Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Fiction with frisson

I struggled to go to sleep last night, my mind just wouldn’t switch off. Apropos of nothing I started thinking about reading; more specifically the novels that had not only stirred my feelings, but had taken a step further and provoked a physical reaction. I started to make a list, which didn’t help my quest for sleep but did keep me amused:

  • Microserfs by Douglas Coupland makes me laugh out loud every time I read it.
  • I wept at the end of We Need to Talk About Kevin. The book isn’t mawkish or sentimental in any way; I was entirely moved by Lionel Shriver’s honest and insightful writing.
  • I had a nightmare after reading The Passion of New Eve by Angela Carter and woke up shaking in fear. A very disturbing book.
  • Margaret Atwood’s Cat's Eye brought back memories of my childhood so powerfully that I had goosebumps.
Which book(s) have provoked an outwardly reaction in you?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

We find ourselves in the same boat. (Except that I haven't given up my job.) I hope it goes well.

Beccy said...

I still have We need to talk about Kevin unread on my bookshelf. I started it but couldn't get into it as I just read The Three Day Road and needed something lighter to read. I vaguely remember reading the Passion of New Eve (I still have it on my shelf). In my late teens I read alot of Angela Carter.

My all time favourite has to be The Catcher in the Rye, more recent reads that 'got' me include The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas, A long, long way and Norwegian Woods.

Yvonne said...

Thanks 100 words! I love your site project.

Beccy, I completely forgot about Norwegian Wood, that book is amazing, and Catcher in the Rye really touched me too. I haven't read the other books you've mentioned, thanks for the recommendations!