Five Friday Favourites is a weekly meme hosted by Amanda over at Book Badger. Every Friday she chooses a new topic – full list of topics can be found here.
This week’s topic is “Favourite Books I Was Recommended.”
1. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
I’d been told about this a few times and wasn’t impressed by the cover, so I put it off at first. But I eventually gave it a go – and LOVED it. (Review here.)
2. Travels by Michael Crichton
An ex recommended this to me in high school. I didn’t read it right away having already read Jurassic Park, which I thought was good for the type of book it was, but I wasn’t really interested in more of the same. What I discovered, however, was nothing like Jurassic Park. Instead, this is a skillful compilation of anecdotes and tales gleaned from Crichton’s rich and adventurous life. Also the book boasts my favourite first line ever: “It is not easy to cut through a human head with a hacksaw.” Don’t you just need to know? (Read my full review here.)
3. The Razorland Trilogy by Ann Aguirre
I can’t actually remember who recommended this to me, though I do know it was someone on Twitter. But whoever it was, I am eternally grateful! I loved it, and have now gotten two other people to read the trilogy too! (Reviews: Enclave, Outpost, Horde.)
4. Douglas Coupland’s books
My husband recommended these to me years ago, and I read several of them one after the other. They’re brilliant, and even better because Coupland is from the town I live in, so the settings and situations are always hilariously and eerily familiar.
5. The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
I think my mother gave me this years ago – but since I’ve read a few of her books and love her style and the characters she creates. None, however, have I loved quite as much as this one.
BONUS: Hearts and Minds by Amanda Craig
I haven’t finished this yet, hence not including it in the “real” list, but I’m reading it now and loving it. It was recommended to me by family friends about a month ago, in response to my search for great books set in England. I’m about 2/3 of the way through it and having a hard time putting it down. The writing is brilliant and it tackles the issue of illegal immigration from various perspectives and tells the heartbreaking stories of some of London’s “invisible” citizens.
What are your favourite books that were recommended to you? Have you read any of these? //<![CDATA[ var sc_project=10144299; var sc_invisible=1; var sc_security="82f610c9"; var scJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://secure." : "http://www."); document.write("”); //]]>
The first line in that “Travels” book definitely makes me want to read it!!
The first line in that “Travels” book definitely makes me want to read it!!