Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro.
I remember reading once to never introduce a story by the protagonist’s name, but this book is definitely the exception:
My name is Cathy G…
It drew me in. Why was her name initialised? As you follow Cathy into the dystopian world Ishiguro introduces, he pulls you into such an unbelievable story. As much as I love each of the actor’s in the movie, they couldn’t replicate the feeling in the book. Even though this story is heart-breaking, the hope Cathy and the others feel throughout carries the book through and makes you think: what are we, if we don’t have hope?
The World According to Garp by John Irving
The detail in Irving’s characters and surroundings astound me. Few writers can get away with it, but he can. You dare not skip a paragraph because the littlest of details become hugely significant later. Dropped into prose so you foresee what will happen. Dread it even. I still squirm at the thought of the gear shift! I read that book at least fifteen years ago, yet Garp and his mother are still alive in my memory. There are so many more of his books I could recommend. Another day, maybe!
The Time Traveller’s wife by Audrey Niffenegger
The time travelling tale has been told over and over, but this delves into the other side of that – the person left behind. Henry’s time travel is a genetic disorder which means it can happen without warning and definitely without wishing for. My mind twisted trying to keep up with what was possible. You worry for Henry and fall in love with Clare. It is a beautiful love story that out spans even time.
11-22-63 by Stephen King
What can I say about Stephen King? The literary world may ignore his work, but nobody puts you in a room like him. He is a master conjurer. He takes you to the darkest, murkiest, goriest of places and makes them believable. Yet he is responsible for some of my favourite films: The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile. This one is another time travelling one. (I swear this is the last!) With a historic twist. The protagonist has a purpose; he goes back to assassinate Lee Harvey Oswald. There is a lovely feel to this story, and I closed the last page balling.
Middlesex by Jeffery Eugenides
Now, there is an understanding of intersex. There is an understanding that people can possess characteristics of both genders, but years ago when I read this book, it blew my mind. I never knew people may have to deal with these types of issues. A ground-breaking read. Woven through three generations, this story is a rich complex family drama. Not only do you share their secrets, you understand Cal’s anguish, and you root for his happiness. A brilliant opening line:
I was born twice: first, as a baby girl, on a remarkably smogless Detroit day in January of 1960; and then again, as a teenage boy, in an emergency room near Petoskey, Michigan, in August of 1974.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
This book is like being given a hug. Simple in its story, but so grounding and true. Reading this book made me come to a massive life decision. I had wrote The Initiates, but it was all on paper in random order. I got serious after reading this. I followed the signs, and they led me to write full time. Magical things open up with Santiago and The Alchemist. There is a reason it has sold 65 million copies.
Fortune’s Rocks by Anita Shreve
I cried when I heard Anita had passed away. That is the power of her words–through her stories I felt I knew her. It saddened me that there will never be another book by her that is new to me. Fortune’s Rock has a special place in my heart as it was the first novel by her I stumbled on. I received a bag of books from a relative and at first I almost dismissed it by its cover as I labelled it as romance (nothing wrong with that; I love a good love story, it’s just not my favourite genre.) A lot of time she writes about lost love or the complexities of love, but there is a melody to her words. There is a rhythm to her words that make them easy to read and impossible to put down. Here is the first line in Fortune’s Rocks:
In the time it takes for her to walk from the bathhouse at the sea wall of Fortune’s Rocks, where she has left her boots and has discreetly pulled off her stockings, to the waterline along which the sea continually licks the pink and silver sand, she learns about desire.
The fact the protagonist is a 15-year-old girl at the turn of the 19th century makes it even more compelling.
We need to talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver
A good book to me is one that places you in an unbelievable setting and makes you understand how it could happen, how it could be real. You know Kevin has done something horrific and you are taken on this journey through his mother’s eyes. Shriver builds up to the event like a stack of uneven bricks you know has to topple. As I read the scenes I looked through splayed fingers, I almost couldn’t bear to continue but needed to know simultaneously.
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
I have never cried so much over a story. Hosseini not only tugs at the heartstrings, but he tears them out. This story stays with me. I will read anything Hosseini writes. The backdrop of the book features the rise of the Taliban regime, but ultimately this is a story about two boys and the mistakes we make and how we try to atone for them.
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
Arthur Golden makes each scene come alive with such vivid detail that I was there kneeling beside Sayuri in those tea houses, wearing those beautiful kimonos, hoping she would grasp a fraction of love and happiness. Rightly a classic. It was one of those rare books that I could read again straight away. I miss his words.
So that wraps up my top ten favourite books. Only thing is, I’ve now remembered a dozen more that I can’t believe I didn’t include… maybe I’ll do another list, if it’s something you’d like. Let me know your favourites or recommendations. I love hearing of books or authors I don’t know about yet!
I have no affiliate links with any of these books. These images are not my own and have only been used for recognition of the title. If you’d like any of those books they can be bought at all good retailers or Amazon.com.