started reading it yet, but i am looking forward to it.

Good topic, but tough choice(s). Like some of the others here, I find the "best of" changes from time to time, but here is a partial list:

The Book of Lights by Chaim Potok, as well as My Name is Asher Lev and The Gift of Asher Lev, same author; Davita's Harp, The Chosen, and The Promise are also quite good. I'm going to order his I am the Clay very soon--the local library has almost none of his titles, alas.

Broken for You, but Stephanie Kallos.

The Monk mystery series by Anne Perry

Persepolis I and II (graphic novels), by Marjane Satrapi

Walk to New York (memoir), by Charles Wilkins

Woodstoves and Ravens (poetry), by Robert Farmer

momsfruitcake: The John Carroll one looks interesting--thanks for the tip!

 Wow I have read alot of books, some of which were outstanding.  I agree A Thousand Splendid Suns is amazing.  Years ago I read Shogun and really enjoyed it.  I am curently enjoying "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer.  (Those guys who feel compelled to climb Everest are freakin nuts.)

I am going to start a new thread from this one:  Movie adaptations from books.  Mainly because "The Time Traveler's Wife is a great book but the movie stinks I hear.

 PS I have also read Persepolis, Badger.

The Persepolis film was a movie adaptation of two books, and was brilliant, IMO. Didn't hurt that the original  author also wrote the film screenplay.

An excelent choice.  I began reading Adams in grade 8, and he has always been a favourite of mine.  "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" should be required reading.

If you like Douglas Adams...

My favourite author is an often-overlooked Canadian:  Donald Jack.  He wrote a series of novels around the central character of Bart Bandy, set during the Great War, loosely known as The Bandy Papers.  The first three novels in the series, especially, are excellent reads.  They are clever, funny and, at times, poignant.  Jack won the Stephen Leacock award multiple times for these books, as I recall.

"Three Cheers for Me", "That's Me in the Middle" and "It's Me Again" are the titles of the first three novels of the series.  You could start anywhere - each stands on its own.

Don't know why, but I felt that Douglas Adams wrote one book a number of times. In other words, Hitchhiker's Guide and  Long Dark Tea-time felt like exactly the same book slightly rewritten. Terry Pratchett's Discworld series felt like that, too. Anyone else get that sense?

That said, I loved the original audio version of Hitchhikers.

Ok this is going to sound so lame... and especially sad because I have an honour's degree in English Lit, but I love the Harry Potter books.  NO SPOILERS, I'm reading the last one now.  I spent years saying to ppl who read them how silly they are to be addicted to a children's series... then i opened up the first one, read a chapter, and it was all down hill from there!

If you like children's series, yvrguy, then I highly recommend the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz.  It's about a 15 year old British spy.  I know, implausible premise, but the books are really good.

The first (Stormbreaker) and second (Point Blank, I believe) are a little slow going because the series is establishing itself still.  But the books skyrocket from there.  Books five (Scorpia) and seven (Snakehead) are absolutely phenomenal -- Scorpia is easily one of the best books I've read in a long time, but you have to read all the books leading up to it for it to have that impact.  There are a couple duds along the way (Ark Angel), but the series overall is super good.  It's projected to be a ten book series with book eight coming out this winter.

Thanks for the advice, I'll take a look at the library!

Deep?  He just described cheerleaders to a "T".

My favourite comics were always Phantom comics. At the local swap shop I seem to remember that you exchanged two comics for one EXCEPT Phantom comics -  where the going rate was three comics for one Phantom comic.

When I was thirteen I was in love with the Phantom (Ghost who walks). I wanted to be Diana, his girlfriend. Remember how she left her bedroom window open, and the Phantom would sleep on the mat beside her bed?

Such a gentleman! 

 -Remember how she left her bedroom window open, and the Phantom would sleep on the mat beside her bed?

Such a gentleman!  

*****

no immaculate conception huh?