Oh, for war, "The Things They Carried"? If you also do nonfiction, there's "Achilles in Vietnam", which is good paired with The Iliad.
I don't care if it is an orgy of death, there's still such a thing as a napkin.
Willow ,'Lies My Parents Told Me'
Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
Dana - Oct 31, 2010 6:12:46 pm PDT #12802 of 28292
I'm terrifically busy with my ennui.
Ginger - Oct 31, 2010 6:13:42 pm PDT #12803 of 28292
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
Are you only looking for fiction?
For war, what about the World War I poets, particularly the ones who died in the war? There are a lot online: [link] [link] Also, Kipling's Barrack Room Ballads.
There are also Kipling's poems on colonialism, including White Man's Burden; Mandalay; Recessional; and Padgett, MP, which I like mainly for:
The toad beneath the harrow knows
Exactly where each tooth-point goes.
The butterfly upon the road
Preaches contentment to that toad.
megan walker - Oct 31, 2010 6:15:54 pm PDT #12804 of 28292
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist
The Things They Carried
I saw that one, but for a lot of those, I was just choosing on instinct. I'm trying to keep the lists to 20 or so, but if there are great things I'm missing, I want to add them. Of course, I don't think the war category will be chosen anytime soon, but you never know, we're getting a few more members and I don't know their tastes.
But dystopian novels and classic boys adventure have yet to win a vote.
megan walker - Oct 31, 2010 6:17:09 pm PDT #12805 of 28292
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist
Are you only looking for fiction?
Not necessarily (I'm reading Two Years Before the Mast for this month), but that is mostly what we focus on.
dcp - Oct 31, 2010 6:22:48 pm PDT #12806 of 28292
The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know.
For the War theme, how about The Forever War and The Killer Angels?
Also: any of the historical fiction by C. S. Forester, Patrick O'Brian, Bernard Cornwell, or Kenneth Roberts.
-t - Oct 31, 2010 6:23:01 pm PDT #12807 of 28292
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration
In that case, I'l throw in The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test for California Dreamin'
megan walker - Oct 31, 2010 6:25:29 pm PDT #12808 of 28292
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist
Also: any of the historical fiction by C. S. Forester, Patrick O'Brian, Bernard Cornwell, or Kenneth Roberts.
I didn't add the first two because they are on the "Water, Water" list, but I'll look into the others.
Sue - Oct 31, 2010 6:27:52 pm PDT #12809 of 28292
hip deep in pie
You could go with with Emily of New Moon instead.
For Colonialism, The Siege of Krishnpur, JG Farrell, The Quiet American or The Heart of the Matter by Graham Greene, A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. ETA: Sorry, I see you already have those Graham Greene books.
For California, you could include a lot of Didion novels, but I would pick Play it As it Lays. Also, I would include The Crying of Lot 49 by Pynchon, Day of the Locust, by Nathaniel West.
I find this harder to do with books than movies or music.
Sue - Oct 31, 2010 6:33:09 pm PDT #12810 of 28292
hip deep in pie
colonialism: Heat and Dust by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala.
Sue - Oct 31, 2010 6:39:11 pm PDT #12811 of 28292
hip deep in pie
Non-fiction book for religious figures and settings is The CHeese and the Worms by Carlo Ginzburg
OMG, Warner Herzog is turning that book into a film. I think that will break my brain.