# What is your "Favorite Book" of all time?



## Book Master (May 3, 2013)

This post should pull some interesting reads out of the blue, that few have heard of in quite a while. We're not talking about books you as an Author have written. This post is for those favorite and coveted books that we never can forget and will always be loved enough to read again!
I always loved "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe and one other one I just have to toss in the mix as either one is a beautiful work of literature. "Of Mice and Men," by John Steinbeck has to be one of the top books of all time also. There was also one last one, that I always loved to read and it was "To Kill a Mockingbird," by Harper Lee.
Out of those three top books that I love to read from, the number one pick for me has to be "Mockingbird," as I just never can get over how the author,Ms. Lee, put her story together. The characters she created along with the story were a masterpiece for the times. Scout and Boo, Atticus Finch and Tom Robinson..............amazing story!


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## CatherineM (Jan 9, 2013)

I think I'm divided between "To Kill a Mockingbird" and "Watership Down".


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## CatherineM (Jan 9, 2013)

Book Master said:


> This post should pull some interesting reads out of the blue, that few have heard of in quite a while. We're not talking about books you as an Author have written. This post is for those favorite and coveted books that we never can forget and will always be loved enough to read again!
> I always loved "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe and one other one I just have to toss in the mix as either one is a beautiful work of literature. "Of Mice and Men," by John Steinbeck has to be one of the top books of all time also. There was also one last one, that I always loved to read and it was "To Kill a Mockingbird," by Harper Lee.
> Out of those three top books that I love to read from, the number one pick for me has to be "Mockingbird," as I just never can get over how the author,Ms. Lee, put her story together. The characters she created along with the story were a masterpiece for the times. Scout and Boo, Atticus Finch and Tom Robinson..............amazing story!


This book is one of those rare ones that the movie did justice.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

There are more than a few "favorite book" threads in the Book Corner forum here, both all-time, by genre, etc.

But that won't stop me from repeating myself: The first "Amber" series by Roger Zelazny. (Sure, it's 5 books, but together they're roughly equal in page count to one GRRM tome, so I'm sticking by it.) It has pretty much everything I want in a novel: interesting characters who change believably over time, clever plot, beautiful prose efficiently rendered, and a narrative voice that resonates with me. Since I discovered it over 35 years ago, I would guesstimate I've read the series at least two dozen times (and may be getting close to being ready for another re-read).


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## Sandpiper (Oct 28, 2008)

Good Times, Bad Times by James Kirkwood.  The only book I've read more than once -- three or four times.  Been many years since the last time.  Now?


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## Dina (May 24, 2013)

Way too many favorites so I'll say that my go to book for entertainment, true love, religion, politics, self-help, and romance is E.M. Forster's A ROOM WITH A VIEW.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

NogDog said:


> There are more than a few "favorite book" threads in the Book Corner forum here, both all-time, by genre, etc.
> 
> But that won't stop me from repeating myself: The first "Amber" series by Roger Zelazny. (Sure, it's 5 books, but together they're roughly equal in page count to one GRRM tome, so I'm sticking by it.) It has pretty much everything I want in a novel: interesting characters who change believably over time, clever plot, beautiful prose efficiently rendered, and a narrative voice that resonates with me. Since I discovered it over 35 years ago, I would guesstimate I've read the series at least two dozen times (and may be getting close to being ready for another re-read).


Accordingly I've moved this thread to the Book Corner. . . but yeah repeat away. 

My favorites are the Amelia Peabody books by Elizabeth Peters and The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel by Diane Setterfield. But there are a lot of other authors I quite like. . . . absolutely no way to pick one 'favorite' of 'all time'.


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## EmparentingMom (Jun 20, 2011)

My all-time favorite book is definitely Ender's Game.


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## bordercollielady (Nov 21, 2008)

I loved Anna Karenina and Gone With The Wind... not sure if I could choose only one.


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## Ty Johnston (Jun 19, 2009)

All-time favorite book? I couldn't possibly answer such seriously. There are far too many great books out there, and each one is different and special in its own way. And my opinion will change from year to year, month to month, day to day.

But, if forced to it, today I will go with _Paradise Lost_ by John Milton.


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## Iolanthe (Mar 7, 2013)

My longtime favorite is Pride and Prejudice. Every time I've read it, at every age, its been a different book for me. I adore Gaudy Night, by Dorothy L. Sayers, as well.


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## VioletVal (Jul 26, 2010)

My favorite book is _Jane Eyre_ by Charlotte Brontë. It's one of the few books I've reread and the only one I've read at least a dozen times.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

My all-time favorite book is _Pride and Prejudice_. I have several others that are close seconds (among them are _'Salem's Lot, The Prince of Tides,_ and _Plum Island_), but _P and P_ has to take first place.


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## Glenn Wood (May 7, 2013)

EmparentingMom said:


> My all-time favorite book is definitely Ender's Game.


Snap - I loved that book! And I'm not a big scifi fan - Best non fiction title - Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer.


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## geniebeanie (Apr 23, 2009)

It is a tie between The Hobbit, and Lord Of The Rings. Of course anything by Tolkien is a treat.  Other Favorites are Nicholas And Alexandra by Robert Massie,Any book by Charles Dickens, And one oversized Paperback that I read around the late seventies and early eigties (cannot  remember the author or title) but it was about a sister of King Tutt,who did not want to marry her uncle.  She fell in love with the builder of the uncle's tomb,they ran away and had a daughter.  He died and she moved in with a widow who had a daughter the same age.  The little girls fell ill and the other woman's girl died.  Then the uncle's soldiers found the princess.  She left her living daughter safe and took the dead child,because she knew she would die.  It was a book that stayed with me but even though I have looked for years,I can not find it.  The daughter had a toy lion,her father made her that was found in the princess's tomb .  I usually don't read romance novels but this one was really good.  Other books that I love are The Scarlet Pimpernel, Les Miserables, To Kill A Mockenbird, In Cold Blood, War And Peace, The Robe, Camile, The Good Earth and Moby Dick.


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## Sherlock (Dec 17, 2008)

Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes.  It's the only book I've ever read 4 times and it never gets old for me.


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## Patricia (Dec 30, 2008)

_The Mirror_ by Marlys Millhiser. Unfortunately it's not available for Kindle.


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## Book Master (May 3, 2013)

Amazed at the Titles being mentioned on this thread. Some of them were brought before the big screen and became blockbuster movies.Some of them are in the top one-hundred books on GoodReads.........http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/6.Best_Books_of_the_20th_Century


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

Book Master said:


> Amazed at the Titles being mentioned on this thread. Some of them were brought before the big screen and became blockbuster movies.Some of them are in the top one-hundred books on GoodReads.........http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/6.Best_Books_of_the_20th_Century


I'm still surprised that no one has yet made a movie of the Amber books -- though I'm not sure I could bear seeing it butchered by the wrong director/producer. There was a pretty cool trailer made for it by some fans for a Russian SF/F convention for a hypothetical version. (However, I don't read Russian, so the only pretty solid guess I have for who "plays" whom is Sean Connery as Ganelon


Spoiler



/Oberon


.


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## Shayne Parkinson (Mar 19, 2010)

NogDog said:


> I'm still surprised that no one has yet made a movie of the Amber books -- though I'm not sure I could bear seeing it butchered by the wrong director/producer. There was a pretty cool trailer made for it by some fans for a Russian SF/F convention for a hypothetical version. (However, I don't read Russian, so the only pretty solid guess I have for who "plays" whom is Sean Connery as Ganelon
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> ...


I recognised Rufus Sewell and Timothy Dalton as well, and I *think* Viggo Mortensen. I thought I caught glimpses of Damian Lewis and Paul Bettany, too. Fun hypothetical cast!


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## Ergodic Mage (Jan 23, 2012)

_Lord of the Rings_, I have read it at least 25 times.


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## james mullen (May 21, 2013)

It's a cliche, but my favorite is _The Great Gatsby_. I can't say how many times I've read it...always find it enriching. My favorite author is John Steinbeck, but I can't single out any one book from him.


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## Teutonic0 (May 27, 2013)

I always feel so under-read when this question comes up, but ...

When I was in high school, my favorite book was probably _Lord of the Flies_, & I also like _The Dead_ short story by James Joyce in _Dubliners_.

But lately I've read _Jane Eyre_, really liked it, & especially _A Tale of Two Cities_, which is what I'll probably go with for now.


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## FranklinNoble (May 14, 2013)

_The Sleeping Dragon_, by the late, great Joel Rosenberg

I read it when I was about 13 years old. It was practically a life-changing experience for me; it was the first novel I'd read that I'd truly _loved_.


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## Nancy Beck (Jul 1, 2011)

Ty Johnston said:


> All-time favorite book? I couldn't possibly answer such seriously. There are far too many great books out there, and each one is different and special in its own way. And my opinion will change from year to year, month to month, day to day.


This.

But I guess for me it would have to be the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I read thru them every few years, and it's always a treat.


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## Natasha Holme (May 26, 2012)

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller.
I have a friend who has read this book *four* times.


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## Book Master (May 3, 2013)

Checking out an old book that I picked up for just a quarter yesterday at a yard-sale, believe it or not! 
It is one I never heard of before. "The Night of the Hunter," by Davis Grubb


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## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

There's just no way I could narrow it down to only one book. I'd have trouble narrowing it down to My 25 Favorite Books. Out of probably 8,000 books read in various genres over the years, I'd probably have to narrow it down to the top 25 in each.

Mike


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## Heffnerh (Feb 1, 2013)

I loved "The Great Book of Amber" by Roger Zelazny. Talk about an imagination! This has to be one of the most intricate fantasy worlds I've ever had the pleasure of reading, right up there with Tolkein's Middle Earth, JK Rowling's Harry Potter, Ender's Game, George RR Martin's Westeros, and Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time. It's complicated with the most original set of rules that take time to figure out. The book opens up with this simple scenario: a young charismatic man wakes up not remembering who he is, but that the people watching him want to kill him. It just goes off from there on a mind-blowing adventure, that includes everything from King Arthur legends to modern day technological explorations. Half the time you don't know what's going on, and you don't even care! Truly feels like an authentic world, and although it'd take me a while before I have the energy to read it again, I felt pure joy the entire time reading it.


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## elfarris (Jun 3, 2013)

To Kill a Mockingbird, Catcher in the Rye, Sound and Fury . . . wow! This is hard!


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## Book Master (May 3, 2013)

Oh, I have to love this thread because curious minds want to know! I never knew so many really read such great books until now.


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## MineBook (May 31, 2013)

Hard question... because there is future, where can get more and more favorite book.

But in my TOP 3 read book are these:

- Jack London "Martin Iden"

- Suzanne Collins "Mockingbird"

Sure, after time this book list will undoubtedly change.


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## Nancy Beck (Jul 1, 2011)

Book Master said:


> Checking out an old book that I picked up for just a quarter yesterday at a yard-sale, believe it or not!
> It is one I never heard of before. "The Night of the Hunter," by Davis Grubb


It was an excellent movie with Robert Mitchum as a psycho preacher after two kids who have some money hidden away somewhere. The movie was eerie and twisted and gave me nightmares, so I imagine the book must be just as dark and shudder inducing.


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## Book Master (May 3, 2013)

I'm two thirds of the way there on the "Hunter" book. I never saw the movie, I'll have to find it and watch it. The book is creepy. In fact, I was reading a little from it late last night and a thunderstorm was raging outside. I had most of the lights out and could see the lightening through the windows. Then the thunder would bang off the walls.

It was when I heard this bang against the side of the old wood frame house that scared me so bad. I think my heart skipped a beat because I was in the desk chair with a foot propped on the desk chilling while I was reading another chapter.

I was thinking, "what in the world could that have been?" I stood up from the chair to go peek outside the patio door window when another flash of lightening flickered throughout the room and hallway and the electricity went out.

Now I was spooked. 

Now check this out, I'm sitting there with just the desk lamp on and a little night light in the hallway. I'm reading this scary old story out of a book with a bad storm going on outside. I was already worried with the weather from what happen to the folks out in the mid-west. Then I hear this loud bang as though something ran into the side of the house and get out of the chair to see what it possibly might be and the power goes out.

Luckily, I always keep a long black flashlight under the desk like the cops carry. I reached for it, turning it on and walked to the patio shining it out the glass but couldn't see anything. I opened the sliding glass door and poked the flashlight out there in the weather flashing it around.

I never saw nothing until I shined it towards the ground and that's when I saw what ran into the house. There was a buck lying on the ground trying to get to its feet. I think it might have been trying to find some cover from the storm but apparently it never saw the house or something.

There was a broom on the porch so I grabbed it and poked at that buck to persuade it to stand to it's feet. I think when it ran into the house as hard as it did that it must have about knocked it out. It did get to it's feet once more and took off slowly in the rain.

Now that had me freaking out the rest of the night because I kept thinking to myself that if I never saw nothing but knew that something had hit the house, I would not be able to sleep. It was worth getting soaking wet to know what that was that slammed against the house.

Though then at that time, it was creepy and a little weird, I find myself laughing about it now. That poor ole buck ran into the house and about knocked itself out too!


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## Jenni Norris (Oct 10, 2012)

Like Nancy, for me it will always be "The Lord of the Rings". My original version, given to me by my parents for Christmas when I was about ten has now completely disintegrated, and the copy we now have on the shelf is a version my mother bought our son (he has never read it - how do avid readers produce children who don't read?!)

I also treasure my collection of A S Byatt and Margaret Atwood novels.


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## Saffron (May 22, 2013)

I have more than one, which is probably cheating, so I'll go for Pride and Prejudice, but then it could be my favourite Fantasy which is Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by the late Douglas Adams. It could be a toss up between Dirk Gently and Jurassic Park, because I love the late Michael Crichton's work. Of pure SF, I read Centuries by A A Attanasio, one of the most lyrical and atmospheric SF books I've ever read, but then there's Arthur C. Clarke's RAMA series...  I'd better stop now.


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## SFWriterNorm (Jun 3, 2013)

I am happy to report that "*A Christmas Carol*" is my favorite book of all time. I like it because it's a good _proper way to behave_ primer for people in general and management in particular.

Had you asked what was the _best book_ of all time, you would have a different set of answers, I'm sure.

Norm way down in Cowchip/AL


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

SFWriterNorm said:


> ...
> Had you asked what was the _best book_ of all time, you would have a different set of answers, I'm sure.
> ...


Yep: I picked my _favorite_ book (mainly on the empirical evidence of how many times I've read it), though it would probably not make my top-small-number list of _best_ books.


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## Tony Rabig (Oct 11, 2010)

Couldn't possibly narrow it down to one book -- the contenders change and shift their positions too often.  If you'd asked me that question when I was in high school, I'd have said (without a nanosecond's hesitation) Robert Heinlein's THE PUPPET MASTERS which is still for my money the best invasion-from-space novel ever (and if you only know the movie, you're missing a lot, although Sutherland was perfect casting...).

Later it would have been Zelazny's FOUR FOR TOMORROW.  Or something by Theodore Sturgeon.  Or Hemingway.  Or Fitzgerald.  Or Fritz Leiber.  Or Harlan Ellison.  Or William Goldman.  Or... you get the idea.

These days a steady contender for the top spot is Don Robertson's MYSTICAL UNION, a beautifully done (and too-long out-of-print) portrait of love and marriage, life and death, in a small Ohio town.  If I could write a book one ten-thousandth as good as this one, I'd die a happy man.


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## Tony Richards (Jul 6, 2011)

Like most people on this thread, I have no single favorite book (impossible!). But if I had to take, say, half a dozen to a desert isle, one of them would certainly be _The Once and Future King_ by T.H. White, an excellent retelling of the Arthurian legend and probably the most underrated fantasy novel of all time.


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## Biss (Jun 3, 2013)

1 _Gulliver's Travels_ by Swift for its timeless satire. 
2 _Pale Fire_ by Nabokov for its sheer sparkling brilliance. 
3 _Bedtime Bear _ by Ian Whybrow and Axel Scheffler as it's the only book that gets my four year old son into his bed.

PB

PS Number 3 may change


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## Mandy (Dec 27, 2009)

If I _had_ to pick a favorite book, it would probably be A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. I've always been an avid reader, but there was something about reading this book in the third grade that turned me into a compulsive reader. Since then, I've always juggled 3-4 books at one time (thank Heaven for the Kindle making my life so much easier with this habit!). So yeah, it's my favorite for sentimental reasons.


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## Robena (Jan 19, 2013)

Mine is definitely Pride and Prejudice. I have a leather bound edition and read it during the December holidays...almost every year. : )


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## Julia444 (Feb 24, 2011)

Dostoevsky's CRIME AND PUNISHMENT.  I read it in high school, college, grad school.  I've read it in several different translations, and in fact I just ordered a new and much-praised translation by Pevear and Volokhonsky, and I'm excited to see the different nuanced details of the story as translated by this duo.

If you haven't read it, you would undoubtedly enjoy it on some level, because the book is so many things: a mystery, a story of faith, a story of the loss of faith, a tale of friendship, a police procedural, a love story, an examination of a divided psyche, a cat-and-mouse thriller.

This is always a fun question.  

Julia


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## 31842 (Jan 11, 2011)

The Count of Monte Cristo is probably my favorite, favorite book, but you know that question, "What book would you bring with you on a desert isle?"  When I was moving across the country and only had space for two books in my Toyota Corolla, I brought Harry Potter and my Shakespeare compilation.  So, there you have it.  But my favorite favorite guilty pleasure book is Sunshine by Robin McKinley.  I can't tell you how many times I've read it.


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## KatieMP (May 3, 2013)

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice! That's why my daughter is named Elizabeth.


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## michaeljoseph (Apr 4, 2013)

There are too many really, but the books I have constantly gone back to over the years are To Kill A Mockingbird, For Whom The Bell Tolls, The Barrytown Trilogy (or any of the individual books) and Filth. Two literary classics and two extremely coarse but funny books. Variety is the spice of life, I suppose.


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## Joshua Dalzelle (Jun 12, 2013)

I've read most of the requisite classics...

But my all time favorite book that I can read over and again is *Armor by John Steakley*

http://www.amazon.com/Armor-John-Steakley/dp/0886773687/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1371524055&sr=8-1&keywords=armor+john+steakley


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## meh (Apr 18, 2013)

I know I'm boring because I'm adding my name to the list choosing "Lord of the Rings" as the best books ever. They're just that good. But if I had to choose a second place, I would probably choose Madeleine L'Engle's "Wrinkle In Time," just because it had a powerful impact on my as a child. 

Another book I would list among my favorites would be "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" by Ken Kesey.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

My favorite two books are _Cheaper by the dozen_ and _Belles on their toes_ both by Frank Gilbreth and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey. What was really fascinating the second time I read Cheaper and Belles was how many things we still use today.
Example 1 would be how we type. Example 2 would be an apartment kitchen.


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## JenniferHarlow (Jun 8, 2013)

I really have no idea why, but the book that's stuck with me since I read it was "Bet Me" by Jennifer Crusie. I don't really read romance but picked it up on a lark. I read it all in a night and was sobbing like a baby, then was devastated the next day. It's a freaking romantic comedy! The love story is just so unconventional and lovely. It warmed my cold, dead heart.


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## cheriereich (Feb 12, 2011)

Asking what a favorite book is like asking what is a person's favorite pet (I would say child, but I don't have any beyond the furry kind). Hehe! But the book I usually say is my all-time favorite is Oscar Wilde's _A Picture of Dorian Gray_. My favorite book read this year so far, however, is _The Rithmatist_ by Brandon Sanderson.


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## FMH (May 18, 2013)

Little Women.  It made me read her other books.  So lovely and heartfelt.


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## crashaddict (Mar 27, 2013)

The Black Company by Glen Cook! I seem to read that one and the rest of the series at least once a year. 

Favorites in the last year are definitely the WOOL/SHIFT series. Excited for Dust!


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## StephenRenneberg (Jun 19, 2013)

Dune, by Frank Herbert.  
I've read it at least 6 times!  A brilliant work, although the books that followed never got close to the quality of the original.


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## William L.K. (Aug 5, 2010)

After all these years, it is still 'The Hobbit'
Love that book!!!


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## DaveA2012 (Jan 8, 2012)

One of my many all times favorites is Replay.  I will read (or listen to the wonderful audiobook) this book once a year for the rest of my life.


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## Daniel Harvell (Jun 21, 2013)

Fahrenheit 451. Hands down. Ray Bradbury was a genius.


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## Mahree Moyle (Jun 19, 2013)

Oh, "Little Women," was a great book, I forgot about it. There are so many great books. That is a very hard question. "Tale of Two Cities" is on the top of my list.


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## Xdranreb40 (Jun 26, 2013)

hi there! it's awesome to be here. 

my favorite book of all time is Og Mandino's "The Twelfth Angel".


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## Book Master (May 3, 2013)

I haven't read anything the past week but plan to get out this afternoon to go to several places I visit to scramble through old books that are donated to see what I can find.
I usually can pick up some great old reads for pennies on the dollars and add them to my bookshelves in the home office. If I find something good to start reading, I plan to post it on here!


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## Patricia (Dec 30, 2008)

DaveA2012 said:


> One of my many all times favorites is Replay. I will read (or listen to the wonderful audiobook) this book once a year for the rest of my life.


"Replay" by Ken Grimwood is one of my favorite books, too. I bought it for the Kindle a while ago. Maybe it's time to read it again.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

Daniel Harvell said:


> Fahrenheit 451. Hands down. Ray Bradbury was a genius.


It's kind of weird: I _love_ Bradbury's writing and admire his creativity, but for some reason his books never totally work for me -- and I have no idea why. I'm not saying I dislike them, mind you, it's just that part of me thinks the parts add up to a 5-star rating, but the whole typically ends up feeling like a 4-star rating (still way better than most). I may have to re-read a few soon to see if that sense has changed, or if in my presumably wiser stage of life now I can figure out what's missing for me.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

NogDog said:


> It's kind of weird: I _love_ Bradbury's writing and admire his creativity, but for some reason his books never totally work for me -- and I have no idea why. I'm not saying I dislike them, mind you, it's just that part of me thinks the parts add up to a 5-star rating, but the whole typically ends up feeling like a 4-star rating (still way better than most). I may have to re-read a few soon to see if that sense has changed, or if in my presumably wiser stage of life now I can figure out what's missing for me.


So, you're saying the whole is actually _less than_ the sum of its parts. Interesting.

I've not read much of his. . . though of course I've heard of him.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> So, you're saying the whole is actually _less than_ the sum of its parts. Interesting.
> 
> I've not read much of his. . . though of course I've heard of him.


I'm guessing that maybe some of the underlying thematic elements and/or his general world view don't mesh with mine, perhaps? I think he and Zelazny had a lot in common in terms of writing prowess and such, but I almost always feel more...comfortable?...reading Zelazny. I'm pretty sure I downloaded _Something Wicked This Way Comes_ within the last year, so maybe it's time to move it to the top of the to-read list?


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## John A. A. Logan (Jan 25, 2012)

Always loved Ray Bradbury's work, especially Fahrenheit 451, and a short story, The Pedestrian. 
But Something Wicked this Way Comes did leave me feeling a little let down somehow, at the time I read it...long ago. 

Best book ever?
Can't decide between Knut Hamsun's HUNGER, or Mikhail Bulgakov's THE MASTER AND MARGARITA. 

No need to ever decide, of course.


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## andrew8654 (Jun 6, 2013)

My favorite book, hands down, _IT_ by Stephen King. The characters are SO real, SO vivid, you'd think they were your friends when you grew up. True, the monster in the book is horrible and otherworldly, but the stories of each character are so captivating, so page-turning, I had a hard time putting it down. The length was of no consequence to me. It was a truly inspiring read for me. Would recommend it to anyone.


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## sharna sammy (Jun 27, 2013)

Dont know when last someone ask me this question, but my favourite book I read was Memoirs of a Geisha. The book and movie was the most sad and most beautiful love story I ever saw/read.


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## Daniel Harvell (Jun 21, 2013)

It's hard for me to choose, but I'll go with Fahrenheit 451. It still haunts me to this day . . . and I first read it over 20 years ago. Martian Chronicles did a number on me too--Ray Bradbury is obviously a favorite of mine.


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## the quiet one (Aug 13, 2012)

Tough question, because thankfully there are so many fantastic books out there to choose from! If I had to pick one, I'd probably have to go with _Ender's Game_. Very excited to see that the movie is finally happening!


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

ajalbrinck said:


> Tough question, because thankfully there are so many fantastic books out there to choose from! If I had to pick one, I'd probably have to go with _Ender's Game_. Very excited to see that the movie is finally happening!


Currently only $1.99 on amazon for Kindle: Ender's Game (The Ender Quintet)

I'm guessing the success of _The Hunger Games_ both books and movie, has a lot to do with why they decided now was a good time to make a film.

(Clarification: this is definitely NOT my favorite book; I've never read it. Not sure I will, either, though I think I'll send it to my son as it's most definitely his thing.)


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## the quiet one (Aug 13, 2012)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I'm guessing the success of _The Hunger Games_ both books and movie, has a lot to do with why they decided now was a good time to make a film.


Nothing motivates quite like a potential 9 figure box office haul, does it?  I suspect advances in CGI and film technology have made a faithful adaptation a much higher probability in more recent years.


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## LectorsBooks (Apr 30, 2013)

Iolanthe said:


> My longtime favorite is Pride and Prejudice. Every time I've read it, at every age, its been a different book for me. I adore Gaudy Night, by Dorothy L. Sayers, as well.


I have so many favorites, but my all-time, top of the list favorite has got to be Gaudy Night. Although it's a mystery, it's about so much more - every single time I read it, I get something new out of it. Rereading it (which I do often) is like a long talk with a friend who knows you better than you know yourself.


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## NaoDar (Jul 2, 2013)

Definitely 'Whitney My Love' by Judith McNaught. I'm a total Romance junkie.


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## senserial (Jan 29, 2013)

That's a difficult question to answer  I have several favourite books, but one of the top favourite is _* "Lord of the rings". *_


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## lmroth12 (Nov 15, 2012)

I love *The Lord of the Rings * simply for its prose; Tolkien was a master storyteller. I love *Gone With the Wind * for its ability to transport you back to another era, and for the character analysis, growth, and interaction which was _way_ before its time. I love *Rebecca* for the eerie atmosphere and the dawning sense of horror of what people will do for who and what they love.

But I have to say that the "greatest" book I ever read is Homer's *The Iliad*. Unbelievably powerful with vivid imagery and poetry. You can literally get lost in it and become unaware of your surroundings. It is also the ultimate anti-war epic of war epics: in the author's eyes, nobody wins.

There are many other books I love, but these are my invariable re-reads that I get something new out of every time I read them.


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## LovelynBettison (Aug 12, 2012)

It's hard to nail one down for me. There are so many, but if I had to pick just one I'd have to say Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami.


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## P.C. (Peter) Anders (Feb 6, 2013)

Impossible to answer. Books had an impact on me at different times, and it's not fair for me to say one was bigger than the other. At least not my ten top books.

One of which would/might be: Humboldt's Gift by Saul Bellow.

Or:
Sophie's Choice, William Styron.


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