Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer

Another book that I bought only because the cover interested me -literally, I bought this off Amazon and didn't even see the physical book until it was delivered by UPS.

While reading this book I kept disturbing my college roommates with "oh, listed to this" or "ha, this paragraph is hilarous."

I like the moved based on this book -they did a good job. But I don't believe it did the book justice because they skipped half the story. This book tells two stories that intertwine, but the movie only goes over the later story. Some of the best parts of this book are is magical/mythical stories of the protaganists heritage.

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

I've spent many sleepless nights reading. Most of these nights were in preparation for school, but I stayed up all night reading Ender's Game because I got so invested in the characters.

I don't think this is the best book ever written, but I believe it should be placed on a short list. The plot is legendary, the characters are complex, and the style is superb.

I've heard criticism that this book is aimed at children, but I don't understand how that changes how great this book is. Perhaps the diction is not as extensive as Philip Roth or Michael Chabon, but I believe Orson can write circles around these two if only because characters are actual characters (as opposed to the same character with different names).

Saints by Orson Scott Card

This book may have influenced my life more than almost any other book -I hadn't read much before this.

I picked up a copy of this book at the Grant a Wish Foundation in Baltimore. They had a small library for the parents who are staying there -while their kids are at Johns Hopkins. When I saw the book and what it was about, I asked the front desk if I could take it -no one really used the library anyway. They gave it to me and two years later I read it.

At the time, it was the longest book I'd read -1200 pages. In addition to it's length, Orson tackles the often overlooked topic of Joseph Smith's multiple wives. Mormons who know about it, wont deny it, but a lot of Mormons just don't know Joseph practiced polygamy. This didn't cause me to question my faith, but it did get me to question my ideas of friendship, religion, and dating.

This book focuses on two women who join the faith and who eventually both marry Joseph Smith. Their relationships inspired me to focus more on the lasting content of a friendships and relationships -a childish lesson for an embarrassingly older child.

Once I confirmed that Joseph Smith did have multiple wives (which his first wife Emma didn't know about), I started to question why this information was withheld from me. I went through years of Sunday School and seminary (a Mormon financed bible study held daily during school hours). I guess this didn't necessarily rock my faith, but it did start the questioning.

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

I believe I read this book too late in life -similar to Catcher in the Rye, but I still appreciated it's message.

That being said, I believe the message may have been a little too blatent. I like coming to my own conclusions, but this message seemed to obvious/planned. 

The language in this book is a little different, fun, and in my opinion the best part of the book.

The Commissariat of Enlightenment by Ken Kalfus

You can judge a book by it's cover -it may not be accurate, but I was spot on with this one.

I picked this book up at a bookstore based on the cover and I was absolutely thrilled with my selection.

The writing style wasn't anything too great, but the story was fantastic. Multiple protagonists mixed up in the Russian revolution. None with any particularly strong role in the revolution, but each depicting important aspects of the time.

The part of this book that stuck with me is the embalming of Lenin. Sounds odd, but Lenin was an important symbol for the revolution and the true story behind the body is magical and bizarre.

Worth a read.

Drown & The Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

I was assigned "Drown" for a contemporary English Lit class in college.

I didn't fall in love with the book immediately, but I grew to love his style of writing (his plots are a bit lacking, in my opinion). The stories in this book are so raw yet he does not spoil them with details. I liked it enough that I bought "The Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" years later.

I liked "The Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" more than "Drown." I feel that Junot Diaz has a similar style in both books, but that the plot was better in "The Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao." I also liked the Gabriel García Márquez theme/magic in the book.

My year of meats by Ruth Ozeki

This book was assigned for a contemporary literature class.

I had just finished reading "Fast Food Nation," and was ready to read the same "book" again. It was not. At least this book had more of a narrative. The narrative made the book easier to read and remember, but because it had "fiction" written across the back cover it was less believable.

My favorite part of the book was when Ruth Ozeki introduced me to the sci-fi concept of aliens believing cows to be the rulers of the planet (mostly because of how we "serve them"). In the end this book is just a lot of propaganda -most of which I agree with, but propaganda just the same.

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy

I think my brother recommended this book to me first (after reading it for class and watching the movie). I was then further encouraged by Jessie Turner (a girl I had recently dated). This book brings back fond memories; summer, reading by the pool, and no responsibilities (although I have very few now also).

Although I liked this book, I don't remember much about it. All I remember thinking was "this is just like every mystery thriller movie I watched." It's likely that every mystery thriller movie I watched has been influenced by The Scarlet Pimpernel, but that doesn't mean much to me now.

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

During my first semester as an English Major I heard multiple references to the Invisible Man. So, I read it over the summer.

This novel is enjoyable as a straightforward story, but amazing when considering what is being said/represented. Ralph Ellison addresses current, past, and general social issues that sound bizarre and real. Obviously color is a major theme in the book. The most memorable scene in to me is when the protagonist is working at a paint factory, adding chemicals to make the white paint more "white."

I would put this book at the top of a short list I would recommend to everyone.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

This book was assigned to me while in college by Rob Carney (also the author of a book of poetry I read -but was not assigned to read). I think Rob liked the story behind the novel more than the novel itself i.e. the "ghost story."

I did enjoy this novel, but now I'm a Frankenstein snob. First things first; Frankenstein was the creator of the beast. Secondly; there was no "brain swaping." And lastly; the beast became a monster only after living among people.

The modern rendition of the story is childish and discourages people from taking the novel serious, but Mary Shelley has very serious themes in this book.

The Shining by Stephen King

This is the best Stephen King Novel I've read (but I have not read many). I picked this book up from a thrift store, lost it, and loaned it from the library to finish it. When I lost the thrift store book I also lost my favorite book mark. For some reason that upset me more than the "gruesome" images in the book.

Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King

Recommended by my Brother's friend -while pulling off his aviator glasses and stepping out of his rusty Cadillac. This book was recommended to me because my brother's friend really liked the college dorm scene where the guys play Hearts. I'll admit, it's a good image, perhaps one that most want their college experience to be like.

I enjoy reading Stephen King, but I don't consider him "one of the best." This book was fun to read, but like many King novels, the movie was better. The movie didn't cover the whole book and sadly it didn't cover my favorite parts (most of the magic realism).

One story within the book is a little played out. It's a story of a guy who goes to work only to dress down and panhandle. No one knows about his dirty little secret, not even his wife. Come on. We've all seen that 60 minute report.

The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon

Recommended by a coworker who was studying English Lit. at BYU.

Like any Thomas Pynchon book I've tried to read, this book was hard to access at first. But because this book was so short I plowed through and was rewarded in the end. I have no clear memories of the plot in the book, but I remember the ending was very theoretical.

Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger

This book was not recommended to me by anyone, but I read it because I enjoyed "Catcher in the Rye" so much. I picked up the book at the book store and couldn't put it down for the next two days.

"Bananafish" is the first, most accessible, and my favorite. I'm a sucker for a good O. Henry ending -and this might just be the best of the best.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

This book was recommended by a coworker at Macey's (in Utah it's a grocery store). I didn't look up to him, but he had good taste in books and I knew I should read this book anyway.

My biggest memory from this book is thinking "why is he still lugging around all his fencing equipment?" Also, the scene where he sneaks into his sisters bedroom at night is so vivid.

The best part about this book is that the protagonist is crazy but not cheaply portrayed. Salinger does not write "can you believe how crazy this guy is?" His thoughts seem logical to himself and it would seem the narrator believes in the character.

The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

This book was recommended to me by a girl in a institute class in college. I usually read while in class -I realize this is rude, and I probably should have just dropped the class, but I had a strange case of guilt. I thought this girl was cute and smart so when she recommended this book I went out a bought it the next day.

This book reminded me of Star Wars because the author used strange sentence syntax to make the characters sound foreign (like Yoda). Also, there is a scene where the protagonist's family eats grass! This image is stuck in my head any time I think of the Chinese country side.

In the end, I liked the book despite the somewhat happy ending because it wasn't really happy. Sure, the protagonist was successful in business, but his sons were ass holes and he lost his daughter.