/lit/ - Literature

>>1962979

I never noticed this, and own about 35. Vintage is the best range though. They rock.

>>1962969

Lol @ hating Hardboiled Wonderland. I think it's clear who the real fag here is.

There's still another 3 months until 1Q84 comes out in the UK, and it seems really long. I'm also not happy about it being split into Books 1 & 2 / Book 3. They could've put it into one edition, and just charged more.

>>1962918

Because it rocked, that's why. I suppose it was more a random grouping of short stories than a novel, but almost all of them were good, some great, and the sheer quantity helped it too. I'm surprised this isn't one of his recent novels, he seems to have matured in it. I don't see how any fan could dislike it.

High Tier

The Wind-up Bird Chronicle

Good Tier

Kafka on the Shore

Middle Tier

Dance Dance Dance
A Wild Sheep Chase
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World
Sputnik Sweetheart
The Elephant Vanishes
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman
South of the Border, West of the Sun

Bad Tier

Norwegian Wood

Get The Fuck Out / I'm A Lazy Fucking Writer Tier

after the quake
After Dark

Come at me bro. I'll defend any book in a tier. Most likely complaints will be against Norwegian Wood, I know that's popular. And yeah, I consider most of his books fairly average, BUT enjoyable and worth reading. At a guess, I'd say 1Q84 will be High Tier or Good Tier. Looks pretty sweet. I hope the hardcover has a white cover like his other books.

>>1962717

I may. Convince me to read them. Give me a brief overview.

Really good book. There are some boring sections and one of the main narratives is boring, but the excellent bits make up for it. The fourth exploration of the house is the best bit.

I like the idea of plot-driven stories, lots of exciting cliffhangers, conspiracies, etc. the staples of the genre. But I haven't read many thrillers I've actually enjoyed. Not so much because they're trashy and McNovels, more because they just aren't very well done. Not enough plot twists, bad storytelling, etc. We need someone who can write a good, mid-brow thriller.

I dunno, try reading Heinlein and Clarke, I guess.

>>1960568

Try reading PG Wodehouse's novels. You'd never be heard from again.

>>1960505

That sounded like an order.

You are the cancer that is killing /lit/. Along with all the other cancers.

>>1960507

Only one of the Big Three I haven't read. Is he good? What's his best novel?

Single work authors don't count.

David Foster Wallace (6)
Flannery o'Connor (4)
Haruki Murakami (12)
Jonathan Franzen (4)
Richard Yates (9)

Nothing like reading the whole oeurve of a writer. You feel a sense of completion when you...complete their work. And prolific writers are always good, because they give you so much to read.

I'll think about getting one of them, when I finish my current stack of books. I can try ONE book by him, and see how it goes.

I also need to read more Mario Vargas Llosa.

>>1960451

Oh dear. I usually prefer novels to short story collections (although Asimov, o'Connor and Atwood write good ones), so I'm not sure about Borges. I actually look through Fictions and Labyrinths, and the main thing I didn't like was they seemed more like essays than short stories. Is this accurate?

I was in my local Waterstones today, and I was thinking about /lit/ banging on about Borges, so I had a look at his stuff. All I could find were a couple of short story collections, and flipping through them they didn't look that good. Did he write full-length novels, and if so, which one should I start with? Everyone here knows how much I love Hispanic literature.

>>1957844

From the beginning of 2010 onwards, I read stuff I thought I'd like, not what I was 'supposed' to read, like in 2009. But sometimes I like to try the classic, NOT because it'll make me 'look good', but because I actually think they might be good. Some are, some aren't.

>>1955415

Super-troll. Asimov was an amazing writer, almost all of his novels and short stories are good, quite a few great. His only weakness was his characters, although some were decent.

I've read 4 of his works, and still don't understand why people are willing to sacrifice their firstborn child to him. The Trial, Amerika, The Caslte, and The Metamorphosis. That's what I've read. I still don't like him. He's one of my least favourite writers of the Western Canon.

Why do YOU think he's so great?

>>1955103

I don't believe that is really Tom Harper.

>>1955097

I bought it partly because I'm a 90s Kid, and so wanted some nostalagia. I can never really get into the 80s culture of his other books.

>>1955015

I really think that Bret Easton Ellis is an underrated author. What you think: he writers about trashy characters so his books must be trashy. What I think: he understands shallow people, and can use clever prose and some insight to unmask and ridicule them.

Anyway, I didn't say I wanted to read Glamorama next. I'm leaning towards the New York Trilogy.

I thought Dune was boring. It could've been awesome with the sci-fi, the politics, and a desert planet, but it was so badly written.

Read Foundation instead.