I think mine would have to be the Biography Ishi in two worlds by Theodora Kroeber. I snagged it at my library purely because the book was very worn/ cool looking. And it’s a story I’m so glad to have learned about. You guys find any random gems?
by Optimal-Dentist5310
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I ran across a couple of lesbian fiction books, The House of Real Love and Matricide, both by Carla Tomaso, in a random bookstore, hunting for nothing in particular, just kind of by accident, about 30 years ago. But both have stuck with me a long time! Highly recommended, both of them.
*The Lives of Tao* by Wesley Chu. Saw this one on the shelf in the sci-fi section of my local bookstore and picked it up because I thought it might be a fun Taoist/Sci-fi mishmash. Instead, it was a book about a species of aliens who can occupy (or more like share) the bodies of living beings, and they use humans as vessels to fight their own civil war on Earth. Not high-brow literature by any means, but wildly fun, an interesting plot, and pretty funny as well. Revitalized my interest in reading a couple years ago!
*Snow Crash* by Neal Stephenson. I picked it up off of the shelf entirely because the cover caught my eye, but what sold me on it was when I read the back and learned the main character’s name was Hiro Protagonist. I laughed and said to myself “this will be either hilarious or terrible,” as I committed to buying it on the spot. Happy to report that I loved it, and it WAS hilarious!
A short stay in hell (not exactly a gem i dont think bc ive seen it reccomend here before, but i feel like the story fits)
Randomly decided to read it (4 months ago) bc of a tiktok video for no other reason than i liked the name. I(19) had never read a book for enjoyment and the only books i remember reading in school were hatchet and the outsiders
No idea why i decided to pick it up but im forever grateful, all i do is read now and its easily my favorite passtime
I’m going to reveal my age, but basically everything I read as a kid. I was a big reader and my mom was really great about taking me to used book sales and letting me buy as much as I wanted (because it would total like $10). As a result, I grew up on a ton of kind of obscure British children’s fiction and random old books. I also read classics and, like, Babysitter’s Club, but a lot of my favorite books growing up are out of print and pretty unknown now.
One favorite was Winter of the Magic’s Return, a post nuclear apocalypse story about the return of King Arthur and magic. In a pre-internet world, I was an adult before I realized there were two more books in the series.
All the things shes seen by Ambelin and Ezekiel Kwaymullina
The retired assassin’s guide to country gardening by naomi kuttner
Sorting books for a book exchange and came across “Lost in a Good Book”, a title I couldn’t resist. Turned out to be the 2nd book in the Thursday Next series and a fun read. I read them all and recommend them regularly.