Excuse me for being a bitch, but are there any non-literary snobs on this site?
Since I excused you for being a bitch, you're going to have to excuse me for being an asshole.
Seriously, though, the reason I put up those books is because those are masterpieces of writing, not because that's all I read. I'm reading the New Jedi Order series right now, for crying out loud. The fact of the matter is that truly great works of literature are rare. Sci-fi and Fantasy haven't been around long enough to have a lot of them. Lord of the Rings, for sure, is a tour de force.
Besides, none of the works listed above are remotely obscure. They're all established (and accessible) masterpieces of Western Lit (except Zen). It's not as though people are saying "Well, hmmm, yes, the plebs just can't understand the eloquent phrasing of Ulysses."
I love reading fantasy, but with few exceptions it isn't nearly as high quality as what's been listed above. And the question was about writing that "blew you away." Why shouldn't the greats be listed? Until this post nobody has even so much as suggested that fantasy/sci-fi is inferior to the classics. Your post comes off as pretty insecure, frankly.
"We feel safe when we read what we recognise, what does not challenge our way of thinking.... a steady acceptance of pre-arranged patterns leads to the inability to question what we are told."
~Camilla
Ghavrel is Ghavrel is Ghavrel
*MySmiley*
~Camilla
Ghavrel is Ghavrel is Ghavrel
*MySmiley*
This message last edited by Ghavrel on 02/07/2010 at 11:25:18 PM
One simple question:
01/07/2010 11:00:44 PM
- 1495 Views
Lolita *NM*
01/07/2010 11:13:10 PM
- 560 Views
Have you read Pale Fire? *NM*
03/07/2010 12:14:56 AM
- 506 Views
No, I haven't. I have, however, been meaning to read The Stories of Vladimir Nabokov...
03/07/2010 12:36:39 AM
- 892 Views
Re: No, I haven't. I have, however, been meaning to read The Stories of Vladimir Nabokov...
03/07/2010 12:38:22 AM
- 924 Views
Is it unfinished? I seem to recall that, but I could be mistaken... *NM*
03/07/2010 02:15:07 AM
- 514 Views
Pale Fire is an excellent novel, particularly if you like making fun of Robert Frost.
03/07/2010 06:39:29 PM
- 924 Views
I've always planned on reading it.
04/07/2010 06:30:31 PM
- 879 Views
I've read all of Pelevin's books other than t, which recently was released.
04/07/2010 06:40:04 PM
- 914 Views
Sorry. I'm going to have to get back to you on this later.
04/07/2010 07:22:31 PM
- 994 Views
No problem. I'm stinking drunk and blew up shit to celebrate America's independence.
05/07/2010 05:03:42 AM
- 1033 Views
Paradise Lost *NM*
01/07/2010 11:23:22 PM
- 584 Views
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.
01/07/2010 11:31:52 PM
- 989 Views
What is it about?
03/07/2010 12:14:27 AM
- 1030 Views
The Aeneid, the Iliad, the Odyssey, and Macbeth come to mind. *NM*
02/07/2010 02:29:13 AM
- 554 Views
I'm amazed by these responses.
02/07/2010 07:10:31 PM
- 1131 Views
I spent most of my time trying to decide...
02/07/2010 07:22:26 PM
- 1082 Views
Well. I mean a book/story that you thought was pretty close to perfection.
02/07/2010 08:02:55 PM
- 1220 Views
Then you need to read more. *shrug*
02/07/2010 11:23:24 PM
- 1055 Views
You are not excused.
02/07/2010 11:40:16 PM
- 1169 Views
Wow. That read enough like Tom that I had to check to make sure it was you. *NM*
02/07/2010 11:57:26 PM
- 505 Views
I take that as a compliment and concur completely with Larry's statement.
03/07/2010 06:48:05 PM
- 991 Views
You make me want to sing
05/07/2010 02:32:37 PM
- 1273 Views
And you make me want to cover my ears
05/07/2010 07:57:12 PM
- 997 Views
What is yours?
05/07/2010 05:19:23 AM
- 1236 Views
Wraeththu by Storm Constantine is mine.
05/07/2010 07:51:59 AM
- 1092 Views
Easy. The Mahabharatha...
02/07/2010 11:55:27 PM
- 979 Views
Don't tell Roh.
03/07/2010 12:13:57 AM
- 903 Views
Which one?
03/07/2010 12:59:43 AM
- 982 Views
Re: Which one?
05/07/2010 05:28:08 PM
- 1061 Views
There's a "proper one"?
06/07/2010 06:03:55 PM
- 915 Views
Re: I sent her Kamala Subramaniam's translation.
09/07/2010 08:20:43 AM
- 1018 Views
Ahhh... One of my favorites...
09/07/2010 05:24:55 PM
- 1333 Views
Re: Parva is not a translation of the MB, though, is it. It's a reinterpretation. Which is fine.
09/07/2010 11:01:43 PM
- 1063 Views
It's spelled "Mahabharata".
03/07/2010 06:51:09 PM
- 923 Views
That's not how it is pronounced though...
03/07/2010 08:54:27 PM
- 982 Views
Traditional pronunciation vs. modern pronunciation
03/07/2010 09:47:52 PM
- 959 Views
I learned Sanskrit for years...
04/07/2010 01:28:34 AM
- 897 Views
However...
04/07/2010 02:31:00 AM
- 931 Views
See, I was taught that ध produced the sound in "that" and थ the sound in "thought".
04/07/2010 02:44:56 AM
- 984 Views
Re: I should have read the thread before bothering to give my skimpy response!
09/07/2010 08:26:35 AM
- 1213 Views
American Gods. *NM*
03/07/2010 04:49:18 AM
- 491 Views
I really wanted to enjoy that a lot. It was good, but not amazing, imo.
05/07/2010 05:28:53 PM
- 964 Views
Shogun
03/07/2010 03:08:04 PM
- 989 Views
huh. I always felt that...
05/07/2010 10:00:29 PM
- 909 Views
A few that come to mind: Doctor Zhivago, Master & Margarita and Brothers Karamazov
03/07/2010 06:53:25 PM
- 977 Views