What's the best book you've ever read?

The first hundred Postings, And More

What’s the best book you’ve ever
read?, is a question I asked in the miscellaneous chat forum, and after 100
posts, I compiled the replies, and then after another sixty or so I updated the list, and
here it is.

I would like to point out that there were no rules of any kind, simply what book you
had liked the most,

Some people suggested that a good book for one person isn’t the same for another,
quite true, but enjoyment is subjective. Some said that 'such and such' is required
reading, again this is subjective. Some mentioned several books, some only one, some
posted more than once but all have been included. Some that were mentioned, were
ones that they were reading at the time, some said that a book 'wasn’t as good
as.........', or was a little disappointing, and so may not have been included, some said
that a particular author’s books were all worth reading and these have been included
towards the end of the list. Also series of books and trilogies have been put under
their own headings. There were a couple of things, bits and pieces that were either
neither one or the other, or merely about certain things, they also appear at the end.

Books mentioned most are at the beginning, followed by authors who had more than
one book mentioned, followed by all other books, last are books without authors
mentioned. Hopefull they are in alphabetical order, but: I’m not perfect so if you see a
mistake then please tell me.

Some authors have been guessed at, so if you said a book and its not here, it might
have been the same title as another author mentioned and I have put them together, all
spelling mistakes have been retained, though most mistakes should have been
rectified (thanks to manolan), its also possible
that I’ve counted a book twice, but I doubt it.

It would have been nice to have put a link to all that posted but would have taken too
long, the same goes for comments and suggestions, remember you can
always post new books if you are so inclined, and if the conversation continues, I'll
updated the list. If you are reading this (which, lets face it you are) please feel free to
post a conversation below, and say what your favourite book is.

Of course all Of Douglas Adams, Hitchikers, Dirk Gently's, The Meaning Of Liff's
and Last Chance To See, come top, naturally.

The Best Book's you’ve ever read

Title/Author/Times mentioned

Lord Of The Rings, by J.R.R.Tolkien 10

Espedair Street, by Iain Banks 6

The Crow Road, by Iain Banks 6

The Wasp Factory, Iain Banks 6

A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess 5

Catch 22, by Joseph Heller 5

Dune, by Frank Herbert 5

Steppenwolf, by Herman Hesse 4

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee 4

The Bridge, by Iain Banks 3

Excession, by Iain Banks 3

Walking On Glass, by Iain Banks 3

Complicity, by Iain Banks 3

Not the end of the World, by Christopher Brookmyre 3

Fatherland, by Robert Harris 3

Siddhartha, by Herman Hesse 3

Stranger In A Strange Land, by Robert A Heinlein 3

1984, by George Orwell 3

Cat's Cradle, by Vonnegut 3

Jonathan Livingston Seagull, by Richard Bach 2

I, Houdini, By Lynne Reid Banks 2

Quite Ugly One Morning, by Christopher Brookmyre 2

History Of The World In Ten and a Half Chapters, by Julian Barnes 2

The Dark Is Riseing, by Susan Cooper 2

American Psycho, by Brett Easton Ellis 2

The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald 2

Silence of the Lambs, by Thomas Harris 2

Brave New World Revisited, by Aldous Huxley 2

The Chickens Are Restless, by Gary Larson 2

If This Is a Man?, by Primo Levi 2

The Truce, by Primo Levi 2

The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath 2

Hocus Pocus, by Kurt Vonnegut 2

Slaughterhouse 5, by Kurt Vonnegut 2

Breakfast Of Champions, by Kurt Vonnegut 2

Trainspotting, by Irvine Welsh 2

Authors With More Than One Book Mentioned

Last Chance To See, (a personal favourite,) the great Douglas Adams

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, by Douglas Adams

The Divine Comedy (La Divina Comedia, in Italian) by Dante Alighieri

Purgatorio, by Dante Alighieri

Bluebeard's Egg, by Margaret Atwood

The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood

Whit, by Iain Banks

Canal Dreams, by Iain Banks

The Business, by Iain Banks

Catcher In The Rye, by Iain Banks?

Inversions, by Iain M Banks

Player of Games, by Iain M Banks

State of the Art, by Iain M Banks

On the Yankee Station, by William Boyd

The Destiny of Nathalie X, by William Boyd

Enders Shadow, by Orson Scott Card

Speaker For The Dead, by Orson Scott Card

The Songlines, by Bruce Chatwin

Patagonia, by Bruce Chatwin

Childhood's End, by Arthur C Clarke

2001 A Space Odyssey, by Arthur C. Clarke

Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep, by Philip K Dick

Valis, by Philip K. Dick

Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said, by Philip K Dick

Name of the Rose, by Umberto Eco

Foucault's Pendulum, by Umberto Eco

England Made Me, by Graham Greene

Our Man in Havana, by Graham Greene

The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman

Mindbridge, by Joe Haldeman

Riddley walker, by Russel Hoban

How Tom Beat Captain Najork and his Hired Sportsman, by Russell Hoban

A Near Thing for Captain Najork, by Russell Hoban

High Fidelity, by Nick Hornby

About a Boy, by Nick Hornby

Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley

Point Counter Point, by Aldous Huxley

A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving

The Cider House Rules, by John Irving

Owen Meany, by John Irving

The Hotel New Hampshire, by John Irving

On The Road, by Jack Kerouac

The Dharma Bums, by Jack Kerouac

The Long Walk, by Stephen King (or rather, Richard Bachman)

The Stand, by Stephen King

The Langoliers, by Steven King

The Bean Trees, by Barbara Kingsolver

The Poisonwood Bible, by Barbara Kingsolve

Wildlife preserves, Far side by Gary Larson?

Gallery no5, Far side by Gary Larson?

Gallery no.4 Far side

Cows of our Planet, Far side

The Far Side Gallery, by Gary Larson

Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis

That Hideous Strength, by C. S. Lewis

The Cosmic Trilogy, by CS Lewis

Animal Farm, by George Orwell

1984, by George Orwell

Interview with the Vampire, by Anne Rice

The Vampire Chronicles, by Anne Rice

Lestat, by Anne Rice

Cosmos, by Carl Sagan

Contact, by Carl Sagan

No Exit, by Sarte

The Flys, by Sarte

Hamlet, by William Shakesphere

King Lear, by William Shakespeare

Othello, by William Shakespeare

Macbeth, by William Shakespeare

The Right Stuff, by Tom Wolfe

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, by Tom Wolfe

Authors A-Z Of Books Mentioned Once

A

London Fields, by Martin Amis

The Man Who Counts, by Poul Anderson

Foundation, by Isaac Asimov

In The Country Of Last Things, by Paul Auster
B

Running From Safety, by Richard Bach

Flauberts Parrot, by Julian Barnes

Voyage, by Stephen Baxter

Wateing For Gadou, by Foust(?)¹

Waiting for Godot, by Samuel Beckett

Water Music, by T.C. Boyle

Midwives, by Chris Bohjalian

Planet Of The Apes, by Pierre Boulle

Dandelion Wine, by Ray Bradbury

The Colours Of Space, by Marion Zimmer Bradley

Country Of The Blind, by Christopher Brookmyre

The Sheep Look Up, by John Brunne

Pilgrims Progress, by Bunyun

After the Hole, by Guy Burt
C

The Count Of Eleven, by Ramsey Campbell

The Stranger, by Alber Camu

The Alchemist, by Paolo Coelho

Enemy Of God, by Bernard Cornwell

Sphere, by Michael Crichton

The Hours, by Michael Cunningham
D

Star Trek TNG: Imzadi, by Peter David

Climbing Mount Improbable, by Richard Dawkins

Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens

Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoevskii
E

LA CONFIDENTIAL, by James Ellroy

American Physcho, by Brett Easton Ellis

The Virgin Suicides, by Jeffrey Eugenides
F

To Your Scattered Bodies Go, by Philip Jose Farmer

Time and Again, by Jack Finney

Tender is the Night, by F. Scott Fitxgerald

The Liar, by Stephen Fry
G

The Snow Goose, by Paul Gallico

Memoirs Of A Geisha, by Arthur Golden

Through The Net, by Simon Golding

Inner Tennis, by W. Timothy Gallwey
H

The Go Between, by LP Hartley

Time Enough for Love, by Robert Heinlein

The Glass Bead Game, by Herman Hesse

Playing Tennis with the Moldovans, by Tony Hawks

Riddley Walker, by Russell Hoban

Der Plan von der Abschaffung des Dunkels (The plan of the elimination of darkness),
by Peter Hoeg

Expecting Someone Taller, by Tom Holt

The Stonor Eagles, by William Horwood

Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo
I

The Road To Mars, by Eric Idle

The Unconsoled, by Kazuo Ishiguro
J

An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness by Kay Redfield Jamison

Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway, by Susan Jeffers

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce
K

The Far Pavilions, by M M Kaye

Hyperspace - A Scientific Odyssey, by Michio Kaku

One Flew Over The Cookoos Nest, by Keasy

Just So Stories, by Kipling

Into Thin Air, by Krakauer

Failure Is Not An Option, by Gene Kranz
L

Seven Pillars of Wisdom, by T.E. Lawrence

Native Speaker, by Chang Rae Lee

Cider with Rosie, by Laurie Lee

If Not Now, When?, by Primo Levi

The Bourne Identity, by Robert Ludlam
M

The Prince, by Niccolo Macchiavelli

Thomas Cranmer - A Life, by Diarmaid MacCulloch

A Place Of Greater Safety, by Hilary Mantel

100 Years of Loneliness, by Gabriel García Marquez

A Year in Provence, by Peter Mayle

The Heart of Redness, by Zakes Mda

Die Entdeckung des Himmels (The discovery of heaven), by Harry Mulisch

Music Of the Spheres, by Guy Murchie
N

Lolita, by Vladimir Nabakov

Under a Glass Bell, by Anais Nin

The Burning City, by Larry Niven
O

Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, by Robert C O'Brien

Running In The Family, by Michael Ondaatje
P

Fight Club, by Chuck Palanhuik

Gravity's Rainbow, by Thomas Pynchon

Zen And The Art Of Motercycle Matanence, by Robert M. Pirsig

The Last Days of Socrates, by Plato

Falkenberg's Legion, by Jerry Pournelle

The Anubis Gates, Tim Powers

Small Gods, by Terry Pratchett

The Shipping News, by E. Annie Prolux
Q
R

The Satanic Verses, by Salman Rushidie

Even Cow Girls Get The Blues, by Tom Robbins

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, by J.K. Rowling

The Chalice, by Phil Rickman

The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell
S

The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Catcher in the Rye, by JD Salinger,

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, by Newt Scamander

Great Apes, by Will Self

A Town Like Alice, by Nevil Shute

Saltwater, by Charles Simmons

Hyperion, by Dan Simmons

Horse Heaven, by Jane Smiley

American Gothic, by Gene Smith

Snowcrash, by Neil Stephenson

Galveston, by Sean Stewart

The Agony and the Ecstasy, by Irving Stone
T

Fresco, by Sheri Teppar

Walden, by Thoreaho (Thoreau?)

Deliverance, by Gav Thorpe

Falling, by Colin Thubron

The 13 Clocks, by James Thurber

The Fellowship of the Ring (Lord of the Rings - part 1): JRR Tolkein

Fear And Loathing In Las Vagas, by Hunter Tompson

The Way We Live Now, by Anthony Trollope

Huckleberry Finn, by Twain
U
V

Blue Champagne, by John Varley

The First Men On The Moon, by Jules Verne

Galapagos, by Kurt Vonnegut
W

The Color Purple, by Alice Walker

The Sopranos, by Alan Warner (the Scottish choir one, not the Mafia one)

Filth, by Irvine Welsh

Quidditch through the Ages, by Kennilworthy Whisp
X
Y
Z

Books Without Authors Mentioned

A Dead Druid Is Powerful Magic

Book of Mormon

California Gold

Day After Tomorrow

I Robot

Lord Of The Flies

Moby Dick

Nathalie X

On The Yankee Station

Prelude to Foundation

Pride and Prejudice

Puppet Masters

Roll of Thunder, Hear my cry

Ripley's Game

The Secret Diary Of A. Mole

The Book Of Three

The Dark is Rising

The Stranger

Series Of Books

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and all its brilliant sequels 7

The Dirk Gently series 3

Dune, The original Series 2

The Enders Game Series, by Orson Scot Card 2

Foundation Series, by Isaac Asimov 2

Iain M Banks "Culture" novels (Culture universe is one of my favourite SF universes,
along with those of the Kzin (Niven et al.) and Honor Harrington (David
Weber)

The Don Juan Series, by Carlos Castanalios

The Don Quehotie Series

The Hobbit Series

The Meaning of Liff books (including the Comic Releif Christmas book)

The Rings Series

The Thomas Ripley series, by Patricia Highsmith

The Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
(Sorcerer's Stone in US), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and
the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)

Trilogys

The Arthur Triogy by Bernard Cornwall

The Foundation Trilogy (worth reading as they are classics)

Oengus, The whole trilogy (blew me away)

Other Series

Moomin Books, by Tove Janssen

The Caesar Books, by Allan Massie

Any one of the Pern books, by Anne McCaffrey

All or Any and Complete Books Of

Any of Ian Banks 2

Anything by Pratchett 2

Anything by Adams (of course)

Anything by Asimov

All of Richard Bach

Anything by Lois McMaster Bujold (She's a genious. She writes incredibly good and
funny science fiction. Every sci fi fan should give her a read)

Anything by T.C. Boyle

The complete works of Christopher Brookmyre

Any by Bruce Chatwin

Anything by Alan Garner (Wasn't Elidor good?)

Everything of Robin Hobb l

Anything by John Irving (Basically all the books he wrote after 'The world according
to Garp', and even some he wrote before)

Anything by CS Lewis (inc. the 'Narnia' books)

All of Primo Levi (worth having a butcher's at)

All of Astrid Lindgren (except the, Kati books, which are early work and not very
noticeworthy)

All that I’ve read of Anne Mcaffrey

All of Edith Nesbit's books

Anything by Larry Niven

Ellis Peters (worth a 'dip'), creator of Brother Cadfael (she also writes as Edith
Pargeter, and is eminently readable under either name!)

Anything by Robert Silverburg (particularly, Downward to the Earth)

All of the Hunter Tompson

All that I’ve read of E E Doc Smith

Bill Waterson (not quite sure about his name) 'Calvin and Hobbes'

Any of the other Far side books

Nearly everything by Alistair Maclean

Miscellaneous

Anything from the Roman Ocupation of Britan to the Middle Ages

The book Blade Runner, was based on.

Do what you want! Be free little fish, (I think the title says it all really)

I am sorry, but I thought that Crime and Punishment would be a better story if people
stopped trying to read so much into it.

Dave the ( Best book I've ever read?: Janet and John Play Together. It taught me
how to read) Goal Keeper.

So What's Your Favorite Book?

If you can't see your favorite book in the list, why not post to the conversation,

All sugestions will be added (sonner or later), and you can always post again.