StormTrooper2011 wrote:

The Giver it won a newbury medal.

Hell yes. This is still one of my favorite books of all time. Great call.

"Post Office"...never heard of that, actually. What's it about, Bob, and what made you like it so much?

Neutral-bob wrote:

It's basically Bukowski recounting his experiences working in the post office. The way he recounts situations feels real without feeling forced. One of the main reasons I liked it was because it described the life of an average man in a job that isn't exactly wonderful. Well I suppose average isn't a good description, Bukowski's cynicism is what really shines through. At the time I was just starting out in the workforce and I could really relate with the problems he encountered with his bosses. The only thing I didn't care for in the book was the chapter or two he devoted to one of his adventures at the dog-races. It seemed entirely too dramatic ad unecessary for the otherwise realistic story. How about you Hawk? What did you like to read in highschool?

That sounds really cool actually. I'll have to go check it out; I'm sure the library has a copy.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, from a homework-time perspective) I had already read most of the high school curriculum by the time I got there. (That's not to brag; I jut honestly had no life as a kid and used what time I didn't spend reading like a machine to play video games. Then I grew up and...oh. Haven't changed at all. )

To be serious with the question though, my favorite of the high school-curriculum cannon is...well, anything Shakespeare wrote, because he's my personal deity. Other than that, "1984" is freaking amazing. So is Animal Farm. I wish I could just forget everything about those books, so I could go back and read them again for the first time and be shocked/surprised/happy/angry/etc at the right parts. Re-reading and finding new things is great, but I really do miss that initial rush of discovery.

What else is awesome bookwise...this isn't fiction, but I was introduced to Joseph Campbell in high school. His "Power of Myth" is possibly my favorite non-fiction book of all time, and "The Hero With a Thousand Faces" is up there too. "Huckleberry Finn," of course, although for pure fun and joy I prefer "Tom Sawyer." "Beowulf" is the fucking DEFINITION of the word "epic," and is the father of...well, most of English literature actually, but specifically the swords and sorcery genre. Amazing story. "Frankenstein," of course. "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" and "The Picture of Dorian Gray." Those two, I wish I could have read not knowing the endings. They're both supposed to be suspense stories of course, and I really miss not being able to discover the twists on my own. (Of course, they're such famous stories its hard NOT to be spoiled on them. For "Dr. Jekyll" anyway; if you don't yet know the twist to "Picture of Dorian Gray," go to the library, get it RIGHT NOW, and read it! It's a very short and easy read, and well worth a couple of hours.)

For poetry, I'm a nature lover so William Wordsworth is very close to my heart. (I recommend Robinson Jeffers very highly too, although you probably won't find him on a high school reading list.) For romantic, sexy, funny/borderline pornographic, you can't get ANY better than John Donne. Tip for you gentlemen: if you're trying to get a woman to fall in love with you, recite Shakespeare's sonnets to her. If you want her to fuck you, memorize some Donne. Trust me on this.

"The Giver" is an amazing, brilliant book as well. It's aimed more at middle-school aged kids so its usually not found in high school, but its well worth a read whether you're 12 or 20. Awesome, and another really, really fast read.

EDIT: Holy shit. See what happens when you ask Hawk an innocent question about books? SEE????

Well, at best I'll enjoy Bukowski. At the worst...I'll have my...cultural?...horizons broadened lol. They do have some of his stuff at the local library, so I'll give it a look. Can't be any worse than Tucker Max...right?

If you like mythology, you owe it to yourself to go read Joseph Campbell. Start with Power of Myth, or failing that, go check out the PBS series. (Power of Myth is basically a book-sized interview between Campbell and a guy called Bill Moyers; the interviews from which the book is derived are filmed and available on DVD.) I'm glad you're going to check out Donne, too. In addition to writing some of the most subtly (well, and not so subtly) sexy poetry out there, he has some beautiful ones that meditate of God, the nature of life, etc etc etc. Not as eye opening, but very nice in their own right.

Oh dear God, that would be awful. Sounds like Texas *shudder*. I'm so glad I was out of there before high school. East County is pretty damn redneck, but at least they know enough not to shove religion down your throat in school.

Let me guess: according to your teachers, Winston and Julia from "1984" were captured and punished because they didn't pray for salvation as soon as they learned about religion, right? And "Dr. Jekyll" has a bad ending because he was trying to escape the Judgment of a Wrathful God.

I never actually read ahead in any of my text-textbooks lol. I probably should have, but I was always sidetracked by something from the library .