Interesting books to read for leisure

Med School In Sight? Get in Or Your Money Back
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
C

Chankovsky

any suggestions?
Members don't see this ad.
 
If you're looking for quick, exciting reads,
Muse Asylum is a stunning 1st book written by a premed (he's in Mt Sinai right now, or just recently graduated I guess). Don't worry, it has nothing to do w/ medicine. His second book is mediocre, I would not recommend it.


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...103-2667754-9037461?v=glance&s=books&n=507846


Also, Nine Stories by JD Salinger is good, as is Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Schulz.

Have fun!

On the other hand, if you want a good, long, thought-provoking, potentially-life-changing read, read Brothers Karamazov or any other Russian Lit :)
 
what kind of interesting? are you looking for fiction or nonfiction, light or heavy, meaningful or fluffy? do you have any favorite genres?
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Any of the threads you start. :laugh:
 
House of God by Samuel Shem :thumbup:
 
Skeptrix said:
House of God by Samuel Shem :thumbup:
Click to expand...

all of the Dan Brown novels. Angels & Demons, Davinci Code... John Grisham's The Broker. Michael Chricton's State of Fear.
 
life of pi
the water-method man
mountains beyond mountains
Under the banner of heaven
the five people you meet in heaven
 
"The Fountainhead" and "Atlas Shrugged" are two excellent books by Ayn Rand.
A few others I would recommend are:
"A Fine Balance"
"First They Killed My Father"
"Bringing Down the House"
and any book by P.G. Wodehouse (he's a British writer)

~S~
 
Hmm what were some good books I reard this year...

100 Years of Solitude, and anything by Ernest Hemingway...his "the old man and the sea" is short and sweet.
:luck:
 
beep said:
what kind of interesting? are you looking for fiction or nonfiction, light or heavy, meaningful or fluffy? do you have any favorite genres?
Click to expand...


fiction and something deep and engrossing.
 
Chankovsky said:
fiction and something deep and engrossing.
Click to expand...

the master and margarita - mikhail bulgakov.

fits the description its more deep than I even know.
 
I just read Count of Monte Cristo by Dumas, and I have to say it could be my favorite work of fiction ever. If you get the unabridged version, its about 1200 pages, and definitely is engrossing, with like 6 different plots all intertwining to one end. I couldn't put it down until I finished.
 
Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier.

It's probably more enjoyable if you have an interest in Vemeer's art, though. :)
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Chankovsky said:
fiction and something deep and engrossing.
Click to expand...

Virtually any Russian novel (including Master and Maragarita...reading it now, as a mater of fact) fits that description. Personally, I'd recommend Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, followed by any other novel by Nabokov or Dostoevsky.
 
If you're looking for a short read, try The Last Question by Isaac Asimov.

The entire story is linked to above and it's only a 10-20 minute read, but it will blow you away! Best short story I've read, by far.
 
"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime"


really cool mystery that takes place through the eyes of an autistic boy. supposedly an incredibly realistic account of what autism is really like.
 
The Hades Factor by Robert Ludlum.
 
diana gabaldon--outlander series

barbara kingsolver--prodigal summer, animal dreams, poisonwood bible

herman wouk--the winds of war & war and rememberance

marian zimmer bradley--mists of avalon

chaim potok--the chosen & my name is asher lev (and their sequals)

phillip pullman--his dark materials trilogy

marge piercy--gone to soldiers
 
To agree with a few above posters, One Hundred Years of Solitude is an awesome book (if you speak Spanish, definitely read it in its original -- amazing), Girl With a Pearl Earing is a lot of fun (and you don't have to know anything about Vermeer to begin with; you'll want to by the time you're done), and ANYTHING by Isaac Asimov. I'm actually currently re-reading a bunch of Asimov I read when I was younger. Unfortunately I've read just about everything he wrote; I just wish it was endless :p

I know you said fiction, but here are a few non-fiction suggestions: A Short History of Nearly Everything, by Bill Bryson. I just read it, and while some of the science parts will be a bit simplistic for anybody with a science background, it is an awesome book and tons of fun to read. It's so interesting to learn about the personalities of some of the famous scientists we've all heard of (although he is quite critical, so you just have to accept that and enjoy). Also, I don't often laugh out loud at any book, much less a non-fiction one, but I did a few times while reading this one. Some other non-fiction suggestions include The Botany of Desire and Fast Food Nation (read them both, they compliment each other!).

There have been a bunch of book threads on SDN, and thanks to them I picked up Les Miserables from the library. I always loved the play. I haven't gotten that far into it, but so far it's pretty good. Anyway, if you do a search, you'll find at least 2 or 3 threads full of book suggestions. A lot of them are related to medicine, but there are a fair number of just plain fun ones.
 
funshine said:
No way...The Count Monte Cristo has got to be one of the most overrated books ever!
I think Dumas allowed himself way too much freedom, and the plots get way too farfetched...to the point that they are laughable. I vividly recall wanting Dante (the ridiculous hero) to just drop down dead so the story would end. Not to mention the writing is overly-sentimental and starts to grate on the reader's nerves. I swear Dumas must have used the phrase "pale and trembling" about 500 times. I think you're missing some really great stuff out there if Count of Monte Cristo is your all-time favorite.
Click to expand...
I was under the impression that opinions can't be wrong. Apparently mine can be. And last time I checked, there was no such thing as a "perfect" book. There can be negative criticisms about any book, but that doesn't mean the book is bad, or that someone is wrong for liking it. I personally liked the way it was written and the story, if you did not, thats fine. I never said I though it was the best book ever, as thats usually a personal decision. I said it was my favorite, and i don't appreciate being told what i should like like.

But out of sheer curiosity, whats on funshine's "must read" list that I am missing?
 
The Dark Tower Series by King beginning with The Gun Slinger

I don't usually read fiction but I was soon hooked on these books.
 
Principia Mathematica by Bertrand Russell & A.N. Whitehead
 
Jody Sadler said:
all of the Dan Brown novels. Angels & Demons, Davinci Code... John Grisham's The Broker. Michael Chricton's State of Fear.
Click to expand...

How did The Broker compare to the rest of Grisham's novels? I'm an avid reader of his books, but I've been disappointed in his later works (such as King of Torts and The Last Juror, except I loved Bleachers ).
 
How to Get Rich by Donald Trump. It's more profound than one might initially suspect.
 
javert said:
Virtually any Russian novel (including Master and Maragarita...reading it now, as a mater of fact) fits that description. Personally, I'd recommend Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, followed by any other novel by Nabokov or Dostoevsky.
Click to expand...
don't forget anything by Chekhov.


I would definately have to recommend these books:

Skinny Legs and All by Tom Robbins
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Great Shark Hunt by Hunter S. Thompson (btw. it is non-fiction)
The Electric Koolaid Acid Trip by Tom Wolfe
 
funshine said:
No way...The Count Monte Cristo has got to be one of the most overrated books ever!
I think Dumas allowed himself way too much freedom, and the plots get way too farfetched...to the point that they are laughable. I vividly recall wanting Dante (the ridiculous hero) to just drop down dead so the story would end. Not to mention the writing is overly-sentimental and starts to grate on the reader's nerves. I swear Dumas must have used the phrase "pale and trembling" about 500 times. I think you're missing some really great stuff out there if Count of Monte Cristo is your all-time favorite.
Click to expand...

It's like you're channeling the University professor you probably heard that opinion from.
 
Just ordered the Muse Asylum from Amazon

.50 + 3.49 S+H... for that price It better be good :D

funshine said:
If you're looking for quick, exciting reads,
Muse Asylum is a stunning 1st book written by a premed (he's in Mt Sinai right now, or just recently graduated I guess). Don't worry, it has nothing to do w/ medicine. His second book is mediocre, I would not recommend it.


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...103-2667754-9037461?v=glance&s=books&n=507846


Also, Nine Stories by JD Salinger is good, as is Street of Crocodiles by Bruno Schulz.

Have fun!

On the other hand, if you want a good, long, thought-provoking, potentially-life-changing read, read Brothers Karamazov or any other Russian Lit :)
Click to expand...
 
Complications quick and interesting read, great overview of practicing medicine and system.

Author is a gen surg resident who also writes for the new yorker
 
Who has an opinion on Ulysses?
 
not exactly something you'd read for "leisure"
 
I first read Ulysses for an English class on mondern European lit.... it was dense, we were told to use the Bloomsday companion book to help get through it.... and I have to say until the very last chapter I wasn't passionate about it. But once you get to that last chapter that is told from the wife's perspective, its an AMAZING book. really pulls it all together.
 
White Teeth

The God of Small Things

A Confederacy of Dunces
 
Yeah, thanks for the opinion. I am only about 60 pages into it and am only reading it fairly superficially for the writing style and such. Joyce's vocabulary is redonkulous. It makes me wonder how many of his abstruse words are obscure because he's Irish and writing in the early century (therefore, using more colloquial words we are just not exposed to) or just because he read the unabridged Oxford dictionary on the pot for the first 30 years of his life. I suspect it's a little from both columns.

nycmed8 said:
I first read Ulysses for an English class on mondern European lit.... it was dense, we were told to use the Bloomsday companion book to help get through it.... and I have to say until the very last chapter I wasn't passionate about it. But once you get to that last chapter that is told from the wife's perspective, its an AMAZING book. really pulls it all together.
Click to expand...
 
i'm seconding Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, Nine Stories by JD Salinger, and Lolita. I just read Curious on Sunday, it's the first time in a long while that I spent a day just reading.

Others:

The Color Purple
The Secret Life of Bees (my new favorite book)
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
The Sun Also Rises
A Clockwork Orange
One Flew Over the ****oo's Nest
Pride and Prejudice*
1984

*So many people will disagree with me on this one. You have to really pay attention to the character details in Jane Austen's novels to "get" them. On the surface most of them seem to be fluff, but she's commenting on the folly of mankind in some subtle and some not-so-subtle ways. You might hate it, you might love it.

If you're interested in nonfiction at all, Oliver Sacks writes some very interesting stuff about his experiences with Parkinson's patients and others...
I also just finished The Long Walk to Freedom, the autobiography of Nelson Mandela. It's an interesting story, but can be tedious sometimes due to the amount of detail he includes.
 
If you want to delve into non-fiction, read

The Fabric of the Cosmos by Brian Greene

It will blow your fu*cking mind.
 
I personally enjoy Charlie and Chocolate factory and Wrinkle in Time. For intellectual stimulation, I read anything by Dr. Seuss. That stuff will blow your mind.
 
tomorrowgirl99 said:
I personally enjoy Charlie and Chocolate factory and Wrinkle in Time. For intellectual stimulation, I read anything by Dr. Seuss. That stuff will blow your mind.
Click to expand...

:laugh:
 
tomorrowgirl99 said:
I personally enjoy Charlie and Chocolate factory and Wrinkle in Time. For intellectual stimulation, I read anything by Dr. Seuss. That stuff will blow your mind.
Click to expand...

Hey, that's really all good stuff. Especially A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels. I still love it! :oops:
 
Anyone here interested in writing your own novel one day?
 
sorry about my previous posts attacking monte cristo. they were totally uncalled for.
 
ComfortableWolf said:
Just ordered the Muse Asylum from Amazon

.50 + 3.49 S+H... for that price It better be good :D
Click to expand...

Yay!!!

I wonder...if I had posted the amazon links to the other two books I recommended, would you have bought those too?

Because Nine Stories is really good!
 
nonfiction: The Mismeasure of Man-Stephen Jay Gould

fiction: Snow Falling on Cedars - David Guterson
 
If you haven't read Lord of the Rings by Tolkien, you've missed out. Start with the Hobbit when you need to relax and then move up to the epic LotR with The Fellowship of the Ring. The movies are awesome, but they truly don't hold a candle to the books. If you read one fantasy series ever, read this one.
 
Catch 22 by Joseph Heller is my favorite book of all time

funny and sad with a ring of true authenticity for anybody who has ever been in the military
 
funshine said:
YES, OMG YES!!! :D
I am a crappy writer though...but I swear I have awesome ideas and my dream is to one day find a writer awesome enough to write my novel for me :)

Seriously, I do keep an extensive journal of random thoughts and observations, and I'd like to think that one day it'll be transformed into a collection of short stories. I'm hoping to take a creative writing class during my year off and see if anyone else agrees that I have potential :)
Click to expand...

You could be the next Michael Crichton! It amazes me that he graduated from Harvard Med School and then became a writer.
 
I loved "The Time Travelers Wife", "The Way the Crow Flies", "Lovely Bones", and don't laugh, but anything Anne Rice.
 
These may have been stated already but:

The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom
Tuesdays with Morrie also by Mitch Albom
Siddhartha by Herman Hesse.................my favorite book thus far
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

H
  • Locked
list of ppl willing to read my activity section on amcas?
Replies
4
Views
345
ablanco
ablanco
S
read over activities section
Replies
8
Views
621
IWishICouldPhysics
IWishICouldPhysics
C
  • Locked
read over my AMCAS activities section?
Replies
1
Views
572
wysdoc
wysdoc
B
WAMC 517/4.0 Interesting Situation
Replies
4
Views
416
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Qpworueury
  • Locked
Read this: Your Med School name does matter
2
Replies
63
Views
6K
GoSpursGo
GoSpursGo
Top