FaustoMerckx

I fancy reading some historical fiction based in feudal Japan, Ninja, Samurai, that sort of thing. Preferably based on real events/facts. In fact anything based in the far east would be of interest or anything related to Buddhism. Any suggestions? I've read Conn Iggulden's conqueror series and have Siddhartha high on the tbr pile Also a mate of mine was asking about historical fiction set in ancient Greece; Spartans and all that?

I've got loads of old Ladybird books and still read them, they are brilliant. You can normally pick them up in charity shops and at car boot sales for next to nothing

I recently picked up a couple of his short story collections whilst browsing through charity shops, I've only read a few of the stories so far but they have been brilliant. I didn't realise he wrote anything for older readers but I'm real glad he did, 'Tales of the Unexpected' is genius

Laurie Lee wrote some good poems, about nature, animals and Spain mostly. Lewis Carroll wrote some interesting stuff, 'Phantasmagoria and other poems', especially if you can find one with the original drawings by Arthur B Frost, very dark. I get most of my books online from Play.com, they seem to be cheaper as they offer free postage on everything. Definitely worth a look, especially if you buy second hand

Excellent, sounds right up my street, cheers.

I'm half way through reading 'Lords of the Bow' by Con Iggulden and I'd definitely recommend it. It is fairly simply written, which suits it, and gives you great descriptions, allowing you to paint a vivid picture. I can appreciate the amount of research that must have gone into it, I'll definitely be looking out for the rest in the 'conqueror' series

Anyone read any collections of Thomas Wolfe's letters? He didn't leave us much and I've read everything else so I've been thinking about getting them for a while

I've not read any of those but I'll definitely take a look at them. Thanks for the suggestions. I've just been listening to a Rush gig recorded in London so the Ghost Rider book sounds interesting. You might like 'Home before daylight' by Steve Parish, its a great book about life with the Grateful Dead written by a roadie

Definitely Fear and Loathing. William Burroughs is extremely messed up, 'Naked Lunch' is just obscene. Aldous Huxley 'The doors of perception'. I've got some short stories by Dylan Thomas that are messed up. Picked up couple second hand books other day that look to be along these lines - 'Confessions of a hope fiend' by Timothy Leary and 'Dead Babies' by Martin Amis

Admission . . . I've never read anything by Charles Dickens. What's a good one to start with? I fancy reading a lesser known one so that I don't know the plot from film and TV adaptations

Finally read it. Great book. The thought of sleeping on a festering, bug ridden bed, wrapped in putrid, sweat soaked sheets with a toothless, old tramp breathing and coughing in my face will haunt my dreams for weeks though!

I've only read one by Albert Camus, 'The Plague' which is an excellent book.

How about Albert Camus?

Finished Truckers, loved the humour. Bits like wind being created by the trees all waving about. Want to get into some Discworld stuff now, is there any particular order that makes sense? Where is a good place to begin?

I flicked through a sci-fi book recently where the first line was something about a goat falling off of the world. I can't remember what it was but maybe someone will? I always love to be punched in the face by the opening paragraph to a book, here are some of my favourite first lines - 1984 - Orwell - It was a bright, cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S Thompson - We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. Notes from Underground - Dostoyevsky - I am a sick man . . . I am an angry man. I am an unattractive man. I think there is something wrong with my liver.

Sounds really interesting, thanks for the suggestions, I'll see if I can find them. Just popped in the good ol' charity shop on my way home and picked a couple of interesting ones up for 50p each. A book of travellers tales by Eric Newby, which is a large collection of excerpts and short stories of travels all around the world. Its separated up by continent and has writings from the likes of Thoreau, Fleming, Burton, Kerouac and tales from the time of Hannibal etc. Also got The path to Rome by Hillaire Belloc which I've been looking for for some time

I've got Mort here somewhere, just cant seem to find it. Read it when I was about 13 so cant remember a great deal about it. Just started reading Truckers which, as I cant remember anything about Mort, must count as my first Terry Pratchett book, although not a discworld one. The humour is very clever, things like 'all' being burning water that lorries drink. Its also very clever that it is written for just about every age group, not easy to pull off. I remember there being a really good point and click discworld game on the playstation 1 which I've been on the lookout for for a while. I've been told its worth some money now though

It is a very good book. It's pretty short and simply written but entertaining. Here's the blurb - The true epic of a man who pitted his wits, strength and will against beast and man in Africa. Africa in 1943 was no place for a young Italian recently released from internment by the British. The Abyssinians disliked all Europeans, but they hated the Italians. The British in Asmara couldn't be bothered with homeless ex-internees. Every other colonial power in Africa would either put him back behind barbed wire or pack him home to Italy - and the army. When bandits attacked their lorry on an Abyssinian mountain road, wrecked it and killed his two companions, Guiseppe set out to walk to the Sudan; it seemed to him the most likely refuge. One mishap led to another, hairbreadth escapes from disease or wild animals delayed or misled him, but he plodded on against all logic or reason. Seven thousand miles and over two years later he finished his amazing solitary trek to the opposite end of the continent.

I read mainly non-fiction, books about cycling, survival, mountaineering, musicians and many more. Some I have read recently are - Summers with the bears by Jack Becklund - Just finished this one, excellent tale of 6 years in the Minnesota woods where a couple befriended some local bears. Nicely written with dozens of incredible pictures. Crow Killer by Raymond W Thorp and Robert Bunker - Fact based book about Liver eating Johnson, the 19th century mountain man immortalised in the film Jeremiah Johnson. Put together using letters and interviews with the last mountain men. The longest walk by Guiseppe Maniscalco - Story of his solo wartime trek from the top to the bottom of Africa. An unbelievable adventure, he perseveres through extreme heat, rain, wild animals and multiple bouts of malaria before reaching the salvation of South Africa in tatters. Cat country by Di Francis - About sightings of big cats in Britain. Two thirds of the book details hundreds of sightings from all areas of the country, some undeniable. Final third is analysis of all the evidence and the authors successful search for cats. The Gurkhas - John Parker - The history of the British armies most feared but rapidly disappearing forces. A detailed account of the service they gave us over hundreds of years. One more kilometre and we're in the showers - Tim Hilton - A quirky and eccentric collection of cycling fact and folklore. Tells not only of the greatest cyclists of all time but goes into detail about the British road racing scene over the decades. From the greatest time triallists we have ever produced to the authors own experience of sleeping in hedges and haystacks before races in the post war era. If anyone has any suggestions of other great books worth reading along these lines they would be much appreciated. Also, I picked up a book today in Poundland, a hardback copy of 'Stargazing' by Peter Hill. Memoirs of a lighthouse keeper on Scottish islands, it caught my eye because he mentions his Captain Beefheart and Zappa record collection that kept him company. Anyone read it???

I read a lot of travel writing, especially the more survival stuff, one man against the elements. Here are some of my recommendations - Giant steps - Karl Bushby - First half of an ongoing trek around the world 7 years in Tibet - Heinrich Harrer My first summer in the sierra - John Muir Clear waters rising - Nicholas Crane -Year long walk through mountains of Europe Travels with Charley - John Steinbeck - Road trip with a dog As I walked out one midsummer morning - Laurie Lee Travels with a donkey in the Cevennes and An inland voyage - RL Stevenson Round Ireland with a fridge - Tony Hawks - Light hearted hitch hike cw/fridge The longest walk - Guiseppe Maniscalco - Excellent tale of his solo wartime trek from the top to the bottom of Africa Some of Kerouac's work such as 'Lonesome Traveller' would also fit into this category. There are also some great cycling books like 'Discovery road' which is about a ride around the world. Among others, I recently picked up a well over a hundred year old book by Mark Twain which I have yet to read

I've had it sat on my shelf for a while. Picked it up because I like reading the beat generation stuff and books about hardship and survival and guessed it would sit somewhere in the middle. I'll get round to reading it soon. An excellent book I've read in the same vein is 'An autobiography of a supertramp' by WH Davies, I'd recommend it to anyone. Laurie Lee's 'As I walked out one midsummer morning' is also a similar and brilliant book

'Cider with Rosie' by Laurie Lee definitely. His book 'As I walked out one midsummer morning' is half about his teen years before he went to Spain for a while. Some of Dylan Thomas' stories are about him growing up in Wales. James Joyce wrote a lot about life in Ireland

I love Bukowski, need to get more though. Started with Post office, then, Ham on rye, Factotum, Women and most recently read Notes from a dirty old man which is short stories of twisted drunkenness. Only problem with Bukowski is that every time I re-read one, I have to fight my inner demons that are screaming at me to go buy the cheapest bottle of whisky I can find and BECOME Hank. Think Post office is my favourite, certainly the one I've read most. Even went as far as recently looking into getting a job in a sorting office! Ever seen the film of Factotum? Not great but Matt Dillon does a pretty good job

Here's a long but great one from Thomas Wolfe's 'Of Time and the River' - 'They belonged to that futile, desolate, and forsaken horde who felt that all will be well with their lives, that all the power they lack themselves will be supplied, and all the anguish, fury, and unrest, the confusion and the dark damnation of man's soul can magically be healed if only they eat bran for breakfast' And another one, from 'An Inland Voyage' by R.L Stephenson 'If a position is admittedly unkind, uncomfortable, unnecessary and superfluously useless, although it were as respectable as the Church of England, the sooner a man is out of it, the better for himself and all concerned'

How about The plague - Albert Camus Dr jeckyl + Mr Hyde The island of Dr moreau - H G Wells Lonesome traveller - Kerouac I suppose you could say that Brave new world is pretty short And how about a much more contemporary one, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas