Rare Bear Posted March 9, 2011 Share Posted March 9, 2011 You may also enjoy "I Flew for the Führer" by Heinz Knoke. Richard Bach's books, 'Biplane', 'Nothing by Chance' and 'No Such Place as Far Away' all brilliant. Alex Hensahaw, 'Sigh for a Merlin' and 'The Flight of the Mew Gull'. Very boys own style but interesting. Henshaw's record flight time to South Africa and back in a light aircraft, set in 1939, has just been broke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_ichikawa Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 BASE 66 By Jevto Dedijer. It's a short book (145 pages) about how a skydiver got into Base jumping and earned the number 66. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supertop Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 A fine balance - Rohinton Mistry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shipbuilder Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 Small is beautiful. Agreed. Soil and Soul by Alastair McIntosh is also excellent. In addition, pretty much anything by JG Ballard and of course the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberta Tatlock Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 Fair point, I was 30 when I read it, it had no empathy from me at all. I paid such little attention at school that I decided to reread my entire GSCE book list. All Quite on the Western Front - great Lord of the Flies - better than great War of the Worlds - Great and relevant Day of the Triffids - Particularly relevant to all you oil boffins. Catcher in the Rye - nuff said. It's a worthwhile exercise to anyone stuck for inspration. I really regret not paying more attention in Eng Lit at school. In my mid-twenties I got into reading and have enjoyed many of 'the greats' ever since. I would re-read my GCE book list but that was back in 1979 and I have forgotten what was on it Anyway, recommendations: Any early John Irving - My favourites being 'The World According to Garp, 'The Cider House Rules' and 'A Prayer for Owen Meany'. Tom Jones (Fielding) Dubliners and The Portrait Of the Artist as a Young Man (Joyce) And for non-fiction try 'How To Read a Book' by Adler - a really excellent explanation of how one becomes 'well-read' as opposed to 'widely read'. It also contains a comprehensive reading list of classics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberta Tatlock Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 EDIT - I've just replied to this, to a poster who;s replied to me already re-stating this same post from a year ago. How lovely and weird. I didn't look at the date on the original. Sorry to confuse, but I was empathising with your statement about not paying attention etc. During my 'O' level course I rarely paid much attention to the set books. I was an angry young northener and as such read books about slightly older angry young northerners: 'Saturday Night, Sunday Morning', 'A Kind of Loving', 'This Sporting Life', 'The Loneliness of The Long Distance Runner', 'Kes'. Not for me the stories of a bunch toffs on a tropical island tossing around with a conch, or a couple of whiny spoilt teenagers shouting at each other from a balcony. No I knew better Oh, and I like P.G. Wodehouse but in relatively small doses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_duke_of_hazzard Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 My GCSE books were sh1t. I even told our teacher at the time, and I wasn't even into reading then. Then I did A-Level, and we did Joyce, Marlowe, Yeats and Bronte. It blew my little mind. Not sure I'd ever have appreciated a lot of modern lit without being forced to read Joyce. If anyone's got the time and inclination I'd recommend Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the gardener Posted March 11, 2011 Share Posted March 11, 2011 ... Anyway, recommendations: Any early John Irving - My favourites being 'The World According to Garp, 'The Cider House Rules' and 'A Prayer for Owen Meany'. ... That is the worst book in the entire history of mankind. Even though it was the only English language book available to me during the heatwave of 2003 when I spent 3 days in a French cellar (it was about 26 degrees in there and 42 outside!) I still failed to get through that book. I waded through about 200 pages with difficulty but it finally defeated me. I didn't give two sh*ts about any of the characters. I couldn't care less if they lived or died. Pure, unadulterated sh*te. It is just about the only book I have never bothered finishing. So dire it is that I make a point of destroying any copy that I encounter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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