Geeze, doesn't anybody like good science fiction any more? Larry Nivin's Ringworld. Poul Anderson's Gateway series.
--Doug On Fri, Oct 8, 2010 at 4:21 PM, Steve Smith <sasm...@swcp.com> wrote: > I've just been reading a collection of Twain's writings on writing itself. > > Therefore I have to offer the classic Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It > is the classic American Novel, and not just (though especially) for young > men. > > I squirm at Frank's recommendation of (anything by?) Cormac McCarthy, > especially Blood Meridian. Of all his works, No Country for Old Men is the > closest I would give him to literary quality. I know several on this list > are personal friends/acquaintances with him. No offense... he certainly > writes of powerful subjects and with strong and serviceable style. If you > have to include something from a local and contemporary author, go for it, > but pick up No Country before Meridian. In that very genre/topic, (the > overly romanticized but brutal "old west"), I recommend Larry McMurtry's > (strangely enough) Lonesome Dove (the novel which was serialized as TV > Schlock) where (like Blood Meridian) the disaffected riffraff from the > defeated Confederate South came West to play out their myriad psychoses on > eachother, on the native inhabitants and on anyone else unfortunate enough > to be living west of the Miss. > > From the same era I'd recommend Jack London (short stories over novels?) > and a Dicken's (Copperfield). > To avoid total male dominance, I'd recommend a Jane Austen (P&P or S&S > equally). > For the mystical allegorical journey, maybe some Hesse (Siddartha) > For some token (but grand) Science Fiction, I'd have to give Heinlein > (Stranger in a Strange Land) and Stephenson (Snow Crash or Diamond Age) > *some* literary credit. > Stephen King (even his schlocky horror) is literary in his style and > storytelling... Green Mile and Rita Hayworth/Shawshank come to mind. > How about something deeply classical like Homer or even (sorry, but it is > more fiction than history or prophecy for me) parts of the Bible? I'd also > recommend something Sufi, maybe by Rumi (where *is* the border between > poetry and fiction?). > And a Kipling and a Conan Doyle > Solzhenitsyn's ( A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovitch) > Recent literary highs for me include > God of Small Things (Arundhati Roy) > Life of Pi (Yann Martel) > White Tiger (Aravand Adiga) > Kite Runner (Hosseini) > We Shall Know our Velocities (Eggers) > Motherless Brooklyn (Johnathan Letham) > > Am I over ten yet? So many books, so little time. > > - Steve > > > Ok, so I've decided my literary education is somewhat lacking and would >> like to know this group's recommendations for the "10 Best Literary Works" I >> should read. They have to be works of fiction and available in English and >> not just say of 2009 but of all time. Google searches tend to list the best >> of a year or be listed by one particular publisher. This is a good group >> to poll since you all (most) have at least some kind of scientific/technical >> bent. So I know the suggestions will be good ones for me! >> >> Once I have a list of all suggestions maybe I'll ask you all to vote on >> them. >> >> My list currently starts with Frank's recommendation today: >> >> "Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West" by Cormac McCarthy >> >> Thanks! >> Robert C. >> >> ============================================================ >> FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv >> Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College >> lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org >> > > >
============================================================ FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
