Some Summer Reads!

With beach/cafe/vacation time right around the corner (yay!) a number of people have asked me for my opinion on what to read (which is nice).... I thought I would put a few down here in case anyone else is interested...... feel free to comment if you agree/violently disagree with any of the following.....

Book #1 - "Shantaram" by Gregory David Roberts

This book is an EPIC - like a 900 pager. I haven't personally read it but have had people (many in fact) get oddly mad at me that I haven't read it yet. It has been sitting on my shelf for a while now calling my name. Its a non-fiction (or loosly based non-fiction) about an Australian (Roberts) who is sentenced to 19 years in prison for a serious of armed robberies. He escapes and spends his fugitive years in Bombay India. There he establishes a free medical clinic for slum-dwellers and spends the rest of his time as a gunrunner and general go-to guy for the Bombay mafia. This book is supposedly life changing and has a little bit of everything in it - but like I said its a 'biggie' - roll up your sleeves and dive in head first.

Book #2 - "Ishmael" by Daniel Quinn

This book is a MUCH slower pace and could even be alluded to as a 'lecture' of sorts between Ishmael (an orphaned gorilla educated by a lonely wealthy Jewish merchant tortured by the effects of the holocaust) and a typical over dramatic and assumingly socially aware university student. They discuss/debate/argue man's place/effect on earth. Ok may initially sound preachy and kinda weird right? Well not so - this book (I didn't actually agree with a lot of the points in it) has kinda lingered in the back of my mind ever since I read it - like 2 years ago.

Ishmael is a captivating novel about overall social change. It seamlessly challenges popular beliefs and ignites alluring debate. It could be argued that never before has an author brought to life a discussion between man and beast so utterly moving and thought provoking. Regardless of whether or not you personally enjoy this work, you will none-the-less be unable to stop yourself from debating and discussing it with anyone willing to lend an ear.

Book #3 - "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" by Philip K. Dick

A kind of sci-fi, new age, classic (yes - new age AND classic - hmmm). Its about a new age world where androids are so advanced that they function as typical citizens in modern day society - albeit though with problems of being classified as second class citizens. The only way to tell an android vs a human is an 'emotional test' where - you guessed it - emotions are monitored. There are 'rogue' agents out to destroy certain androids and it is one of these androids that the story is told through. Not everyone is a sci-fi lover but if you want to 'dip your toes in' just to see what it's like then this is a great launching pad for a new genre.

Book #4 - "Slaughter House Five" by Kurt Vonnegut

Another classic - should be easy to find. If you haven't already read anything by Kurt Vonnegut then you really need to know he is a writer in a league all on his own. Slaughter house five is about an anti-war American fighting in Dresden during the second world war (written surrounding Vonnegut's own personal experiences in the war). An anti-war contemptuous satire about man's inability to learn from his mistakes arguably even more relevant today than when initially published over 40 years ago. Another 'interesting' read regardless of whether you end up liking it or not (although I am fairly certain that with this one you will).

Book #5 - "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

And for the somewhat 'fluff' read. I for some reason continue to gravitate towards zombie books - weird? This book is yet another 'classic' - well kind of.

Seth Grahame-Smith has taken the original Pride and Prejudice and thrown in a zombie twist. Some argue that there is too much Pride and Prejudice and too little zombie action but for someone who has so desperately tried to read Jane Austen in the past with very little success I find the odd "eating of brains" when you have had just about enough old english and female clucking for your liking to be the perfect satisfying combo. I am not finished it just yet but I am secretly hoping that everyone in the book dies by zombie. Plus - its a pretty cool looking cover - if you don't read much the cover alone is a great conversation piece.

Now go enjoy that never-overused cliche of coffee and cafe patio reading!