/lit/ - Literature

>>21309225
https://4chanlit.fandom.com/wiki/Charts#/lit/core

>>21309225
The Holy Bible and the Church Fathers; everything else is just entertainment of varying quality!

>>21309225
Don't read 'How To Read A Book' unless you want a very specialised method of doing academic research with books. It's not for novels or fiction, although there are a couple chapters dedicated for just that, and the list on the end (see the sticky) is fantastic. I suggest you look at that whatever seems interesting to you, then pick and choose that and read it.

>>21309271
thanks

Just read whatever looks interesting to you and sprinkle some classics in between. Doing this can help you build up to harder books like Ulysses or V if that kind of stuff interests you. Don’t get memed into reading philosophy and just have a good time with it.

hey bro i'm essentially still in the same place as you. I have ordered many books I don't yet have the time read but have the desire to.

The first two books I began with were Stoner by John Williams and A Thousand Cranes by Yasunari Kawabata.

I am in my second year of college and previously had not read anything but comic books since middle school. Both those books were light reads but immensely influential to me, A Thousand Cranes is especially a beautiful book that was to me on the woes of finding love.

>>21309225
Dont read 'How to Read a Book' before you are sure that you actually like reading, otherwise it will kill any motivation you had. The chart might also be a bit misleading, if you happen to land on 'Ulysses' or 'Infinite Jest' as your first read. It's a bit like 'getting into exercising' and looking up a chart of the world's greatest running races.
I assume you are familiar with a few authors from school. Just go to a well-stocked bookstore or library and browse the classics section until you see a name you recognize or an interesting blurb. You don't need to take on War and Peace from the get-go, there are plenty of good books with less than 300 pages. Read the blurb, google the author, read a few paragraphs to get a taste of the style. You really can't go wrong, and if you somehow do, just shelve it for later and get something more to your liking.
After you're done, take a while to think about what the writer wants to say, just like a 5th grade book report. You know what it says on the page, but what does it really mean. Every great classic has great amount of depth. If you don't get it just look up what other people have said about it, but never take their opinions at face value.
That's about it.

>>21309225
Start with the Greeks.

>>21309846
This is the only answer

Alright meme answers aside to be honest, just read whatever you want. It also depends what you want. What are you interested in and why do you come to reading in the first place anon?

I read the book, How To Read A Book, and basically it's just a bunch of advice on how to read a book, and it gives a checklist of stuff to do if you really want to delve into and study a book.

>>21309225

>>21309329
Only sensible answer so far.

>>21309225
just read what you think you will enjoy. Get a library card, and you can experiment with all kinds of literature for free. If you force yourself to read from a certain author or group, you risk getting discouraged and giving up if you don't enjoy the books you're reading.
For actual book recommendations, I recommend Demian, 1Q84, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, and All Quiet on the Western Front. Those are all books which you probably should have read in high school, but they are all still very enjoyable and easy o read.

>>21309860
OP here. I want to read books that have "substance". Books can give something what movie or manga or songs can't give. I want the author to use the medium the way it is supposed to be used, give me an experience that only books can give.
I was looking through the charts. I came across surreal literature. I've always interested abt stuff like that coz sometimes stories that abide by the laws of nature can be predictable or mundane.

bump

>>21309225
>genre, author, country,
Pick something that peaks your interest, then investigate forward and back, influences, contemporaries ect. and branch out from there. Eventually you'll be filtering things by the prose quality instantaneously; have an editorial eye for redundancies, where things can be tightened or more precise (even if extended). I

>>21309271
Thanks.

Unironically it's hard to go wrong starting with the Epic of Gilgamesh. Otherwise just read about whatever interests you. I'm sure that people here would be more than happy to give you a good recommendation on any given topic.

Good luck and have fun Anon!

>>21311421
Thanks for the advice.

It starts in childhood. If you aren't a lifelong bibliophile then you're just not.

>>21309225
everyone trying to get into classical literature should always start with Dumas.

>>21310800
Read Wuthering Heights.

>>21309915
>filename checks out
alrighty then

>>21310800
There's some really hardcore surrealism like Story of the Eye and Naked Lunch or Blood And Guts In High School, but it's really intense and hard to read.
You could try Kafka's 'The Castle', or his short stories, that's a great entry point. I loved The Castle. Didn't like The Trial as much.

But also to add to what I said >>21312187,
Listen to this guy >>21309329
The most important thing (contrary to what /lit/ will tell you) is to enjoy reading, not to only read classics. You'll exhaust yourself if you only read the heavy shit. Get into the habit of reading with some easy, popular fiction too.