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time for some fiction!


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Well, first post- I've been looking for somewhere like this for a long time.

 

For a while now I've been devouring history books- Andrew Marr, Jan Morris, Laurence Rees, Andrew Roberts etc, and I've just lost track of whats happening in fiction. I'd love to read a 'story' now, a novel- and what I'd love is something with emotion. Not sure how I'd categorise that!

 

Anyway, if anybody has read these & has any recommendations for something similar, it would be much appreciated!

 

Nicole Krauss- The History of Love

Jean Rhys- Wide Sargasso Sea

Herman Hesse- Narcissus & Goldmund

 

I guess the only common themes in that lot are that the main protagonists go on some kind of emotional journey, they suffer some heartbreak along the way and the books really dig into (ahem) 'the meaning of life'

 

Many thanks if anybody has any ideas :D

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I think Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham would fit what you are looking for perfectly.

 

Emotional journey -check

Suffer heartbreak - check

Digging into the meaning of life - check

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A question before I start suggesting half a million titles - as long as they feature emotional, heartbreaking journeys, can the books be speculative fiction (i.e. fantasy & science fiction) or do you like your books more or less realistic?

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BookJumper- no, its more the theme thats important rather than the actual setting, I don't mind at all.

 

...to be honest after finishing up on the big pile of history non-fiction- which was tough going at times- maybe a break from reality is just what the doctor ordered!

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Hey Rob what part of Coventry did you live? I live in Rugby but used to work in Cov.

Just thinking of a couple books....The Lovely Bones and Five People You Meet In Heaven have been popular reads on here.

Edited by vodkafan
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Thanks for the tips, much appreciated. I started out in Keresley (but I dont remember that), then to Kenilworth, then ended up in Earlsdon- we moved around a bit when I was a kid. I've been gone about 4 yrs now, people tell me its changed quite a bit.

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I think Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham would fit what you are looking for perfectly.

 

Emotional journey -check

Suffer heartbreak - check

Digging into the meaning of life - check

 

Fantastic book.

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Hi Rob. I loved The History of Love too, and a couple of books I read around the same time which I thought went well together were Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer and The Five People You Meet In Heavan by Mitch Albom.

 

I'd also say The Other Hand by Chris Cleave fits the bill, and lots of people who've read it here have thought it was a great read.

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Marvellous :D in which case, may I heartily recommend for starters:

 

- Keith Miller, The Book of Flying, about a librarian of books only he reads who goes on a journey to acquire wings so that he may win the heart of a winged girl

 

- Carl-Johan Vallgren, The Horrific Sufferings of Mind-Reading Monster Hercules Barefoot, His Wonderful Love and His Terrible Hatred (the plot's in the title ;))

 

If you're looking for heart-wrenching stories where beauty and horror are spoken of in stunning language, these are for you.

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