Patrick Bateman Wrote:
so this is my list of books i have to read, whos read them and are there any clunkers i should avoid at all costs?
Lunar Park - trying to track this one down still
The Informers - my fave B.E. Ellis, probably - a series of short stories that alternately make/don't make much sense...
Private Parts - I remember thinking it was pretty good; Then again, I read it in high school, and have never been a HUGE HStern fan...
On The Road - Definite Qual
Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas - Def. Qual
Naked Lunch - OK, if you're up for readin' it...
1984, Animal Farm - Someone didn't go to a public Jr. High School. I'd reccommend "Down and Out in Paris and London" instead...
Slaughterhouse-Five - Qual
A Clockwork Orange - took me a while to read - invents it's own language, but not as much as "Finnegan's Wake" does... could be worth a read
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Probably one of my favorite books ever...
Catch 22 - 's ok
The Metamorphosis - good to read (for writing's sake), bad to read (for reading's sake)
The Grapes of Wrath - It's alright - backto the public school question though...
Brave New World - Purty good
Fahrenheit 451 - Good stuff
Notes from the Underground - OK... just gave a copy of this away to a friend
Fight Club Veryvery good - however, if you've seen the movie or are expecting something like it, I'd def. go for another one of Palahniuk's books - prob. Survivor to start.
A Confederacy of Dunces - it's ok, but had to start/stop reading it 4 times before I made it through...
Jennifer Government - overrated
The Motorcycle Diaries - ditto
Requiem for a Dream - I'd go for "Waiting Room" or "last exit" by Selby instead...
The Catcher in the Rye - Good to buy - probably stands up to casual re-reads better than almost any other novel...
Perv: A Love Story - I'd go for perm. midnight first, or even "I, Fatty"
High Fidelity - Good book
Killing Yourself to Live - Highly overrated, and surprisingly boring. Go with "Sex, drugs, and cocoa puffs" instead
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius - Great start...
You Shall Know Our Velocity - Dissapointing follow-up...
Me Talk Pretty One Day - P'shaw...
To Kill a Mockingbird - classic novel, worth a plow-through
The Stranger - great
Mein Kampf - um, sure...
A Million Little Pieces - why not just go with "mein kampf"?
Running With Scissors - decent story, clunky writing - the Burroughs mark of genius...
Beyond Good and Evil - worth a plow
Lolita - see above (but not in that way, sicko)...
The Sun Also Rises - decent, though I prefer Papa's short stories by far...
Last Exit to Brooklyn - see "Requiem"
....and, I'm quitting looking at this list now. Do you really read that much that this is a functional list for you? Seriously...
My advice:
1) Pick one book by an author on here (Ellis, Selby, Palahniuk, Kesey, Eggers, Burroughs, Sedaris, et al) - if you're not sure which one to read, pick one at random or ask for advice on a particular author
2) Read that book
3) If you like it, read another one of the author's books. If not, set that author down and back away from their novels.
Laundry lists for books are like Netflix Quere's - You'll end up making a massive list of things, once you get so far into it, you have little intention of ever paying any attention to.