Speaking for myself, I had free access to the book collection at my grandparents house when I was young. I tried most of them and liked C S Forester's Hornblower series about the british navy. I liked the series because it was a compelling set of adventures, but also because it explored the main character's flaws and self doubts, his struggle with necessary mathematical tools for navigation, his social anxiety. Knowing that I had enjoyed those, led me as an adult to try Patrick O'Brian's excellent and more sophisticated series that starts with Master and Commander.
More formally, an English professor introduced me to Slaughterhouse Five and the Death of Ivan Illych, both of which I still admire and appreciate. Death of Ivan Illych might be my candidate for best book I've ever read, although I've since then read a few other contenders, notably Remains of the Day. Death of Ivan Illych succinctly describes a man's transition from social success to dying invalid and the social cost of that transition for him. It shows the shallowness of his friends and family and how quickly they shift their attention from him to other concerns while he faces death alone. I still believe that people can be better to each other when tragedy strikes, but this book shows that they won't necessarily, in just a few pages. It was a book that changed my impression of what a book could do for a reader. It stretched my concept of what a narrative could show and be.
Do you have stories about older people who have influenced your reading journey, and the books they led you to read?
by Fancy-Restaurant4136
6 Comments
To not answer your question: wait until you hear about the ***Richard Bolitho, Midshipman*** series
The Illuminatus! Trilogy
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis was given to me by my high school librarian: it was my last day of school, she was weeding older titles, and she thought I might get a kick out of it. She was right! I liked it so much I read all the Shulman I could get my hands on (NOTHING compared to Dobie) and reordered Many Loves when someone lost the copy I lent them.
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My dad’s boss knew I was discovering sci fi and gave me an old, entire set of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ *John Carter of Mars* series paperbacks from the 70s. Idk if I ever would have read them if he hadn’t passed them to me.
The works of Irving Stone. One of my uncles gave me a copy of *The Agony and the Ecstasy* as a teenager and I loved it! Which led me to searching out copies of his other works, which I have also enjoyed (so far, my favorite has been *Lust for Life*).