[fraseyboy]

 

[athos56]

You were probably joking but Eric Carle RULES, IMO.... The Very Hungry Caterpillar has a great twist ending

 

[fraseyboy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by athos56 /img/forum/go_quote.gif You were probably joking but Eric Carle RULES, IMO.... The Very Hungry Caterpillar has a great twist ending

Yeah. It had me on the edge of my seat throughout the whole book. That last twist BLEW MY MIND!

Also, OP should definitely check out the 'His Dark Materials' series by Philip Pullman, beginning with the Golden Compass/Northern Lights. THE best series of books I've ever read.

Also the 'Wheel of Time' series by Robert Jordan is very good.

 

[appophylite]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fraseyboy /img/forum/go_quote.gif

An excellent recommendation. I have it on my bookshelf right between If You Give A Mouse A Cookie and Green Eggs And Ham (I'm serious about that too)

I'll +1 the recommendations on The Hitchhiker's Guide and Starship Troopers. I'll also add 2001-A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke, and Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams (same guy who did the Hitchhiker's Guide)

I've not read the His Dark Materials trilogy by Phillip Pullman yet, but I did buy the collection for my sister as a Christmas gift and she's loving it so far.

 

[colonelkernel8]

I have all three Artemis Fowl books on my desk right now. All of them are excellent. "The Eternity Code" (the third one) is my personal favorite. Though here is one of my favorite excerpts from the first book:

A waiter scurried to their table.
"More tea, sirs?" he asked, head bobbing furiously.
Artemis sighed. "Spare me the theatrics, and sit down."
The waiter turned instinctively to Butler, who was
after all, the adult.
"But, sir, I am the waiter."
Artemis tapped the table for attention.
"You are wearing handmade loafers, a silk shirt, and
three gold signet rings. Your English has a tinge of Oxford
about it, and your nails have the soft sheen of the recently
manicured. You are not a waiter. You are our contact
Nguyen Xuan, and you have adopted this pathetic disguise
to discreetly check for weaponry."
Nguyen's shoulders sagged. "It is true. Amazing."
"Hardly. A ragged apron does not a waiter make."
Nguyen sat, pouring some mint tea into a tiny china cup.
"Let me fill you in on the weapons status," continued
Artemis. "I am unarmed. But Butler here, my...ah...
butler, has a Sig Sauer in his shoulder holster, two shrike-
throwing knives in his boots, a derringer two-shot up his
sleeve, garrotte wire in his watch, and three stun grenades
concealed in various pockets. Anything else, Butler?"
"The cosh, sir."
"Oh, yes. A good old ball bearing cosh stuffed down
his shirt."
Nguyen brought the cup trembling to his lips.

The kids will love that.

Edit: Didn't realize that there were 5 books. I do not have The Opal Deception or The Lost Colony. Kind of grew out of them...

 

[ThomasJB]

I second all the recommendations so far, except Cyberiad, Pendragon, and Earthsea, which I haven't read. Especially the Chronicles of Prydain. If you want cyberpunk, I'd suggest Rainbows End by Vernor Vinge, instead of Neuromancer.
I would also recommend the rest of Heinlein's juveniles, as well as anything by Connie Willis, particularly To Say Nothing of the Dog.
Also Summerland by Michael Chabon, and Interworld by Neil Gaiman and someone, I don't remember who he wrote it with.
Also, Bug Park by James P. Hogan and the Abhorsen trilogy by Garth Nix. And The World Turned Upside Down by various authors. Don't pass that one up.

And many, many other books which I don't have time to list...

Quote:

Originally Posted by fraseyboy /img/forum/go_quote.gif Also the 'Wheel of Time' series by Robert Jordan is very good.

I agree. I loved The Eye of the World, but seriously. It's over eight hundred pages long. (At least the paperback version is, IIRC.)

Also, 100th post.