/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.17161769]

I love being completely engrossed in a good book. Totally captivated by the narrative and consumed in the magic. I don’t read casually, only books that really happen to suck me in.

Any suggestions for books that really took your imagination by storm and that you couldn’t pull away from? Any genre!

[Anonymous No.17161777]

>>17161769
King James?

[Anonymous No.17161780]

White Noise

Literally read it in one sitting I was enjoying it so much

[Anonymous No.17161784]

>>17161769
The Opposing shore - Gracq
On the marble cliffs - Jünger
The king with the golden mask - Schwob
Gargantua and Pantagruel - Rabelais

[Anonymous No.17161824]

>>17161784
>>17161780
Thanks for the suggestions, these all look promising!

[Anonymous No.17161847]

Is East of Eden one such example in your eyes?

[Anonymous No.17161858]

>>17161847
Definitely a beloved favorite of mine

[Anonymous No.17162244]

>>17161769
I'm not sure I'll ever feel as good as when I was reading east of eden

[Anonymous No.17162258]

>>17161769
The one bitch that ends up running the brothel was so evil.

I don't remember much about the book, but I do remember the one scene where Sam(? - the irishman) goes to have dinner with the one good brother and his wife (the bitch) and the way her cold reptillian demeanor was described was perfect.

[Anonymous No.17162289]

>>17161769
You could lean over a vacuum to read the label and have it suck you to completion.

[Anonymous No.17163118]

>>17161784
>The Opposing Shore - Gracq
By any chance, have you read Balcony In The Forest? Gracq wrote both and from my understanding, have a similar theme. If you read it, how do they compare?

[Anonymous No.17163133]

Is East of Eden Steinbeck's best?

[Anonymous No.17163141]

>>17161769
I just started this a few days ago and it's been really doing it for me

[Anonymous No.17163152]

>>17161769
>>17163141
You cannot be engrossed in old fiction because all the cultural references have changed . It's only for signalling, like people who pretend to watch 1930s silent movies for fun and not because it got 100% on RT by other snobs

[Anonymous No.17163156]

>>17163152
You will immediately cease and not continue to access the site if you are under the age of 18.

[Anonymous No.17163182]

>>17163152
you have quite the inferiority complex

[Anonymous No.17163207]

>>17163156
>>17163182
As usual, no actual argument, just more smugness and elitism and signalling. Thanks for proving my point

[Anonymous No.17163208]

>>17163152
There's a minority of people online who seem to think that just because they don't like something then that must mean that everybody who does like that thing must be lying because they're so close-minded and autistic that they can't imagine that some people might think differently than them. You're one of those people anon

[Anonymous No.17163235]

>>17163152
I disagree, me and my normie gf watched Casablanca as complete, culture less swines that hardly ever read. We both thought it was a great movie with an amazing amount of detail to every shot, and a compelling, human-like story that was hard to find in modern movies.

This also happened with the Comedy from movies such as Monty Python's. We are both in our twenties, so go ahead and explain why two normies would enjoy such movies, if we have no ties to their memes and culture.

[Anonymous No.17163276]

>>17163208
Sure thing. But if I enjoy some media other people don't like i don't start calling them peasants lol
>>17163235
outliers. And you probably like the idea of watching old movies even if you don't read. The acting is objectively more wooden and less natural cause people were more easily impressed, and the point with the cultural references still stands

[Anonymous No.17163301]

>>17163276
the cultural references point is really shallow though? who gives a fuck abt gay little pop culture references

[Anonymous No.17163331]

>>17163301
Because they give shades of meaning meant to be appreciated by the contemporary audience of that time whether it's 1940 or 1850. Which will unavoidably be lost on you

[Anonymous No.17163370]

>>17163331
I feel cringe when I see pop culture references in shows and movies
>>17163276
There's nothing special about me or my gf, we are literally avg IQ tards that just recently tried to get into reading and movies

[Anonymous No.17163382]

>>17163331
In every great work there are going to be shades of meaning that are going to be lost on you to some degree but you can still be engrossed in something without being able to comprehend it in its entirety

[Anonymous No.17163385]

>>17161769
In response to you having posted EoE, here is an actual retelling of a Biblical narrative as opposed to an allegory, but which may nevertheless suit your interests.

[Anonymous No.17163392]

[Anonymous No.17163398]

>>17163382
Correct, the same way you can admire a good work of art without knowing how to make it yourself, or being able to spot an error in Perspective in a drawing, yet lacking the jargon or knowledge to express it.

Beauty is objective

[Anonymous No.17163416]

>>17161769
How does this book compare to grapes
>>17163141
How does idiot compare to brothers?

[Anonymous No.17164110]

>>17163416
>
>
They don't. Just try reading a fucking book instead of trying to measure it with someone else's opinion.

[Anonymous No.17165613]

>>17164110
> gets upset at discussions about books in book discussion forum
> assumes mutual exclusivity of things things that aren’t mutually exclusive

Confirmed autist

[Anonymous No.17165909]

>>17163133
Short answer, no.

[Anonymous No.17165921]

>>17165909
What's the long answer?

[Anonymous No.17165988]

>>17165921
I talk about this a lot here. There are a few contenders for Steinbecks best. Grapes of Wrath, Of Mice and Men, and maybe Cannery Row. If you're a boomer, sure, you can add Travels with Charley, too. Whatever.

For the sake of explanation, ill limit it to only GoW vs EoE. Grapes of Wrath was written years before, still having the wild, sharp edge of a young writer. Now, for great authors, that edge isn't a big deal and its when its sanded down by time that they get really interesting, but not with Steinbeck. Steinbeck wrote pretty conventionally, theres little risk in form or structure. He does little to advance writing in a particular direction. That said, GoW was a lot more ambitious in this regard. It meanders, stumbles, frolics and soars over itself and its subjects. East of Eden is structured. Its tied closely to its foundation and becomes constricted by it. Both have comparable prose, depth of characters, and subject matter. Its the improvisation that makes GoW so interesting. For a moment, its (oof) socialist commentary, BAM now its biblical, whoops, now its a great long description of the country's landscape. It doesn't give a shit. Its doing what it wants to do. Because the rest of the books are equal in quality, this little edge gives it a bit more memorability.

[Anonymous No.17166202]

>>17163152
Not really. Usually just an earlier form of what you already know/are. Put that with some historical literacy and you'll be fine.

[Anonymous No.17166461]

>>17165988
Cheers for the effort post. I've read of Mice and Men in high school after taking the state test kek. I'll continue with East of Eden and then tackle on GoW.

[Anonymous No.17166484]

>>17161769
Train Dreams
Spaceman Blues
The Silmarillion
Wind, Sand and Stars

[Anonymous No.17166538]

>>17166461
None of his stuff is bad. Some dragged for me, to a God unknown, the red pony, etc. But all of it was generally enjoyable. Excellent for a young reader. Enjoy it anon

[Anonymous No.17166620]

>>17161769
American Gods. Although it is a very recent book, it dives into how the ancient gods have been revived in modern culture under new branding. You should check out the show too by Starz, since the book was written in 1999 while the show has been updated for our times. An example from the show, Venus has been rebranded as Tinder, i.e. people have returned to worshiping her en masse every time they COOM with a one night stand, easily facilitated by the app.

A personal take: Nike, the ancient goddess of victory. Now rebranded as a clothing brand, many of her worshipers don her garb and pay her homage by attending sports events in stadiums while chanting as one and pouring out libations, but instead of wine, Budlight.