reply to post by NewAgeMan
Excellent post, and something completely different from what I usually see at ATS.
You're question is a difficult one to answer. It's hard to choose a favorite author. I think, however, my favorite book is "Moby Dick" by Herman
Melville. There are some dry portions, but Hermie can be quite droll as well. It is also very interesting as an in-depth look at all the aspects of
whaling back in the day. I certainly wouldn't classify it as trippy, if that's your bottom line, but very amusing and interesting, as well as
riveting in parts.
I'd have to say the trippiest author I ever read was Kafka, in particular "Metamorphosis" and "The Trial". Guess Kurt Vonnegut can be considered
trippy at times, in particular "Slaughter House Five". But guess this depends on what one's definition of "trippy" is. And there's always "Fear
and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S. Thompson.
I'm still looking for someone who can document, put to paper, the psychedelic experience, or provide any truly mind-blowing fiction for that matter.
My two favorites that document the psychedelic sixties are "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test" by Tom Wolfe (although someone beat me to it) and
"Storming Heaven" by Jay Stevens; the latter has a subtitle that would likely upset the ATS PTB, so I don't include it here.
As far as non-fiction, I highly recommend Jared Diamond's "The Third Chimpanzee", which is all about homo sapiens and our species development. One
other general interest one is "Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time" by Dava Sobel; this
is truly an amazing read from the start and gives one a real appreciation for the development of technology.
Also thought Winston Churchill's 6-book series on WWII, "The Second World War" was great. He has some very interesting personal anecdotes and
certainly has an insider's view of things; my only criticism is that the final book is primarily an apologia for letting the USSR snarf up eastern
Europe. But otherwise very informative and eye-opening. He received the Nobel Prize in Literature in large part for this series. Another great
first-person account by a mover and shaker is Julius Caesar's "War Commentaries", in particular read the Rex Warner translation; others are far drier.
These last two are primarily for military history buffs, I readily acknowledge.
All these titles can be found via google or amazon, so I am not bothering to post a link to any of them.
I will definitely peruse the comments in this thread to see if any good suggestions for further reading stand out. Thanx again for starting this
thread, OP.
edit on 28-9-2012 by MrInquisitive because: had some additions to make
edit on 28-9-2012 by MrInquisitive because: (no reason
given)