"That's a book?"

our staff recommends...
The Great Gatsby

by F. Scott Fitzgerald

A classic school books, except I actually DID read it in high school. However, for some reason I felt

compelled, in the midst of reading 1984 for my first time, to pick this one up again. It's perfect. It's shape, its style, everything. A fantastic read if you want to read a soap opera but not lose brain cells in the process. This book is great, and a quick read too. The imagery is mind blowing and I am almost surprised at how good the story is. Not to mention it stretches the vocabularly a bit.

Dry

by Augusten Burroughs

I could not put it down. And I tried.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

by Ken Kesey

The summer of 2004 I was trying to read (or re-read) all of the books I felt I should have already read by now. This was

one of them, and its amazing. If you like the movie, that is fine,but the book is tremendously--and when I say tremendously I mean earth shatteringly--fantastic. If you haven't read it, you must. Most books slow down after their climax but Kesey writes in sucha manner that you are increasing thrilled as the book progresses. I'm at the point now where when I see a stranger renting the movie I insist they read the novel first. The film doesn't even begin to compare, and the book is a fun read.

Invisible Monsters

by Chuck Palahniuk
So this jerk, Jesse Peyronel, has ruined it for all of us. Being a trust fund baby, dear old Jesse bought the rights right out from under a real screenwriter so that he could be the one to turn this book into a film. Sadly, however, his script SUCKS. Seriously. It is painful. HE doesn't get it. Maybe, if you read the book, you will.

Diary

by Chuck Palhniuk

Mr. Palahniuk actually bought this book for me himself on my twentieth birthday. What a way to get a reader hooked! I

breezed through it and...wow. It's all I can say about his work. It's intriguing, inspiring, horrific, baffling, amazing...everything. He is reinventing the horror novel to fit our society. It is in everyday life that the real horrors live.Choke wasn't quite as good but I think alot of what was behind that book is flushed out in his new Non-Fiction title, Stranger Than Fiction. Or, maybe my friend Ashley is right, and I am just "too innocent" to get it. Still, read diary if you want a thrill but don't think you have the stamina for House of Leaves

The Dogs of Babel

by Carolyn Parkhurst

I read this one last summer in one afternoon and cried through the end. It is a fantastic easy read from a clever new

author.

Lies and the Lying Liars...

by Al Franken

Another read of last summer. Sure, I'll admit it: Al Franken has gone a bit off his rocker. BUT he lost it after

publishing this book. There are few, if any, extreme accusations which arent clearly jokes without textual evidence cited and sourced. His whole purpose is to encourage everyone---conservatives and liberals alike---to pay attention to the "news" that is fed to them. Essentially this book is a well thought out, logical and humourous *bonus!* explaination of politics and the manipulative tools the media and politicians use to make sure America remains their fat puppets. Franken even encourages his readers to doubt him and do their own research to find out what is true and make the best choice for their country this November.

House of Leaves

by Mark Z. Danielewski

I can't describe this book without making it sound like a Horror novel, but I dont really think it is. If it is tho, it is

in the genre of Chuck Palahniuk's modern horror, tho completely different. This book kept me up nights reading, and the nights I ahd to goto sleep because of a test the next day I would make my roomate stay in the room until I fell asleep because I thought the room was going to eat me. This book helped me through a horrible break up without all the drama and self pity nonsense usually involved in those things.

The Princess Bride

by William Goldman

Just friggin read it man. It's great. If you liked the movie, you'll LOVE the book and STILL like the movie. Talk about

creative genius. Sheesh.
"Inconceivable!"
"You keep using that word. I do not think it means, what you think it means."

LINKS:
The Princess Bride by William Goldman, 25th anniversary edition.
See the script, pictures from he film and hear sound clips.

(more to come, like Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Last Temptation of Christ Etc.)

Authors I Admire...

T.S. Eliot ; Marcel Proust