Recommended Reads!
As you can imagine, being a Literature student, I am a bit of a bookworm. I love to read, whether the book is mine, my mum's, a friend's, the library's, it doesn't matter, if it sounds slightly interesting, I will read it. The best bit about a summer holiday, for me, is being able to sit around reading all day. As long as I am outside whilst doing it, no-one minds! (although taking 14 books on a two week holiday can get a bit, as some people might put it, 'extreme').
Unfortunately for me, a lot of my friends don't read the same types of books as me, if they read at all, and the same goes for my family, so any effort of mine to recommended or discuss my favourite books with them has kind of fallen on polite, but uninterested, ears. But now, I have you guys!
My first recommended read would be Life of Pi by Yann Martel.
Now a lot of people's reactions to this book would be 'but I've seen the film! I don't need to read the book', and yes, you'd be right, you don't need to read it. But you should.
I fell in love with Yann Martel's writing style when I read another novel by him, called Beatrice and Virgil. I immediately rushed out to purchase Life of Pi, and I am so glad I managed to read it before the film was released. Now don't get wrong, I love the film, I think it looks incredible and Suraj Sharma really delivers an incredible performance, but the book provides a really rich, emotional experience that for me, a film simply cannot do.
The blurb states that the book is about 'the tragic sinking of a cargo ship...[and] the only survivors from the wreck... a sixteen-year-old boy named Pi, a hyena, a zebra..., a female orang-utan ... and a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger'. But it is also about so much more than that. It's about fear. It's about friendship. It's about self-discovery and the idea that anything can be overcome. It is also about believing in something greater than yourself. It's a very complex, emotional and fascinating novel, and you haven't read it yet, (or even seen the film), I really suggest that you do.
Next I highly recommend Just Kids by Patti Smith.
I first read this book during the summer before I started university, and I think I read it in about two days. From the first page, no, the first sentence, I was instantly hooked. 'Just Kids' follows a young, artistic Patti Smith and her lover, companion, and best friend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, through the struggles and surprises that coincided with becoming an artist in the late sixties and seventies. It is also an elegy, a tribute to Robert after his tragic death in 1989, after he finally, sadly succumbed to AIDS.
Smith successfully explores the depth of love and trust that true, soul-strengthening friendship can provide, set against the edgy, bohemian and beautiful backdrop of New York City. As expected, it is a weepy one, but not in the way that you may think; this book does not set out to play with your heartstrings. Johnny Depp once referred to it as 'a poetic masterpiece', stating that it is a 'rare and privileged invitation to unlatch a treasure chest never before breached', and I'd have to say I agree. I have not read an autobiography like it since, and I'm sure I never will. And, well, if Johnny Depp loves it, I'm sure you will too!
The third on my list is Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden.
My discovery of this book occurred at just the right time. It was the day before I was due to go on holiday, and, whilst exploring the store for any last minute holiday reading that might catch my eye, I came across this. I have long had an interest in Japanese culture, particularly in the geisha community, and so obviously, I just had to get it, and I am so glad I did.
Contrary to what I believed when I first read it, this is not a work of non-fiction - but it may as well be. Golden's attention to detail is both admirable and fascinating, and the serious amount of research he undertook is apparent throughout. This book draws you in completely, transporting you into the exotic, vibrant, and usually closed-off world of the geisha. It tells a story spanning a quarter of a century beginning in 1929, of a young girl, exploited and enthralled by the geisha community. If you are a lover of Japanese culture, or are simply on the hunt for a captivating read, you will love this book.
If, like me, you love abnormal romances, you must read Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro.
Some would probably argue that this is not a romance. It is a piece of science-fiction, cleverly exploring the problems surrounding the advancement of technology, governmental control, and cloning. Never Let Me Go, narrated by Kathy, tells the story of her childhood, growing up in Hailsham School, a facility in which human clones are placed in order to develop and learn. It is brutally honest, and at times severely disturbing, when the truth about what these children will become is revealed.
However, it is also a story of the tragedy and bitter-sweet nature of love, of how friendships can alter, develop, and fade, and causes you, as a reader, to question not only the value of life, but also what it means to be human.
If you are looking for light summer reading you may want to avoid this one, but as a novel it is, to be honest with you, simply amazing. the complex nature of humanity is so thoroughly explored, and after reading, I came away with a new outlook on life that I didn't think I could develop. This novel almost makes me feel ashamed to be human, and at the same time, extremely proud to be so. Sound complicated, I know, but it is most definitely worth a read.
My final recommendation is a long time favourite of mine - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson.
The first instalment of the Millenium Trilogy, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has to have one of the best female characters in the history of literature. If I had to pick my favourite heroine of all time, Lisbeth would be it. Highly intelligent yet deeply emotionally scarred, she is unlike any character I have ever come across. The phrase 'badass' must have surely been invented for her.
But it's not just Lisbeth that makes this novel, and the trilogy as a whole, great. Larsson does not seem to do things by halves. The descriptions, characters (especially protagonist Mikael Blomkvist), and settings are rich and complex enough to truly bring his story to life, and the plot just does not let you rest. Despite appearing on face value, to be a typical murder mystery, this novel is anything but. It does start a little slow, but stick with it; the first couple of chapters not only set the scene, but they are also a crucial plot element, especially as the series progresses.
Let me know if you've read any of these and what you think of them! What book would be your recommended read?
