What's your favorite book?

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saanjana

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hey guys...just wondering what your favorite "leasure" read is....trying to see if med students like the same type of literature :) ....I recently realized that a good chunk of my class loves Count of Monte Cristo, closely followed by Lord of the Rings....

Mine would have to be Pride and Prejudice (i know...you either love it or hate it....I'm in the former group)....
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Omprakash Valmiki's "Joothan" (it is about the Dalit community) and Kushwant Singh's "Train to Pakistan".
 
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A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, Dave Eggers
Catch-22, Joseph Heller
The Corrections, Jonathan Franzen

All are fantastic reads, very caustically humorous.
 
Believe it or not my favorite book is "Contact" by the late Carl Sagan. A movie was made based on the book with Jodie Foster in the lead role, it SUCKED. The book is MUCH, MUCH better.
If you have a weekend I recommend this book.
 
my favorite leisure reads are books by David Sedaris. Perfect combination of bitterness and humor.
 
that is too bad:( i am very interested in count of monte cristo, i thought it was unique. but if half your class like it, i feel very dull.
 
Dr Who said:
Believe it or not my favorite book is "Contact" by the late Carl Sagan. A movie was made based on the book with Jodie Foster in the lead role, it SUCKED. The book is MUCH, MUCH better.
If you have a weekend I recommend this book.
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the book was good. i was disappointed to see the movie since i had some preconceptions of what the "machine" looked like in my head and the movie didn't quite deliver.
 
any reading... would be a maxim or a men's health. but for novels, i'd say maniac mcgee... yeah, that's right.
 
anything without unpronounceable medical terms
 
I have to admit that I don't read a whole lot anyway even when I am not in school and now in school i never read. Prior to starting med school, I like anything by Albert Camus. Alltime favorites are "The stranger" and "the plague".
 
for a while, my favorite was Goethe's "The Sufferings of Young Werther" (don't know if I'm translating that right)...but I think my tastes have changed since then. Unfortunately, I haven't had much time to read for fun either...so I don't know what my new favorite would be...hmmm...(I did really like Contact too, though)
 
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harry potter but then i'm just applying now so i guess i be forced to start reading literature once i get in. can't be uncultured.

fiddler
 
If we're talking pure, fun reading, I'm gonna have to run with "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson. I loves me some trashy sci-fi! :D
 
renox9 said:
my favorite leisure reads are books by David Sedaris. Perfect combination of bitterness and humor.
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He cracks me up. I really liked Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. Naked wasn't as good in my opinion, but both were fun reads.

He's even more fun to hear reading it on NPR.

The Rabbit of Easter....he bring of the chocolate!!!
 
Count of Monte Cristo, while long, is a badass book.

Other authors I like are Victor Hugo (the Hunchback) and Arundhati Roy (God of Small Things).
 
If you are a person who likes all realms of science, A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson is an amazingly wonderful book to read.........it'll have you seriously laughing outloud. His other books (eg, A Walk in the Woods) are pretty freakin' awesome as well, but i gotta say this one takes the cake.
 
Tuesdays with Morrie
Harry Potter
Anything by Martina Cole
All Enid Blyton Books I'm a real kid within
 
"a confederacy of dunces" by the late john kennedy toole - one of the only books i've read that made me laugh out loud. it won the pulizter, but was published only after mr. toole commited suicide.
 
Mitch Albom is great with Tuesdays with Morrie and Five People you Meet in Heaven. I can't believe nobody has said Dan Brown's Angels and Demons or Da Vinci Code. Those are probably my four all time favorite books.
 
You guys should read Freakanomics. I think a lot of people are scared away by the title, but I pretty much guarantee you read it cover to cover in one sitting.
 
I hate you guys that chose count of monte cristo:(
 
i just started reading freakanomics tonight at work :)....its a great read, very entertaining
 
cytoskelement said:
"a confederacy of dunces" by the late john kennedy toole - one of the only books i've read that made me laugh out loud. it won the pulizter, but was published only after mr. toole commited suicide.
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...man, he was one messed up, if loveable character. I am quite surprised in that I have read most of the books on peoples lists. I just recently read Sedaris...his stuff is brilliant....funny and at times poignant. Tuesdays with Morrie...good book, food for thought albeit somewhat sappy at times. Dan Browns stuff are good for long flights....pretty much read his entire collection 36,000 feet over the atlantic. I thought Angels and Demons was the best, although I am prolly biased in that, that was my first one. Some others worthy of a mention..."The painted bird" by Jerze Kosinski, "Angelas Ashes" by Frank McCourt , Blindness ( forget author ), Love in the Time of cholera ( Garcia-marquez if I recall correctly), Hegemony or survival by Chomsky ( do not read if you do not like to criticise your government), Hamburger Hill. I am waiting until Internship year to give my full report on "the house of God"....although I thought it was very good on first reading. I am just about to start on some Hemingway if anyone has some recommendations. I have heard many good things. thnx.
 
WhoisJohnGalt said:
All-time favorite is Atlas Shrugged, I also love the Harry Potter books and The House of God
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Excellent choice! :D
 
I totally dig the Carl Sagan thing- the only book I read from him was Contact. The book was more about the main character's life before the time she made the discovery. I felt the movie sensationalized most of the good stuff.

I really like anything from Steppenwolfe and Faulkner. I've read everything from Sedaris- hes the man. best part has to be when he talks about his sister getting off the Chicago train and turning to him, says, "David. Good luck with your child molestation case. I hope you beat it." That and the fat suit.
 
bulletproof said:
...man, he was one messed up, if loveable character. I am quite surprised in that I have read most of the books on peoples lists. I just recently read Sedaris...his stuff is brilliant....funny and at times poignant. Tuesdays with Morrie...good book, food for thought albeit somewhat sappy at times. Dan Browns stuff are good for long flights....pretty much read his entire collection 36,000 feet over the atlantic. I thought Angels and Demons was the best, although I am prolly biased in that, that was my first one. Some others worthy of a mention..."The painted bird" by Jerze Kosinski, "Angelas Ashes" by Frank McCourt , Blindness ( forget author ), Love in the Time of cholera ( Garcia-marquez if I recall correctly), Hegemony or survival by Chomsky ( do not read if you do not like to criticise your government), Hamburger Hill. I am waiting until Internship year to give my full report on "the house of God"....although I thought it was very good on first reading. I am just about to start on some Hemingway if anyone has some recommendations. I have heard many good things. thnx.
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Dear Bulletproof :

The author of Blindness ( if we are talking about the same novel here ) is Jose Saramago .

Now , its good that you read Chomsky , i would recommend you to read Edward Saiid's ( Orientalism ) and ( Reflections from the exile ) .

Are you into Umberto Eco ?

Cheers
 
adagio said:
Dear Bulletproof :

The author of Blindness ( if we are talking about the same novel here ) is Jose Saramago .

Now , its good that you read Chomsky , i would recommend you to read Edward Saiid's ( Orientalism ) and ( Reflections from the exile ) .

Are you into Umberto Eco ?

Cheers
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Name of the Rose is Eco right? Its good stuff, really interesting, but it takes like 100 pages just to get into the right mindset you can understand anything he is saying, then another 100 for anything to happen! Good book overall, if yer patient. Maybe his other books arent like this?
 
adagio said:
Dear Bulletproof :

The author of Blindness ( if we are talking about the same novel here ) is Jose Saramago .

Now , its good that you read Chomsky , i would recommend you to read Edward Saiid's ( Orientalism ) and ( Reflections from the exile ) .

Are you into Umberto Eco ?

Cheers
Click to expand...
Yes, you are correct..it was Jose Saramago...interesting read. Funny that you mention Saiids work...we had examined some of his work in a political philosophy class during my undergrad, and I thought it was engaging stuff...Eurocentrism and the middle east and whatnot.He passed away not too long ago right? I will take your recommendations and pick them up. Unfortunately I must claim ignorance on the Umberto Eco. Ex-roomates have harped on about the books and I just never got around to reading any. My gf is reading something by him right now...although its not in english...so I'll have to pick up my own copy. I am three weeks out from my step...so at this stage if it don't pertain to medicine I ain't reading it. Thnx again for the recommendations. peace.
 
Dear vhawk01 :

it goes without saying that Eco's modus operandi is full of twists and turns and is unaccessable to many avid readers ,indeed Eco himself mentioned that the historical introduction that prologued his chef d'oeuvre (The name of the rose) ,was too harsh to be read from the "common" reader ,and even his editor recommended that he discards it from the original script . Eco didnt ! he wanted those who only flips through pages without contemplating through the text ( like mules carrying tomes as the Koran described people who brag about being educated without having a clue lol )he wanted them to get bored and leave the rest .

thanks for ur reply my friend

Dear Bulletproof :

i was so excited to know that u are acquainted with Saiid's works , i didnt know that occidental men are well-informed of modern arab thinkers . touché ( lol just kiddin )

Now if u are not familiar with any of Eco's works i would recommend you to read The name of the rose . surely u have seen the movie ( Sean Connery , Christian Slater , Ring any bells ?!)

you say that u are preparing for ur USMLE steps ... American graduates need to make these tests too??

Cheers
 
adagio said:
Foucault's Pendulum By Umberto Eco
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Agreed I love love this book.

The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera.
For spanish literature: Carlos Ruis Zafon is a great author
 
saanjana said:
hey guys...just wondering what your favorite "leasure" read is....trying to see if med students like the same type of literature :) ....I recently realized that a good chunk of my class loves Count of Monte Cristo, closely followed by Lord of the Rings....

Mine would have to be Pride and Prejudice (i know...you either love it or hate it....I'm in the former group)....
Click to expand...

I'm a big fan of Shel Silverstein's poems. I think they should be on every school's required reading list. I'll share one of my favorites:

Boa Constrictor


Oh, I'm being eaten
By a boa constrictor,
A boa constrictor,
A boa constrictor,
I'm being eaten by a boa constrictor,
And I don't like it--one bit.
Well, what do you know?
It's nibblin' my toe.
Oh, gee,
It's up to my knee.
Oh my,
It's up to my thigh.
Oh, fiddle,
It's up to my middle.
Oh, heck,
It's up to my neck.
Oh, dread,
It's upmmmmmmmmmmffffffffff . . .

Shel Silverstein
 
rbfiji13 said:
I'm a big fan of Shel Silverstein's poems. I think they should be on every school's required reading list. I'll share one of my favorites:

Boa Constrictor


Oh, I'm being eaten
By a boa constrictor,
A boa constrictor,
A boa constrictor,
I'm being eaten by a boa constrictor,
And I don't like it--one bit.
Well, what do you know?
It's nibblin' my toe.
Oh, gee,
It's up to my knee.
Oh my,
It's up to my thigh.
Oh, fiddle,
It's up to my middle.
Oh, heck,
It's up to my neck.
Oh, dread,
It's upmmmmmmmmmmffffffffff . . .

Shel Silverstein
Click to expand...
Ah yes, Shel Silverstein....proof that you can smoke a large quantity of pot and still be successful. :laugh:
 
adagio said:
Dear vhawk01 :

it goes without saying that Eco's modus operandi is full of twists and turns and is unaccessable to many avid readers ,indeed Eco himself mentioned that the historical introduction that prologued his chef d'oeuvre (The name of the rose) ,was too harsh to be read from the "common" reader ,and even his editor recommended that he discards it from the original script . Eco didnt ! he wanted those who only flips through pages without contemplating through the text ( like mules carrying tomes as the Koran described people who brag about being educated without having a clue lol )he wanted them to get bored and leave the rest .

thanks for ur reply my friend

Dear Bulletproof :

i was so excited to know that u are acquainted with Saiid's works , i didnt know that occidental men are well-informed of modern arab thinkers . touché ( lol just kiddin )

Now if u are not familiar with any of Eco's works i would recommend you to read The name of the rose . surely u have seen the movie ( Sean Connery , Christian Slater , Ring any bells ?!)

you say that u are preparing for ur USMLE steps ... American graduates need to make these tests too??

Cheers
Click to expand...
Well now you did it.....after all the hype over Eco, I got a book off of my significant other, and am now 150 pgs deep. Lets see...Foucaults pendulum or neuroanatomy...hmmm. I am loving it so far...although I would suspect that it is not a book for everyone, in the sense that he makes alot of literary references and utilizes quite a bit of esoteric language...finally my philosophy degree is paying off! ;)
By the way, anyone wishing to practice medicine in the US must sit and pass all three licensing exams, including US graduates. I, like you, are an IMG ( or FMG, not sure which is the correct term these days). It is in essence, "the great equalizer". Oh well...I'll be sure to let you know what I think of Foucaults after I finish it. Take care.
 
has anyone read Middlemarch (author George Eliot)? one of the main characters is a young doctor who has all of these grand ambitions about reforming medicine and melding the humanities with scientific inquiry....how little things change over 200 years!
 
bulletproof said:
Well now you did it.....after all the hype over Eco, I got a book off of my significant other, and am now 150 pgs deep. Lets see...Foucaults pendulum or neuroanatomy...hmmm. I am loving it so far...although I would suspect that it is not a book for everyone, in the sense that he makes alot of literary references and utilizes quite a bit of esoteric language...finally my philosophy degree is paying off! ;)
By the way, anyone wishing to practice medicine in the US must sit and pass all three licensing exams, including US graduates. I, like you, are an IMG ( or FMG, not sure which is the correct term these days). It is in essence, "the great equalizer". Oh well...I'll be sure to let you know what I think of Foucaults after I finish it. Take care.
Click to expand...

Dear Bulletproof, I never knew you replied back, and just realized it as I was flipping through my older threads (a sign of severe nostalgia and yearning to the past :D)

How is everything? Did you go for residency? I will apply this september, and hopefully can start a career in the land of the brave.

I hope that, after those six years, you have become a fan of Eco :)
 
it's hard to pick a fav but if I had to: Anna Karenina - Tolstoy. It is an amazing book.. one of the last ones I read (like 3 times...) when i was still interested in "why people do the things they do." You can learn more psychology from late-19th century Russian literature than most any textbook.. haha.

followed closely by War and Peace (Tolstoy), Crime and Punishment (Dostoevsky).. love a lot of Hemingway too, "Farewell to Arms" especially.. ooh Les Miserables is wonderful.. Count of Monte Cristo is a great story.

also I love the old epics: Odyssey, Iliad, Dante's Inferno, song of Roland, Canterbury Tales, Beowulf.. it's cool to travel and see how the present-day cultural identities of the respective countries are foreshadowed by their "national epics". you can throw Faust in there for Germany too even though it's much newer.

currently just finished re-reading "The Hobbit" and am starting to read the LOTR trilogy again.. along with surgery/medicine books of course. Great thing about being more than halfway through MS3 is I can finally try to remember how to read for pleasure again.
 
The Cat in the Hat, by Dr. Seuss. Its a good read...you guys should check it out.
 
toxin said:
alchemist
king leopolds ghost
atlas shrugged
the man who mistook his wife for a hat
Complications: A surgeons notes on an imperfect science ..great book, see link http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/prem/200205u/int2002-05-01
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You had two of the three books i was going to suggest.
Arrowsmith by Lewis Sinclar was my third.
I actually liked the Fountainhead more than Atlas Shrugged. Also, Atul Gwande has a new book out. I forgot the name, but I plan to read it soon.
 
saishravan said:
You had two of the three books i was going to suggest.
Arrowsmith by Lewis Sinclar was my third.
I actually liked the Fountainhead more than Atlas Shrugged. Also, Atul Gwande has a new book out. I forgot the name, but I plan to read it soon.
Click to expand...

Are you thinking of the Checklist Manifesto?

His other book, in addition to the one above, and "Complications", is "Better". Also a good read. :)
 
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