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My family is instantiating a new tradition this holiday season: we are giving each other short books on Christmas Eve, so that after the kids have gone to bed, we can have a nice evening of reading and perhaps a bit of discussion of the most interesting work. Toward that end I'm asking for your best recommendations for books that can be read in a single sitting by the average reader -- let's say no longer than two hours or so, and therefore approximately 100 pages maximum. All genres welcome. Challenging works are very appropriate. Individual short stories should only be recommended as part of a collection that still meets the length requirement. I know it's stringent but that's part of the exercise!
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Nov 23, 2017 18:26
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Antwerp by Roberto Bolano, Still Life With Oysters and Lemon by Mark Doty.
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Nov 24, 2017 19:42
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From a non-fiction point of view, the Penguin series of "Great Ideas" from classic authors are all around 100 pages long: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/30869.Penguin_Great_Ideas For more contemporary writers, there's the "Penguin Specials" series, again a non-fiction series of ~100 words: https://www.penguin.com.au/books/brands/penguin-specials There's also the Very Short Introductions series, which are usually slightly longer (~150 pages) but can still typically be read in a couple of hours owing to large font sizes and pictures: https://www.goodreads.com/series/54458-very-short-introductions Some concrete recommendations from what I've read, enjoyed, and which would be good to start a discussion around: We Should all be Feminists The Outsider Kill All Normies The Death of Ivan Ilych
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Nov 25, 2017 15:29
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I remember that one. It's an unpleasant book to read, but that's surely intentional; as the introduction to the edition I read pointed out, it's a book about death from the perspective of the dying person (and thus forces readers to confront their own mortality) rather than something that happens to someone else.
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Nov 26, 2017 04:29
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Yep, I was already eyeing We Should All Be Feminists, so I'll definitely be giving that out. Good to hear it was worthwhile, I guess I kind of worried it would be...I don't know, a little too "beginner"? I'll be giving it to someone who is just discovering actual feminism and applying it to her own experiences, so maybe something high-level and simple is just the thing. Keep the recommendations coming! Thanks to those of you who have contributed already!
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Nov 27, 2017 20:57
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mdemone posted:Yep, I was already eyeing We Should All Be Feminists, so I'll definitely be giving that out. Good to hear it was worthwhile, I guess I kind of worried it would be...I don't know, a little too "beginner"? I'll be giving it to someone who is just discovering actual feminism and applying it to her own experiences, so maybe something high-level and simple is just the thing. Oh it's definitely entry-level. When you said "family"I was picturing middle-aged uncles who have probably never read anything positive about feminism in their lives, but if it's someone who's already starting engaging with feminism then there might not be much there to challenge them. Still, at 50 pages I don't think there's any reason not to give it a read.
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Nov 29, 2017 20:19
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Yuri Herrera
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Nov 29, 2017 20:43
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Blurred posted:Oh it's definitely entry-level. When you said "family"I was picturing middle-aged uncles who have probably never read anything positive about feminism in their lives, but if it's someone who's already starting engaging with feminism then there might not be much there to challenge them. Still, at 50 pages I don't think there's any reason not to give it a read. Yeah, the target for this one hasn't really read any feminist work, but is awakening to the importance of feminist activism (partially due to the #metoo wave, although it was really rooted in Hillary v. Trump). So I think this will be perfect for her. I wanted to throw de Beauvoir at her, but that's probably a bit heavyweight until she has her bearings in modern theory.
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Nov 30, 2017 00:17
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The Outsider was the first Camus I read, and it was really drat good. It really captures a kind of inexorable downward spiral in Meursault's actions and fate. I can see myself re-reading it. One of the most well-known short novels - some editions definitely have it under 100 pages, even with the illustrations - is Richard Bach's Jonathan Livingston Seagull, which is a secular-spiritual tale of a bird honing his skills and ascending to be come seagull Jesus/Buddha. (That's a flippant summary, it's a genuinely pleasant read). In non-fiction, Laurie Penny's Meat Market is an extended essay on women's bodies under capitalism. Earlier this year I read Babbling Corpse by Grafton Tanner: another extended essay, this time discussing the sociology of vaporwave as a genre and art movement. I also really enjoyed China Mieville's London's Overthrow, which finds him exploring the city and chronicling its collapse.
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Dec 4, 2017 02:44
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hesiod's theogeny is <100 pages
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Dec 17, 2017 20:26
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I read Bartleby the Scrivener a few weeks ago and really, really enjoyed it. It's available on Project Gutenberg and well under 100pp.
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Jan 19, 2018 04:15
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This seems like a good idea, I'll definitely go back and check out some of the recommended booklets (short novellas? Is there an actual term for <100 page stories?). As for my recommendation, I'm going to have to recommend The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen. I really like Stephen King's Revival, and while looking for something similar I found that King credited The Great God Pan as an influence on it, so I picked it up. It's definitely got a similar feel. It's the story of a guy who witnesses a strange experiment performed on a woman, and the ensuing weirdness.
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Jan 19, 2018 04:28
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Pafko at the Wall - Don Delillo Tells a very complex, very beautiful, very human story in 96 pages. All the best parts of Delillo - his use of language, his obsession with small moments within larger ones - are on display here. Bonus Frank Sinatra cameo! There Will Come Soft Rains - Ray Bradbury The Nine Billion Names of God - Arthur C. Clarke All You Zombies - Robert Heinlein Some of the absolute best sci-fi ever written.
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Jan 21, 2018 21:23
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