(Part 2) Best family saga fiction books according to redditors
We found 1,362 Reddit comments discussing the best family saga fiction books. We ranked the 470 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
That may be the case in southern states, but the word had a different meaning here in Florida (which is actually less "southern" than the states that border it to the north), a cracker was actually someone who cracked a whip at spanish cows (basically a cowboy) to keep them in the herd while they were grazing in open fields. The term originated back in the 1800s, especially when cow drivers used whips to lead millions of cattle up to the front lines of the Civil War in the 1860s.
A Florida Cracker is nothing more than a cowboy, and there were plenty of black crackers amongst their numbers.
If you'd like to read an amazing historical fiction novel about a Florida Cracker family that will forever change the way you look at Florida, I suggest picking up the book A Land Remembered, by Patrick D Smith. It's so good I give copies of this novel to friends as gifts every year.
Yes, cracker has been turned into a derogatory name, but let's still get our facts straight about the origins of the word as it's used here in Florida. There are still a lot of proud Florida Crackers carrying on the tradition of raising cattle.
SOURCE
The Wind Through the Keyhole, which comes out in April, takes place shortly after [The Gunslinger](/s "Roland's matricide").
Edit - spoiler'd.
I would first recommend Shogun by James Clavell. It's an epic story with a great plot. I don't believe it's too accurate, but it's a good read.
If you want to continue on with historical Japanese literature you can't go wrong with Musashi or Taiko both by Eiji Yoshikawa.
Moving on to more western stuff, I recommend the many James Michener books, but they can be boring at times. My favorite of his is Hawaii.
I'd also recommend Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield about the Battle of Thermopylae.
The following are some of my favorite books that I could think of off the top of my head. Hopefully you dig the list.
I've just read the latest chapter of Lizard Person posted here and now I'm craving more stories about telepathy.
Telepathy is a bit of a broad and vague request. So to specify, I'm asking for stories where the ability to enter another person's mind is a major aspect of the story and I'm very interested in stories where a character spends time in another person's mind (like a mindscape from Naruto).
Heresy - Something goes wrong with Naruto's Kage Bushin, and Sakura and Ino need to enter his mind to help him wake up.
Patternist Series - Doro is a manipulative immortal who lives by stealing the bodies of others. He uses his immortality to breed a race of telepaths and this is the story of an Earth ruled by a master caste of telepaths.
Oh, nothing much. :)
You know what? I'm sure everyone's going to share any of the actual books on awakening or enlightenment or whatever (although I don't see The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are by Alan Watts listed yet, and that was instrumental for getting the ball rolling for me before I even knew there was a ball to roll - I still pick it up every now and again and read passages).
But anyway, in my early 20's, I was REALLY into Tom Robbins, and I realize now that those books connected me with a truth I didn't yet know how to find. He's a freakin' genius. His words still, to this day, make me giddy.
So if you're ever interested in wild, hilarious, raucous fiction that gropes the awakened viewpoint like a drunk in a whorehouse, I recommend these books:
Skinny Legs and All
Jitterbug Perfume
Still Life With Woodpecker
He has more, and they're all equally is good in many ways - those three just happen to be my favorite.
I looked up a few sample pages of this book on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Story-Edgar-Sawtelle-Novel-P-S/dp/0061374237) - looks like it treats sign language as speech, only it doesn't use quotation marks:
>Edgar looked at the old man lying there, so small and frail. The same man who'd summoned the strength to lift him out of the snow by the back of his shirt.
>
>He wasn't so innocent. I heard them talking.
>
>His mother put her face in her hands. "How are we going to tell Glen?" she said. "I don't understand what's happened with you. We're going to have to . . . have to . . ."
>
>She looked at him. "Wait," she said. "I need to think for a minute. Page fell down the stairs."
>
>She dropped into sign. You need to go.
>
>I'm not going anywhere.
>
>Yes, you are. I want you to run, get out into the field. Find a place to hide until tomorrow.
>
>Why?
>
>Just go!
I like this approach. It makes the sign language easy to understand, but at the same time it makes it something alien, something unusual. Also, it looks like the book weaves in parallels with Kipling's The Jungle Book.
I've added this book to my list. Thank you for the recommendation!
Here's the link for people who can't read the thumbnail that OP posted: https://www.amazon.com/Land-Remembered-Patrick-D-Smith/dp/1561641162
Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang. Short fiction collection.
Ilium by Dan Simmons.
Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand by Samuel Delany.
The Islanders by Christopher Priest.
Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson.
On My Way to Paradise by David Farland.
Can't find the Blizz pro link I saw before that pointed me there, but here are the books on Amazon:
Rise of the Horde
The Last Guardian
Lord of the Clans
Right now I'm reading Chris Voss's Never Split the Difference. It has some amazing negotiating tips, and I've had some luck already. The downside is that a lot of those tips come down to "learn to control your emotions", which I struggle with.
Since you asked for fiction, my recent favorite is Yaa Gyasi's incredible Homegoing: A Novel.
I'm a big fan of Tom Robbins' earlier books – Skinny Legs and All and Jitterbug Perfume are my favourites.
If you want to cry your eyes out (or maybe that's just me – it was at a weird time and I ended up sobbing on a park bench in San Francisco), there's Not Wanted on the Voyage by Timothy Findley.
Edited to add Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible and Pigs in Heaven.
Atonement by Ian McEwan gutted me.
Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfus (fantasy-ish)
[The Shadow of the Wind] (http://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Wind-Carlos-Ruiz-Zaf%C3%B3n/dp/0143034901/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374006329&sr=1-1&keywords=shadow+of+the+wind) by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (hard to describe, but really engaging)
Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson (cool historical fiction)
I just made a video about this 2 weeks ago. I included a lots of fiction because I think that's a good entry to get people thinking about deeper issues. My list has Pinker's Language Instinct, of course, and also David Ostler's Empires of the Word for popular nonfiction. That one is historical linguistics.
For fiction, I had Shaw's Pygmalion, C.S. Lewis's Out of the Silent Planet (linguist get kidnapped and taken to Mars, finds universal language. Strong Christian overtones.), and Maria Doria Russell's The Sparrow (Jesuits send an expedition to alien planet, linguistic, sociological, religious problems ensue.).
If you're up for a long read, I'd bet you'll like The Pillars of the Earth. It's not fantasy, but it's set in 1100s England and focuses hugely on character relationships, plus an epically complex but understandable plot. It has a sequel, but you can read either alone since they're set two centuries apart.
Ken Follet has his "Century Trilogy." I believe it goes from pre-WW1 to Cold War. The first book, Fall of Giants, has a Russian character that experiences WW1 and the Revolution.
I've got just the book for you, it's called A Land Remembered .
https://www.amazon.com/Land-Remembered-Patrick-D-Smith/dp/1561641162/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484585335&sr=8-1&keywords=a+land+remembered
http://www.amazon.com/Hawaii-James-A-Michener/dp/0375760377/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1394583795&sr=8-1&keywords=james+michener
Get your copies, folks!
Hawai'i, by James Michner.
It's pretty well researched. Gives you an idea of centuries of history from multiple characters, up to statehood.
Mango Hill, by Diana Hansen Young.
Children's books about local tales. Often the best place to start learning about a culture.
Reefsong, by Carol Severance.
Polynesian science fiction, which I've found to be an exceedingly rare thing.
look into these maybe...
Milan Kundera's The Unbearable Lightness of Being
http://www.amazon.com/Unbearable-Lightness-Being-Novel/dp/0061148520/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1370636064&sr=1-1&keywords=milan+Kundera
Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children and his short story The Prophet's Hair
http://www.amazon.com/Midnights-Children-Novel-Salman-Rushdie/dp/0812976533/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1370636219&sr=1-1&keywords=salman+rushdie
There really are a lot of overlaps with Scalzi's style, that's for sure.
I've read some Robinson but never 2312, I'll have to check that one out. Thanks!
EDIT: For anyone that sees this nowish - 2312 is on sale today for 3 bucks.
https://smile.amazon.com/2312-Kim-Stanley-Robinson-ebook/dp/B004RD8544?_encoding=UTF8&%2AVersion%2A=1&%2Aentries%2A=0
Pillars of the Earth
My favorite book of all time and one of the biggest reasons I got my BA in Ancient and Medieval History and Latin.
I've never seen mention of the story of edgar sawtelle here. Two big thumbs up.
I just finished Confessions of a Long Distance Sailor, and it was interesting. When I told my father I wanted to sail around the world, he recommended Once Is Enough. I'm half way through We The Drowned and Two Years Before the Mast at the moment and enjoying both. Master and Commander is next on my list. Chapman Piloting and Seamanship is always good for leafing through and studying up on technical skills.
Nebula award winning Slow River by Nicola Griffith is beautiful.
It might be The Long Ships, originally written by Frans G. Bengstsson.
>Frans Gunnar Bengtsson’s The Long Ships resurrects the fantastic world of the tenth century AD when the Vikings roamed and rampaged from the northern fastnesses of Scandinavia down to the Mediterranean. Bengtsson’s hero, Red Orm—canny, courageous, and above all lucky—is only a boy when he is abducted from his Danish home by the Vikings and made to take this place at the oars of their dragon-prowed ships. Orm is then captured by the Moors in Spain, where he is initiated into the pleasures of the senses and fights for the Caliph of Cordova. Escaping from captivity, Orm washes up in Ireland, where he marvels at those epicene creatures, the Christian monks, and from which he then moves on to play an ever more important part in the intrigues of the various Scandinavian kings and clans and dependencies. Eventually, Orm contributes to the Viking defeat of the army of the king of England and returns home an off-the-cuff Christian and a very rich man, though back on his native turf new trials and tribulations will test his cunning and determination. Packed with pitched battles and blood feuds and told throughout with wit and high spirits, Bengtsson’s book is a splendid adventure that features one of the most unexpectedly winning heroes in modern fiction.
# | Book | Links
---|----|----
1 | Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson | (Powells) (Amazon)
2 | Contact by Carl Sagan | (Powells) (Amazon)
3 | Bellwether by Connie Willis | (Powells) (Amazon)
4 | 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson | (Powells) (Amazon)
5 | The Dispossessed, Ursula K. Le Guin | (Powells) (Amazon)
6 | The Lifecycle of Software Objects by Ted Chiang | (Free)
7 | The Practice Effect by David Brin | (Powells) (Amazon)
8 | A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan | (Powells) (Amazon)
9 | The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell | (Powells) (Amazon)
10 | As She Climbed Across The Table by Jonathan Lethem | (Powells) (Amazon)
Somewhat similar in tone and absurdity of Vonnegut is Tom Robbins, perhaps start with Jitterbug Perfume.
For Brautigan, I'd recommend perhaps Charles Bukowski, try Factotum,or Hunter S. Thompson (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a good place to start).
Great! I'm happy you like the book suggestion; if you are a book person you should love it. Just don't hate me when you get to the... porridge part. Only the first book really takes place in Sweden (in the others they've crossed into America), so from a strict preparation perspective you would only need to read that. But if you should happen to like the series and read it all, then know that it has been made into both a movie and a musical.
Since you seem interested in this kind of stuff, here's a few more readings you could do:
Do come back and talk to us when you know where the wedding is.
And thanks for the US advice offer, though we've pretty much done our year of research on that. About half finished reading this by now. =)
The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber is a great read. It is set in Notting Hill at the turn of the Century. You can smell the rain and filth.
William Boyd is a wonderful writer. All of his books are well researched.
The Renegaration Trilogy by Pat Barker
[Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks]
(http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6259.Birdsong). Heartbreaking.
Atonement by Ian McEwan
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows
cracks knuckles I have no idea if these have audiobooks. I'm sorry if they don't. Most of these are only three books long or shorter, sorry.
Sandman Slim and the sequel. It wasn't my favorite book, BUT it sounds a lot like what you're looking for. And it was fun.
China Mieville's Bas-Lag series (Perdido Street Station, The Scar and Iron Council. Three (~500 pg) books long, fantastic world building, twisty plots and great characters.
The Baroque Cycle, Neal Stephenson (Quicksilver, The Confusion and The Confusion of the World. Three books long, but you could kill a small animal by dropping one of those books on it. These are good, but his stand-alones are better (Snow Crash and Diamond Age for sure).
Most of Stephen King's stuff has the kind of sprawl you're looking for.
Dune, at least until God Emperor (#4).
Honestly, I think if you liked John Grisham, you'll like The Girl with the
Dragon Tattoo books. I think I'm making that leap based on the last book in the trilogy. They're definitely entertaining.
The Pillars of the Earth was absolutely freaking amazing...
The sequal was okay too but not as good... They turned it into a miniseries... I wasn't impressed.
A Walk in the Woods is about my home hiking trail: the Appalachian Trail. This trail was basically in our backyard and I would hike there often before I went off to school in Idaho. We're now settled in Texas so to go hiking we'll need to trek a bit further.
A great book I read recently was Hawaii and it was marvelous. Its no wonder Michener was awarded the Pulitzer for his work.
For kids, I would recommend The Eleventh Hour. Its a mystery about a birthday party and a delicious meal. Very fun. Young kids will really like the pictures and the older kids will like trying to solve the mystery.
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet.
I think it's completely different from other things on the list, but thought I'd throw it in. It is a well researched historical fiction based in the 12th century, and gives a lot of really interesting information about building technologies and strategies used around that time. So what you learned won't be applicable to modern day building, but it makes going to see really old churches fascinating. Furthermore, it discusses how politics and whatnot can affect how projects are completed, where funding comes from.
And the non-building related plots are also gripping....
I would say read Rise of the Horde then Lord of the Clans then Day of the Dragon then the War of the Ancients trilogy. Those are the best of the books in my opinion
Read "The Sparrow", its an... interesting first contact story.
https://www.amazon.com/Sparrow-Novel-Mary-Doria-Russell-ebook/dp/B000SEIFGO
Midnight's Children
We the Drowned (and it's actually the book I'd like if I win).
I suppose I'd call it a Multi-Generational Historical Fiction (I made that up?). It follows a family line (and some other characters) from a small port city named Marstal in Denmark. The author followed the history of the city, but created his own characters around events and stories he'd heard growing up.
This was a case of judging a book by it's cover for me. I was at the library and just putzing around, and for some reason I was really drawn to this book. It is a long read at 668 pages, but I was hooked from the first page and cried on the last. There is a lull in the middle, sure, but since there are so many characters and stories it picks up again pretty quick. It really has everything- stories of love and longing, stories of adventure, of disappointments. It really makes you feel like you are right there at the port or on the sea with the characters. Very deep and moving at times.
It also opened me up to other books of this type. Another book I'd recommend is New York: The Novel, which follows fictional characters through the founding of the city of New York. That is a really, really good one too, that follows multiple generations of families within the newly created city.
I'm not much of a reader, but when I do read I go hard. These are big books, but they are very, very good if you love following family lines and watching the history of a place grow.
•I like Choke a lot
•Slaughterhouse Five. Hands down. Favorite of all time.
•Its called We, The Drowned.
Edit: Fixed the link
If you're interested in this type of topic, I recommend the book Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. It is a historical novel placed in the 1200's and follows three generations through the construction of a cathedral.
Other books we discussed were books that Redditors had recently read or were planning to read:
The Snow Child
Purple Hibiscus
For We Are Many and All These Worlds Volumes 2 and 3 of the Bobiverse (and it wasn't me who mentioned it, smartass).
October
Silver Sparrow
Hidden Figures
The Glass Castle: A Memoir
And Danger-Moose mentioned The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks, and he had completed The Gone-Away World, which a lot of us were not able to do.
Jbcoll04 suggested Homegoing: A Novel by Yaa Gyasi a couple of posts ago, and I don't want to lose track of that, because both me and darr76 want to read that at some point.
So, be thinking about our next choice. I'm definitely going to read October, Homegoing, and I'll try Volume 2 of the Bobboverse.
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi takes place in Ghana. It starts in the 1700s, and each chapter of the novel is narrated from the perspective of a descendant of either Effia (who marries at British colonizer) or Esi (who is sold into slavery), one representative for each generation, and the two bloodlines alternate up to the present day.
Octavia Butler - Patternist series is pretty close and a good series!
The author's name isn't on the spine. Edgar must be the title character because the book's title is The Story of Edgar Sawtelle: A Novel, by David Wroblewski.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Story-Edgar-Sawtelle-Novel/dp/0061374237/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345000862&sr=8-1&keywords=edgar+sawtelle
You might also be interested in reading Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle.
Shantaram. Rich, marvelous book.
Also Auntie Mame. FYI the movie with Rosalind Russell may change your life. At the very least it could become your favorite movie ever.
The books by Hornby that everyone mentions are good.
Motherless Brooklyn is really good. So is Ghostwritten by David Mitchell. Not so much that they're happy, but that they're engrossing. And they're not, like, Atonement.
Oh! Duh! Happiest book ever maybe: A Confederacy of Dunces. The story behind its publication is tragic, but the book, pretty much everyone who's read it says, is the funniest ever.
Catch-22 also is really, really good. And funny! If you're into irony anyway.
1.Maus by Art Spiegelman. I know it is a graphic novel, but it is amazing.
2. The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King, Including the newest one The Wind Through The Keyhole
"Cryptonomicon" by Neal Stephenson. A fantastic book; one of those that you hate when it ends!
You may also enjoy "the Baroque Cycle" by the same author. It does not go back and forth to modern times (Crypt. does), but is another great story about science, the beginnings of physics, and the start of money, among other things
Yup, this one: http://www.amazon.com/Ships-Review-Books-Classics-ebook/dp/B003WUYOP2/
They just announced it's being made into a film: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cannes-a-better-world-girl-526159
Here's an excellent lecture series I listened to recently: http://www.thegreatcourses.com/tgc/courses/course_detail.aspx?cid=3910
(Don't be put off by the price. Teaching Company stuff goes on sale all the time, usually for around 75% off.)
The Book of Strange New Things sounds a lot like The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. Sentient life is found on another planet and while everyone is freaking out over what to do about it the Jesuits secretly send a team to go up and meet/study them. The story is told from memory by the only known survivor of the team. The sequel, Children of God, is pretty much the same story from the POV of the aliens.
Among Others by Jo Walton
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
I think the Dark Tower series is a must read. It starts off with The Gunslinger and continues. I think it is the best series I have ever read.
If you want to look other than fantasy/sci-fi...
Lamb by Christopher Moore is very funny, makes you think, and breaks your heart. I love it.
A Prayer for Owen Meany is one of my favorite books ever written. Everyone that I have given this book to has read it and bought it for someone else to read.
Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins is Tom Robbins at his best. It's also one of the most polarizing books I have suggested to friends and people online. You will either love it and buy the rest of Tom Robbins's books or you will hate it and never listen to me again. I hope it's the first reaction.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is an amazing book about life in high school. I haven't seen the movie yet because I enjoy this book so much that I don't want to get pissed off at a director ruining one of my favorite books.
Good Omens by Pratchett/Gaiman is certainly a pretty rockin book.
Hopefully this helps you find some new authors to enjoy!
Edited for: I will never forgive myself if I don't put in what I consider one of the best fantasy coming of age stories ever. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss is the first of the series. Read it. Do it!
Also...
Lilith's Brood: The Complete Xenogenesis Trilogy (The Xenogenesis Trilogy)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008HALOMI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_d_asin_title_o00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Seed to Harvest: The Complete Patternist Series (The Patternist Series)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008HALOVO/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i4
Ken Follett writes long books and I think he has a few different series. https://www.amazon.com/Fall-Giants-Century-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B0052RDHTM?ie=UTF8&qid=1468979904&ref_=la_B000APHCPQ_1_1&s=books&sr=1-1#nav-subnav
Ender's Game is seriously so much better than the movie. It's amazing what people will do to ensure the safety of the human race, without fully seeing the whole picture.
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, by David Wroblewski. I was hesitant at first, always seeing it, but never checking it out at the library. It wound up being one of my favorite books to read, it was that good. Story of a mute boy raised on a farm breeding dogs. He can sign, and has pretty good life, as far as things go, until his father dies. He tries to prove his uncle had a hand in the death, but the plan backfires. Hated the ending - not because it was bad, but it was so damn sad.
If you're willing to poke at a series, try Scott Lynch's Gentlemen Bastards series, the first book is The Lies of Locke Lamora. The series centers around Locke and his shenanigans as a Gentleman Bastard - a notorious gang of thieves. They pull off some pretty intense schemes, some with great success, some with spectacular failures. It's a great series, and another set of favorites that I recommend to everyone that'd ask.
Congratulations on the new job, hope it works out well for you! Also, I love that you had such a great turn out for your book drive. My kids know how important it is to read - I actually push my daughter to read a little bit above her grade level. She keeps a reading log for homework, so her teachers are pretty impressed. She did amazingly well on her latest state reading/math test, and her teacher believes it's because of all the reading she does. If you do another drive, I hope it goes just as well.
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. It put me into such a bad/depressed mood I just couldn't get through it. Fantastic book though.
I liked Slow River quite a bit. I'd call it lightly dystopic science fiction. There is relatively explicit sexual content, but no more than you would see in a book with relatively explicit heterosexual content.
One book - Michner's Hawaii
edit: and The Source
666 Reviews
Coincidence? I think not
Memnoch the Devil by Anne Rice. Interesting and somewhat controversial. Go for it.
http://www.amazon.com/Memnoch-Devil-Vampire-Chronicles-Anne/dp/0345409671
The Long Ships (aka Red Orm)!
http://www.amazon.com/Long-Ships-Saga-Viking-Age-ebook/dp/B003WUYOP2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1394084543&sr=8-1&keywords=the+long+ships
I recommend Dune, as it's similar to ASOIAF as far as political machinations go to some degree, also epic story lines.
You might also like Hyperion by Dan Simmons, I read the first two books, they're kind of freaky.
I also liked Eon by Greg Bear, which is interesting as it shows a look at a future where a big asteroid appears above earth and it has an object on it that the joint Russian/U.S spaceforce goes to investigate, if you're interested in futuristic politics as evidenced by your love for the Bean series, then I'd say this one is for you. Although it's not quite similar to that in the blatancy of its political machinations, it does show an interesting look at this culture and that is in the background.
He also did a couple of good books like Darwins Radio and Darwins Children. I actually started out with Darwin's Children even though it's a sequel. I really liked it. Think Escape to witch mountain.
Earth by David Brin : Experiments with a black hole on the earth's surface goes horribly wrong, near future society where privacy has become a thing of the past
If you're looking for a good post-apocalyptic romp I'd suggest Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler. She also did a great series called the Patternist series. This covers several generations. She also did something widely praised called the Kindred though I have yet to read it. Also Lilith's Brood was cool.
You might also like the Stardoc novels. It's a little bit smaller scale in terms of focus but follow large events.
Also one of my favorite all time books is Mainline. It's about an assassin who can slip through parralel time streams to make a hit. It's pretty awesome.
Ok good luck!
And read Lost World Jurassic Park.
Hi! yeah I've been reading this really good book called We The Drowned by Carsten Jensen. I'd definitely recommend it. It's all about these different generations of sailors in this small town in Denmark. It's one of my favourite books now. what about you?
here's the book if you're interested. http://www.amazon.com/We-Drowned-Carsten-Jensen/dp/054773736X
Sacred Games by Vikram Chandra is a wonderful, sweeping epic set in modern day India, but with flashbacks to the sixties, seventies and even partition (in 1948). Taking in organized crime, Bollywood, nuclear terrorism, political and religious fundamentalism, social commentary and more. I loved it.
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth is a huge (huge!) modern classic that beautifully encapsulates the social mores of modern India as it tracks the trials and tribulations of four families and the search for a suitable bride for the heroine. Simply wonderful. Did I mention it was a big book?
A Case of Exploding Mangoes is a fictional account (one hopes!) of the assassination of President Zhia of Pakistan. I know you asked about India, but in many many ways both India and Pakistan are inextricably linked.
Sea of Poppies is the first of a projected trilogy set in 19th century India. Full of wonderfully evocative language.
Many have already recommended Midnight's Children by Rushdie, perhaps the most important work of Anglo-Indian literature so far. Please also consider his Satanic Verses. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy is a lovely short novel.
There are many many more.
Good luck!
Check out Ann Rice's Memnoch the Devil.
El ultimo libro de Stephen king que sale el 22/4, sale 2 dolares menos la version digital que el libro tapa dura:
http://www.amazon.com/Wind-Through-Keyhole-Tower-Novel/dp/1451658907/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331141108&sr=8-1
Yeah I think their name sucks. But obvious Central is taken, West is taken (school somewhere in the Panhandle), they should have taken Gulf Coast when the had the chance, but now that's taken, and just like that all of the geographical possibilities are gone. There's a University of Tampa too, I think. And I guess "Bulls" make sense, kind of. You can see the connection if you've read this incredible book.
If you'd like a similar setting about the early industrial revolution, enlightenment and political intrigue there is Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle https://www.amazon.com/Quicksilver-Baroque-Cycle-No-1/dp/0060833165
Slow River is an interesting story of a woman finding independence from her family: http://www.amazon.com/Slow-River-Nicola-Griffith/dp/0345395379
I recently discovered Tanya Huff. If you enjoy vampires, try her Blood Books, about Vicki Nelson, a private eye who gets turned. http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Books-Vol-Price-Trail/dp/0756403871
And the short stories in Stealing Magic are wonderful, they star Terazin, a thief, and Magdalene, the world's most powerful wizard. http://www.amazon.com/Stealing-Magic-Tanya-Huff/dp/1894063341
I hesitate to recommend them, as I've decided S. M. Stirling is a decidedly 2nd rate writer, but you might get some enjoyment out of his Dies the Fire trilogy (I did, despite the cliches and melodrama and Mary Sueism). One of the two main characters is Juniper Mackenzie, a busker, Wiccan priestess, and single mother who, when all technology suddenly stops working, founds a new community based on her Scottish heritage. http://www.amazon.com/Dies-Fire-Change-S-M-Stirling/dp/0451460413
Linda Nagata's 'Memory' is a bit of a coming of age story for a young woman, and her investigation into what is wrong with her planet. http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Linda-Nagata/dp/0765309009/
Oh, and you must surely already have read Clan of the Cave Bear and Mists of Avalon
Amazon links for reference, but try your local library.
All sound great, though Gone-Away World gets my vote. I would also throw out this one, sounds really interesting (from the Stanford incoming freshman reading list description at least): Homegoing: A Novel by Yaa Gyasi
for novels
Mary Doria Russell - The Sparrow
Gregory Maguire - Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister
Bram Stoker - Dracula (was not at all what I was expecting; its formatted as a succession of letters, diaries, and I think news articles written from the POV of the various characters)
Old books, out of print as oyñthers have mentioned. Blizzard is re-editing though:
https://www.amazon.com/Warcraft-Lord-Clans-Blizzard-Legends/dp/0989700119?keywords=lord+of+the+clans&qid=1537540428&sr=8-1&ref=mp_s_a_1_1
Two ain't so bad:
Nail Ploish
The Reality Dysfunction under ann_arbor_books
Yep, her book Memnoch the Devil is the one.
I guess my vitriol for ebook publishers has caused me to exaggerate the truth a bit. You're right in that it doesn't happen very often. The worst case seems to be with Follet:
http://www.amazon.com/Fall-Giants-Century-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B0052RDHTM/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1346095520&sr=8-4&keywords=ken+follet
Mass Market paperback is 9.99 while the ebook is $19.
My understanding is that Penguin publishing does this with most of their books. They are also the only major publisher that has yet to settle with the DOJ.
Edit: Another example, only because I was considering buying this the other day:
http://www.amazon.com/Lonesome-Dove-Novel-Larry-McMurtry/dp/1439195269/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1346095706&sr=8-2&keywords=lonesome+dove
Ebook costs more than the paperback.
Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle
The book opens with the main character chatting it up with a ten year old Benjamin Franklin. I think you know how that will go.
We replied in pm, but let me post my reply here so others can know:
Also: https://www.amazon.com/Sparrow-Novel-Mary-Doria-Russell-ebook/dp/B000SEIFGO/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1483037984&sr=1-1&keywords=the+sparrow+by+mary+doria+russell
Turns out it's already out.
I have it plugged in so it's not so bad. In the case of the book, it's a limited illustrated edition so not something eBookable.
Un-illustrated here... http://www.amazon.com/The-Wind-Through-Keyhole-Tower/dp/1451658907
Um, well how come Wind Through the Keyhole is only available for pre-release?
The Pillars of the Earth - I'm actually reading it now, and even before I'm finished I know that it will be one of my favourites.
im really suprised no one has recommended niel stephenson yet. the baroque cycle is one of the most off the epic pieces of historical fantasy ever written. i took me three tries to get through the first hundred pages of the first book but when i finally got through it i couldn't put it down for the next 4000 pages of the series and the second book has sooo many wtf moments.
http://www.amazon.com/Quicksilver-Baroque-Cycle-No-1/dp/0060833165/ref=sr_1_11?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1375674363&sr=1-11
lol, I got the year wrong, it's 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson and here it is on Amazon
This sounds like Flex
Fulfilled: Kim Stanley Robinson (plus two or three more). And, to be more directly Marxist, his thesis advisor Fredric Jameson.
I'm currently reading 2312 which has a strong female protagonist. I originally thought the author was female as well, but I just googled and nope it's a dude named Kim. And dammit now that I really think about it (spoiler:) the protagonist has both male and female genitalia.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0857664603?qid=1425327686&sr=1-1
The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell.
That is Lenin! Would you like to know more about the rise of the Soviet Union? Check out Fall of Giants by Ken Follett
You can also swing by r/propagandaposters to show off your new swag.