My 20 books
Hunter S. Thompson
Between my new year resolutions were to enrol a creative writing course and I did. This course is focused on novel. I´m delighted to have enrolled it because my novel was stuck for few months and now I´m more motivated and full of new ideas. I think it´s working!
This week, we were told to make a 20 book list to recommend to the class. I´ve searched for different voices and they should be in English. Here it goes..
Wyoming by Barry Gifford. This novel is written in dialogues only. There is nothing but dialogues. It´s easy to read and very emotional though.
Moon Palace by Paul Auster.I like Auster like narrator and especially with his secondary plots.
The trial by Kafka. The best psycho-thriller ever. I love how Kafka makes you feel uneasy with daily common things.
Foam of the daze by Boris Vian.A surrealist love story. How the impossible sounds so real.
Clara by José Carlos Somoza.This novel shows a future where people can be used as canvas by painters.
The Catcher in the Rye by Salinger.What can I say? One of the most important novels in the modern literature.
Mark Z. Danielewski
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. A very experimental way of telling a story with two different narrators.
El tunel de Ernesto Sabato. Argumento contado en primera persona siendo un asesino quien la narra. [/es][en]The tunnel by Ernesto Sabato. A story told on first person but it´s a killer who´s talking.
At the Mountains of Madness by HP Lovecraft.Lovecraft is one of the best horror writers. He has influenced almost all the horror contemporary authors.
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad.A very important novel full of symbolism.
1984 by George Orwell.A disturbing dystopian novel.
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson.A Gonzo Journalism novel.
Women by Charles Bukowski.The American author of the poor neightborhoods (an emphasis on the ordinary lives of poor Americans, the act of writing, alcohol, relationships with women, and the drudgery of work).
Death in Venice by Thomas Mann. A different point of view: the relationship between body and mind.
The heart is a lonely hunter by Carson McCullers.She has a very special voice for the unforgiven.
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky.This novel is a trip to the main character´s mind.
A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole.This novel is called the modern picaresque and its main character: Ignatius Reilly, the new Don Quixote.
American Gods by Neil Gaiman.It is impressive how a main simple plot develops so many secondary ones (and sometimes they are better than the main one).
Songmaster by Orson Scott Card.This one could the step forward of an Andersen´s fairy tale.
Nomads by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro.Although it´s not a novel but a screenplay novelization, it´s a good example to see how the way to tell a story sometimes is more important than the story.
Charles Bukoswki
Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
April 10th, 2010 at 11:12 pm
1984 never went old, it’s still very relevant. So are Kafka’s stories…
April 12th, 2010 at 7:14 am
Muy de acuerdo con la mayoría de la lista.
Un par de ellos no los he leido, y otro par no los conocía.
Al que no he conseguido pillar nunca es a Bukoswki. No me resulta agradable de leer, al menos no el único que leí, que no recuerdo ni el título.
Ummm una novela tuya. ¡Qué curiosidad!
Beso, y enhorabuena por tu curso. Siempre he querido hacer uno aunque en mi caso sólo sirviera como experiencia.
April 15th, 2010 at 2:38 pm
¡A mí me quedan muchas por leer de tu lista! Puedo decir que “El proceso”, “El guardián en el centeno”, “Muerte en Venecia”, “1984″, “Hearth of Darkness” y “Crimen y castigo”, todas, sin excepción, me han parecidos obras maestras. Quizá la de Salinger bastante por debajo de las demás, pero eso es harina de otro costal. A ver si puedo ir leyendo próximamente las otras.
April 17th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Zhu: Absolutely, good stories always are relevant!
Cheers,
M.
Lore: Bukoswki me pilla más con su poesía pero me encanta sus historias.
Anímate a hacer algún curso, merecen mucho la pena.
Clau: Creo que la de Salinger hay que leerla en un momento especial de tu vida en la que te puedas identificar con Holden sino, es muy difícil que te pueda llegar.
Kafka y Vian son mis escritores fetiche y los recomiendo siempre que puedo.
Muchos besos a los dos por leerme y comentar.
M.