Unique Book Meme (still waiting for George)

[feng_shui_house]

I hadn't read many (mostly the fantasy & SF) of the books on the book meme going around, and it just occurred to me that a unique book meme might be fun. So here are some books which I enjoy that haven't been mentioned on the meme.


I'll start with the books in the rooms nearest to me. In many cases, I tend to like a lot of stories by the same author, so I've only selected a few.

Uncle John's Supremely Satisfying Bathroom Reader (an eclectic collection of interesting articles)
Uncle John's Giant 10th Anniversary Bathroom Reader (ditto)

(Max Brand is a pen-name of Frederick Faust- he wrote in quite a few genres; he was so prolific he needed more than 3 western pen-names because he was often running 3 serials in the same magazine at once.)
Marbleface by Max Brand (western)
Larramee's Ranch (ditto)
Lucky Larribee (ditto)

Thomasina (Paul Gallico) (Cat bio-hard to classify realistic fantasy?)

Reflex by Dick Francis (mystery/action-horses always somehow relevant to the main character, quite often the hero is a very good-hearted honest hardworking man who gets beat up. A lot.)
Odds Against (ditto)
Break In (ditto)
To The Hilt (ditto)

The Hot Rock Donald E. Westlake (crime humor)
Good Behavior (ditto)

Miss Seaton Sings by Heron Carvic (mystery humor with elderly lady innocently solving crimes without ever realizing it-there's a whole series, but it gets repetitious- particularly when other writers took over)

The Doorbell Rang by Rex Stout (really ALL his Nero Wolfe mysteries are great.)
The Black Mountain (ditto)

Ok, on to SF/Fantasy

The Dubious Hills by Pamela Dean (fantasy/mystery- no infodumping, you gradually discover that this world and people are different from the reality we know)

Three Hearts and Three Lions by Poul Anderson (fantasy/sf) (parallel universe)
Operation Chaos (ditto) (A witch and a werewolf are the lead characters, but they're just folks.)

The Pig Plantagenet by Allen Andrews (semi-historical fantasy?) (set in medieval France, but in a Watership Down way--only on a homier, less epic scale. The pig is a very sympathetic character))

Prostho Plus by Piers Anthony (sf) A dentist winds up in space, helping aliens. Very ingenious and fun.

The Face in the Frost by John Bellairs (Classic quest against evil- humor and horror intermixed beautifully)

The Compleat Werewolf and Other Stories of Fantasy and Science Fiction by Anthony Boucher (a collection of some of his best shorter works. Varies from scary to funny to fantasy to SF)

Khaled by F. Marion Crawford (classic story of a genii's struggle to earn a human soul)

Ok, my fingers are sore. That's enough recommendations. They're all old books, but you might still find some in a library. :^)

Comments

[ultrapsychobrat.livejournal.com]

Fun--I don't think I've read any of these.

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

I bet if nothing else, you can find some Rex Stout Nero Wolfe novels- there were a lot of them & they seem to stay in print.

Max Brands are widespread, too, but I'd stay away from the recent editions which combine several shorter unrelated stories to make something that looks like a novel, but isn't. And in general his best novels were published quite a few years ago, so if something is only recently in paperback it's probably not one of his good ones.

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

Wow. On the list currently doing the rounds, there are 40 books I've read. On your list - not a one. Will have to do some hunting. Prostho Plus sounds intriguing, as does The Dubious Hills.

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

In most cases, these are among the survivors of at least a dozen culls over the decades. I got tired of typing, but could have added quite a few more.

Another classic cat story by Paul Gallico is "The Silent Miaow". It's a manual for kittens, translated from the feline. It's wonderful.

http://www.paulgallico.info/silentmiaow.html

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

Ah, Dick Francis - I have read all his "horse" detective stories!
And wow- Max Brand´s Whistling Dan? I have only a Czech translation...

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

There are *tons* of Max Brand titles worldwide, translated into many languages. Look on the official website to read his biography- which was quite amazing. There's also a bibliography.

http://www.maxbrandonline.com/

[vjezkova.livejournal.com]

WOW! Thanks!

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

I found his biography fascinating. It explained why he was so driven.

[lizamanynames.livejournal.com]

Eeeeeee, The Hot Rock!! I love that book!! I need to get around to watching the movie...

[entropy-house.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes! If you loved the book, you'll love the movie. Books don't always translate well into movies, but that one did.

[lizamanynames.livejournal.com]

Man, that's good to hear!