Recommend me a good book.

[Ilash]

After reading a lot of comedic fantasy (Robert Rankin, Jasper Fforde, Christopher Moore etc.) and, on a completely unrelated note, Catch 22, I'm looking for something different to read and I could really use some recommendations.

I'm looking for a book that falls into either one of these two very different categories:

1) A witty, heartfelt character-driven novel. What I'm basically looking for here is something along the lines of Michael Chabon, who's Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and Wonderboys have become two of my all-time favourite novels after having read them both this year, the former in particular. So anything in that style really.

2) An engrossing science fiction novel with the emphasis NOT being on technobabble or science-theory but more on simply telling a truly gripping, memorable and imaginative story with a real sense of unpredictability - a real page turner. I'm not necessarily looking for anything too deep here as this is basically holiday reading but nothing overly lightweight either. As an example, I remember being completely enthralled with the second half of Asimov's Foundation trilogy, literally being unable to put it down until I saw just where the story was going. I'm looking for something like that.

[leonaozaki]

After reading a lot of comedic fantasy (Robert Rankin, Jasper Fforde, Christopher Moore etc.) and, on a completely unrelated note, Catch 22, I'm looking for something different to read and I could really use some recommendations.

I'm looking for a book that falls into either one of these two very different categories:

1) A witty, heartfelt character-driven novel. What I'm basically looking for here is something along the lines of Michael Chabon, who's Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and Wonderboys have become two of my all-time favourite novels after having read them both this year, the former in particular. So anything in that style really.

2) An engrossing science fiction novel with the emphasis NOT being on technobabble or science-theory but more on simply telling a truly gripping, memorable and imaginative story with a real sense of unpredictability - a real page turner. I'm not necessarily looking for anything too deep here as this is basically holiday reading but nothing overly lightweight either. As an example, I remember being completely enthralled with the second half of Asimov's Foundation trilogy, literally being unable to put it down until I saw just where the story was going. I'm looking for something like that.

In the first category: have you read Zadie Smith's White Teeth? Or Monica Ali's Brick Lane? Or Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner?

In the second category I would definitely try Alastair Reynolds's Chasm City. It's loosely connected to his trilogy: Revelation Space, Redemption Ark, and Absolution Gap. I would try Chasm City first and see if you dig his writing and the world, and then move on to the trilogy. Revelation Space is a little too heavy on the technobabble at first but that clears up as the book and series goes on; all four of the books, taken together, are pretty incredible.

rob

[The Batman]

Well there's still Chabon's Mysteries of Pittsburg, and his collections of short stories, as well as the Frank Herbert Dune novels for your sci-fi fix.

[Mr. Croup]

The Way of the Wolf by E.E. Knight, which is the first book in The Vampire Earth series. The vampires aren't vampires, but a race of aliens who live in the bio-energy that is created by all living things. Humans are number one on the menu. The series is post-apocalyptic with a hint of StarGate SG-1 thown in for good measure, and it is character and situation driven.

[Mr. Croup]

The Way of the Wolf by E.E. Knight, which is the first book in The Vampire Earth series. The vampires aren't vampires, but a race of aliens who live in the bio-energy that is created by all living things. Humans are number one on the menu. The series is post-apocalyptic with a hint of StarGate SG-1 thown in for good measure, and it is character and situation driven.

[Subotai]

The latter, try Mitchell Smith's Snowfall trilogy.

[Buzz Dixon]

1) CATCH-22 by Joseph Heller

2) THE STARS MY DESTINATION by Alfred Bester

[TheLazy]

Since it's pointless starting a new thread, Ill second that request for any recomendations. I like stuff that breaks convetions and takes you somewhere unexpected, Fight Club by Chuck Palanuikis the best example I can think of right now. Failing that, I like real world stuff, I'm not big on over the top fantasy stuff, so don't recomend anything like Pratchet of Tolkien (although read LOTR, didn't like it).

Thanks:)

[FroggieBKT]

For character driven novels you can't really go wrong with Charles Baxter. Check out The Feast of Love and Saul and Patsy. I'd also recommend anything by Tim O'Brien, especially The Things They Carried, In the Lake of the Woods, and July, July.

For TheLazy's breaking conventions thing check out Dave Egger's A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and Everything is Illuminated.

[Ilash]

Thanks all for the recommendations. As it so happens, I ignored all of them and picked up Huxley's Brave New World and am also considering To Kill A Mockingbird (any opinions on these, by the way?) but I will definitely keep these suggestions in mind for future reading.

Thanks again.

[Guy1]

Thanks all for the recommendations. As it so happens, I ignored all of them and picked up Huxley's Brave New World and am also considering To Kill A Mockingbird (any opinions on these, by the way?) but I will definitely keep these suggestions in mind for future reading.

Thanks again.

To Kill A Mockingbird is a good book, the characters are great. Especially Scout.

[Tobias March]

I'm looking for a book that falls into either one of these two very different categories:

1) A witty, heartfelt character-driven novel. What I'm basically looking for here is something along the lines of Michael Chabon, who's Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and Wonderboys have become two of my all-time favourite novels after having read them both this year, the former in particular. So anything in that style really.

2) An engrossing science fiction novel with the emphasis NOT being on technobabble or science-theory but more on simply telling a truly gripping, memorable and imaginative story with a real sense of unpredictability - a real page turner. I'm not necessarily looking for anything too deep here as this is basically holiday reading but nothing overly lightweight either. As an example, I remember being completely enthralled with the second half of Asimov's Foundation trilogy, literally being unable to put it down until I saw just where the story was going. I'm looking for something like that.

You liked Chabon? Jonothan Lethem. I've read Fortress of Solitude and As she climbed across the table. They're both clever, funny, feature great character writing and the former book is filled with lots of pop cultural nods.

The man's a Philip K. Dick nut and combine that with a love for 70's cosmic Marvel comics, you have a pretty heady mix.

His early stuff is very sf oriented, but I haven't tried it yet.

[Rob on the Job]

...An engrossing science fiction novel with the emphasis NOT being on technobabble or science-theory but more on simply telling a truly gripping, memorable and imaginative story with a real sense of unpredictability - a real page turner. ...

Two books by Philip K. Dick:

1) The Main in the High Castle

2) The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch (which blew my mind the first time I read it)

[Ilash]

You liked Chabon? Jonothan Lethem. I've read Fortress of Solitude and As she climbed across the table. They're both clever, funny, feature great character writing and the former book is filled with lots of pop cultural nods.

The man's a Philip K. Dick nut and combine that with a love for 70's cosmic Marvel comics, you have a pretty heady mix.

His early stuff is very sf oriented, but I haven't tried it yet.

Based on your recommendation I picked up Fortress of Solitude from a second hand book store and thanks, I'm really enjoying it so far. I can definitely see the similarities between this and Chabon.

[Homosensual]

Just finished Peter F Hamilton's Night's Dawn trilogy: The Reality Dysfunction, The Neutronium Alchemist and The Naked God, and would heartily recommend it.

Alternatively, classics like Frank Herbert's Dune or the Thomas Covenant novels of Stephen Donaldson never pale. Or if you fancy something more contemporary, there's Neal Asher, Jon Courtenay Grimwood - or you could check out Fitzpatrick's War by Theodore Judson.