Sorry for making another thread, guys... another books thread.

Despite the corniness of the movie(if you saw it) the books are good. Well, I think most of them are. The copy of the series I have is so old that it only contains 5 books…and there’s like seven or eight total now(arrrg!..those darn inserted prequels and interstory novels!).

Harlan Ellison is a genius, and an essential of modern literature. Anything by him (Angry Candy being my personal favourite) is reccomended.
I also like James Joyce (Dubliners and Ulysses. By all means try and read Finnegan’s Wake, but, well, Joyce kinda literally made up his own language just for that book), as a more classic classic.

Well here are some of the books that I read in school. ( I dont know if that means they are essential for reading, but whatever)

School

Lord of the Flies
A Seperate Piece
Antigone (Its the third of a trilogy of plays, the other two have something to do with Oedipus, I dont remeber though, I think they were written by Sophocles)
Of Mice and Men
The Transal Saga
Holes
Maniac Magee (5th grade I think, lol)
Tom Sawyer/ Huck Finn
Hatchet?
Edit: Animal Farm

My Opinion
Harrington On Hold’em (lol)
Any sports biography

I dont read that much. I dont know the authors to the books either, sorry, but im sure you could find them.

The Edge Chronicles? Although, I’m 12, and fantasy is my favorite type of books…so my opinoin might not count.

The other two Oedipian, Sophoclean plays were <i>Oedipus Rex (Oedipus the King)</i> and <i>Oedipus at Colonus</i> :ma<b></b>ho:

You should also probably read The Book of Five Rings and the Art of War. The Three Musketeers, The Once and Future King, Moby Dick, and A Man For All Seasons

The Shining by Stephin King (sp?)

and whatever you do, for your life DO NOT READ The Great Gatsby. It is a very boring book… sorry to those who think it’s a good book but… it’s just boring.

Yes… The Great Gatsby, what a bore. Another boring piece of literature is The Scarlet Letter. It is good “literature” but boring as hell. I do like the movie of the great gatsby though.

You’re crazy. The Great Gatsby was a wonderful book!

yeah, the GG is wonderful. you’re a loon if you think its boring.

maybe not imperative reading, but i enjoyed the Silmarillion and the entire Wheel of time series…as far as it has gone yet.

No books are absolutely essential… They’re entertainment.

Besides, we have no idea what your tastes are and the books people list are bound to not be absolutely essential to you. For instance, someone just listed the Silmarillion. I found that book to be excrutiatingly boring…

What about “The Essential Calvin & Hobbes”?

Thats not essential?

Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynn Jones
The Merchant of Venice by shakespeare

And While they are hardly essitial, I’ve been starting to read some of the books by Benard Cornwell and have uite enjoyed them. The follow the lives of real historical figures through the lives of fictional characters and are quite enjoyable.

Also, I rather enjoyed the Silmarillion but it is only essential if you are a very big fan of lotr. Wheel of time is enjoyable but it has gotten more tedious as of late. need to read the newest book yet.

the only people i know who didn’t enjoy that book were the ones who got confused by the names and such. i thought it was an awesome book, but i’m a history nut, whether the history is real or not, so…i guess it’s just me.

American Gods, by Neil Gaiman (sp?), because Odin is always cool.
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, by Stephen King
Shoeless Joe, by W. P. Kinsella (at least I think it’s W. P.) If you’re at all interested in baseball, or even if you’re not.
A Wrinkle in Time, The Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tiliting Planet, by Madeline L’Engle (sp?)

i’ve heard of a wrinkle in time, but never read it. what’s the plotline to it?