h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I do like reading, but am useless at finding new books to read. would anyone be able to recommend me some good reads and say why they're good? it would be very helpful indeed! Btw i personally would suggest phillip pullmans books as they are believable, exciting and make you care for the chracters. thanku xx

I enjoyed the Dark Materials trilogy.
What sort of books do you like? SF/crime/romance/adventure etc?

well i read lots of types actually. The only sf i like is terry pratchetts and douglas adams. I like agatha christies, i never really read romances, harry potter is good, i dont mind some classics like the brontes and austen, and there are loads of good teenage novels at the moment. so anything i guess! what about you?

Yup, I read all sorts, but tend to go through phases. At the moment I look out for novels set in China/Japan. Authors I've enjoyed lately whose novels are not so run of the mill are Margaret Attwood, Kate Atkinson, John Irving. If you want to try any more SF/fantasy, Robert Rankin is amusing (& bizarre), so is Tom Holt. Tom Holt has also written some fairly good historical novels (Roman/Greek).
I'm not at all into romances but I do like the occasional aga saga or similar.
If you like Agatha Christie, you might like Dorothy Sayers.
I'm ashamed to say that other than at school I haven't read any Austen or Bronte. I keep meaning to have a go at some classics but always seem to pick something else up! That reminds me, my library books are due back this week.......

If you like books set in China/Japan then you might like 'When a girl is born' by P.Grant and 'The Kite Rider' by Geraldine McCaughrean. I can find classics quite hard to get into; I read about about two chapters of Wuthering Heights but gave it up as too confusing! However i really did enjoy Jane Eyre, Pride and Predudice and Emma, and at some point i shall read some more classics because they are great stories. At the moment i'm reading 'About a Boy' by Nick Hornby, and it's quite good. The only reason i wanted to read it though was because I saw the film! I get most of my books at the library because if i bought every book that i wanted to read then i would have no money! Anyway, had better get back to my books. . . .

You might enjoy 'Shirley' by one of the Brontes. And if you enjoyed 'Jane Eyre' and like off-beat SF I would recommend 'The Eyre Affair' by Jasper Fford.

Amazon has a great system whereby you rate the books you like, and they will make recommendations on that basis.

B

Hi,

I just finished reading The restaurant at the end of the universe bought at a second-hand book stall

Jazz

hey, this is my problem too! i'm always looking for something good to read. and i prefer to read something that has been suggested to me by my someone, if they like it there must be something good about it. let's see...
the sirens of titan is a vonnegut and it has everything in it: martians, war, love, the meaning of life! it is the best book i've ever read. steve martin put out a book called shopgirl which was awesome. it's about a girl and her relationships: her family, friends, men. it's the most insightful book i've read in a while. i posted more on my page if you care to have a look. i don't want to just repeat things over and over. but, yeah, those two were amazing and eye-opening.

christy

See my comments on A hoy a Hoy on your web page
Jazz