/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.9961531]

ITT: Books you hold as a personal 10/10. We all have a book that is nothing but perfect in our eyes.

I want to hear about your perfect books, /lit/. Feel free to say why you love them so much - persuade us as to why we should read or re-read it, my dudes.

Here's my solid 10. English rural setting; rabbit societies; rabbit poetry; rabbit folklore; rabbit religion; rabbit migration; inter-warren conflicts; dictatorships; brutality; etc. This book covers so many themes and has such wonderful characters. I know it's probably a bit of an odd choice for a 10/10 for some, but it's perfect for me.

[Anonymous No.9961542]

> Diogenes is a crazy motherfucker you don't want to fuck with
> Patroclus is a dickhead who insults the dead
> Achilles becomes a bloodthirsty merchant of war
> Hector's tragic death and the inevitable fall of troy that is never depicted but is intensely alluded to
> Priam grovelling at the feet of Achilles for a truce for a few days
> Hector's wife telling Hector's corpse about how their child will never reach manhood because Troy will fall
> no prisoners are ever taken

This book is brutal and beautiful in equal measures. It took me a little time to finish it but I'm so glad I did.

[Anonymous No.9961576]

It's beautifully written and feels very honest. More so considering the author also struggled with alcoholism. I first read it because I heard it's Ulysses-like, but I prefer it over Ulysses. A hint of sadness is found throughout the book, but really takes hold the last three or four chapters. I cried like a little baby at the end.

[Anonymous No.9961585]

i feel like an english lit schoolgirl who just got her first boyfriend for suggesting this one but yeah ok how about Wuthering Heights

[Anonymous No.9961589]

>>9961531
Excellent choice, OP. What a wonderful book. The ending was especially beautiful.

For me it's The Hobbit and LOTR for similar reasons to what you mentioned. Even more importantly, for me those books embody childhood, imagination, innocence and happiness.

[Anonymous No.9961597]

>Mrs Dalloway is a hottie thottie who has a party to make, and a steamy past with Peter Walsh
>Peter Walsh is a virgin ex-military, sent to fucking India as a British administrator, there to look over the mass problem of allocated shitting streets. He was barely able to court the beautiful Clarissa Dalloway
>Richard is an arsehole chad who gets in the way of Peter's rightful waifu
>Septimus is broken by the wars he was sent to defend his country in, but is the only one who seems to see the world as it is. With its death. With its emptiness.
>Rezia is a qt waifu who looks after Septimus
>

[Anonymous No.9961612]

>>9961585
I love that physical copies of books like Wuthering Heights, Frankenstein, A Tale of Two Cities, etc get the price lowered with Penguin - around £4.99 - mainly because they know people buy this stuff for studying at school, but when I can, I pick them all up so I get five to six books just under £30.

[Anonymous No.9961706]

[Anonymous No.9961720]

[Anonymous No.9961725]

>>9961706
do you actually like it that much or are you just being a hipster? t. korean

[Anonymous No.9961735]

>>9961725
I really love folklore and mythology of any kind and it tickled the sweet spot for me

[Anonymous No.9961736]

>>9961706
Did not realise that was the actual cover

[Anonymous No.9962058]

> a guy literally flies on a beetle singing a song about how it will feed on his farts

[Anonymous No.9962395]

>>9961576
My man, that book feels so painfully honest. All the characters know that the consul is doomed but they can't help but pretend everything is fine, including the consul himself.

[Anonymous No.9962443]

This fucking book. It was an incredible reading experience.

[Anonymous No.9962501]

>>9961542
>>Diogenes
>>Not DIOMEDES
>>Diogenes isn't even in the fucking poem you twat

[Anonymous No.9962505]

>>9962058
>>Not choosing 'The Clouds' where an old conservative pedophile gets convinced by a liberal nihilist to have gay sex off-stage as he becomes ROCK HARD on stage

[Anonymous No.9962583]

>>9961531
Watership Down is an all-time great. It's one of those western books like LOTR that sort of sits outside the Western canon while surpassing most of it.

[Anonymous No.9962592]

>>9961531
The Holy Bible

[Anonymous No.9962596]

is this worth revisiting? i had to read it when i was 12, but didn't like it because it wasn't cool to enjoy schoolwork

[Anonymous No.9962608]

>>9962596
you forgot pic/quote faget

[Anonymous No.9962700]

Not a great book objectively, but it's exactly my cup of tea.

>surreal as fuck
>multiple stories, some hundreds of pages and others only a dozen or so, so it feels organic
>believable, slice of life coming of age story
>realistic depiction of military life in vietnam
>sort of a lovely, depressing ending of "acceptance"
>ties into the Dark Tower, if you're into that
>implies that there's fantasy in the real world, but it's never where we look, and never when we expect

I've read a lot of Stephen King just to shit on him (library copies, so I'm not buying jack shit), but this book exceeds expectations

[Anonymous No.9962729]

If you love these book series and metal or alternative music, you should check out Fall of Efrafra, Amazing band that ties in their music folklore from the book and questions it raises about our society.

[Anonymous No.9962816]

>>9962443
I have that book next to my toilet and every time I take a shit I open it at a random page and start reading; the prose is unbelievable

[Anonymous No.9962838]

Honestly, I've never enjoyed any book more than this. It's absolutely hilarious and deliberately or not, it effectively satirizes how conformist a lot of teenage "alternative" groups really are.

>WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING YOU MOTHERFUCKERS

[Anonymous No.9962936]

>>9961531
ive been waiting for the right time to read watership down. might do it soon thanks to you OP.

>pic
i was a naive high school student when i read this and it really opened my mind up to a lot of different philosophies and theories on the origin of "how we came to be". its a great read even if some of his facts arent completely backed with tons of evidence.

[Anonymous No.9962945]

Frank McCourt really does look a little Asian looking.

Also, this is easily the best of the trilogy

[Anonymous No.9962974]

>>9962945
>Rain, baybes doiyin', more rain!

[Anonymous No.9962989]

>>9962936
Also read Tales From Watership Down for additional rabnit folklore

[Anonymous No.9963015]

>>9962945
I (along with every other opinion I've ever read/heard) would rank AA>T>TM. I'm curious why you think TM is the best of the trilogy.

[Anonymous No.9963036]

>>9962936
Amazing book and a great eye opener. One of my favorite books too.

[Anonymous No.9963086]

So far from what I've read, it's probably this. I like how it ranges from some absurd comedy to love themes or gory war moments.

[Anonymous No.9963132]

>>9962443
watership down in the OP´s post is my favourite book also. But this book is on my wantlist as well, probably going to get it soon. But man watership down is amazing....

[Anonymous No.9963190]

>>9962501
Fuck me for getting the names muddled, I'm diving into the greeks head first, sorry dude

[Anonymous No.9963203]

I love these threads. They last a good week and it's usually /lit/ on their best behaviour as we all gush over literature. Threads like this serve as a reminder for why l love reading.

[Anonymous No.9963213]

I never see Watership Down discussed here but it warms my heart to see people in love with it just like I am.

[Anonymous No.9963223]

>>9962729
Already listen to them my dude, actually heard their music before discovering the book

[Anonymous No.9963232]

>>9963086
Need to read this. Heard it gets intense depressing.

[Anonymous No.9963439]

>>9961585
It's a good book. Don't be ashamed of your tastes

[Anonymous No.9963482]

I love Thompson's sense of humor. One of the few books were I had a smile on my face through the majority of reading it. The overall permise is definitely my cup of tea

[Anonymous No.9963545]

>>9963213
You sound like a fucking faggot

[Anonymous No.9963623]

It's so goddamn funny, but it also makes me think about my life and made me reconsider everything I believe about innocence and purity. I'm not as old as Eben yet but I already feel like I'm wasting my life and not experiencing what I need to in order to grow.

Also I live where like half of it takes place. I can literally look out my window and see a location where stuff in the book happened.

>>9963086 is also a 10/10 for me.

[Anonymous No.9963881]

>>9961531
One of the best books I've read this year. If I ever have kids, I would want to read it to them.

[Anonymous No.9963890]

[Anonymous No.9963897]

I'd love to go back and read this for the first time again.

[Anonymous No.9964612]

>His 10/10 book isn't The Divine Comedy

[Anonymous No.9964625]

>>9961542
At first I thought I was an idiot for not remembering "Diogenes" and thinking he was a Cynic philosopher but no, you are the true fool.

[Anonymous No.9964653]

I'm new to the literature game but this has to be my personal Modus Operandi

[Anonymous No.9964689]

>>9963086
Same, I'm still early in literature but this is easily the best thing I've read

[Anonymous No.9964755]

>>9961531
so what is it with you and rabbits

[Anonymous No.9964782]

>>9961531
All Quiet on the Western Front.
Cried a wee bit when I realized the cover is probably depicting Kat and not the protagonist.

[Anonymous No.9964788]

>>9964782
Oops, didn't mean to check the spoiler image box. Oh well.

[Anonymous No.9964913]

Get on my level

[Anonymous No.9964968]

>>9962058
>my first ancient comedy

As someone that studies this shit for a living, there is no way I'd rate any Aristophanes as 10/10. The real classical masterpieces are the epics

[Anonymous No.9964979]

Absalom, Absalom!

[Anonymous No.9964980]

>>9961531
Both Alice books
Lolita
The Neverending Story

[Anonymous No.9964988]

>>9961531
In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust

[Anonymous No.9965489]

>>9964968
For someone who studies that shit for a living, do you have any good recommendations? I'm craving more ancient literature, I don't care if it's ancient comedy or epics, just please more suggestions, my man.

Also the thread did state personal 10/10s. I love Aristophanes and would put him up there but it's cool if you disagree.

[Anonymous No.9965492]

>>9963545
It sounds like you haven't read a book in a while otherwise your vocabulary wouldn't be as limited as it is.

[Anonymous No.9965498]

>>9963890
Is Le Guin really that good? I hear they're one of the best genre fiction writers out there. Is it just something fantasy fans go crazy for or is their prose beautiful or something?

[Anonymous No.9965502]

>>9964625
Sorry anon, I dove head first into the greeks, I read The Iliad and followed it up with some Diogenes, so I got his name and Diomedes mixed up.

[Anonymous No.9965510]

>>9964755
dude rabbits are just kinda cool

[Anonymous No.9965513]

>>9963545
> he clearly hasn't read Watership Down
> he clearly doesn't know the feeling of when other people express a love for a book that they share

No, anon, it sounds like it is you who sounds like a fucking faggot.

[Anonymous No.9965585]

>>9965498
Le Guin has a spotty career. But yes, I'll vouch for the Tombs of Atuan. To me, it's perfect. It's also very short, so you wouldn't take much of a risk in trying it. It's technically the second in a trilogy, but the installments don't have much to do with each other, and IMO it can be read in isolation.

[Anonymous No.9965730]

This, Suttree and the Border Trilogy.

[Anonymous No.9965749]

[Anonymous No.9965760]

>>9962700

Fully agree. Massively under rated gem. I wish it got more credit rather than just being a side note in his stupidly large ouvre.

[Anonymous No.9965769]

>>9961531

This is at least the third post I've seen today with this image, please stop spamming it over every thread.

[Anonymous No.9965790]

>>9965769
Literally only posted it in this thread, anon. It's a nice cover. Which other threads were they in?

[Anonymous No.9965805]

>>9965769
> aesthetic cover
> good book
> "waah please stop posting books"

fuck you you giant fuckin shit

[Anonymous No.9965810]

Obviously pic related. It's pretty much the perfect novel.

[Anonymous No.9965826]

>pic related
>the ending
>reveries
>unconventional tale

>>9961531
You've sold me OP, I'll read WD.

[Anonymous No.9966228]

>>9965826
>>9965749
Are these his best books? How are his other works? Is he very consistent or is there a book of his that should be avoided?

[Anonymous No.9966238]

>>9963623
>made me reconsider everything I believe about innocence and purity. I'm not as old as Eben yet but I already feel like I'm wasting my life and not experiencing what I need to in order to grow.
you missed the entire point of the book

[Anonymous No.9966668]

>>9965810
This. Beautiful novel of the ordinary life of the ordinary person. I had to do an extreme effort not to cry on the last couple of pages.

[Anonymous No.9967151]

>>9966228
Unfortunately TBG is the only book I have read of his.

[Anonymous No.9967169]

>>9961720
Is there even someone on /lit/ that has read the entirety of Summa Teologica?
It's about 3500 pages.

[Anonymous No.9967487]

>>9965810
>>9966668
The more I hear about it the less I think I want to read it. I'm worried that if I relate too much to the book then I would just give up completely. Dunno if I'm ready for that t b h

[Anonymous No.9968504]

>>9967487
Everyone needs to read Stoner. If you want to write, it is essential.

[Anonymous No.9968665]

>>9961576
This book isn't talked about nearly enough.
>tfw you realize that this was just the first in a planned Lowry trilogy mirroring all three parts of the Divine Comedy
>tfw you will never see a Paradiso as beautiful as the suffering of his Inferno because the very same suffering killed him before he could write it

[Anonymous No.9968878]

>>9962608
When you don't quote a post you are replying to the OP. Newfag.

[Anonymous No.9969030]

pic related, stoner and cathedral are mine
cannery row might become my favorite book of all time

[Anonymous No.9969046]

>>9961531
Maybe you had to grow up in Australia in the 90's to really get it but this book touches my soul on a very deep level. The film adaptation is also pretty good.

[Anonymous No.9969553]

>>9967487
You won't You would understand what Stoicism means in the end.
Not how the greeks would but how a contemporary of ours would.

[Anonymous No.9969623]

>>9962700
It's a better Vietnam-era novel than American Pastoral, imo

[Anonymous No.9971095]

>>9969030
Cannery Row is the most comfy book I've ever read.

[Anonymous No.9971114]

The Lord of the Rings

I read it every year or two. I've read it around a dozen times.

[Anonymous No.9971122]

I guess I just find this really well structured. Everything sort of serves a purpose, much like in the film adapt. Clues and nonlinear events are subtle enough to make the reader feel clever. Decent amount of own lingo / vocab giving an air of authenticity.. Also the background, knowing that Haydon is Philby etc.

[Anonymous No.9971945]

>>9968504
>>9969553
Ok anons i'll read it

[Anonymous No.9971954]

>>9971122
I need to read some Le Carre, always hear great things about him