okay idk i feel like i might be a bit picky with books i read but im not sure. i only really enjoy books that are like in the first person idk if thats the right wording? like “i dont this today” type of writing.
i dont like romance books, but i dont like mind romance if the book is primarily something else, i just dont like full romance books. i like thrillers, i havent really read any horrors but i would, i like books that are kinda like just peoples lives i guess? like i loved “the kite runner”, “the perks of being a wallflower” and “the body”. im not super big on fantasy books, but like i dont mind unrealistic things? like i loved carrie but i didnt like “the hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy”. btw im 16 so mostly coming of age books are what im into so idk if that helps. im sorry this is v confusing!! but if anyone can help i will love u forever.
(also just realising now how much i use the word like…)
by angelwlu
8 Comments
If you liked The Body you’ll like IT even more. It has similar elements (a group of childhood friends having an adventure during their summer vacation) but pretty much every aspect of it (story, characters, setting, atmosphere) is more well done. It’s horror but is a lot more than that. It’s first, and foremost, about the bonds of friendship. It’s really long but is so good you won’t want it to end. It starts a little slow but once you reach chapter 4 (Ben Hanscom takes a fall) it really takes off. It’s also _far_ different from the films, and considerably better for it.
I just read this and really enjoyed Eleanor’s oddities and growth. “Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine” By Gail Honeyman
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
Among Others, by Jo Walton. Coming of age story told as a diary entries of a bookish Welsh teen, fleeing a family horror situation as she communes with the magic world.
Interesting. Whereas I hate first person so much because I’m not the one doing the described action. I can’t think of any off the top of my head, but just looks at people’s lives:
1. Old Man and the Sea – You’ve probably already read it or will read it in high school/college. But if not, it’s still a good enough read. Though I thought it was just okay in high school, whereas when I read it in my 30s, it hit home more.
2. One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich/Night – Also probably short stories you’ll read in school, but the sort where people struggle with adversity.
3. You mentioned two Stephen King novels. The Shining and Pet Semetary are terrifying and don’t have the same icky factor as It. It is otherwise good, but I don’t think as scary as the other two I mentioned. I’d recommend reading it at some point and skipping over that scene. Also, King’s short stories like the Jaunt or Shawshank Redemption are good. And there’s plenty of others like Jerusalem’s Lot that take the form of a diary. He’s one of my favorites, I’m currently listening to the Dark Tower series.
4. And here’s one out of left field – Early Autumn by Louis Bromfield. Won the Pulitzer nearly one hundred years ago. About a woman who married into a prominent family and her life. Actually a lot of Pulitzers are about people’s lives (for better and for worse). Like the Magnificent Ambersons or Now in November or The Store (which is either the most racist novel I’ve ever read or a brilliant satire) or even grand epics like Lonesome Dove (if you read one Western, make it that one). I don’t recommend what I’m doing, which is being part of a Pulitzer book club, because there’s plenty of duds. Not that we’re strict about finishing.
But it’s always surprising realizing that authors one hundred years ago experienced life that like us. Or could crack similar jokes.
Check out Daisy Jones and the Six
i’ll give you the sun by jandy nelson!!
They may be older, but check out Chicken Soup For The Teenage Soul. I’m in my 30s, and I still have mine (Teenage Soul: On Tough Stuff) bookmarked and on my shelf 15 years later. They’re short stories and poems, but they’re more realistic and can be more catered to a ‘clique’. There is Pet Lovers Soul, several Teenage Soul’s, Women’s Soul, Men’s Soul, etc.
Also, if you’ve seen The Princess Bride, I’d recommend As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride. It’s really good, I personally listened to the audiobook, and Cary Elwes reads it himself, and you have cameos from other cast and crew too.