What books have made the most impression on you? Mine, in no particular order-
“C” by John Diamond. Tag-line “Because Cowards get Cancer, too” Chilling, frank account of his battle with throat cancer, and how so many well-meaning people wouldn’t let him even talk about his fears, insisting instead he think “positive” Nearly passed out reading a description of one operation.
Great Expectations (Dickens) First “proper” book I read, aged about 10, and coloured my perception of women for far too long.
Self Help for Your Nerves, Claire Weekes. Helped me through a dark period of my life, when I sometimes genuinely thought I was losing my mind.
Miracle in The Andes, Nando Parrado. Confess I knew little about “Flight 571” until reading this book recently. Amazed at what the human spirit is capable of achieving when all seemed lost. Even though I knew the outcome it was un-putdownable (a bit like “Vulcan 607”)
Plane Speaking, Bill Gunston. Breath of fresh air as an aviation book. Too many authors get too close to their subjects and gloss over failings, but this was a brilliant warts-and-all look at so many aviation issues. I think Bill Gunston said it was the book he’d always wanted to write.
By: hampden98 - 17th September 2012 at 11:50
Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy – A trilogy in 7 parts (the definitive version)
Target Berlin – Jef Ethel and Alfred Price
How to program the C64 (has kept me in work for 20+ years)
Generation Kill – About a recon team in Afganistan (true story and very funny)
The Big Show – P Closterman
By: Moggy C - 16th September 2012 at 22:53
I don’t know if you’d count the Stieg Larsson trilogy as one book, but of all the books I have read in the past (say) ten years, it’s the one (three) that I have enjoyed most. Lisbeth is one of THE great literary heroines.
Read them in order.
Then watch the Scandinavian movies in the right order and in Swedish with subtitles.
Then watch the Daniel Craig effort.
Moggy
Girl with a Dragon Tattoo
Girl who Played with Fire
Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest
By: kev35 - 16th September 2012 at 22:48
The Cruel Sea by Nicholas Monsarrat.
Illusions: The confessions of a reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach.
The 13th Valley by Mark M Del Vecchio.
Towards the setting sun by James Bradley.
And my absolute favourite of all time, a book I make a point of re-reading every single year, Covenant with Death by John Harris. A novel about a fictional Pals Battalion during the Great War. The tag line ‘two years in the making, ten minutes in the destroying’ gives you a clue as to where the book is going. But it is the characterisation that stands out and the emotion he invokes at the fates of Corker, Bold, Billy and Tommy Mandy, Tom Creak, Ephsibiah Lott and young Billy Murray. An absolute cracker of a book which always reduces me to tears.
I would have to include one more, as I have given so many copies of this away to friends over the years, Jonathan Livingstone Seagull by Richard Bach.
Regards,
kev35
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September 16, 2012 at 9:46 pm