vonnegut - i read slaughterhouse five first. it was awesome. it is intense, too - not a fun plot kind of book.
the condition by jennifer haigh is a great novel set in new-england; it's plotty, but a little heavy in terms of subject matter. i really loved it, though. it's about a family in new england dealing/living with a daughter who doesn't age, physically - who never goes through puberty. you get the summer before they find out she has a condition and then the summer thirty years later. gooooorgeous.
i just finished reading the children's book, by a.s. byatt; it's an epic english family novel that is lovely for the fact that byatt's writing style is engaging, but you don't learn much - unless, of course, you don't know anything about the turn of the century. in which case, i would recommend a different novel to learn about the turn of the century, for serioius.
also really enjoyable in terms of thrillers are the girl with the dragon tattoo and the girl who played with fire series by steig larsson; he's a swedish guy who died after delivering the final manuscript in the trilogy, the girl who kicked the hornet's nest, which will be out this summer. if you read them, though, you have to get through the first two chapters before the first one gets good, and you have to read the first one before the second.
there's a young adult series that i've been recommending like crazy, as well. the knife of never letting go and its sequel, the ask and the answer, by patrick ness, are AMAZING. there's a third coming out in england this year, which should be here soon after. they're about a post-apocalyptic world in which humans have colonized other planets. on the planet where todd lives, everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts. it's beautiful and brutal and compelling, and i loooove it.
notable mentions: serena, by ron rash; the help, by kathryn stockett (not really a notable mention - you should read it, but you may have heard of it already. if not, just pick it up. you don't have to know anything about it.); tell no one, by harlan coben. i have stacks and stacks to recommend (and quite a few i have yet to read.) let me know if you need more. like i said, this is my job and i love it.
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vonnegut - i read slaughterhouse five first. it was awesome. it is intense, too - not a fun plot kind of book.
the condition by jennifer haigh is a great novel set in new-england; it's plotty, but a little heavy in terms of subject matter. i really loved it, though. it's about a family in new england dealing/living with a daughter who doesn't age, physically - who never goes through puberty. you get the summer before they find out she has a condition and then the summer thirty years later. gooooorgeous.
i just finished reading the children's book, by a.s. byatt; it's an epic english family novel that is lovely for the fact that byatt's writing style is engaging, but you don't learn much - unless, of course, you don't know anything about the turn of the century. in which case, i would recommend a different novel to learn about the turn of the century, for serioius.
also really enjoyable in terms of thrillers are the girl with the dragon tattoo and the girl who played with fire series by steig larsson; he's a swedish guy who died after delivering the final manuscript in the trilogy, the girl who kicked the hornet's nest, which will be out this summer. if you read them, though, you have to get through the first two chapters before the first one gets good, and you have to read the first one before the second.
there's a young adult series that i've been recommending like crazy, as well. the knife of never letting go and its sequel, the ask and the answer, by patrick ness, are AMAZING. there's a third coming out in england this year, which should be here soon after. they're about a post-apocalyptic world in which humans have colonized other planets. on the planet where todd lives, everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts. it's beautiful and brutal and compelling, and i loooove it.
notable mentions: serena, by ron rash; the help, by kathryn stockett (not really a notable mention - you should read it, but you may have heard of it already. if not, just pick it up. you don't have to know anything about it.); tell no one, by harlan coben. i have stacks and stacks to recommend (and quite a few i have yet to read.) let me know if you need more. like i said, this is my job and i love it.