Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die discussion

The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia by Samuel Johnson

JenniferAustin wrote: "I just finished The Year of the Hare by Arto Paasilinna. What a demented and wonderful book! I have already requested the only other Paasilinna title my library owns. ..."

You completely sold me with that combo--three of my favorites!

Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym - 5* - My Review

Fools of Fortune by William Trevor. Loved this.

The Heather Blazing by Colm Tóibín

Solaris by Stanisław Lem.

Jake wrote: "Carol wrote: "I finished The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole on 9/21/22"

I've been thinking about reading that since I've been trying to get a better understanding o..."

Sorry. I just now saw your question. I've read a few of the classic Gothic stories and I didn't have the same response to this one at all. To me most Gothics are at least a little creepy, if not downright frightening. Some of the "gothic elements" in this story were so silly that I almost laughed when I read it. It seemed more like a parody of a Gothic novel than the real thing. Of course, it couldn't have been a parody since it was the first one written! But it was easy to read and I'm glad to have it finished.

I just finished a re-read of The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger.

I first read it when I was 15 years old, about 50 years ago. This is the first time I've read it since. Wow! What a difference time and life experiences make in my reaction to the book. 50 years ago I would have given it 2 stars. Today, it's an easy 5 star book for me!

This past week I finished Indian Summer by Adalbert Stifter and The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Awakening by Kate Chopin

Farewell, My Lovely by Raymond Chandler.
Great prose littered with some wonderful metaphors.

Silence by Shūsaku Endō

Finished a re-read of The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho

Carol wrote: "Finished a re-read of The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe"

One of my all-time favorites!

The Player of Games by Iain M. Banks

Forest of the Hanged by Liviu Rebreanu

I finished the greatest war novel ever


All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
Rating: 5 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

If This Is a Man by Primo Levi

The Heather Blazing by Colm Tóibín

I really enjoyed this

Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens

The Heather Blazing by Colm Tóibín and The Enigma of Arrival: A Novel in Five Sections by V.S. Naipaul

On Beauty by Zadie Smith

Finished:
The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan - 3* - My Review

The Flamethrowers by Rachel Kushner

The Hand of Ethelberta by Thomas Hardy. Has interesting plot turns.

The Last Chronicle of Barset by Anthony Trollope.

Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller

They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? by Horace McCoy. Very powerful for such a short novel.

The Monk by Matthew Gregory Lewis

In the middle of the night last night I finished Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh, a screwy satire that I enjoyed, but questionable if it's good enough for the 1001 list.
I also very recently finished Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert and The Ghost Road by Pat Barker.

Carol wrote: "Finished a re-read of The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe"

That's the oldest full novel that I've ever read. It's very a very significant book in literary history.

Finished The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. I really am not quite sure what to make of it. It was interesting but I also don’t know what to believe.

On Beauty by Zadie Smith

Woman At Point Zero and Blonde

Tropic of Capricorn by Henry Miller

Tropic of Capricorn by Henry Miller

1Q84 by Haruki Murakami.

Franny and Zooey by J. D. Salinger

The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe

Dispatches by war correspondent Michael Herr.

God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton.

Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford.

Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto

At Swim, Two Boys by Jamie O'Neill

I just finished The Old Man and the Sea. I listed to an audiobook narrated by Donald Sutherland. Five stars for both the book and the audio performance!

Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard

A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore