What was the most unusual (for you) book you ever read? Either because the book itself was completely from out in left field somewhere, or was a genre you never read, or was the only book available on a long flight… whatever? What (not counting school textbooks, though literature read for classes counts) was furthest outside your usual comfort zone/familiar territory?
And, did you like it? Did it stretch your boundaries? Did you shut it with a shudder the instant you were done? Did it make you think? Have nightmares? Kick off a new obsession?
Hmmm…The most unusual book huh?
Well I guess I have.
The Gulag Archipelago: Alexander Solzhenitsyn
My dad got this book for me from a friend. As I was still studying at that time and did not have enough funds to buy books, I did not have a TBR pile. I started on this one immediately. The preface of this book talks about a group of people stranded in some place snowy. They are starved. They find a fish from hundreds of years ago buried in the ice. All of them jump on it and eat it raw. The entire world was shocked by it. But the author says he wasn’t shocked because he knows what they were feeling and every person who has lived on the Gulag Archipelago knows what these people were going through.
It’s based on communism during Stalin’s time. It’s actually anything like I have ever read before. I was recently reminded of this book when the author Alexander Solzhenitsyn died this year.
The other book I read which was unusual for me was a book based on witchcraft. There were 13 short stories in it and according to the author all were true. I really liked the book. I even read it twice. When I got it from my library and I started reading it my sister was very jealous because she loves reading about witchcraft and her exams were on. After her exams, she got the book again, that’s when I read it the second time. The stories were very interesting with detailed descriptions of the witchcraft process given in some stories. Unfortunately I don’t remember the name of the book. I googled it with no luck. I think it has Witchcraft and 13 and Mayflower in the name of the title. Please let me know if anyone knows the title.
Also, Autobiography of a Yogi. This book was something I read in a span of 2 months. I struggled to believe what was written. You can read my review here.
What unusual books have you read?
I posted my answer. I haven’t read any like you’ve described.
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I liked One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by the same author a lot more than I expected. Didn’t get very far with the Gulag Archepelago though!
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The first book sounds interesting.
Good luck on finding the second book! 🙂
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These books are different than anything I would normally read, but they sound interesting.
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I tried to read the Gulag Archipelago once. I was visiting someone’s house, and searching for a book to read. It was so heavy-handed and depressing I just could not stand it and quit after about fifty pages. I could not believe it went on so long, and if I remember correctly, there were further volumes, too!
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I’ve heard good things about The Gulag Archipelago!
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Wow: I’m so impressed you read The Gulag Archipelago. I studied Russian in college, but there’s no way I wanted to even go there…
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Gulag in Russian means Chief Administration of Corrective Labour Camps, the governing board of concentration camps. The word archipelago is metaphoric of the system of labor camps that spread across the Soviet Union with a chain of islands. It’s a difficult book to read. Oh my…
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I haven’t heard of any you meantion. Just the name Gulag Archipelago is a mouthful to me.
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They both sound interesting, I hope you find the one you’re looking for. 🙂
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I’ve not done well with trying to read Russian lit.
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hey.. i thought i’d let you know that i moved my blog.. you can now visit me at http://ramyasbookshelf.blogspot.com..
looking forward to your comments here now!:)
Ramya.
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