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/lit/ - Literature

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3257695

Anonymous Tue Dec 18 17:41:20 2012 No.3257695 [Reply] [Original]

My class is going to have a Secret Santa two days from now, and we all agreed to give books as presents. The thing is, most of them are really plebeians - we are all engineering students, so none of them have any interest in literature at all; Harry Potter, Dan Brown and 50 shades of gray are the most they've ever read.

So I'm kinda unsure of what book to buy. I don't want to give one of these generic titles such as Hunger Games, Percy Jackson or whatever. This is a chance to present one of them with truly great literature; but it can't be too heavy literature, because they wouldn't like it. So my question is:

What are some great entry level masterpieces? I'm talking about pleb-friendly books anyone would like, but that have some depth and quality to it. I was thinking of something in the line of 1984 or Catcher in the Rye, maybe. What would you suggest, /lit/?

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 17:50:19 2012 No.3257725 Bump.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 17:50:19 2012 No.3257723 Something Vonnegut -- Player Piano would be appropriate since you're engineers.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 17:51:19 2012 No.3257728 >Catcher in the Rye you trying to tell them you're gay?

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 17:55:19 2012 No.3257735 Finnegans Wake would be perfect.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:10:19 2012 No.3257780 >>3257723 Vonnegut seems like a good idea, thanks! I'll definitely look into this.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:22:19 2012 No.3257804 One final bump!

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:24:19 2012 No.3257808 Naked Lunch yeah no, maybe Fahrenheit 451?

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:26:19 2012 No.3257813 >>3257804 NOT Player Piano, that's easily Vonnegut's worst book. I started with Slaughterhouse 5 and loved it. Honestly, any of these: >SH5 >F451 >The Stars My Destination

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:28:19 2012 No.3257816 If you're gonna give them Vonnegut give them Cat's Cradle

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:32:19 2012 No.3257826 >>3257813 SH5 is a failure.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:34:19 2012 No.3257838 >>3257826 [Citation needed]

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:38:19 2012 No.3257848 >>3257838 My God finally someone got it, every time I say that people go full rage at me.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:39:19 2012 No.3257852 >>3257838 >>>/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page/ >On this day... >1969 - Kurt Vonnegut hangs himself after releasing his critical failure Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children's Crusade: A Duty-Dance with Death.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 18:47:19 2012 No.3257869 1984 is an amazing pick, go with it.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 19:01:19 2012 No.3257899 Ulysses.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 19:05:19 2012 No.3257906 Buy a Linkin Park biography or a Transformers book. All engineers love Linkin Park and Transformers.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 19:15:19 2012 No.3257923 >>3257906 I'm ashamed to admit this, but they really do like Transformers.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 19:17:19 2012 No.3257929 >>3257923 Isn't it strange. My boyfriend studied in Britain and its the same there.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 19:18:19 2012 No.3257932 >>3257780 I second this. Vonnegut all the way.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 19:23:19 2012 No.3257938 Murakami, Mishima, Banana or Lin Love those japs

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 19:29:19 2012 No.3257952 File: 1.15 MB, 450x266, 1355465143215.gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] >>3257938 >Lin >Love those japs

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 20:08:19 2012 No.3258046 >>3257938 >Banana Who the fuck is this?

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 20:09:19 2012 No.3258053 >>3258046 Banana Yoshimoto She wrote a cookbook or something

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 20:13:19 2012 No.3258068 CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 20:45:19 2012 No.3258167 >>3258068 Good idea.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 20:48:19 2012 No.3258176 Eeeee Eee Eeee

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 20:54:19 2012 No.3258193 File: 505 KB, 1024x1024, tao.png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] >>3258176

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 20:56:19 2012 No.3258198 >>3258193 >, Steve thought, which made him feel empathy jesus

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:00:19 2012 No.3258209 >>3258198 I know. That actual concise description. It's great.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:06:19 2012 No.3258229 >>3258193 omg so good

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:18:19 2012 No.3258267 >>3258193 This is supposed to be shit, right?

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:20:19 2012 No.3258269 >>3258267 No. It's only shit to "smart" teenagers who think literature need to be old, wordy and obscurantist to be good.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:30:19 2012 No.3258295 >>3258229 Please be sarcasm.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:31:19 2012 No.3258296 >>3258269 lel

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:32:19 2012 No.3258297 >>3258295 2deep4u

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:34:19 2012 No.3258302 File: 816 KB, 1280x1857, tumblr_mf35g782Uz1ru22woo1_1280.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] >>3258269 8/10. Guaranteed replies.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:36:19 2012 No.3258307 >>3258269 Oh jesus... I feel so sorry for you/

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:39:19 2012 No.3258314 >>3258269 so it's shit?

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:49:19 2012 No.3258340 >>3257695 1984 if you are serious. Story of O, if you want to have some fun.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 21:52:19 2012 No.3258347 >>3258314 catcher in the rye is actually good...

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 22:16:19 2012 No.3258393 Get The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 22:18:19 2012 No.3258397 The Master and Margarita

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 22:21:19 2012 No.3258404 >>3258397 >Thanks for the book Anon, but I don't drink.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 22:21:19 2012 No.3258406 The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho would be good.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 22:29:19 2012 No.3258430 >>3258406 He said he didn't want to give out generic trash.

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 22:35:20 2012 No.3258446 >>3258406 shit book

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 22:56:19 2012 No.3258506 you can lead a horse to water but you cant make him drink

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 23:01:19 2012 No.3258522 >>3258506 so deep man

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 23:06:19 2012 No.3258536 A farewell to arms - Hemingway

>>	Anonymous Tue Dec 18 23:11:19 2012 No.3258566 File: 11 KB, 220x275, 220px-Vasily_Perov_-_Портрет_Ф.М.Достоевского_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] Notes from Underground or Poor People by Dostoevsky

>>	Anonymous Wed Dec 19 00:48:19 2012 No.3258844 Buther Boy by Patrick McCabe. It's fucking great.

>>	Sange !Fde5Qjfb5g Wed Dec 19 00:53:19 2012 No.3258859 Bridge of Birds Doooooo iiit that's like my go to for plebs. They probably never heard of it so I can get my hipster jollies off, and its simple enough for them to understand and enjoy.

>>	Anonymous Wed Dec 19 01:01:19 2012 No.3258885 File: 593 KB, 906x586, RTR38Z5I.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] Down And Out In Paris and London > 1984 Pic related, obviously.

>>

Anonymous Wed Dec 19 01:22:19 2012 No.3258934

>>3257695
Try a relatively modern classic, the older the work is the harder it would be to entice someone. I recommend Slaughterhouse-Five, 1984, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, or The Bell Jar (especially if you're giving to a female). Maybe The Alchemist?

>>	Anonymous Wed Dec 19 02:12:19 2012 No.3259023 File: 450 KB, 818x1024, 1340616993014.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] Brave New World The Hobbit The Great Gatsby Dune I, Robot Infinite Jets

>>	Anonymous Wed Dec 19 02:20:19 2012 No.3259035 >>3259023 >Infinite Jets Voom! Look, ma, I'm going to Alpha Centauri!

>>	Anonymous Wed Dec 19 03:30:09 2012 No.3259099 I am a pleb and an engineering major. I personally loved 1984 and The Dharma Bums.

>>	Anonymous Wed Dec 19 03:38:14 2012 No.3259102 Catch-22 is also cool

>>	Anonymous Wed Dec 19 04:35:14 2012 No.3259128 File: 114 KB, 413x547, 28997dg.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google] >>3259099 >engineering major >sniggering uncontrollably