What kind of fiction do you like?

EUROPE1

What kind of fiction do you people like?

Astronuc

The imaginary kind.

I like stories with interesting places and characters.

Old classics like the Illiad and Odyssey.

J. R. R. Tolkien's - Lord of the Rings certainly.

Science fiction - like that of Asimov (Foundation and Empire series) and Robert Heinlein (e. g. Glory Road, Stranger in a Strange Land).

J. K. Rowling's - "Harry Potter" series.

Christopher Paoli's (18 yr old) - Eragon - http://www.randomhouse.com/teens/eragon/ - excellent book.

I am now reading "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel. Strange.

Danger

Sorry I don't have time to get into details; just cruising through while I get ready for work. Hard SF is my overall favourite (James P. Hogan, Larry Niven,etc.). Also good old-style mysteries like Agatha Christie. Some comedy if it's very well done (Jimmy Breslin, Kurt Vonnegut Jr.). I have, however, been known to read cereal boxes if there was nothing else around (only partially fictional).

arildno

I like fantasy a lot.
Of more "serious" literature, Dostoyevsky and Shakespeare are favourites.

Astronuc

What is the best fiction from Europe, Asia, Africa, South America - both classic and modern?

Inside the US, it is very difficult to find material from outside, except that which filters through the media and publishers.

hypermorphism

Astronuc's list is pretty much mine.
Also fun stuff like Flatland, Flatterland, etc.
Some newer novels I've read include "Prey" by Michael Crichton, "Singularity" by Bill DeSmedt and "A Hole in Texas" by Herman Wouk. They were okay, but both tended to overemphasize the standard relationship hook over character development, which made for some plodding backdrop.
I recently found out that I have an obsession with reading while eating as well. I was out this weekend in NYC and got hungry, so I walked into McDonald's and realized I didn't have anything to read. I then walked about 10 blocks to the nearest bookstore and bought the cheapest book that caught my eye (Innumeracy), then walked back to eat.

Astronuc

Arrrgh!!! I forgot Douglas Adams and the "Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy". Best fiction by far.

And Terry Pratchett - I just started looking at his work.

hypermorphism

I've got "The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide" on my shelf, the two Dirk Gently's (the first one is better than the second), and The Salmon of Doubt.
I've tried getting into Terry Pratchett, but while he spends a lot of time developing his worlds, he seems to spend less time developing his characters to the extend DNA. did. Grant Naylor's Red Dwarf duo is a better match to DNA's humor. It's unfortunate they didn't adapt more of the series to book form.

russ_watters

Add Orwell and Clancy to Astronuc's list...

edit: oh, and Jules Verne's "The Mysterious Island" should be required reading for aspiring engineers.

motai

I tend to favor historical fiction over the pure fantasy stuff. I also like to dabble in a little sci-fi so long as there is more sci than fi. I have yet to read Dostoyevsky, but I do like Anton Chekhov's works.

arildno

Well, if all engineers were as resourceful, imaginative, manly and brave as the lead character, what couldn't we have accomplished...

Great read, though!

Davorak

Raymond E. Feist-I have not kept up with many of his books as of late, though his apprentice series is what got me into fantasy.

Robert Jordan-The wheel of time series is good, but for maybe the last two books, and it is not worth reading 7+ times like some people I know.

George R.R. Martin-I wish I had more time to read his books.

Terry Goodkind-The Sword of Truth series was always a little preachy but books 7 and 8 were too much for me. Has anyone one read book 9, is it worth reading?

Terry Pratchett is one of my favorite authors.

Orson Scott Card

Douglas Adams-Need I say more?

Frank Herbert – Brian Herbert will never match Frank Herbert’s work.

Stephen King- Dark tower series and select others.

L. E. Modesitt Jr. – Writing style from book to book or even series to series can be repetitive.

Piers Anthony – The overwhelm number of puns in his books could and probably will destroy multiple civilizations. The Xanth series was better off before it started drowning its readers with puns.

Asimov’s Foundation and Empire series

and others.

With all the books sci-fi and fantasy books I have read it is a travesty that I have never gotten around to reading the Lord of the Rings series.

College has slowed my reading dramatically(at least in sci-fi/fantasy), but I still mange spurts of the 3-5 books over holiday breaks.

Bladibla

War and Peace
Crime and Punishment
Old man and the sea
The little prince
Of mice and men
Grapes of wrath..Basically anything by steinbeck..Awesome guy

Btw: Shakespeare sucks!!

ramollari

The Little Prince, Of mice and men (Steinbeck, also adding 'the pearl'), and Crime and Punishment, were also in my list. Great works!
I add also:
-Dead Souls from Gogol,
-All the stories of DeMaupassant,
and
-Adventures of Sherlock Holmes from Connan Doyle

arildno

Shakespeare does NOT suck, Ibsen sucks!

Bladibla

Yarr... Shakespeare i would rank as one of my most hated playwriters/bookwriters/poets..

Tolstoy/Steinbeck is the best!

arildno

Assuming you're English or American, your hatred stems from the fact that you were foreced to read Shakespeare at school.
Lucky bastard, I was forced to read Ibsen and Icelandic sagas..