favorites

[Mark Wright AIA]

Howdy
--- pynchonoid <pynchonoid at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Those would all be mine, too, although I could quibble
> a bit if required (I wouldn't include the Illiad
> because it's not a novel; I might suggest House of the
> Seven Gables instead of The Scarlet Letter; I wouldn't
> include those sci-fi novels). 

that's cool. 7G's is fantastic (especially the harsh-yet-fond treatment
of Miss Hepzibah at her toilette). My list is of "Favorites" not
"Best". I wouldn't presume to select "The Best".

Some things that aren't novels might as well be, like the Illiad. Some
shorter stories are bigger than most anything yklept "novel", for
instance "Wise Blood". Some true stories, like "In Cold Blood", are as
fully imagined as any fiction might be, and as beautifully written.
Some works of theory/philosophy rank as well for the force of the human
imagination they embody: try "The Interpretation of Dreams" or
"Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture."

I always reserve a place for the favorites of my youth: The Forever
War, Dune, Ringworld, The Foundation books, I Robot. Reading GR pretty
much spoiled me for science fiction --- I seldom indulge anymore, but I
can recommend "Ender's Game" to everyone.

And for a real splurge: any and all of RAYMOND CHANDLER. I'd go with
ALL.
mark




		
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