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Loading... 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2006)by Peter Boxall (Editor)
I agree with some of the others that while this is a fun book to flip through it should be by no means be taken seriously as the definitive list of what you should read and I doubt this is what the editor had in mind. Actually if you read the introduction to the book he talks about this. He says, "It is a list that is anmiated by the spirit of the novel, by a love for what the novel is and does, but which nevertheless does not hope or aim to capture it, to sum it up, or put it to bed." You can look at each of these books on the list as a snapshot of an example of 'the novel'. I have no intention or desire to read all of these books, but there are some I've added to my to-read shelf. And of course we all have our opinions about books that have been left out. The Good Earth? not there. Anyway, check it out from the library and have fun with it. At last Boxall confirms that insanity has no decent answer. Wonder how many books (novels to be precise) he has essentially read? I think I can live a full and happy life without reading many of these books. In fact, there are several I feel strongly that I want never to read and that I will be more satisfied and happier for having not read (and the whole assertion of the title sets up my bristles so I won't detail that). However, I have read at least a few of these books and I have added more to my reading list, so it is not all in vain. this is a good resources for evaluating all those books "they" say one should read so as to decide whether or not one really wants to spend any minutes of a limited lifetime slogging through them. I came across so e books of which I'd never heard which sound interesting, so I count that a plus. Great fun to peruse this compendium of great authors and their books. A good reference for future reading choices. I love "Lists" and this one is a whopper.
An odd book fell into my hands recently, a doorstopper with the irresistible title “1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die.” That sounds like a challenge, with a subtle insult embedded in the premise. It suggests that you, the supposedly educated reader, might have read half the list at best. Like one of those carnival strength-testers, it dares you to find out whether your reading powers rate as He-Man or Limp Wrist. Inspired
References to this work on external resources.
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Also, this is not really a list of 1001 books, it is a list of 1001 novels, I use the term as loosely as the critics who made up the list do. I would have included non-fiction. Why is George Orwell represented by four of his novels but not by "Down and Out in Paris and London" or "Homage to Catalonia"?
An interesting book to thumb through and get ideas for books to read. (