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All those out there who like to read, what are your favourite books? If you can, specify why you like them as well.
In order..
1. American Gods by Neil Gaiman
American Gods is the ultimate dark fantasy. It takes thousands of mythological figures from history, as well as themes from many famous myths and brings them all into the modern world, where they clash with the new gods, gods of media, gods of computers, gods of consumerism, all new 'American Gods' in a struggle of faith. The main character, Shadow also spins an interesting subplot with him and his wife, as well as being a great character and does not seem out of place in the story full of gods and various fantastical elements. The story also has a great twist, as well as a statement on modernism and secret government plots. If you love mythology and fantasy, this is a must read. It is possibly the greatest dark and modern fantasy story ever told.
2. Le Fantôme de l'Opéra (The Phantom of the Opera) by Gaston Leroux
It's a beautifully told gothic romance, almost everyone should know what it's basically about. The way it is written is excellent, and the many allegories and practically mythological sub-stories are great.
3. Dark Water by Koji Suzuki
Unlike the movie, Dark Water is a truly terrifying story. Well, 4 terrifying stories to be exact. Not only do they provide good scares, they are also absolutely beautiful. They are told like poetry, and the writing is so fluid and leaves a sense of forgotten beauty throughout the book. For someone looking for a set of truly creepy ghost stories, told almost as if they were paintings trying to both convey horror and beauty at the same time, this is the perfect book for them.
4. Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
Highly bizarre. Very misogynistic. Homophobic. Drenched in sex, violence, and drugs. Extremely offensive, disgusting, and disturbing. But anyone who reads it, unless they are easily and seriously offended by content that is meant to be offensive, will be trapped inside of its bizarre and perverse worlds. About a junkie named William Lee, Naked Lunch is told in 'routines,' cut up sections that barely resemble chapters or structure. The tale is a dark satire on the life of a junkie, and truly captures their disgusting nature. Throughout the 'story,' William Lee runs from the police, strange creatures that were possibly once human (Such as Willy The Disk, who snorted so much heroine that his nose and palate have fallen off, shot so much into his eyes that he is bland, and after 'eating' so much, his mouth has slacked and turned into a giant hole with a string of ectoplasm hanging from it that apparently is his only way of both detecting and using 'the junk.')as well as alien (Such as the cannibalistic mugwumps), while going throughout many drug infested slums all around the world, before eventually winding up in the ultimate Junkie hell, the barren, nightmarish wasteland known as 'Interzone.' If you aren't easily offended by possibly every offensive word being uttered, tons of sex, violence, and disgusting satires and mutations of the human form, Naked Lunch is a must read. It is a brilliant and horrifyingly accurate parody of the junkie lifestyle.
5. The Green Mile by Stephen King
I absolutely love Stephen king, but The Green Mile is my all time favourite. Unlike most of his stories, it is not horror. It is still supernatural, however. The tale is a huge statement on violence, racism, criminality, the perversion of the human soul, the problems of the legal system, and yet in all of these dark themes, a beautiful and yet saddening light shines throughout to fight all these elements. It tells the story of a prison guard named Paul Edgecomb, and a black man named John Coffey, who is put on Death Row for supposedly raping and killing two young girls. He was found holding the two young girls in his arms, screaming and crying, claiming that he wasn't in time to 'take it back.' Paul sees greatness in Coffey, and knows inside him that a man as simple and good as Coffey could never have done such a heinous crime. The story involves many other criminals in the prison, who are all guilty, yet have some sort of saving grace inside of their soul, despite the fact they only have one place to go in the end. However, although not all of these men are truly and entirely evil, eventually a man known as Buffalo Bill is brought in, who is nothing but the definition of Evil, and is the man who truly killed the two little girls. The ending is sad, yet at the same time happy, and has a great statement about the world. Although this is obviously not a book, I will also mention the film based upon The Green Mile, which is the only movie based upon a book that is absolutely perfect. Everything from beginning to end is told accurately and does not mess with the books story, characters, or even the dialogue. The winning direction as well as excellent cast makes it the greatest Stephen King film as well.
In order..
1. American Gods by Neil Gaiman
American Gods is the ultimate dark fantasy. It takes thousands of mythological figures from history, as well as themes from many famous myths and brings them all into the modern world, where they clash with the new gods, gods of media, gods of computers, gods of consumerism, all new 'American Gods' in a struggle of faith. The main character, Shadow also spins an interesting subplot with him and his wife, as well as being a great character and does not seem out of place in the story full of gods and various fantastical elements. The story also has a great twist, as well as a statement on modernism and secret government plots. If you love mythology and fantasy, this is a must read. It is possibly the greatest dark and modern fantasy story ever told.
2. Le Fantôme de l'Opéra (The Phantom of the Opera) by Gaston Leroux
It's a beautifully told gothic romance, almost everyone should know what it's basically about. The way it is written is excellent, and the many allegories and practically mythological sub-stories are great.
3. Dark Water by Koji Suzuki
Unlike the movie, Dark Water is a truly terrifying story. Well, 4 terrifying stories to be exact. Not only do they provide good scares, they are also absolutely beautiful. They are told like poetry, and the writing is so fluid and leaves a sense of forgotten beauty throughout the book. For someone looking for a set of truly creepy ghost stories, told almost as if they were paintings trying to both convey horror and beauty at the same time, this is the perfect book for them.
4. Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
Highly bizarre. Very misogynistic. Homophobic. Drenched in sex, violence, and drugs. Extremely offensive, disgusting, and disturbing. But anyone who reads it, unless they are easily and seriously offended by content that is meant to be offensive, will be trapped inside of its bizarre and perverse worlds. About a junkie named William Lee, Naked Lunch is told in 'routines,' cut up sections that barely resemble chapters or structure. The tale is a dark satire on the life of a junkie, and truly captures their disgusting nature. Throughout the 'story,' William Lee runs from the police, strange creatures that were possibly once human (Such as Willy The Disk, who snorted so much heroine that his nose and palate have fallen off, shot so much into his eyes that he is bland, and after 'eating' so much, his mouth has slacked and turned into a giant hole with a string of ectoplasm hanging from it that apparently is his only way of both detecting and using 'the junk.')as well as alien (Such as the cannibalistic mugwumps), while going throughout many drug infested slums all around the world, before eventually winding up in the ultimate Junkie hell, the barren, nightmarish wasteland known as 'Interzone.' If you aren't easily offended by possibly every offensive word being uttered, tons of sex, violence, and disgusting satires and mutations of the human form, Naked Lunch is a must read. It is a brilliant and horrifyingly accurate parody of the junkie lifestyle.
5. The Green Mile by Stephen King
I absolutely love Stephen king, but The Green Mile is my all time favourite. Unlike most of his stories, it is not horror. It is still supernatural, however. The tale is a huge statement on violence, racism, criminality, the perversion of the human soul, the problems of the legal system, and yet in all of these dark themes, a beautiful and yet saddening light shines throughout to fight all these elements. It tells the story of a prison guard named Paul Edgecomb, and a black man named John Coffey, who is put on Death Row for supposedly raping and killing two young girls. He was found holding the two young girls in his arms, screaming and crying, claiming that he wasn't in time to 'take it back.' Paul sees greatness in Coffey, and knows inside him that a man as simple and good as Coffey could never have done such a heinous crime. The story involves many other criminals in the prison, who are all guilty, yet have some sort of saving grace inside of their soul, despite the fact they only have one place to go in the end. However, although not all of these men are truly and entirely evil, eventually a man known as Buffalo Bill is brought in, who is nothing but the definition of Evil, and is the man who truly killed the two little girls. The ending is sad, yet at the same time happy, and has a great statement about the world. Although this is obviously not a book, I will also mention the film based upon The Green Mile, which is the only movie based upon a book that is absolutely perfect. Everything from beginning to end is told accurately and does not mess with the books story, characters, or even the dialogue. The winning direction as well as excellent cast makes it the greatest Stephen King film as well.
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