1. Favorite Book: Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe
2. Second-favorite book: For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Heminway
3. Third-favorite book: Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
4. Least favorite book: In the Mountains of Madness by the Dunwich Horror dude
5. 2nd least fave: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee?
6. Book that made me cry the most: For Whom the Bell Tolls
7. Book that made me laugh the most: You Can’t Go Home Again by Thomas Wolfe
8. Most underrated novel: The F.U. KiD by me
9. Most overrated novel: To Kill a Mockingbird
10. Book I wish everyone would read: Look Homeward, Angel
11. Book I wish I’d read sooner: The Devil’s Chessboard by David Talbott
12. Book that changed the way I think: Gravity’s Rainbow
13. Most beautiful prose I’ve ever read:
14. Favorite opening sentence: A screaming comes across the sky.
15. Favorite ending: You Can’t Go Home Again
16. Favorite literary character: Gollum
17. Lit character I relate to most: Ignatius P. Riley – A Confederacy of Dunces
18. Favorite lit villain: Long John Silver
19. Favorite author: Thomas Wolfe
20. Favorite living author: Steven King
21. Book return to again and again: Look Homeward, Angel
22. The book I’d save if I could keep only one: The Count of Monte Christo
23. Book I’d rec to someone who wants to fall in love with literature: For Whom the Bell Tolls
24. Book I’ve re-read the most: Look Homeward, Angel
25. Favorite Novella: A River Runs Through It by Norman McLean
26. Favorite short story: The Short Happy Life of Francis McComber by Hemingway
27. Saddest ending: For Whom the Bell Tolls
28. Happiest Ending:
29. Favorite Play: King Lear by Shakespeare
30. Fave poem: Ulysses by Tennyson
31. Fave opening chapter: Moby Dick
32. Favorite closing chapter: You Can’t Go Home Again
33. Fave lit friendship: Ishmael and Quequeg
34. Fave lit romance: Robert Jordan and Maria in For Whom the Bell Tolls
35. Lit’s most unforgettable scene: Gandalf against the Balrog on the bridge in Moria
36. Best narrator: Bilbo Baggins
37. Book wish had sequel: dunno
38. Most intimidating book: Gravity’s Rainbow
39. Hardest book I’ve ever finished: Gravity’s Rainbow
40. Book that surprised me the most: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis
41. Book that disappointed me the most: To Kill a Mockingbird
42. Book I rec most often: Gravity’s Rainbow (I’m a sadist I guess)
43. Book I wish more people knew about: Look Homeward, Angel
44. Book I wish I could read again for the first time: Narnia series
45. Book that made me fall in love with reading: The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis (Narnia series)
46. Book that should be taught in every school: Algebra of Conspiracy by me
47. The greatest novel ever written: Look Homeward, Angel
48. The most beautiful sentence I’ve ever read: The seed of our destruction will blossom in the desert, the alexin of our cure grows by a mountain rock, and our lives are haunted by a Georgia slattern, because a London cutpurse went unhung. : Look Homeward, Angel
49. One final rec not mentioned yet: Light in August by William Faulkner
This is an excellent idea, as I believe the books a person reads offer profound insights into their personalities and interests. I was intrigued to note that you said the book you would save if you could only have one was The Iliad, when you are obviously such a lover of Dostoevsky, so I would love to know the rationale.
I almost wrote up an explanation of this—if I had to erase all of the books in the world and jusy keep one, I would keep the Iliad because the tradition of western literature grew directly out of it, and if the Iliad was the last book left on earth, then hopefully we'd see the entire western canon grow out of it all over again :)
After I answered the questions, my answers were War and Peace and a collection of Shakespeare's plays, but The Iliad would definitely make more sense - I agree.
WOW!!!!!!! I love the questions!!!! And I love your answers!!!!!! This will take some thought! Thank you for sharing! You are so right, the books we love can reveal our deepest personhood, our deepest values, fears or dreams! At least, I think mine would. Many of the books on your list will also be on mine. I’d be curious to know how this is answered by a wide range of interest book lovers. My books lean towards “deep understanding, probing the human psyche,” but there are people who love mysteries, action, history, etc. Would they have different questions? Anyway, I love this, and I thank you!
Great Q and A. One question asked myself was which book do I relate to things that happen in my everyday life the most and it's Swann's Way, in part because I've read it so often. I'm not as big a fan of Dostoyevsky as you are, but the Grand Inquisitor is the literary political parable I think of most often.
Favorite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude. Book that made me cry the most: East of Eden, the moment with timshel. Most unforgettable scene: not from a novel, from a memory of reading Wuthering Heights at sixteen and not understanding why my stomach hurt. Greatest novel ever written: who knows, I do love IT and The Secret History. Wow I’d like to answer all
I'm middle-aged and just read Wuthering Heights for the first time a couple of months ago. It's such a famous and well-referenced book that I'd developed a picture of it in my mind, what and how it was...and I was left shell-shocked. It was nothing like I imagined. But you know, it has stayed with me and I've been attempting to make sense of it by going back to parts I marked, and even beginning to reread it again. There is a lot going on in WH. One Hundred Years of Solitude is a wonderful book. Marquez was, I think, my earliest literary author obsession.
I hope this is not too disappointing, but so many years have passed since then and I spent much of them in the wilderness (literature wise). I do have a soft spot for Dickens - still, I've not read all of his novels yet. At the moment, I'm reading widely and discovering many authors new to me.
I have difficulty with favorites because there are so many writers and books I like. I also have to admit my tastes have shifted with age. For example I’m not as enthusiastic about Doestoevsky as I once was . I still think he’s brilliant but must admit the appeal has diminished. The funniest book I’ve ever read is Kingsley Amis’ Lucky Jim. For the last few years the writer I routinely turn to with pleasure is Muriel Spark. In a way I can’t explain the novel that probably influenced me the most is Walker Percy’s The Moviegoer. The writer I’d recommend to people who haven’t read him is Joseph Roth. One of the most devastating novels I’ve read is Waugh’s Handful of Dust and part of what gives it its power is , it’s also pretty funny in a way that may stick in your throat. Dissenting- I like Never Let Me Go , was bored by The Magic Mountain and think The Great Gatsby is beautifully written and rather ridiculous. I’ll also recommend Dawn Powell. Oh hardest book I ever completed Samuel Becketts trilogy - Molly, Malone Dies and The Unameable.In closing want read something compellingly odd Huysmans La Bas, I love it.
Couldn't stop reading this. There are definitely some conversation openers here. I'm curious: What makes Beloved by Morrison your second least favourite book?
I read it in the 9th grade for the first time. It has always been presented to me in our media as this beautiful love story (perhaps the most famous literary love story of all time). When I got two teenagers being stupid and falling in love after ten minutes, I was very disappointed.
I’ve thought hard about these. My favorite novel is A Prayer For Owen Meany, and it’s my genuine answer for so many of these questions it feels like cheating. So for a lot of these, I’ve put my answer that’s not A Prayer For Owen Meany.
1. Favorite book. Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.
2. Second favorite book. Patrimony, by Philip Roth.
3. Third favorite book. The Death of Ivan Ilych, by Leo Tolstoy.
4. Favorite book that’s not by your favorite author. A Prayer For Owen Meany, by John Irving.
5. Least favorite book. Clarissa, by Samuel Richardson.
6. Second least-favorite book. Giovanni’s Room, by James Baldwin.
7. Book that made you cry the most. Babi Yar, by A. Anatoly Kuznetsov.
8. Book that made you laugh the most. The Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens.
9. Most underrated novel. The Old Curiosity Shop, by Charles Dickens.
10. Most overrated novel. Ulysses, by James Joyce.
11. Book I wish everyone would read. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, by Annie Dillard.
12. Book I wish I’d read sooner. Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton.
13. Book that changed the way I think. The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis.
14. Most beautiful prose I’ve ever read. Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.
15. Favorite opening sentence. “Every day is a god, each day is a god, and holiness holds forth in time. I worship each god, I praise each day splintered down, splintered down and wrapped in time like a husk, a husk of many colors spreading, at dawn fast over the mountains split.” (Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.)
16. Favorite ending. One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
17. Favorite literary character. Hamlet.
18. Literary character I relate to most. Pip from Great Expectations.
19. Favorite literary villain. Quilp from The Old Curiosity Shop.
20. Favorite author. Charles Dickens.
21. Favorite living author. Annie Dillard.
22. Book I return to again and again. The Screwtape Letters, by C. S. Lewis.
23. The book I’d save if I could keep only one. The Bible.
24. The book I’d recommend to someone who wants to fall in love with literature. David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens.
25. Book I’ve reread the most. Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.
26. Favorite novella. The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka.
27. Favorite short story. “Bartleby the Scrivener,” by Herman Melville.
28. Saddest ending. One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
29. Happiest ending. The Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens.
30. Favorite play. The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams.
31. Favorite poem. “If You Were Coming in the Fall,” by Emily Dickinson.
32. Favorite opening chapter. Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens.
33. Favorite closing chapter. The Trial, by Franz Kafka.
34. Favorite literary friendship. Mr Pickwick and Sam Weller.
35. Favorite literary romance. Beatrice and Benedick in “Much Ado About Nothing.”
36. Most unforgettable scene in literature. If you’ve read Portnoy’s Complaint, you’ll know the scene.
37. Best narrator. David Copperfield.
38. Book I wish had a sequel. All sequels are bad.
39. Book that intimidated me the most. Finnegan’s Wake.
40. Hardest book I’ve ever finished. The Sound and the Fury, by William Faulkner.
41. Book that surprised me the most. The Crying of Lot 49, by Thomas Pynchon, because I actually liked it.
42. Book that disappointed me the most. Look Homeward Angel, by Thomas Wolfe.
43. Book that I recommend the most. A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving.
44. Book I wish more people knew about. The Painted Drum, by Jerzy Kosinski.
45. Book I wish I could read again for the first time. The Tin Drum, by Gunter Grass.
46. Book that made me fall in love with reading. There is a Monster at the End of This Book.
47. Book that deserves to be taught in every school. Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad. If it’s taught correctly. It actually is a critique of colonialism, not a defense of it.
48. The greatest novel ever written. Bleak House, by Charles Dickens.
49. The most beautiful sentence I’ve ever read. “Because my father lived his soul, love is the whole and more than all.” (E E Cummings, “My Father Moved Through Dooms of Love.”)
50. One final recommendation that hasn’t been mentioned yet. The Woman in White, by Wilkie Collins.
Favorite book that’s not by your favorite author: Persuasion
Least favorite book: Twilight
Second-least favorite book: I can't think of a definitive, but Mrs. Dalloway left me aghast recently. It carried an undertone of satisfaction being the goal of life, meaning life was meaningless without happiness and anything could be done to get it.
Book that made you cry the most: Gone with the Wind
Book that made you laugh the most: The Empire Striketh Back
Most underrated novel: The Scarlet Pimpernel
Most overrated novel: The Great Gatsby
Book you wish everyone would read: The Count of Monte Cristo
Book you wish you’d read sooner: And Then There Were None
Book that changed the way you think: 1984
Most beautiful prose you’ve ever read: Charles Dickens
Favorite opening sentence: "Sylvie had a wonderful life, but she didn't get to live it very often." - Roderick Townley, The Great Good Thing
Favorite ending: 1984 (appreciated more than enjoyed)
Favorite literary character: Samwise Gamgee
Literary character you relate to most: Catherine Morland
Favorite literary villain: I prefer when there's no villain and the conflict is between the "good" characters.
Favorite author: C.S. Lewis
Favorite living author: Roseanna M. White
Book you return to again and again: Not a re-reader but will probably return to The Count of Monte Cristo and Gone with the Wind.
The book you’d save if you could keep only one: The Count of Monte Cristo
The book you’d recommend to someone who wants to fall in love with literature: The Outsiders
Book you’ve reread the most: Not a re-reader.
Favorite novella: White Nights
Favorite short story: Before the Law (Franz Kafka)
Saddest ending: The Outsiders
Happiest ending: Persuasion
Favorite play: Macbeth
Favorite poem: The Inferno
Favorite opening chapter: The Stranger
Favorite closing chapter: 1984
Favorite literary friendship: Legolas and Gimli
Favorite literary romance: Marianne Dashwood and Colonel Brandon
Most unforgettable scene in literature: THE letter in Persuasion
Best narrator: Ponyboy
Book you wish had a sequel: None
Book that intimidated you the most: Atlas Shrugged
Hardest book you’ve ever finished: Not sure. Books are read at different stages in life and can be difficult in different ways.
Book that surprised you the most: Northanger Abbey
Book that disappointed you the most: Mrs. Dalloway
Book you recommend most often: The Count of Monte Cristo
Book you wish more people knew about: The Great Good Thing
Book you wish you could read again for the first time: The Count of Monte Cristo
Book that made you fall in love with reading: Meet Samantha
Book that deserves to be taught in every school: 1984. I thought it already was taught in every school, but a friend who got an English major didn't know it existed.
The greatest novel ever written: The Fellowship of the Ring. With the characters, lands, creatures, history, languages, scenes, development, conflict, etc., I find it easily one of the most well-written books in history.
The most beautiful sentence you’ve ever read: "I loved her against reason, against promise, against peace, against hope, against happiness, against all discouragement that could be." - Charles Dickens, Great Expectations
One final recommendation that hasn’t been mentioned yet: The Prestige
BONUS:
Best adaption of literary novel: BBC's Pride and Prejudice
Worst adaption of literary novel: The Count of Monte Cristo 2002
1. Favorite Book: Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe
2. Second-favorite book: For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Heminway
3. Third-favorite book: Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis
4. Least favorite book: In the Mountains of Madness by the Dunwich Horror dude
5. 2nd least fave: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee?
6. Book that made me cry the most: For Whom the Bell Tolls
7. Book that made me laugh the most: You Can’t Go Home Again by Thomas Wolfe
8. Most underrated novel: The F.U. KiD by me
9. Most overrated novel: To Kill a Mockingbird
10. Book I wish everyone would read: Look Homeward, Angel
11. Book I wish I’d read sooner: The Devil’s Chessboard by David Talbott
12. Book that changed the way I think: Gravity’s Rainbow
13. Most beautiful prose I’ve ever read:
14. Favorite opening sentence: A screaming comes across the sky.
15. Favorite ending: You Can’t Go Home Again
16. Favorite literary character: Gollum
17. Lit character I relate to most: Ignatius P. Riley – A Confederacy of Dunces
18. Favorite lit villain: Long John Silver
19. Favorite author: Thomas Wolfe
20. Favorite living author: Steven King
21. Book return to again and again: Look Homeward, Angel
22. The book I’d save if I could keep only one: The Count of Monte Christo
23. Book I’d rec to someone who wants to fall in love with literature: For Whom the Bell Tolls
24. Book I’ve re-read the most: Look Homeward, Angel
25. Favorite Novella: A River Runs Through It by Norman McLean
26. Favorite short story: The Short Happy Life of Francis McComber by Hemingway
27. Saddest ending: For Whom the Bell Tolls
28. Happiest Ending:
29. Favorite Play: King Lear by Shakespeare
30. Fave poem: Ulysses by Tennyson
31. Fave opening chapter: Moby Dick
32. Favorite closing chapter: You Can’t Go Home Again
33. Fave lit friendship: Ishmael and Quequeg
34. Fave lit romance: Robert Jordan and Maria in For Whom the Bell Tolls
35. Lit’s most unforgettable scene: Gandalf against the Balrog on the bridge in Moria
36. Best narrator: Bilbo Baggins
37. Book wish had sequel: dunno
38. Most intimidating book: Gravity’s Rainbow
39. Hardest book I’ve ever finished: Gravity’s Rainbow
40. Book that surprised me the most: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis
41. Book that disappointed me the most: To Kill a Mockingbird
42. Book I rec most often: Gravity’s Rainbow (I’m a sadist I guess)
43. Book I wish more people knew about: Look Homeward, Angel
44. Book I wish I could read again for the first time: Narnia series
45. Book that made me fall in love with reading: The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis (Narnia series)
46. Book that should be taught in every school: Algebra of Conspiracy by me
47. The greatest novel ever written: Look Homeward, Angel
48. The most beautiful sentence I’ve ever read: The seed of our destruction will blossom in the desert, the alexin of our cure grows by a mountain rock, and our lives are haunted by a Georgia slattern, because a London cutpurse went unhung. : Look Homeward, Angel
49. One final rec not mentioned yet: Light in August by William Faulkner
I guess I skipped one...thffbt.
people put pens in a jar on TW's grave here in Asheville. It's been a thing forever
That’s so cool to hear. I got Asheville on my bucket list. Did the Wolfe boarding house survive the floods?
it did! they had below-grade flooding and tree damage but I think they re-opened in about six weeks
That’s really good to know. Thanks!
Gravity’s Rainbow keeps popping up for me recently which is weird because I had never heard of it three weeks ago. I'd certainly like to read it.
It’s a trip, and I recommend you dive in. I’ve read it 4 or 5 times now and it always gets better, at least so far.
Nice. I love that we can go deeper or get distinct understandings and enjoyment from rereading.
First read of Rainbow is like trying to get your bearings in a shit storm. There a chapter where that description is almost literal.
Hahaha. That's quite a description.
This is an excellent idea, as I believe the books a person reads offer profound insights into their personalities and interests. I was intrigued to note that you said the book you would save if you could only have one was The Iliad, when you are obviously such a lover of Dostoevsky, so I would love to know the rationale.
I almost wrote up an explanation of this—if I had to erase all of the books in the world and jusy keep one, I would keep the Iliad because the tradition of western literature grew directly out of it, and if the Iliad was the last book left on earth, then hopefully we'd see the entire western canon grow out of it all over again :)
After I answered the questions, my answers were War and Peace and a collection of Shakespeare's plays, but The Iliad would definitely make more sense - I agree.
WOW!!!!!!! I love the questions!!!! And I love your answers!!!!!! This will take some thought! Thank you for sharing! You are so right, the books we love can reveal our deepest personhood, our deepest values, fears or dreams! At least, I think mine would. Many of the books on your list will also be on mine. I’d be curious to know how this is answered by a wide range of interest book lovers. My books lean towards “deep understanding, probing the human psyche,” but there are people who love mysteries, action, history, etc. Would they have different questions? Anyway, I love this, and I thank you!
I especially like 10, 17, and 25.
You might be interested in my revisiting of Catcher in the Rye, some 60 years after my initial reading.
https://notliterature.substack.com/p/jd-salinger-the-catcher-in-the-rye
Well worth taking the time to read! I didn't read the book until I was over 50. It looks different from that POV.
Great Q and A. One question asked myself was which book do I relate to things that happen in my everyday life the most and it's Swann's Way, in part because I've read it so often. I'm not as big a fan of Dostoyevsky as you are, but the Grand Inquisitor is the literary political parable I think of most often.
50 Questions For Every Serious Reader (6/30–subject to change)
Favorite book
Crime and Punishment –Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Second-favorite book
No Longer Human – Osamu Dazai
Third-favorite book
A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens
Favorite book that’s not by your favorite author
Don’t Let The Forest In –C. G. Drews
Least favorite book
Slaughterhouse Five –Kurt Vonnegut
Second-least favorite book
Of Mice and Men –John Steinbeck
Book that made you cry the most
Percy Jackson and the Olympians The Titan’s Curse –Rick Rioridan
Book that made you laugh the most
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Most underrated novel
Tuck Everlasting –Natalie Babbit
Most overrated novel
The Harry Potter Books
Book you wish everyone would read
Crime and Punishment –Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Book you wish you’d read sooner
Crime and Punishment –Dostoyevsky
Book that changed the way you think
No Longer Human –Dazai
Most beautiful prose you’ve ever read
The Rape of the Lock –Alexander Pope
Favorite opening sentence
“Mine has been a life of much shame” –No Longer Human Osamu Dazai
Favorite ending
The Luxe –Anna Godberson
Favorite literary character
Huckleberry Finn
Literary character you relate to most
Raskolnikov (C&P) or Yozo (No Longer Human)
Favorite literary villain
Sydney Carton
Favorite author
Bit obsessed with Dostoyevsky right now.
Favorite living author
Myself
Book you return to again and again
Fruits Basket –Natsuki Takaya
The book you’d save if you could keep only one
Don’t Let the Forest In –Drews
The book you’d recommend to someone who wants to fall in love with literature
Anne of Green Gables –Lucy Maud Montgomery
Book you’ve reread the most
Percy Jackson Series (usually takes me about two days to reread all five books)
Favorite novella
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie –Muriel Sparks
Favorite short story
The Cask of Amontillado –Edgar Allen Poe
Saddest ending
Don’t Let The Forest In –C. G. Drews (I packed that away and haven’t processed that)
Happiest ending
How to Bite Your Neighbor and Win a Wager –D.N. Bryn
Favorite play
Born with Teeth –Liz Duffy
Favorite poem
The Jabberwoky –Lewis Carroll
Favorite opening chapter
Percy Jackson and the Olympians The Lightning Thief
Favorite closing chapter
A Midsummer Night’s Dream –Shakespeare
Favorite literary friendship
Leslie and Jess –Bridge to Terabithia Katherine Paterson
Favorite literary romance
Hester and Dimmesedale The Scarlet Letter – Nathaniel Hawthorne
Most unforgettable scene in literature
The ending of Don’t Let The Forest In
Best narrator
Percy Jackson
Book you wish had a sequel
If it needed a sequel, it has one.
Book that intimidated you the most
Les Miserables –Victor Hugo
Hardest book you’ve ever finished
Crime and Punishment
Book that surprised you the most
Petals in the Wind –V.C. Andrews
Book that disappointed you the most
Wuthering Heights –Bronte
Book you recommend most often
Crime and Punishment
Book you wish more people knew about
The Moviegoer –Walker Percy
Book you wish you could read again for the first time
Sasaki and Miyano –Sho Harusono
Book that made you fall in love with reading
Percy Jackson Series –Rick Rioridan
Book that deserves to be taught in every school
Helena –Evelyn Waugh
The greatest novel ever written
A Tale of Two Cities –Charles Dickens
The most beautiful sentence you’ve ever read
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to change, it's not” –Dr. Seuss
One final recommendation that hasn’t been mentioned yet
House of Leaves –Mark Z. Danielewski
Helena!!!
I had to read it for school it was surprisingly my second favorite of the semester. My first was The Moviegoer.
Selected answers:
- Favorite book: Moby Dick
- 2nd fave: Absalom, Absalom
- 3rd fave: War and Peace
- Least favorite (from an author I otherwise like a lot): The Savage Detectives (Bolano)
- Favorite villain: The Judge (Blood Meridian)
- Favorite non-fiction: The first four volumes of Robert Caro’s biography of Lyndon Johnson
- Book I’m most hoping to get to read: volume five!
- Also: I really like Doestoevsky, just not as much as Tolstoy. :-)
Favorite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude. Book that made me cry the most: East of Eden, the moment with timshel. Most unforgettable scene: not from a novel, from a memory of reading Wuthering Heights at sixteen and not understanding why my stomach hurt. Greatest novel ever written: who knows, I do love IT and The Secret History. Wow I’d like to answer all
I'm middle-aged and just read Wuthering Heights for the first time a couple of months ago. It's such a famous and well-referenced book that I'd developed a picture of it in my mind, what and how it was...and I was left shell-shocked. It was nothing like I imagined. But you know, it has stayed with me and I've been attempting to make sense of it by going back to parts I marked, and even beginning to reread it again. There is a lot going on in WH. One Hundred Years of Solitude is a wonderful book. Marquez was, I think, my earliest literary author obsession.
Who is your current obsession among late authors?
I hope this is not too disappointing, but so many years have passed since then and I spent much of them in the wilderness (literature wise). I do have a soft spot for Dickens - still, I've not read all of his novels yet. At the moment, I'm reading widely and discovering many authors new to me.
What a stunning list to read! I'm getting Zweig's Beware of Pity right away.
I have difficulty with favorites because there are so many writers and books I like. I also have to admit my tastes have shifted with age. For example I’m not as enthusiastic about Doestoevsky as I once was . I still think he’s brilliant but must admit the appeal has diminished. The funniest book I’ve ever read is Kingsley Amis’ Lucky Jim. For the last few years the writer I routinely turn to with pleasure is Muriel Spark. In a way I can’t explain the novel that probably influenced me the most is Walker Percy’s The Moviegoer. The writer I’d recommend to people who haven’t read him is Joseph Roth. One of the most devastating novels I’ve read is Waugh’s Handful of Dust and part of what gives it its power is , it’s also pretty funny in a way that may stick in your throat. Dissenting- I like Never Let Me Go , was bored by The Magic Mountain and think The Great Gatsby is beautifully written and rather ridiculous. I’ll also recommend Dawn Powell. Oh hardest book I ever completed Samuel Becketts trilogy - Molly, Malone Dies and The Unameable.In closing want read something compellingly odd Huysmans La Bas, I love it.
Couldn't stop reading this. There are definitely some conversation openers here. I'm curious: What makes Beloved by Morrison your second least favourite book?
I have an essay called “Toni Morrison Sucks” where I explain! 😅
The title is funny
Thank you, and that was a really interesting read.
Oh dear, very intimidating. What if I told you I like Homer, Faulkner, Melville, and whoever wrote the Bhagavad Gita?
How did Romeo and Juliet surprise you?
I read it in the 9th grade for the first time. It has always been presented to me in our media as this beautiful love story (perhaps the most famous literary love story of all time). When I got two teenagers being stupid and falling in love after ten minutes, I was very disappointed.
I’ve thought hard about these. My favorite novel is A Prayer For Owen Meany, and it’s my genuine answer for so many of these questions it feels like cheating. So for a lot of these, I’ve put my answer that’s not A Prayer For Owen Meany.
1. Favorite book. Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.
2. Second favorite book. Patrimony, by Philip Roth.
3. Third favorite book. The Death of Ivan Ilych, by Leo Tolstoy.
4. Favorite book that’s not by your favorite author. A Prayer For Owen Meany, by John Irving.
5. Least favorite book. Clarissa, by Samuel Richardson.
6. Second least-favorite book. Giovanni’s Room, by James Baldwin.
7. Book that made you cry the most. Babi Yar, by A. Anatoly Kuznetsov.
8. Book that made you laugh the most. The Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens.
9. Most underrated novel. The Old Curiosity Shop, by Charles Dickens.
10. Most overrated novel. Ulysses, by James Joyce.
11. Book I wish everyone would read. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, by Annie Dillard.
12. Book I wish I’d read sooner. Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton.
13. Book that changed the way I think. The Great Divorce, by C.S. Lewis.
14. Most beautiful prose I’ve ever read. Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.
15. Favorite opening sentence. “Every day is a god, each day is a god, and holiness holds forth in time. I worship each god, I praise each day splintered down, splintered down and wrapped in time like a husk, a husk of many colors spreading, at dawn fast over the mountains split.” (Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.)
16. Favorite ending. One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
17. Favorite literary character. Hamlet.
18. Literary character I relate to most. Pip from Great Expectations.
19. Favorite literary villain. Quilp from The Old Curiosity Shop.
20. Favorite author. Charles Dickens.
21. Favorite living author. Annie Dillard.
22. Book I return to again and again. The Screwtape Letters, by C. S. Lewis.
23. The book I’d save if I could keep only one. The Bible.
24. The book I’d recommend to someone who wants to fall in love with literature. David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens.
25. Book I’ve reread the most. Holy the Firm, by Annie Dillard.
26. Favorite novella. The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka.
27. Favorite short story. “Bartleby the Scrivener,” by Herman Melville.
28. Saddest ending. One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
29. Happiest ending. The Pickwick Papers, by Charles Dickens.
30. Favorite play. The Glass Menagerie, by Tennessee Williams.
31. Favorite poem. “If You Were Coming in the Fall,” by Emily Dickinson.
32. Favorite opening chapter. Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens.
33. Favorite closing chapter. The Trial, by Franz Kafka.
34. Favorite literary friendship. Mr Pickwick and Sam Weller.
35. Favorite literary romance. Beatrice and Benedick in “Much Ado About Nothing.”
36. Most unforgettable scene in literature. If you’ve read Portnoy’s Complaint, you’ll know the scene.
37. Best narrator. David Copperfield.
38. Book I wish had a sequel. All sequels are bad.
39. Book that intimidated me the most. Finnegan’s Wake.
40. Hardest book I’ve ever finished. The Sound and the Fury, by William Faulkner.
41. Book that surprised me the most. The Crying of Lot 49, by Thomas Pynchon, because I actually liked it.
42. Book that disappointed me the most. Look Homeward Angel, by Thomas Wolfe.
43. Book that I recommend the most. A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving.
44. Book I wish more people knew about. The Painted Drum, by Jerzy Kosinski.
45. Book I wish I could read again for the first time. The Tin Drum, by Gunter Grass.
46. Book that made me fall in love with reading. There is a Monster at the End of This Book.
47. Book that deserves to be taught in every school. Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad. If it’s taught correctly. It actually is a critique of colonialism, not a defense of it.
48. The greatest novel ever written. Bleak House, by Charles Dickens.
49. The most beautiful sentence I’ve ever read. “Because my father lived his soul, love is the whole and more than all.” (E E Cummings, “My Father Moved Through Dooms of Love.”)
50. One final recommendation that hasn’t been mentioned yet. The Woman in White, by Wilkie Collins.
Oh, snap. Why didn't I say the Bible? That makes more sense than The Count of Monte Cristo! My head was in literatary fiction zone.
Favorite book: Gone with the Wind?
Second-favorite book: The Count of Monte Cristo?
Third-favorite book: 1984?
Favorite book that’s not by your favorite author: Persuasion
Least favorite book: Twilight
Second-least favorite book: I can't think of a definitive, but Mrs. Dalloway left me aghast recently. It carried an undertone of satisfaction being the goal of life, meaning life was meaningless without happiness and anything could be done to get it.
Book that made you cry the most: Gone with the Wind
Book that made you laugh the most: The Empire Striketh Back
Most underrated novel: The Scarlet Pimpernel
Most overrated novel: The Great Gatsby
Book you wish everyone would read: The Count of Monte Cristo
Book you wish you’d read sooner: And Then There Were None
Book that changed the way you think: 1984
Most beautiful prose you’ve ever read: Charles Dickens
Favorite opening sentence: "Sylvie had a wonderful life, but she didn't get to live it very often." - Roderick Townley, The Great Good Thing
Favorite ending: 1984 (appreciated more than enjoyed)
Favorite literary character: Samwise Gamgee
Literary character you relate to most: Catherine Morland
Favorite literary villain: I prefer when there's no villain and the conflict is between the "good" characters.
Favorite author: C.S. Lewis
Favorite living author: Roseanna M. White
Book you return to again and again: Not a re-reader but will probably return to The Count of Monte Cristo and Gone with the Wind.
The book you’d save if you could keep only one: The Count of Monte Cristo
The book you’d recommend to someone who wants to fall in love with literature: The Outsiders
Book you’ve reread the most: Not a re-reader.
Favorite novella: White Nights
Favorite short story: Before the Law (Franz Kafka)
Saddest ending: The Outsiders
Happiest ending: Persuasion
Favorite play: Macbeth
Favorite poem: The Inferno
Favorite opening chapter: The Stranger
Favorite closing chapter: 1984
Favorite literary friendship: Legolas and Gimli
Favorite literary romance: Marianne Dashwood and Colonel Brandon
Most unforgettable scene in literature: THE letter in Persuasion
Best narrator: Ponyboy
Book you wish had a sequel: None
Book that intimidated you the most: Atlas Shrugged
Hardest book you’ve ever finished: Not sure. Books are read at different stages in life and can be difficult in different ways.
Book that surprised you the most: Northanger Abbey
Book that disappointed you the most: Mrs. Dalloway
Book you recommend most often: The Count of Monte Cristo
Book you wish more people knew about: The Great Good Thing
Book you wish you could read again for the first time: The Count of Monte Cristo
Book that made you fall in love with reading: Meet Samantha
Book that deserves to be taught in every school: 1984. I thought it already was taught in every school, but a friend who got an English major didn't know it existed.
The greatest novel ever written: The Fellowship of the Ring. With the characters, lands, creatures, history, languages, scenes, development, conflict, etc., I find it easily one of the most well-written books in history.
The most beautiful sentence you’ve ever read: "I loved her against reason, against promise, against peace, against hope, against happiness, against all discouragement that could be." - Charles Dickens, Great Expectations
One final recommendation that hasn’t been mentioned yet: The Prestige
BONUS:
Best adaption of literary novel: BBC's Pride and Prejudice
Worst adaption of literary novel: The Count of Monte Cristo 2002
Book you can't wait to read: Slaughterhouse Five
Oh, gad, I have a very difficult time narrowing anything down to just one.
I've read "The Great Gatsby" twice, and still think it's overrated. I disliked "This Side of Paradise" even more.
Come to think of it, in a proper film, you would have made an excellent Natasha Rostova. And you could even do it in Russian!