Books or Lit-r-cha Recommendations

Here's a tricky one:

A Neil Gaiman novel with no sex in it.

Looking for things most teenagers wouldn't read, (the book would be too long or confusing, the themes would go over their heads, etc.) but are absolutely incredible, awesome books (w/o any explicit sex scenes). Also looking for a good translation of both the Canturbury tales and Don Quixote that are both unabriged. Just finished Les Miserables, unabriged, and enjoyed it throughly.

The Count Of Monte Cristo, unabridged. Most teens I know wouldn't read a Door Stopper written in the 1840's, which in this case is a huge shame.

edited 31st Jul '11 1:55:01 PM by Firebert

^^^The Graveyard Book.

Translations into modern English?

Check out Good Omens.

Pretty sure Newt and Anathema had sex in that one.

Really? Huh. Well, it has been a while since I read that one. Nevermind, then.

Re: Gaiman - sex scenes: Neverwhere or Stardust ?

Stardust had one right in the beginning. How about Interworld?

Thanks firebert, I actually had that book recommended to me a while ago but refused toread the abriged version, and forgot about it. Thanks for reminding me. (Library trip tomorrow!!!)

edited 31st Jul '11 6:29:52 PM by Jimmmyman10

No problem! Have fun cracking into the 1400 page unabridged version!

^^^^So did Neverwhere.

Really? Stardust I don't really remember beyond the basic plot, but I re-read Neverwhere not so long ago and cannot remember a sex scene. Who slept with who?

It's only mentioned by Richard, if I remember correctly, not described.

Ah right. I took no sex to mean no sex scenes, not no mention of sex at all.

Is there any Goth horror novel that doesn't have proses that takes up more than a quarter of a page and force me to look up dictionary every page or two (granted, by English vocabulary is rather limited)?

^^Yeah, the way it was worded confused me a little. I was going to recommend Neverwhere first, then thought I'd err on the side of caution.

^Not quite sure what you mean by "proses that takes up more than a quarter of the page". I'd recommend The Picture Of Dorian Gray, which has deliciously elegant prose, ignoring the tedious bit where Dorian describes jewels, paintings and tapestries in great detail (I know, the tedium is rather the point, but it's not very fun to read).

I personally feel that the tendency towards slightly overwrought and highflown prose is one of the attractions of Gothic fiction; it's like a dense, luscious pudding that's probably not very good for you.

Perhaps The King In Yellow, Gormenghast or Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde would interest you?

Heh, thanks to my short attention span, long prose is not for me.

Hmm yes, asking for a lack of references to any sex at all is a bit much I feel.

OK.

Thirteen year old boy has hard core asian mother who is forcing him to read LOTR for the 2nd time.

WHAT FANTASY ALTERNATIVES CAN THIS BOY READ THAT WON'T BORE HIM TO DEATH?

A Song Of Ice And Fire, if a bit mature, is an excellent fantasy series, with plenty of political intrigue as a bonus. The Lies Of Locke Lamora is great as well, though it's more of a heist set in a fantasy setting. Brandon Sanderson's works are awesome as well, especially Mistborn.

edited 1st Aug '11 5:33:15 PM by Firebert

Thirteen? A Song Of Ice And Fire might be a bit much. That and The Malazan Book Of The Fallen are the most serious and mature fantasy series out there.

Try Wheel Of Time. The work of David Eddings- that can only be read in the early teens. I'd also second the rec for T Lo LL. I used to read a lot of Anne Mc Caffrey at that age too. Also The Deed Of Paksenarrion. Codex Alera is fantastic. Anything by Tad Williams, but especially The War Of The Flowers and Memory Sorrow And Thorn. Melanie Rawn. The Ice Wind Dale Trilogy. Anything by David Gemmell.

edited 1st Aug '11 7:05:49 PM by Falco

Yeah, I understated the matureness quite a bit, didn't I? Stick with the others I mentioned, then.

The Old Kingdom books by Garth Nix and Robin Hobb's Farseer books might be suitable.