Wedding readings filter... I realize this has been asked before, but new members are constantly being added and new material is constantly being generated, plus there's always a bit of individual nuance. In short, I'm looking for an entirely non-religious wedding reading for a humanist ceremony. A few more details inside.
[more inside]
posted by slide
on May 26, 2012 -
12 answers
What are some great (somewhat) recently released novels/books/memoirs with queer/LGBTQ themes or characters?
[more inside]
posted by kylej
on May 23, 2012 -
28 answers
I'm looking for a book that is essentially a mashup of behavioral economics, social psychology, neuroscience, wisdom/bible literature, and mythology.
[more inside]
posted by Slacker Manager
on May 23, 2012 -
13 answers
What are the great novels of Detroit? All genres welcome, but latter half of the 20th century preferred. Thanks!
posted by gerryblog
on May 9, 2012 -
11 answers
I am looking for any information about a triangle-shaped literary magazine that was published in Northampton, MA in the 1980s.
[more inside]
posted by mattbucher
on May 1, 2012 -
7 answers
Akashic Books Noir Series. Which are your favorites?
Each book is an anthology of original short stories. It looks like they've published over fifty volumes. I find they differ greatly in style and overall quality of writing. It makes sense... each anthology has its own editor.
I'd like to read the volumes that have the best quality writing, and are the most fun. Here's what I've read so far, in most favored order:
[more inside]
posted by valannc
on Apr 21, 2012 -
3 answers
Proust's In Search of Lost Time and Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom seem to me to share deep artistic affinities: heavy reliance on often hallucinogenically long sentences, innovative and almost esoteric metaphor, and an almost mythical mode of storytelling. They both violate the show-not-tell rule like crazy as they give off reams of psychological and sociological opinion.
What else is in this literary vein?
posted by shivohum
on Apr 16, 2012 -
16 answers
I saw
Cave Of Forgotten Dreams and loved it. Now I want to read more about early human history. Please recommend some good books on the beginnings of human art in particular and the emergence of human society and the beginnings of conciousness in general. I'm not a scientist and I'm not looking for a textbook, but I'm not afraid of a challenging read, either.
posted by vibrotronica
on Mar 26, 2012 -
16 answers
Trying to find a half-remembered poem. It was something about transitory natural states, and I think it specifically mentioned the moment when rain turns to sleet or sleet turns to snow or some such. I think some kind of precipitation was the subject. And that's all I have. Thanks for anything you can offer!
posted by mattholomew
on Mar 13, 2012 -
6 answers
I'm looking for (at least borderline) Serious Literature published in the last 20 years with romantic elements.
[more inside]
posted by jingle
on Mar 11, 2012 -
26 answers
Help me find two pieces of literature I read about thirty years ago, one a short story, the other a poem.
[more inside]
posted by Toekneesan
on Mar 9, 2012 -
9 answers
Recommendations for nonfiction books on women in Islamic cultures. Bonus points for books that touch on queer, feminist, or disability studies themes.
[more inside]
posted by Lieber Frau
on Feb 27, 2012 -
25 answers
Scare me please!
I am looking for the scariest book out there. I have read most of Stephen King, The Exorcist, etc. But i want to find something new that will frighten me even more than the evening news...
posted by keep it tight
on Feb 27, 2012 -
54 answers
I have been trying to deal with the shadows, or dark reality, of life: sex-trafficking, war crimes, war rape, rape, hatred, familial abuse, child pornography; even the "lighter" shadows of infidelity, corruption (of the 3rd World and 1st World), hard drug use and dealing of financial elites, etc.; and perhaps maybe even more importantly: the lack of public-moral outrage that would seek to eradicate such an infestation (strong words, sure - I don't mean to imply I want a 21st century witch hunt).
[more inside]
posted by SollosQ
on Feb 24, 2012 -
26 answers
Who are good candidates for reasonably being labelled "The Brazilian Shakespeare"?
[more inside]
posted by Bwithh
on Feb 21, 2012 -
5 answers
Are there any good novels that use Greek trade in or around the 6th c. BC as a way of exploring ancient cultures? Also, how far did Greeks travel during that time? Did they make into India? To the British Isles?
posted by jwhite1979
on Feb 20, 2012 -
16 answers
How did reading a biography learn you a valuable lesson, help you gain a crucial insight, change your worldview or impact you in some other, non-trivial way?
[more inside]
posted by Foci for Analysis
on Feb 14, 2012 -
13 answers
Excellent Action Scenes In Books? I'm looking for examples of tense, fast paced action sequences in novels and short stories. The written equivalent to the cinematic on-the-edge-of-your-seat-oh-crap-the-person-may-die-how-will-they-escape thing. Bonus if the situation is complex yet reads like a clear, clockwork machine.
[more inside]
posted by The Whelk
on Feb 8, 2012 -
42 answers
Asking for a friend: Need a character from mythology, literature, the Bible, etc. who, unbeknownst to him/her, is inflicted with some sort of curse/poison but doesn't find out until much later. For details on why Oedipus doesn't quite work, you should see...
[more inside]
posted by Saxon Kane
on Feb 2, 2012 -
18 answers
I'm looking for more fiction that features detailed or frequent mentions of food. For example Iris Murdoch's The Sea, the Sea with its talk of "fresh hot buttered toast, with or without the addition of bloater paste". Bonus points if they're set in the UK, but I'd love any suggestions!
posted by teststrip
on Jan 31, 2012 -
50 answers
Where are all the books about the future that are NOT dystopian? I'm not looking for utopian books, but just something that's not so depressing.
[more inside]
posted by Zaire
on Jan 29, 2012 -
31 answers
Need recommendations for a good literary short story (or two) on which to write a 1200-1500ish word paper.
[more inside]
posted by Gymnopedist
on Jan 28, 2012 -
24 answers
Looking for novels with first-person narrators, in the style of Conrad's
Heart of Darkness (specifically Marlow), E.L. Doctorow's
Homer & Langley, Sandor Marai's
Embers, etc.
[more inside]
posted by scody
on Jan 27, 2012 -
37 answers
I am trying to read more 'classics' this year and find I am continually running to Wikipedia for background on things the authors assume I should know. What books can I read to round out my general education somewhat and fill in some of these gaps?
[more inside]
posted by JoannaC
on Jan 24, 2012 -
20 answers
What is the intersection between the set of books I
should read and the set of books I'd really
enjoy reading?
[more inside]
posted by jpdoane
on Jan 15, 2012 -
46 answers
Building on
this FPP, I'd like to start writing fiction about multiple internet identities. Is anyone else wrting about this?
posted by Xurando
on Jan 13, 2012 -
0 answers
When I finally take the plunge on an eBook reader I want an epic collection of public domain classic and/or important and/or utilitarian books to live on it. I'm looking for a particular sort of resource for this quest.
[more inside]
posted by nanojath
on Jan 9, 2012 -
9 answers
What are some comics, novels or non-fiction with a similar sense of humor and adventure to the new John Rogers-penned
Dungeons and Dragons comic being put out by IDW? (Sample inside.)
[more inside]
posted by griphus
on Dec 20, 2011 -
13 answers
Next year, I'll be travelling to the Netherlands and (briefly) Belgium, then later a trip to Tallinn, Helsinki and Stockholm. Are there any films or novels I should check out to get a feel for the places before I get there?
[more inside]
posted by mippy
on Dec 18, 2011 -
22 answers
I am looking for the title and author of a short story about an alien abduction. The abduction itself was a major plot twist-- the story was about a farmer, but very abruptly, the farmer is abducted.
posted by jstef
on Dec 15, 2011 -
1 answer
Restarting Infinite Jest? I read (and enjoyed) around 400 pages worth of IJ around a year ago, but for whatever reason, I put it down for a break and never picked it up again. With a summer holiday ahead of me, I'm hoping to restart reading it. My question is: where do I start? Is it worth restarting it from scratch, or do I read some online guides to get me up to speed and read it from where my bookmark has been patiently placed? I turn to the hardiest of DFW fans for the answer!
posted by chronic sublime
on Dec 12, 2011 -
18 answers
I'm looking for a book about depression for a smart fella who has been feeling down.
[more inside]
posted by reren
on Dec 5, 2011 -
11 answers
I've been invited to a Solstice party. The invitation says, "Please come with a symbol of light, wrapped to give away, and something to read about light, original or found." Nothing is popping into my head except a candle... and I already know someone bringing a candle. Ideas? Ideas for readings? I could do a Google search for either thing, but I'd be overwhelmed with results, I think. (And maybe there is a way to wrap the gift that goes along with the theme?)
posted by trillian
on Dec 2, 2011 -
53 answers
What cool places can I take classes, preferably accessible to public transit in the East Bay? Things like lit classes on specific subjects / authors, art history classes on specific artists / time periods, women's studies.
[more inside]
posted by fireflies
on Nov 29, 2011 -
8 answers
F. Scott FitzgeraldFilter: "Everyone's youth is a dream, a form of chemical madness." I've seen this quote attributed to F. Scott. Did he actually say it?
[more inside]
posted by toomuchkatherine
on Nov 28, 2011 -
4 answers
Do you know of any literary quotes on the theme of self-disgust and shame when authors or characters realise they have turned into that which they once despised?
[more inside]
posted by cincinnatus c
on Nov 23, 2011 -
10 answers
She's asked for 'The Birth of Love' by Joanna Kavenna. What else can I get her?
[more inside]
posted by BadMiker
on Nov 16, 2011 -
7 answers
