My favorite authors are L.M. Alcott, Agatha Christie, Robert Ludlum, Anne Tyler, John Grisham, too many others to name...

Ann - if many others here read to the extent that I do (and I think it very likely), you have just begun a topic that could rapidly expand to fill all the space available for it, + 5%. The first book that truely engrossed me was 'Peter Pan', which I was given for my 6th birthday, and there have been many others since. The trouble is which to mention... which books would you recommend others read (P&P and other Austens are excluded for obvious reasons!) although by no means as intricate as Austen Georgette Heyer is enjoyed by many Austen fans (especially those of the X persuasion), and so far as I can tell her background detail is accurate, and much more explicit about day-to-day life than Austen. Two of the best are 'A Civil Contract' and 'The Nonesuch' One of my favorite books is/are the first two of the Dune saga I'd agree, but I greatly preferred Dune, and think the whole series went downhill from there I also like the mystery writers: Margery Allingham and Ngaio Marsh. also in mystery; Dorothy Sayers and Rex Stout (the latter pleasingly prolific) and also Tolkien's 'The Lord of the Rings' most of Roger Zelazny's SF (the earlier stuff's better) amongst many others in SF&F

Can we link this to the books conference as a topic there too?

Terry, sure, we can link. Want me to do it?

Here are some Australian favourites of mine: Peter Carey (Bliss, Illywacker, Oscar and Lucinda) Tim Winton (Cloud Street, The Riders) David Malouf (The Great World) Sci-fi (of sorts): Ursula LeGuin (The Dispossessed, The Earthsea Quartet) Others: George Eliot (The Mill on the Floss) David Lodge (Nice Work and sequals) A.S, Byatt (Possession) Annie Proulx (The Shipping News Who-dun-its: Ruth Rendel Sarah Paretski Childrens: Roald Dahl Eric Linklater Arthur Ransome Astrid Lingren Gillian Rubenstien Thats just what comes to mind right now.

I should go to bed, but the topic is to evocative to pass. I read Jane Eyre annually through most of my adolescence. I loved it (and still do, in my heart) and still re-read it occasionally. I loved Dune and loaned (or forced) multiple copies on friends until I realized they weren't reading, just losing it. I've read everything John LeCarre has written, but am particularly fond of George Smiley. And in the mystery genre (although not my favorite) I do like Dorothy; particularly the Harriet Vane novels. I've read science fiction most of my life. I started with stuff like "The Stars My Destination" and Asimov's Foundation series and moved on to fantasy (Anne McCaffrey's Dragonrider series). I am currently reading only Cyberpunk in this vein: Neal Stephenson's Snowcrash. William Gibson - I've just picked up his new book, Idoru. Anna Quindlen's One True Thing (I've loaned the book so I'm not positive of the title) struck a chord and I read it in one sitting. The English Patient (and who here hasn't read that?) was very beautiful and compelling. I read Shipping News on a cold October day on the Maine coast; a felicitous combination of book and environment and it has stayed with me. I've just begun "Oscar and Lucinda", Hilary, and am enjoying it very much. I could go on (and probably will, in the future). Thanks for this topic, Ann. It's wonderful to compare notes with sympathetic souls. Myretta

Mine are: Little Women, A Little Princess, Moominland Midwinter, The secret garden, and a few more.

The problem with this kind of question is that I tend to respond with some favorite of which I have been reminded most recently, and overlook others that I might actually like better if they were on the tip of my mind. From the distant past, in my teens I ate up anything by Thomas Costain or Elizabeth Goudge and loved anything by C.S. Lewis - fiction or non. (there is a great C.S. Lewis web page at .

Well, the link did not work, but the URL is http://www.cache.net/~john/cslewis/index.html

This topic is now linked to the same topic in the 'books' conference.

You forgot the descriptive tag.

I have so many wonderful books I love that I could not possibly name all of them. I am a librarian, after all. I would have to put Gone With the Wind and Jane Eyre at the top of my list. I also like books by Victoria Holt aka Jean Plaidy aka Phillipa Carr. I have not read any Jane Austen yet, but I just received a set and will try to read them over the Christmas holidays. I also love mystery novels and books about the history of England.

Yes, indeed, there is a vast number of books to recollect. To name only a few while looking on my bookshelfs, some Sci-Fi like Azimov ( especially Foundation) and Brabury. Always a place for classics/Litt : Alexandre Dumas, Balzac, Victor Hugo, Camus, Garcia-Marquez, Dickens, Bronte, Shakespeare. In the suspence/thriller genre : from Agatha Christie, Tom Clancy, Grisham and Crichton, Arturo P�rez-Reverte (Club Dumas, Fencing Master and Painting of the Flemish Master, titles loosely translated) to the inco parable Umberto Eco. Lots of history/biographies, historic costume. Some modern paperback classics like Working, Passages, and authors Bradshaw, Toffler, Castaneda and Rimpoche. The comics and Stephen King collections are my hubbie's, not mine.

It's interesting that most of the books listed so far are fiction. In that vein, I could add little. I enjoy Tolkein, Lewis, Fr. Gerzone (JOSHUA series), Asimov's earlier stuff, some of Robert Heinlein (especially STARSHIP TROOPERS), Tom Clancy's HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER (his books sank into formulas after that), LeGuin's EARTHSEA series, and Mark Twain. I'm not much in for mystery. I'm not a big fan of "classic" literature for the most part. I have to be in the right mood, but there are times when Shake peare appeals. When I'm up for something funny, Douglas Adams, especially his Dirk Gently books but also the first three in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy are all good. I managed to get one of Richard Armour's history spoofs and I enjoy Ogden Nash. And if you can get your hands on any of Piet Hein's Grooks (published by MIT Press in the late 60s), by all means do. In the non-fiction area, anything by Barbara Tuchman, Stephen B. Oates, James McPherson, or Walter Lord is bound to be good history. The Federalist Papers are good reading. P. J. O'Rourke is thought-provoking and hilarious at the same time. James Morris' 3-volume history of the Victorian Empire is superb and Cornelius Ryan's books are excellent. Shelby Foote isn't bad, but I prefer Bruce Catton. Richard John Neuhaus' THE NAKED PUBLIC SQUARE is first-rate political analysis and Wolfhart Pannenberg wri es some very good theological stuff. David McCullough's TRUMAN is probably the best biography I've seen in 15 years. G.K. Chesterton's ORTHODOXY and many of his other writings are worthwhile. Kant's METAPHYSICS of MORALS is worth the read, too, and is not nearly so long nor so imposing as the title might imply. Robert Alter's books THE ART OF BIBLICAL NARRATIVE and POETRY are good intros into the Old Testament writers and their art. There are other non-fiction writers whom I enjoy, but most of them write more particularly for people in my profession, so I'll leave them out. And in any event, it's time for bed.

Oh, this could be a dangerous topic, indeed! Let's see...as a child, I read and re-read "A Wrinkle In Time", anything by Tolkein and C.S. Lewis, and going back even further - does anyone remember a children's book called "Eloise"? Since then...(in no particular order): Jeffrey Archer, Anne Tyler, Robert Ludlum, John Irving, David Eddings, Donald Westlake, Sara Paretsky, Anne Rice, and so on and on..... Ayelet - "The Secret Garden" is one of my favs too. Did you see the movie version (from the female director who's name I can never remember)? It was filmed so beautifully!

Myretta, you'll have to tell me what you think of "Oscar" when you have finished. After about ch. 25 you won't be able to put it down, I predict. Isn't that language something else? I'm re-rreading it at the moment. And Eric, have you read any Roald Dahl? Interesting twists of morality there.

Kim, I have to agree with you about Gone With the Wind and Jane Eyre. I saw the movie three times in two days! Next to Pride and Prejudice my favorite book is Jane Eyre. I also enjoy Follow the River by James Alxander Thomas. That is a great book about "The true ordeal of Mary Draper Ingles", and Wuthering Heights.

] Terry: You forgot the descriptive tag. Huh? I have not the pleasure of knowing of what you are speaking. I cannot forget something I have never heard of. That the URL came out as a link the second time was a complete surprise to me. I thought it would just be plain text.

Favorite books include all of Agatha Christie's mysteries (a passion shared by my mom and my youngest brother); "Truman" by McCullough which read like a novel for me (I had to keep reminding myself that I already knew whether the US would drop the bomb, and who would win the 1948 presidential election); the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy; science fiction by Asimov, Bradbury, Heinlein; Willa Cather; George Eliot; Thomas Wolfe; William Faulkner; Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. You may notice that I have not listed specific books; in most cases, if I like one book, I will devour as many titles by that author as I can find. It is then difficult to choose only one book by that author. Other than JA, I cannot claim to frequently reread any books, although some authors' books are worth a second or third perusal.

Kim, I also love mystery and English historical novels. Have you read the Brother Cadfael series by Ellis Peters? BBC has done at least 7 of the stories in England and PBS picked up the first four here. Also, especially wonderful are the historical novels by Sharon Kay Penman. Particularly the trilogy that begins with "Here Be Dragons"

] "Here Be Dragons" ___ I don't know the Penman novels but I have always liked this idea. I think it used to be put on maps to mark unchartered territory. The thing that intriques me about it is the relationship between danger and opporutnity.

Oh, there are so many !! I like mysteries; Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, P.D. James, etc.. Romances; Victoria Holt, Phyllis A. Whitney. My husband introduced me to his favorite, P.G. Wodehouse; those books have me ROFLOL. Of the ones that I've read multiple times, after P&P comes Gone With the Wind, then Little Women. Linda

We have recently moved from S.F. and I miss my book discussion group dearly. I am always trolling for a good read and appreciate the above lists. My current favorite authors include Robertson Davies (Rebel Angels, Deptford Triology,etc.), Irving (A Prayer for Owen Meany), Tom Wolfe (Bonfire of the Vanities) and Jay McInerney (Brightness Falls) I've gone through several phases of reading such as Southern women authors, Oriental, Women's Lib, Western Theme but spent much time in Authurian Legends and Middle Ages enjoying Tuchman (Distant Mirror), Manchester (A World Lit Only By Fire) and Marian Zimmer Bradley (Mists of Avalon). Other memoralble favorites include War and Remembrance, Winds of War, Catch 22, Shogun, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues. For P&P lovers, a number of books are always recommended but none of them has ever been quite as satisfying. However, if it is the satire which draws you in, Robertson Davies is excellent, especially A Mixture of Frailties

I like Tom Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities, too, and The Right Stuff.

Some of my favorites include: Edith Wharton Henry James Thomas Hardy Ellen Glasgow Richard Adams (Watership Down) Elizabeth Bowen

I also have so many favorites it's hard to choose. I guess my favorite book of all time (based on number of readings) is Desiree by Annemarie Selinko. Other favorites are: Shogun Dune and most of the other Dune books Anything by Asimov, Eddings, Lackey, Niven, McCaffrey and Orson Scott Card Barbara Taylor Bradford The Merlin/Arthur series by Mary Stewart (Crystal Cave, Hollow Hills, etc) Louisa May Alcott's books (not just the Little Women series) Secret Garden Winnie the Pooh As you can see, my tastes are fairly eclectic and my house is filled with books (and videos).

I'm a big history fan and just finished First Wives. It's an interesting boook on the roles of all the Presidents wives from Washington to Kennedy. Anne of Green Gables and all the sequels Bridge Across forever The Secret Garden and many more.

Oh! to know that other people devour books too! One little book that I love that no-one has mentioned is Elizabeth Gaskell's "Cranford". I find it complements JA delightfully. Another book I come back to again and again is C.Bronte's "Villette". Other than that, I like Georgette Heyer,Anne McAffrey,Isaac Asimov,Tolkein, C.S. Lewis, F.H. Burnett, Umberto Eco- especially his "Misreadings" and a million others. In the books-that-have-changed-my-life category go: Robert Pirsig's "Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maitenance", James Lovelock's "Healing Gaia" , "How to Talk so Kids will Listen & Listen so Kids will Talk" by A Faber and E Mazlish, and , surprise, surprise, "P&P".

It seems that a lot of people here like the same authors! That's cool! Those of you who like Grisham and Crichton should try Richard North Patterson - one of his characters was loved soo much by his fans that they basically hounded him to write more books pertaining to that character - and he did! Also, I think Anne Rice has matured a lot in her writing.... Servant of the bones is a great read. For more fiction but fiction that is based on actual fact (as well as a phenomenal read) try Wilbur Smith - what books this man writes! Sarah

Elaine, I am so glad that you mentioned Robertson Davies. I have read and enjoyed just about everything he's written---especially the Deptford Trilogy, with 3 different perspectives on the same central events. From the recommendations of this group, I would like to read Oscar and Lucinda next----but it was out of stock at my local bookstore last time I checked. Jane

Carolineevans, Please tell me more about Villette. I am in the middle of this novel and find it a difficult read. The forward was rather intimidating given all the warnings about deceptions of character and view.

Those Literary Critics! they spoil every good book if they can!The best advice I can give you, Elaine is to read it right through and not worry too much about the understanding of it.Lucy Snow is as autobiographical as Charlotte Bronte gets, and to the best of anyone's knowledge, M. Paul ,and quite possiblysome of the other characters are people she knew very well. Just get into Lucy's brain, Elaine.Feel her feelings, if you can,and it will start to make more sense. And if you get totally bummed out by t e ending,as I always do, you know you are there. It is a book that "grew" on me, more pleasurable second time around.The Characters have been described as "wonderfully rounded" on mre than one occasion.And like real life, there are a few inconsistencies, and a few loose ends. I hope this helps- I am not an expert on authorship. If you need something more specific, let me know. Enjoy! I

Try these: Mervyn Peake (also his illustrations) Lord Dunsany (extremely hard to find) - especially King of Elflands Daughter Tove Jansson's Moomintroll series - a Finnish Winnie the Pooh!

I havn't had contact with Moominmama, the Snork maiden and others for years,Mixu.Ah, memories!Have to find it for my kids......

GWTW, Of Angels and Insects (AS Byatt), Wide Sargasso Sea (Jean Rhys), Ian Fleming Bond Books, Mary Renault's mythological sexorgy books, The Golden Ass (Apuleius), the Oz series, Arthur Ransome's children's books, Dream of the Red Chamber (Chinese novel of manners from the Ming period), Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God, The Invisible Man by Ellison, The Great Gatsby, No Ordinary time (Doris Kearns Goodwin's nonfiction work on FDR's administration), and many more which I'm probably forgetting...

My favorite novel of all time: THE FIRST CIRCLE by Alexandr Solzhenitsyn. Also -- the RABBIT and BECK books by John Updike; MAIN STREET & BABBITT by Sinclair Lewis; SAVAGE PARIS by Emile Zola; MIDDLEMARCH; JANE EYRE; WUTHERING HEIGHTS; FARENHEIT 451; anything by Sir Walter Scott; Mallory's MORTE D'ARTHUR (the original; not the pseudo-Shakespeare translations); the short fiction of Harlan Ellison; LEAR; MACBETH. Guilty pulp pleasures -- Robert E. Howard of CONAN fame; and Mitchell's GONE WITH THE WIND. lso like Clark Ashton Smith, H.P. Lovecraft, Dumas peres & fils. Great screenplay writers: Billy Wilder, William Goldman, I.A.L. Diamond, Charles Brackett. In sf heartily recommend Lucius Shepherd, Dan Simmons, and Pat Cadigan.

Have to add Persig's Trait� du Zen et de l'entretien des motocyclettes, as mentionned in Caroline's posts above. Just gave me the idea to read it again.

] Persig's Trait� du Zen et de l'entretien des motocyclettes ___ Anybody ever try his Lila?

Georges Sand...not JA, but certainly vibrant and sensitive...

Russian novels, anyone? I mentioned before I am a fanatic about Dostoevsky, but I'll mention it again here. If the world were about to be nuked and I could save only two novels on the entire planet, they would be Crime and Punishment and Pride and Prejudice. (I'm assuming, of course, all the plays and poems of Shakespeare are already in a vault somewhere.) Hilary, I just bought Possession on the recommendation of a friend. Glad to know it's one of your favorite books. Hopefully, I'll get to it soon. And Kali, I loved the Great Gatsby, too. I'd forgotten how much until I reread recently. I don't read nonfiction often, but Doris Kearns Goodwin is another author I want to get around to soon. I see her on so many documentary shows, and it seems to me if she writes anything like she speaks, her works must be lively, witty and interesting as history books seldom are. And to all the Eliot fans out there. What do you think JA would have thought of Eliot? I, myself, find reading Eliot more of a chore than a pleasure. I don't know why, but I never find her characters quite as believable as JA's.

Russian novels, anyone? I mentioned before I am a fanatic about Dostoevsky, but I'll mention it again here. If the world were about to be nuked and I could save only two novels on the entire planet, they would be Crime and Punishment and Pride and Prejudice. (I'm assuming, of course, all the plays and poems of Shakespeare are already in a vault somewhere.) Hilary, I just bought Possession on the recommendation of a friend. Glad to know it's one of your favorite books. Hopefully, I'll get to it soon. And Kali, I loved the Great Gatsby, too. I'd forgotten how much until I reread recently. I don't read nonfiction often, but Doris Kearns Goodwin is another author I want to get around to soon. I see her on so many documentary shows, and it seems to me if she writes anything like she speaks, her works must be lively, witty and interesting as history books seldom are. And to all the Eliot fans out there. What do you think JA would have thought of Eliot? I, myself, find reading Eliot more of a chore than a pleasure. I don't know why, but I never find her characters quite as believable as JA's.

Arnessa, I am an Eliot fan. I think JA would have thought, "Oh dear! Why go into all that?"

Favorite books off the top of my head and in no particular order: Jane Eyre, GWTW, Georgette Heyer's "These Old Shades" and "Devil's Cub", Josephine Tey "Daughter of Time" (the best book about why Richard III was not the evil villain Shakespeare made him out to be), Upton Sinclair's "Lanny Budd" series, all Herman Wouk, especially "Winds of War" and "War and Remembrance", and all Nevil Shute's work. I like all historical fiction and biographies, but I'm not much into fantasy or sci-fi. There are many, m ny more that I've enjoyed but these are some that I tend to re-read at some year's intervals whereas other books I read once and never again. However, I think I enjoyed "The English Patient" so much that I am going to have to re-read it again. I've just finished "1000 acres and was quite depressed by the end, but then King Lear wasn't exactly a barrel of laughs! Inko

Arnessa, Crime and Punishment is close to the top of my list of best novels ever written. I have a friend from Russia who tells me that Dostoevsky is much better in translation than in the original. She also tells me that when she started reading American authors, she thought that Hemingway was one of the best novelists she had ever read. I can only conclude that he is also better in translation. Myretta

POSSESION by A.S. Byatt is a wonderful novel and well-deserving of the Booker!

While searching the Net for something completely unrelated (of course) I came across some Oxford undergraduate's "Breathtakingly Pretentious Literature Page". His 10 favorite novels are: P & P, Oscar & Lucinda, Nostromo, Middlemarch, Great Gatsby, Portrait of a Lady, Charterhouse of Parma, Tristam Shandy, Waterland, and Anna Karenina. He seems to be our kindred spirit! Sorry I didn't save the link, but I did think it was funny to see what could be a composite list of much of the above contributions. Jane

Portrait of a Lady!!!!??? I threw it across the room when I finished, because it didn't finish! I am interested in seeing what Campion does with it (opens 12/27). I felt like it ended mid-sentance. I've read some Russian short works. Maybe I will tackle the big ones now. No one has mentioned Patricia Cornwall. Great mysteries, well written, but an easy read. I re-read Jane Eyre also. Amy, I think you are right about what JA would say about Eliot. I almost didn't make it through Middlemarch. If Anne Rice d dn't get so preachy at the end of her books she might get me to read more than the vampire series. I like early Colleen McCullough - "Ladies of Misalonghi" as well as "Tim" are very touching. One of the funniest books I have ever read was Jean Shepherds "Wanda Hickey's night of Golden Memories and Other Disasters". This was the basis for the "Christmas Story" movie (where the little boy sticks his tongue to a cold lamp post and it gets stuck). I read this in Jr. High (20 years ago) and laughed so hard I c ied. Shepherd, I think, used to write for Playboy (gasp). This is a good source. I should be writing them all down.....

Some of my favorites overlap with those of Myretta and Caroline Evans above. One thing is that I read almost no Post-WWI "mainstream" "non-genre" literature whatsoever -- a lot of science fiction, a fair amount of 19th century novels, and a little bit of other miscellaneous stuff. Don't read mysteries that much... Have read two or three Georgette Heyers on recommendation from people on AUSTEN-L, but none of them have really impressed me so far... I don't know if these are really my all time favorites (especially the last few books on the list), but these are the books that hace somehow ended up on my nightstand: Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens Silas Marner by George Eliot Ice Crown by Andre Norton Alice in Wonderland (both books + Snark) by Lewis Carroll The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde Plays by Richard Brinsley Sheridan (because of The Rivals) She Stoops to Conquer by Oliver Goldsmith Perilous Dreams by Andre Norton High Sorcery by Andre Norton Wine of the Dreamers by John D. MacDonald (SF, not mystery!) I even have Silas Marner on my webpages (follow the link...)

P.S. I know we weren't supposed to include Jane Austen, but I happen to have two copies of Mansfield Park on my nightstand along with the above (Ok, you can laugh at me now, Kali...)

Myretta, I have been trying off and on to learn Russian for several years now just so I can read Dostoevsky in the original. Thank you for giving me a good reason to give that up. No modern language should be that difficult. I have various copies of Crime and Punishment and the Brothers Karamasov, and even without knowing Russian too well, one can see what a difference a good translation makes. For anyone out there interested in reading Dostoevsky in English, I would say Constance Garnett's translations are the best I've read. I know little of Hemingway, but I have to agree, he must read much better in Russian. And Amy, you're so right. That's EXACTLY what Austen would say. Eliot often seems to overburden the reader with justifications/explanations for the actions of her characters, whereas Austen never tells all that she must know.

I agree with many of the choices above. This is what I also love: Drama: Any Shakespeare Henrik Ibsen--he's brillant Long Days Journey into Night Top Girls by Caryl Churchill Novelists: Jude the Obscure--Hardy any Pat Conroy--he's descriptions are lovely Maeve Binchy--excellent Irish writer Judy Blume--when I was young Trainspotting-Irvine Welsh (best book I read this year) Sidney Sheldon--when I want a trashy writer

I agree with many of the choices above. This is what I also love: Drama: Any Shakespeare Henrik Ibsen--he's brillant Long Days Journey into Night Top Girls by Caryl Churchill Novelists: Jude the Obscure--Hardy any Pat Conroy--he's descriptions are lovely Maeve Binchy--excellent Irish writer Judy Blume--when I was young Trainspotting-Irvine Welsh (best book I read this year) Sidney Sheldon--when I want a trashy writer

What is Top Girls?

Becks, if you read Shakespeare, what do you think of Christopher Marlowe? I loved "Dr Faustus," and taped "Edward II" from Bravo the other night.It's quite horrifying, but very very powerful and exquisitely done. Are we trashing Hemingway here?One day last week I substituted an English teacher and had to do a wind-up/show the movie of "The Old Man And The Sea", absolutely cold, as I'd never read or watched it before. I was bored out of my brain. And a propos of nothing in particular, does anyone care to comment on Laurel Phelan's "Guinevere"? I'm not recommending it as literature, as it doesn't claim that foritself, but I'd like to discuss it a bit.

]Are we trashing Hemingway here? Caroline, I'm the one who started the Hemingway-trashing. Perhaps I was hasty, but my reaction to "The Old Man and the Sea" was similar to yours. He obviously has his adherents, but they probably aren't Jane Austen readers. Myretta

Yes, I have read Dr. Faustus, and I did enjoy it, Caroline. Top Girls is a play about a modern career woman who has a birthday dinner with her friends from various centuries (A Victorian woman, Joan of Arc, a French peasant girl, a gladitor, a Japenese Empress)

I'm off to the Library, right now!

Caroline Evans, I just finished reading "Villette" last night, and although at some parts it was difficult to get through, I just loved it! Monsier Paul is such a dear! I read Jane Eyre for the first time a few days ago, and did not skip a single paragraph! It was so so wonderful! I just devoured and savored it at the same time! I had always thought it was some boring classic of a plain-looking governess, but found it to be so much more! (Besides, she's really kind of pretty!) I also love Wilkie Collins "The Moonstone" and "The Woman in White". They are really really excellent mysteries, the best who-dun-it, because you least expect the guy who done it. Ever since I was a child, I've loved Dianne Wynne Jones's "Howl's Moving Castle". I don't know if any of you've read it, but its so so wonderful. And Mc Graw's "Maya: Daughter of the Nile" is another cherished children book. I of course read L M Alcott's books when young, but I never liked their endings. The heroine always marries a lame substituion for the real hero. I was always disappointed at the end of her books! I read that new one that came out, I forgot what its called, something with "Rosamand", and that too, ended disappointingly. Of Hardy, I like ROTN the best; I just loved its CBS Hallmark Hall of Fame's presentation! Catherine Zeta Jones was so superb as Eustacia; I could imagine no other! Clym was a little lacking, though his acting was good. Thomasin was a wee bit too whiny at times, but she is still a dear. Wuthering Heights and Tenant of Wildfell Hall are also very good. I've always liked Byronic heroes. Another great excellent book is Rebecca. Olivier is wonderful in the movie! Its really funny. My three fav books: P&P, WH, and Rebecca all star Larry in their earlier versions, and I liked him only in Rebecca. Recently, I read this excellent book called "Olivia and Jai", and its sort of like a Wuthering Heights, only its locale is India, during the 1840's. Jai is this half-caste bastard who is full of venom revenge against his unknown English father Olivia is this truly refreshing and wonderful American girl, whose sotto voce expletives and Cowboy antics (she's from Sacramento, Kali!) are so refreshing in the midst of her British aunt's "tiffin" "mater" family. Its really really good, I totally recommend it even if you don't care much for India. It's much more believable than WH Heatcliff's unexplained anger: in this book, Jai's hatred is totally justified! If any of you do read it, please please please let me know, for I have yet to meet another being who has! Well, I wonder you havn't yet fallen asleep at my long long reply, only I just love reading, and am quite picky in my books. I've read a bit of Heyer, but she's okay, too stuffy at times. My sister is crazy over Bonnie Prince Charles, and is right now immersed in Gabaldon's Outlander books. C.S. Lewis has always been a fav. I just love that BBC production of "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", watched it a billion times, and do so again once a sibling of mine grows up! Well, I really must now leave! Love to hear your responses!

Tay, so glad to have you back, baby.

Forgot to quickly add: I just loved Warner Bro's productions of "The Secret Garden" and "A Little Princess", though I like TSG a bit better. I also love Winnie the Pooh, I have the real classical version, taped from tv when I was a knee-high to a tadpole (a kid). Strawberry Shortcake and the rest of her gang (incl the benevolent and kind and deep-voiced Sun) I deeply feel that the cartoons now adays are noting like those wonderfully sweet lovely cartoons that I used to watch when I was a kid, five to ten years ago! B tter go before this note becomes too long too!

Amy, Just saw you. How are you doing? Sorry I've been gone for such a long time! I was busily immersed in graduating early. Now I can relax and rejoin my favourite gang of people!!

Anyone else enjoy Angela Thirkell? Seems like I'm on a real binge with her many novels these days.

Lilah, I've also read a lot of Angela Thirkell. Her best books are the ones from the thirties, I think--after that she got too angry and bitter about England's changing society. The best of the best is The Brandons, but I also liked Pomfret Towers, August Folly, Before Lunch and Cheerfullness Breaks In. Speaking of Barsetshire, does anyone like Anthony Trollope? I'm a big fan--have read about 30 of his novels.

Anne3, yes, I agree with you about Thirkell's bitterness. Still, it's a very interesting glimpse of a different society and its adaptation to the war years. I guess I feel I can't blame her for mourning a way of life. And I love Trollope. Is the American Senator one of the ones you've read? I found it so interesting to see "us" through Trollope's eyes.

Lilah--yes, The American Senator is also one of my favorites. I agree that it's interesting to see "us" from "their" point of view, but especially because Trollope was such a fair-minded man and disposed to like us--unlike his notorious mother! Some of my other favorites of his (aside from the well-known Barsetshire and Palliser series) are The Three Clerks, Ayala's Angel and Orley Farm.

How about Dick Francis, Robert Barnard, and Jonathan Gash? (love Lovejoy but hate the BBC adaptations). Has anyone read Sharyn McCrumb? She reminds me a bit of Patricia Cornwell but wittier and lighter (in the Elizabeth MacPherson series). Douglas Adams is one of my favorite reads, although I don't usually read SF. I have read GWTW but it is not one of my favorites, I have shied away from it because my maiden name is Mitchell and I have endured too many comments about that. I still read new Madelin L'Engle books as they appear, having fallen in love with "A Wrinkle In Time" at age 11.

Caroline, have you received my e-mail regarding Le Z�bre? Actually, I'm reading each new thread in order so if you posted a message later on, disregard this one.

JUst had to trow in a few more excellent books. To all yo Austen lovers: Have anyone read Barbara Pym? I've always seen her as a "modern" Jane, slightly more realistic/pessimistc about life. I'm also an absolute England -lover and well, Miss Pym captured maybe that feeling, or should I say picture of the ideal English way of life. "Crampton Hodnet" gives a good introduction to her works, otherwise I think I rate "Civil to strangers " as the best What else? Hm, I read "Essays in love" by Alain de Botton last year and just though wow! this man knows a lot about life and love, and he's just 27! (I know I'm too young to say that really :) I'm 19 ) Smthg more philosophical and beautiful to read is hard to find. Many other favourites too, I read far too much (should study!!0) Kurt Vonnegut Jr for socialawareness, Douglas Adams (Dirk Gently rules!!) Terry Pratchett and Tom Holt for funny "fantasyand Also fond of Dostoyevsky even if I haven't read much. Bulgakovs "The Master and Marguerit" (title translated swedish-english= is excellent too. Also the Greman Heirish B�ll and MANY many more.. Mostly read books in English tough, NOT many excellent Swedish authors out there (that's my own point of view, sorry ) And btw, JoanneD, is it Alexandre Jardin's Le Zebre that't you mean? I loved "Fanfan" and am now reading "Bille en t�te", liking it a lot!

Writer filmography Yes, Gabriella and here is his filmography as in IMDB: 1.Fanfan (1993) (also novel) ... aka Fanfan & Alexandre (1993) 2.Zebre, Le (1992) (novel) ... aka Oddball, The (1992) 3.Cles du paradis, Les (1991) ... aka Keys to Paradise, The (1991) 4.Gawin (1991) 5.Bille en tete (1989) (also novel) ... aka Headstrong (1989) I just ordered through my book club Qu�bec Loisirs what is to be his latest: L'Ile des gauchers (une terre o� l'on pratique l'art d'aimer). Didn't mention all time fav six volume Les Rois maudits of Maurice Druon. It's TV version in the 60's with one of a kind Jean Piat is masterful.

Gabriella--I also love Barbara Pym. She has such a wonderfully tolerant attitude towards life, towards people--I like to read her when I'm upset, she's very soothing. I'm not sure I agree with you about the titles you mentioned as starting places for new readers, though. I'd recommend Excellent Women or Jane and Prudence, since they are early works and some of the characters in them pop up briefly in the subsequent novels.

Anne3 -- sorry, but the two Trollope novels I've read are The Warden and Ayala's Angel, and I wasn't greatly impressed with either...

Anne3.. have to agree with your remark on reading Miss Pym when one is upset or maybe sad. Reading her always leave me in a really calm mood. "Excellent Women" as you said should have been on my list for first-readers too. But I've always found "Crampton Hodnet" to contain the complete Pym-world with vicars and curates, spinsters and young women just starting to know about life.. AND of course the most important thing.. the setting is North Oxford, a city that I just adore and think is "soo Pym" :) Glad to hear from another fan of her books. I can go on reading her forever, just like Miss Austen.

Anne3.. have to agree with your remark on reading Miss Pym when one is upset or maybe sad. Reading her always leave me in a really calm mood. "Excellent Women" as you said should have been on my list for first-readers too. But I've always found "Crampton Hodnet" to contain the complete Pym-world with vicars and curates, spinsters and young women just starting to know about life.. AND of course the most important thing.. the setting is North Oxford, a city that I just adore and think is "soo Pym" :) Glad to hear from another fan of her books. I can go on reading her forever, just like Miss Austen.

Btw.. this set my mind of thinking about Joanna Trollope. Any opinions? I really like her novel "The men and the girls", maybe of the same reason, it's set in Oxford :) BUt I've also got almost the same feeling when I read Joanna trollpoe as when I read Barbara Pym, one gets calm and rather happy :) Although I must say that I really prefere Barbara Pym. "Some Tame Gazelle" is another great book by her. Joanna Trollope's novel "The Rector's Wife" was made into a really great TV-serial a few years back too.. And about Alexandre Jardin: I really had no idea his books had been filmed!! I've GOT to see them/get videos? Which one is the best? any recommendations? Don't think anyone has beeen shown here in Sweden. Alexandre Jardin was here in Gothenburg at the huge Bokkfair we have every year, a couple of years ago when Fanfan just had been translated and I really enjoyed going to the talk he gave... even if I really didn't understan as much of the french as I would do today :)

Arnessa, I hope you enjoy 'Possession'. I loved 'War and Peace' and 'Crime and Punishment'. I should read them again, because its been a long time. And I love Eliot's 'Mill on the Floss'. When I read it some years back I had forgotten how funny books like that and JA, that are written in older language, can be. It started off my last JA binge before this one. 'Middlemarch' is being replayed on TV at the moment here - I missed it the first time. It might spur me to read that. BTW its a Davies script too, w th lots of familiar Brit. actors, & including Jonathon Firth. He's not as handsome as his brother, but there are definite family similarities.

Hil, I love MIddlemarch. Dorothea's stuggle with Casubon cuts right to my soul.

]Hil, I love MIddlemarch. Dorothea's stuggle with Casubon cuts right to my soul. As it does mine. And probably any woman who has been married to such a man. Hilary, I finished Oscar and Lucinda and, as you predicted, was enthralledd. Is other Peter Carey of this calibre? I must find out.

Hil I am ashamed to confess I did not finish O&L, but no other fiction is on top of it in the pile.

Myretta, glad you liked it. Yes, his writing is consistently good. I'd recommend 'Bliss' (my favourite) and 'Illywacker', which is a real tome, but worth it. 'The Tax Inspector' is well written, but awfully black. Its about abuse, and I found it quite upsetting. And 'The life of Tristram Smith' I couldn't read - don't know why. Michael couldn't read O&L either, Amy. Its a difficult book to get into.

I just got Oscar & Lucinda from the library, but Nostromo has taken away my reading time these few days. Still, I am determined. Jane

Some of the books already mentioned have been favorites (Jane Eyre, Little Women...). Some books not mentioned that I love - The Color Purple by Alice Walker Beloved by Toni Morrisson (i just heard this will be made into a movie w/ Oprah Winfrey starring and Jonathan Demme, who did Silence of the Lambs and Philadelphia directing; should be interesting) The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende I love Barbara Kingsolver's novels (The Bean Trees, Pigs in Heaven, Animal Dreams). I also like Joanna Trollope. As for nonfiction, I've recently re-read "Bird by Bird" by Anne Lamott(if any of you are aspiring writers, you should definitely read this). I recently checked "Possession" out from the library and based on comments here I'm really looking forward to reading it. I liked Oscar and Lucinda, but was hoping for a different ending, I won't say what so as not to ruin it for anyone.

A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving

Sheesh...leave a thread for a few weeks and it explodes all over you! I'll try to catch up: Re: #51...Henry, I'm not laughing at you. I thought you knew that MP is my third favorite Austen novel, and definitely among my top ten, period. Perhaps I should start using smiley's only when they're absolutely necessary! ;{ Arnessa: What was it about Great Gatsby you loved? The romance? The tension? The heat symbolism? The light on Daisy's dock? ;) Other books I forgot to mention: Margaret Atwood's the Robber Bride (Z[X]enia...my namesake!) and the Handmaid's Tale. John Dos Passos' The BIg Money. Upton SInclair's EPIC propaganda (it's growing on me). REbecca by Daphne DuMaurier (GREAT book...forgot about it, haven't read it since I was 15).

Lisa, I unabashedly agree with A Prayer for Owen Meany! Have you read Robertson Davies?

nope. is "Robertson Davies" an author or a title?

Would anydone like to advise a beginner of Trollope? There are so many books, and some of them so long! Where would you begin?

. . . a beginner of Trollope . . . Oh, Katy, how lucky you are! Over 40 novels, and most of them wonderful! The usual starting place is The Warden. It's short, it's the first book in the popular Barchester series, and it's good, typical Trollope. After that you may want to read the other 5 books in the series, beginning with Barchester Towers, which is easy to find. Some other recommendations: The Three Clerks (a lively, early book) Orley Farm (good plot) The Eustace Diamonds (this is actually Book #3 in the Palliser series, but has almost nothing to do with the first 2, so you won't be missing anything) Miss Mackenzie (shorter than most) Please tell us how you like them. Anyone for Trollope.com?

Hi, I've been lurking around here for quite awhile ... Has anyone else read EF Benson? Very Austenesque in sort of a perverse way, and, in my opinion, just about the funniest writer in the English language. His Mapp and Lucia series is probably his best known work -- "Lucia in London" is the one that I like best, but they're all a riot. If you particularly like the comic characters in JA -- Mister Collins, Mrs. Elton, etc. -- then you'll love Benson.

Betty, I love the Benson books, too. I came across some very, very early ones that foreshadowed themes and characters in the Lucia/Mapp stories. I can always make myself chuckle by thinking about Georgie and his cape, and Moonlight Sonata (with the pause at the end).

Mapp and Lucia was done as a mini-series about 5 years ago. Cannot remember much except one story about Lucia faking being able to speak and write Italian and another about a painting competition. Was a U.K. production, maybe on video,you never know....

Indeed it's on video; in fact, for those of you who watch "Keeping up appearances," the actress who plays Hyacinth Bucket stars in the Mapp/Lucia series. Fun viewing.

I'm also a big fan of the Lucia series (the books, that is, not the t.v. thing, which was poisoned, IMO, by the odious Geraldine McEwen, who also ruined Mrs. Proudie in Barchester Towers.) Betty, you're so right about Benson's people descending from Austen's comic characters--you can just see the Eltons and their ilk in Tilling or Riseholme. Did you know that there have been a couple of sequels written in the 1980s by Tom Holt, Lucia in Wartime and Lucia Triumphant? Not at all bad, as these things go. If you absolutely must see it, Critics Choice is offering the t.v. series in its current catalog.

Thanks, Betty. This is something entirely new to me.

I'm so glad there are other Benson fans out there -- I knew there would be. There is small group of writers that I reread every year or so -- JA and Barbara Pym and Benson sort of form the nucleus. I also really love "Lucky Jim", even though I know that Kingsley Amis was a dreadful old misogynist. There's something about the pace, and the deft characterizations and the precision of the language that gives all of these books sort of a similar "feel" ... BTW, I haven't seen the Mapp and Lucia mini-series. I'm always afraid that books I really love will be ruined for me. I've taken the chance with P&P, though, and been amply rewarded. I rewatch P&P2 as often as I think my family will let me get away with it ...

Has anyone read any novels by Fanny Burney? Apparently, she was one of Jane Austen's favorite writers. I am currently reading Evelina which on the back cover is described as follows: The education of Burney's country-raised heroine in city ways and mores leads to comic errors and a perilous passage from innocent maidenhood to virtuous marriage. But what makes Evelina's odyssey through the ton wonderful reading are the cads who pursue her, the boorish relatives who use her, and the vulgarians who offend her sensibilities until she is redeemed by the attentions of Lord Orville. The novels aapeal, as Jane Austen recognized and emulated, lies with Evelina's fresh voice, Burney's wickedly satiric portrayal of fops and frauds, and the gossipy descriptions of a London awhirl with teas, balls, operas, and excursions, where matchmaking is the game and proper husbands are the prize. Sounds familiar doesn't it? So far, I find the novel to be quite enjoyable and reminiscent of Jane Austen.

Did I remember to mention Aldous Huxley's Brave New World? No parents. Your job and abilities predetermined by a letter of the Greek alphabet. And for the biofactory women, the constant curse of Lupus! Oh, and JD Salinger, Catcher in the Rye. I agree with Holden about the headstone inscription. Nobody's going to inherit unless they put that on my 'stone.

Brave New World was my coming of age book, opened my eyes wide to the bigger world of more mature novels. Amazing him being involved in P&P0 too... another in the same line : Vercors' les animaux d�natur�s (original title, whish had the translation one). So many new books to read, like your list Kali ;)

Vercors' les animaux d�natur�s (original title, whish had the translation one). Might that be "Animal Farm"?