I recently realized that there are a large number of books that everyone ought to check out. I cannot give a comprehensive list here; however, I will write down as many authors or books that I can think of that, for some reason or another, I feel I need to tell you about. It's all pretty arbitrary - I'm not going to be recommending things like Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter (although you ought to read both), but I'm not necessarily restricting myself to "under-appreciated" books/authors. Here are all the ones that leap to my head, in no particular order:
Isaac Asimov. Case in point, Asimov is one of the best known science fiction authors of all time. Of course, he also happens to be my favourite author - so, of course, everyone ought to read him. What many people do not know is that, while best known for science fiction, Asimov wrote in a huge variety of genres - in fact, he just wrote a huge amount of literature, period. I have yet to read something by him that I did not enjoy, and I have read a fair amount. Foundation is classic, and probably his best known series of novels. His short stories are excellent to - obviously, everyone should read I, Robot, but all of his short stories are good. I particularly enjoy the collection called Robot Dreams. As for slightly lesser-known stuff, you can't go wrong with his Black Widower short stories. Basically, read Asimov and you'll do just fine.
Hilari Bell. I mentioned her in my last post, but I certainly couldn't go without mentioning her here. She is an excellent author - I've read nearly all of her books, and enjoyed every one. My favourite is probably A Matter of Profit, which is one of her stand-alone novels, but all of her books deserve a good read. She has incredibly well-written and interesting characters, and her stories are never cut-and-dry, good vs. evil things. The moral ambiguity is excellent, and I love a story where you can sympathize with the antagonists even as you cheer on the protagonists. While she is a successful author, I feel like she is criminally under-read, so everyone should go check her out!
Watchmen and V for Vendetta. I actually haven't read anything else by Alan Moore, but I really should - these two novels are incredible. Wait, you haven't read Watchmen? You watched the movie, but never bothered to check out the book? Go now, and come back when you've finished it.
The God of Small Things, by Arundhati Roy. I read this for a class at school, and it was amazing, although certainly a bit of a mood killer. That said, I can't recommend it enough.
American Gods, by Neil Gaiman. I am embarassed to admit this, but, other than a few short stories, I actually haven't read anything else my Neil Gaiman. I did see Caroline and Mirrormask, so that sort of counts, right? Don't hate me... Regardless, after reading American Gods, I am certainly going to be checking out more by Gaiman - and, if you haven't, you should check out American Gods!
Tad Williams. I have read Otherland, Tailchaser's Song, and started the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn "trilogy" (the third book is in two novel-length parts). He is a very talented author, and I definitely recommend you check him out - Otherland is a rather long series, but incredibly well-written science fiction. Tailchaser's Song is a stand-alone novel and, while probably a bit more juvenile, is well-written, enjoyable, and definitely worth a read.
The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss. This novel is half the reason I wrote this list - it is an extraordinary novel from an extraordinary new author. The sequel came out March 2nd, and you definitely want to order both immediately. I'm waiting.
Orson Scott Card. I have actually only read his two intertwined series about Ender and Bean, but they are both excellent and you should check them out. My recommended reading order is Ender's Game first, followed by Ender's Shadow. Then, choose either the "Shadow" (Bean) or "Ender" series and read it, followed by the other one. After that, I would check out the short stories - I've read most of them, and enjoyed them all immensely. My personal favourite novel of all of them is probably Speaker for the Dead, so I might go with the "Ender" series first, but it really doesn't matter. One thing I cannot comment on is when to read "Ender in Exile," as I actually haven't read it yet. Technically it fits in in between Ender's Game and Speaker for the Dead, but I prefer to read novels in the order written first, as then you are equipped with all the expected information at the time of writing.
Garth Nix. Nix is a favourite of mine from when I was younger, but his books continue to delight me. In my opinion, his best work is his Old Kingdom series - Sabriel, Lirael, and Abhorsen. They are absolutely fantastic, and rank amongst my favourite books. I also very much enjoyed Shade's Children. Overall, he is very good at creating interesting and believable worlds that serve to enhance the overall story. I would recommend that people read all his other books as well - he is a talented author, and I anticipate many more good things from him in the future.
This is already getting fairly long, so I'll stop here for now - I'll likely post more recommendations as they come to me.
For all 2 of you that read this blog, I am always interested in reading new books, so, if you have your own recommendations for me/others, please feel free to post them in the comments!
