Hello all,

I've been aware of the book for a few months now and getting quite obsessive about it ever since. According to arukiyomi, I have to read 22 books/year from now on, which might give you an indication of my age :).

My first language is French and I try to get translated works in French when I can. But I am also fluent in English and enjoy its rich literary tradition.

Here goes (from both editions), asterisks are near the ones I read since learning about the list:

1- The thousand and one nights
2- Gulliver's travels
3- A modest proposal *
4- Candide *
5- Persuasion *
6- The purloined letter *
7- A tale of two cities *
8- The yellow wallpaper *
9- Sense and sensibility
10- Frankenstein
11- Last of the Mohicans
12- The hunchback of Notre Dame *
13- The nose *
14- The fall of the house of Usher *
15- The pit and the pendulum *
16- The three musketeers
17- Uncle Tom's cabin
18- Madame Bovary
19- Les miserables
20- Alice's adventures in wonderland
21- Little women *
22- Through the looking glass
23- Ben-Hur
24- The adventures of Huckeberry Finn
25- Germinal
26- Dracula
27- The garden party *
28- The emigrants *
29- Trainspotting
30- Timbuktu *
31- The immoralist *
32- The trial
33- Brave new world
34- The hobbit
35- Of mice and men
36- The little prince
37- Animal farm
38- The plague
39- Cry, the beloved country *
40- Nineteen eigthy-four

Message edited by its author, Apr 27, 2009, 1:42pm.

41- The catcher in the rye *
42- Memoirs of Hadrian
43- The old man and the sea *
44- Lord of the flies
45- The lord of the rings
46- Doctor Zhivago
47- Manon des sources
48- One hundred years of solitude
49- 2001: a space odyssey
50- The godfather
51- The year of the hare
52- Interview with the vampire
53- Hitchiker's guide to the galaxy
54- The name of the rose
55- The handmaid's tale
56- Perfume
57- Contact
58- The pigeon
59- Like water for chocolate
60- Remains of the day *
61- The english patient
62- The secret history
63- A fine balance
64- Alias Grace *
65- The hours *
66- The amazing adventures of Kavalier and Clay *
67- Life of Pi
68- The corrections *
69- The sea *
70- The blind assassin
71- Never let me go *

Message edited by its author, Apr 27, 2009, 1:32pm.

Now reading In search of Klingsor and Jane Eyre.

You already have a great list!

Thanks Tammiejx!

So you're from the Netherlands. Any authors from your country on the list that you'd recommend?

72- In search of Klingsor

meh. One thing kept bothering me: how these supposedly brilliant scientists kept committing the 'is-ought fallacy'. Because uncertainty is part of the universe, there can be no truth, no right and wrong and therefore everyone is a liar and a traitor. Sorry but we live in the real world, we have motivations that do not stem from the quantum realm and our actions have real consequences.

3/5

Hi paruline, you do have a great list of books already read. I have never heard much of your book #72, but loved Jane Eyre when I read it many years ago.

Thanks judylou. I am only 30 pages in but I can already understand why it's such a classic.

73- Jane Eyre

Well, what hasn't been said about this book? I thoroughly enjoyed it.

4.5/5

#5: Sorry for the very late reply! I think there's a book by Harry Mulisch on this list, you might give him a try. The book is called The Discovery Of Heaven if I remember correctly. :)

74- Foundation

An engaging read for fans of sci-fi although it did seem to fizzle out a bit at the end. My only real problem with it was the lack of female characters. Scientists, administrators, politicians, rulers, priests, traders and adventurers were all men. Probably a reflection of its audience at the time of publication, but a missed opportunity imo.

4/5

75- The thirty-nine steps

Entertaining story, liked it well enough. I had to suspend disbelief at several points though, which kind of distracted me. Not sure if it deserves to be on the list even though it was one of the first spy thriller.

4/5

76- The dispossessed

Loved it! What a great book! Often, I think I mostly like the 'idea' or potential of sci-fi rather than the sci-fi itself. But this story had intelligent, well-rounded characters and they lead their lives with courage, conviction and ideals. Some random thoughts:
-The author challenges our preconceptions in many cases by not divulging the gender or race of her characters right away;
-There is not a lot of action, it can almost be read as a very long essay on anarchism;
-I think I would have taken something different from it had I read it in my teens or my twenties. I think this is a book that can grow with you and I look forward to reading it again in a few years;
-The physics and metaphysics side of the story were the weakest part imo;
-Personnally, I don't think anarchism could work because it doesn't take into account human nature. There will always be cheaters, parasites, greed and laziness (yes I am cynical) and all attempts to set up ideal societies have broken down in mere years;
-I thought the description of human and social relationships and their evolution in time were particularly well rendered, as insightful as any I've ever read.

5/5

Message edited by its author, Jun 1, 2009, 1:10pm.

77- To kill a mockingbird

That's it. My daughter is going to learn English and read this book as soon as possible.

4.5/5

78- Kim

Liked it well enough. Seemed a bit otherworldly to me because of the setting and the different culture. The main characters didn't seem to evolve much but the writing was beautiful. Overall I am glad I read it.

4/5

Message edited by its author, Jun 25, 2009, 3:33pm.

79- The war of the worlds

Gripping and surprisingly modern, a very enjoyable book.

4.5/5

80- The day of the triffids

John Wyndham was supposedly influenced by The war of the worlds so I was interested in reading these two books one after the other. I have to admit I didn't really see a lot of similarities. Rather, the story reminded me strongly of Blindness by Jose Saramago which I read a few years ago.

I thought it was a good read, it had a nice pacing and an involving story. I will probably reread it someday.

4.5/5

81- The turn of the screw

Argh! Well, this was arduous... I mostly kept reading because I was curious about all the fuss.

2.5/5

82- Treasure Island

Next on my tbr list was Lord Jim but Treasure Island kept calling my name from Mount tbr. I had only read the sanitized children version before and this was a welcome surprise. I can understand why it's been enjoyed for so long by so many readers.

4/5

83- Les liaisons dangereuses

I remember trying to read this in my teen years and giving up because of the epistolary nature of the novel. I decided to give it a second try mainly because of the group read.

I enjoyed it a lot more this time around. My copy had a couple of essays on sentimentalism, rationalism, the life of de Laclos etc. These essays gave me a lot of food for thoughts while I was reading the novel.

So, did Valmont love de Tourvel? I guess that's the question that readers are left with at the end. Personnally, I think he did. He placed her above all others, he was moved by her virtues, and he committed 'suicide' after leaving her.

However, his identity was entertwined with his reputation as a libertine. Merteuil mocked him (could she have been in love with him?) and he had to choose between losing face and the woman he loved.

*rambling mode on*

Since reading Alias Grace, it has been difficult to commiserate much with the emotional problems of characters in period novels (from The turn of the screw to Les liaisons dangereuses).

Most people throughout history have worked hard to feed, clothe, and support some kind of aristocracy. The least they can expect in return is to have the people with free time try to advance the fields of medicine, art, law, science, engineering... When the aristocracy becomes parasitic instead of commensalist, that's when I say: Vive la revolution!

*rambling mode off*

4/5

Message edited by its author, Sep 4, 2009, 12:12pm.

84- Moll Flanders

I initially expected this book to follow the movie of the same name, but at around page 10, decided to just enjoy the ride without expecting anything. The most interesting part in my opinion was her life of crime, while I was pretty bored with all her husbands and her plots to get married. I also lost count of all her children.

*Spoilers*

Personnally, I really don't think she repented. For once, she seemed to be a very indifferent mother, after she got rich, never trying to find and/or helping out her children. She says she reconciled with her son in America, but did she do that only in self-interest? A true penitent would also avoid lying imo, but she lied to her American son about him being an only child.

*End spoilers*

All in all, an interesting read. I felt like I learned a lot about the lives of women in that period. Moll Flanders was courageous and intelligent and used the means at her disposal to make her life better.

4/5

Message edited by its author, Sep 4, 2009, 4:21pm.

85- The castle of Otranto

Well, according to Carl Sagan, reading a book is like hearing the author's voice and thoughts. I can only think that I would not want to meet Horace Walpole.

The only redeeming quality of this book is that it was over so fast. Does not belong on the list imo.

2/5

Message edited by its author, Sep 15, 2009, 10:12am.

86- Solaris

mmmm... I am ambivalent about this one. It's a great set-up: how to communicate with something so alien that you don't have anything in common?

But the human characters were not very sympathetic and the dialogs seemed forced. Who answers a question with another question twenty times in a row? (What do you mean? Don't you know? About what? etc etc). In fact I found the alien the most interesting and developed character.

Glad I read it, and I will probably check out the movie some day, but I am not sure it belongs on the list.

3.5/5

Message edited by its author, Sep 15, 2009, 10:13am.

87- Lord Jim

Another difficult read for me. The writing reminded me of Rudyard Kipling (ie beautiful, evocative) but I found the story boring. Also, there were several instances of racism in the book (probably a product of its time), but uncomfortable reading all the same. I don't know if I am ever going to attempt Heart of Darkness or The secret agent now.

3/5 - Mainly for the skillful writing

88- Soldats de Salamine

Satisfying read from an author I wouldn't have found on my own. That's what I like about the list: the nice little surprises.

4/5

Message edited by its author, Sep 30, 2009, 8:43am.

89- God's bits of wood

My own background may have coloured my reading experience of this book. I have lived in west Africa for a couple of years and this brought back many memories. While I was reading, I could feel the heat of the sun, and I could picture the colourful boubous, the sand, the houses, the marketplace.

Ousmane Sembene is one of West Africa's most acclaimed authors but since he writes in French, I don't think he is as well known as he should be.

As for the story, it's based on a real event (the strike of the Dakar-Niger railway employees). There are no central characters, rather it tells the story of how the community and the traditions are changed by the events. The hardships the people faced during the strike reminded me somewhat of Germinal. Recommended read for people interested in the colonial history of western Africa.

4/5

Message edited by its author, Oct 6, 2009, 11:16am.

90- A short history of tractors in Ukrainian

A family too dysfunctional for my taste. I live in one so don't really want to read about them. Other people might like it though.

3/5

91- Ethan Frome

A short, depressing and well-crafted story. I thought the descriptions of wintery landscapes were especially well written. I also felt increasing dread as I read and that doesn't happen often with me.

4/5

92- In cold blood

Hard to put down. Good story, master storyteller.

4/5

93- The curious incident of the dog in the night-time

Sweet, interesting, heartbreaking, unique. Loved it.

4.5/5

Message edited by its author, Oct 26, 2009, 2:24pm.

The last two books you have read are two of my favourite books. And for such different reasons!!

94- The graduate

meh.

3/4

#30: I loved The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time! One of my favorite books, glad to see you enjoyed it too. :)

#31, 33 I wasn't sure about the book when I picked it up but am sure glad I did!

95- Neuromancer

will have to think about my review. Ok here goes.

This novel introduced the concepts of cyberspace and as such holds an important part in the development of sci-fi. A lot of people see it as the precursor of the Matrix, for example.

It's clear that the author has a very clear picture of the world he created. But is it too much to ask that he shares that picture with us? Characters make reference to events, corporations and software without explanation. There is a lot of slang and techno-babble. For the first 200 pages, I was just trying to figure out what was going on. After that, I started to really enjoy it.

Ultimately I am glad I read it but I wish it hadn't been so much work.

3.5/5

Message edited by its author, Nov 19, 2009, 9:35am.

96- The death of Ivan Ilych

A quick, easy read. I wasn't particularly blown away but that maybe because, unlike me, he is the other man, and it is natural he should die (those who have read it will understand).

3/5

97- The island of Dr. Moreau

Interesting concept but the biology is *so* wrong, it kind of distracted me. The war of the worlds was much better imo.

I don't know why, I kept thinking about Crake in Oryx and Crake while reading.

4/5

98- Mrs. Dalloway

Woohoo! I am no longer a Woolf virgin!

I wanted soooo much to love this book but it left me a bit cold actually. I really wish I knew why.

3.5/5