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American Fiction

Postby tetsuo » Fri Jan 28, 2005 5:24 pm

I am a big huge fan of American fiction. I spend 2hrs per day on trains travelling to and from work, so I get through a lot of books. Sometimes I wander around bookshops completely devoid of inspiration and don't know what to buy.

If I throw out a few names of authors I really respect (and therefore genres and subject matter that I find interesting), can anyone suggest some others that I might like?

James Lee Burke
James Ellroy
J D Salinger
Raymond Chandler
Paul Auster
John Steinbeck
Brett Easton Ellis
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Postby phatlad » Fri Jan 28, 2005 7:41 pm

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Postby tetsuo » Fri Jan 28, 2005 7:44 pm

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Postby kennyg » Fri Jan 28, 2005 8:02 pm

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Postby tetsuo » Fri Jan 28, 2005 8:20 pm

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Postby Mad Genius » Fri Jan 28, 2005 11:14 pm

Hmm I read the Grishman/Clancy thriller novels but that's about it as far as fiction goes. I would highly recommend both authors to you though if you want a change of pace in your reading. Definately fast exciting reads.
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Postby low dough » Sat Jan 29, 2005 12:32 am

You mentioned William Gibson, so you probably already know Bruce Sterling.

Have you ever heard of Spider Robinson? He is Canadian, but that is close.
"Mind Killer" is his best work, IMO.

Clive Barker is great fun to read, for a brit. :roll:

Check out Joseph Wambaugh, he writes both fiction and non-fiction.
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Postby Sunbob » Sat Jan 29, 2005 1:07 am

I'm at a bit of a loss here because my favorite author is Graham Greene, but he is English. :lol:

Have you tried any of Kurt Vonnegut?

My wife likes Grisham.

Now if you want to get into "Americana" then try Mark Twain; or more modern like Hunter Thompson ( can a guy really put those two in the same category?) Oh well, it's late at night and I need some sleep.
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Postby Felonius_Monk » Sat Jan 29, 2005 9:00 am

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Postby tetsuo » Sat Jan 29, 2005 10:30 am

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Postby phatlad » Sat Jan 29, 2005 4:12 pm

If you're gonna play trash, expect it to get taken out.

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Postby Cactus Jack » Sat Jan 29, 2005 8:19 pm

Ok, here's two for you. If you haven't read either, then you are in for a treat.

John D. MacDonald. He wrote a lot of mystery suspense back in the day. Travis McGee is his series character for which he is most famous. However, he also wrote things like Cape Fear, which was a superb movie starring Robert Mitchum, and reprised by Robert DeNiro later.

Dean Koontz. When it comes to suspense, there is no one better. He'll keep you up all night. Be sure to get a copy of Watchers, my favorite novel of all time. Once you read it, you'll understand why. If I only had one writer on the proverbial desert island, this would be the man.

Enjoy. This should keep you occupied for the next year.

ps--I live in an area of the country which is now being chronicalled by Randy Wayne White, the spiritual heir to the great John D. Unfortunately, I read all ten or so of his novels in a month. Sanibel is the best one, and I often sail around the area he writes about.


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Postby Cactus Jack » Sat Jan 29, 2005 8:21 pm

Oh, too, if you'd like some suggestions on Boston mystery writers, I'd be happy to oblige. Most of them have been friends at one time or another. I was a member of Mystery Writers of America for a decade while living in the Hub.
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Postby TexasKowboy » Sat Jan 29, 2005 11:36 pm

Patricrica Cromwell Patholigist group and Lawrence Sanders deadly sins group but if your want some great reading check out anything by Larry McMurtry from the Last picture Show, Paris Texas, Lonesome Dove, Streets of Ladreo, Anything for Billy on and on and on. His are not Mystery or Suspense but they are great reading.

So sure Joseph Wambaugh's Blue Knight, Choir Boy's, The Onion Flields and many others. This is the guy that made me want to be a cop and I am sure Iceman also.
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Postby Cactus Jack » Sun Jan 30, 2005 4:47 am

I second the suggestion of Larry McMurtry. Lonesome Dove should be on anyone's required reading list. (Not if you want to be a writer, however, because technically, he's really terrible. But a great story teller.)
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