Recommendations sought for Compulsory Reading.

cjt55 · Senior Member

Recommendations sought for Compulsory Reading.

mullpadd · Veteran Member

Patrick O'Brian - The Aubrey - Maturin series. Excellent series about early royal navy and war between english french and spanish
James Lee Burke. Dave Robicheaux series about a detective in new orleans
Michael Connolly. Harry Bosch series about an American detective

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Have a look at www.gutenberg.org/
60,000 free books, including many of the original journals of the Australian explorers.
Margaret is an avid reader and has a Kindle that she uses while we are on the road. She has never purchased a book.
Cheers,
Peter

Radar · Guru

cjt55 wrote:
Hi Everyone,
I have just joined Amazon Kindle to be able to purchase and download novels and autobiographies etc from the site to read on my tablet.
I would love recommendations of the "a must read" or "can't put it down" category from members to help minimise wasted purchases.
I understand people will have different tastes. Just seeking recommendations that's all.

My lady users free books on Amazon to read, some are hit or miss, she is happy.

Radar · Guru

Peter_n_Margaret wrote:
Have a look at www.gutenberg.org/
60,000 free books, including many of the original journals of the Australian explorers.
Margaret is an avid reader and has a Kindle that she uses while we are on the road. She has never purchased a book.
Cheers,
Peter

Thank you,

I might just give that a go myself, I like Australian reading, explorers should be good.

Greg 1 · Guru

Lee Child's is a good read as an author, has the Jack Reacher series. If you are into historic novels then both Bernard Cornwall and Conn Iggledon are both really good authors who have both written novels based around various times in history.

Dougwe · Chief one feather

Hi Col,

Check out 'The man from Coolibah' It's about Milton Jones and how he built his cattle empire etc. A real good read.

Keep Safe on the roads and out there, including the golf course. Fourrrrrrrrrr!

Dougwe · Chief one feather

Greg 1 wrote:
Lee Child's is a good read as an author, has the Jack Reacher series. If you are into historic novels then both Bernard Cornwall and Conn Iggledon are both really good authors who have both written novels based around various times in history.

I second 'Jack Reacher'. The movies are good too.

Santa · Guru

Tom Clancy is one of my favorite authors of fiction cjt55.

A list of his titles are included in this link. smile

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Clancy_bibliography

TheHeaths · Guru

Tom Sharpe if you like black humour poking sticks at the Apartheid years in South Africa, and the British Private school system in the Porter House Blues stories. Also wrote the Wilt series, again worth a read.

As for Australiana, anything by Evan McHugh. He has done books about explorers, great outback pioneers, stockmen, cattle stations, Birdsville, the Birdsville police and a few others. He is my favourite author, and very easily readable.

-- Edited by TheHeaths on Monday 9th of March 2020 06:00:48 PM

Craig1 · Guru

Have a look at Gary Disher, an Aussie Fiction writer, a little different , not total blood and gore. Lee Child's latest a bit over the top.

cjt55 · Senior Member

Thanks everyone. This is just the sort of info I am looking for.

Kebbin · Guru

Sorry Dougwe, but an angry height challenged Scientologist playing Reacher done my head in. Every part he plays seems to be like Groundhog Day.

If you think you would like a pioneering story get Hell West & Crooked by Tom Cole, memoirs of Tom Cole, he came to Australia as a 17 yo and was thrown in the deep end of a drover/stationhands life and came out tougher then teak, made Crocodile Dundee look meek.

Radar · Guru

Kebbin wrote:
Sorry Dougwe, but an angry height challenged Scientologist playing Reacher done my head in. Every part he plays seems to be like Groundhog Day.

If you think you would like a pioneering story get Hell West & Crooked by Tom Cole, memoirs of Tom Cole, he came to Australia as a 17 yo and was thrown in the deep end of a drover/stationhands life and came out tougher then teak, made Crocodile Dundee look meek.

Agree about short bloke playing that part.

Have read about Tom Cole, yes I did enjoy and back few years now met the daughter of his working partner in NG. She had some stories from her childhood in NG.

Sheba · Guru

If you're into Australiana, Fact, or Fiction based on fact, you can't go past Ion Idriess. You might also be interested in his Biography, by Beverley Eley. He was a very interesting man.

Have to get back tomorrow with a few more good ones. Too tired to think properly now.

Cheers,

Sheba.

-- Edited by Sheba on Wednesday 11th of March 2020 02:11:34 AM

Mike Harding · Guru

How long is a piece of string? What bores some to death others will
love, eg. I can't abide Lee Child.

Anyway a few, mainly, fiction authors at random:
Iain M Banks - science fiction
Ken Follett - especially the Century Trilogy
Gregory David Roberts - Shantaram - sort of Australian, excellent
Robert Galbraith (aka JK Rowling) - not bad, crime stuff
James Clavell - the Brits in Asia in the 1700s+, excellent
Ben Aaronovitch - excellent UK fantasy series, original
Bill Bryson - A Yank at large, brilliant
AJ Quinnell - Man on Fire was excellent, others not so much
Robert Harris - historical political fiction, brilliant
Andy Weir - The Martian, a great novel for the technical people
Peter Temple - Oz crime author, excellent
Theodore Dalrymple - English psychiatrist, interesting social comment
Liane Moriarty - only read Big Little Lies which was good
Martin Walker - Bruno, Chief of Police, in rural France, very good
Luke McCallin - German army/police officer in 1943 - excellent
Ernest Henry Shackleton - South - However did they do it!?
Richard K Morgan - Takeshi Kovacs novels, sci fi, excellent
Gavin Lyall, Len Deighton, John LeCarre - still my favourites
CJ Sansom - some goods novels about Tudor England

Search for authors on "Good Reads" for more info.
https://www.goodreads.com/

PS. A few years back I tried to encourage a "Sticky" thread for
"What are you reading?" but Cindy did not approve, sadly. Such would
be a great long term resource.

Mike Harding · Guru

Sheba wrote:
If you're into Australiana, Fact, or Fiction based on fact, you can't go past Ion Idriess.

Absolutely.

Indeed his 1931 book "Prospecting for Gold" is still the bible for small scale gold prospectors.

Cupie · Guru

Mike Harding wrote:
Sheba wrote:
If you're into Australiana, Fact, or Fiction based on fact, you can't go past Ion Idriess.
Absolutely.
Indeed his 1931 book "Prospecting for Gold" is still the bible for small scale gold prospectors.

I'm amazed that Ion Idress wrote so many. I have only about 5 or 6 of his books & thought that I had most of them. Off to my fav second hand book shop for more. A bit dear there though. Perhaps I can spend some of my stimulus payment on a few. LOL.

I have all of Tom Cole's & find them a great read.

Also have all of RM Williams'.

All of the above are in paperback (but I'm sure are available in eBooks) along with dozens of other favourites. Most Au & a few British SAS stories along with WW1 & 2 but mainly Au history & Political figures' biographies. Of course there are most of Wilbur Smith, Tony Park, Robert Ludlum & Clive Cussler. Not to mention some of my favourite Au author/poets like Lawson & Paterson. I gave away all of my Management Text books, more's the pity.

It'll be sad when I downsize & have to get rid of them all. I can re-read them after 5 or so years & still enjoy them. One of the pluses of old age & a failing memory.

There are a few hundred free ones on my Kindle that I get from Amazon that they offer on a weekly eMail. Pretty poor stuff though.

It is rare for me to pay for eBooks & I get most of my hard copies for $1 each from the Salvo's shop. Always carry 3 or 4 good ones in the van.

I'll have to work out how to download from the Gutenberg site & load onto my Kindle - perhaps using Calibre. Thanks for that link Peter.

Craig1 · Guru

Forgot this one. Larry & Stretch, by an Aussie- Marshall Grover. Wrote 100's of them

Tony Bev · Guru

I second Larry and Stretch books, formally known as Larry and Streak, I use to read them before the days of PC (Personal Computers)

One author no one has yet mentioned is Terry Pratchett (not sure if he is on any free list)
He wrote fantasy novels, especially comical works.
He is best known for his Discworld series of 41 novels

One note of caution, you will get more enjoyment, if you read them from his first to last published date
As you will then have some background, of the people he is talking about

His books are not for those, without a sense of humour

Santa · Guru

If your looking for something a little challenging try (The Brothers Karamazov) by Fyodor Dostoevsky. smile

Cupie · Guru

Santa wrote:
If your looking for something a little challenging try (The Brothers Karamazov) by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Far too challenging for my much deteriorated brain I'm afraid.

There are usually too many characters in Russian books, often with two names, for my addled brain. And they seem to go on & on forever. Perhaps I chose the wrong ones.

I have several of the classics like War & Peace that I would love to get into, even with a notepad to record the main names, but I just can't handle them.

These days I just prefer rather lightweight historical novels or Au military history.

Santa · Guru

Cupie wrote:
Santa wrote:
If your looking for something a little challenging try (The Brothers Karamazov) by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

There are usually too many characters in Russian books, often with two names,

Yep, tend to agree, the main character (Dmitri" in The Brothers Karamazov is referred to by 5 different names, Dmitri, Mitya, Mitka, Mitenka and Mitri, takes a bit of keeping up with.

Nonetheless, still a very good read. biggrin

Craig1 · Guru

And Larry started at 6' 21/2", got to 6' 4" at one stage. Stretch from 6'5" to 6'6". Me, have gone from 5'10" to 5'9".

cjt55 · Senior Member

Thanks everyone. Keep the recommendations coming. Agree it would be a good idea to have a section on here for people to suggest a good read.

BAZZA44 · Senior Member

For anyone thinking of buying an E reader. i f you buy a KOBO e reader you can borrow books from Australian library's for free. There are also free books on Kobo.

Barry

Dougwe · Chief one feather

I have my books on my iPhone, including my music, this forum, my emails, Mr Google, Netflix and so it goes on. What more do you want in life confuse smile biggrin

The only thing it wont do for me is, get the beer out of the fridge for me hmm cry

Craig1 · Guru

What about a " long arm app? "

Dougwe · Chief one feather

Now that's thinking Craig, a great idea indeedy.

Maybe even a mini drone smile A blue tooth fridge as well so I can open the door through an app.

Maybe just put a bar fridge next to my chair smile

bowiebd · Member

In my humble opinion,

Judy Nunn writes some really good books, set in Australia.

The White divers of Broome, by John Bailey I found very interesting.

Sven Hassel has written a series of very good war books. I believe he has a huge following & discusion group on the internet.

Bill the Bastard by Roland Perry is very good.

Lynda La Plante crime books are hard to put down.

first time I've put a comment on here ,I don't know how to finish it off.
bowiebd.