Post the last book you've read that exceeded your expectations.

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>>8685162
In Germany it's part of the school lit canon but for some reason we never read it. I only picked it up not too long ago and it's a great story.

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From the Great White North

>>8685170
What's it about?

>>8685176
It starts as a spooky story about a ghost rider haunting people on the northern coast of Germany but turns into the life story of a guy who was responsible for taking care of the seawalls which protect a village. He struggles with the simple villagers who don't want to hear about his modern ideas and accuse him of devil worship and so on. Don't want to spoil anything but of course it ends tragic.

Grendel by John Gardner. It was fantastic

>>8685207
sounds pretty interesting

Also I'd like to give the OP a nod for his phrasing. So much more inviting than asking for 'underrated books'.

>>8685162
The Iliad.

I expected it to be good, but I didn't expect it to be 300: The Novelisation.

>>8685230
It isn't, you're just retarded

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Thought it was just going to be Jack Kerouac's On the Road: Paris Edition.

Instead I got the best use of prose in the English language, second only to Joyce. Absolutely amazing.

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>>8685162
>expected a dry anti-Soviet read
>ended up being more spooky and more fun than any horror movie

blood meridian

epic as fuck, ultra violent, quotable, and the judge is the best villain since nolan's joker.

>>8685300
+1

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>>8685162

Journey to the End of the Night

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Had a lot of fun with this one. Very little hopes coming in due to the play in the title

>>8685207
Thanks for the description, I might check this out!

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Non-fiction included?

Well I cant find a picture anywhere. But it was a small relatively book with old Soviet science-fiction stories. It had about 7-8 stories from different authors and they were very very interesting. One of them was Alexander Belyaev if I remember correctly.

Btw I found out that book was from like 1970 from my old Uncle's book collection.

>>8685614
Belyaev is great. Very pulpy, kind of sentimental, but great if you like early 20th century sci-fi. I devoured his books as a kid.

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Turns out it's not only just Russians who can write surprisingly well, but apparently Slavs in general.

I guess it's only natural, since great literature comes from miserableness, and where to look for it, if not in eastern europe?

>>8685643
I think that book made me like 20th century sci-fi again, used to read a lot when I was younger but these stories were so good, I'll probably read a lot of Belyaev soon. Any suggestion where to start?

>>8685692
The Amphibian Man is my favourite, shit made me cry as a kid. Check out Professor Dowell's Head and Ariel too. The Last Man From Atlantis is a fun pseudo-historical read.

>>8685593
Hell yeah mah niggah.
Hope you read the Histories as well, brilliant read.

>>8685679
>not only just Russians who can write surprisingly well, but apparently Slavs in general.
Is that supposed to be a revelation?
>great literature comes from miserableness
Bullshit

>>8685349
shit taste

>>8685704
Thanks I think i've heard some of em. Cheers!

>>8685875
>Is that supposed to be a revelation?
As you can see it is for me. What else would you point as an example for this? What are other good slavic non-russian authors out there?

>Bullshit
I wasn't really serious, but I do think literature can be built on miserableness. And are you saying that intense feelings and experiences can't be a base for great literature, anon?

>>8685515
Yes

>>8685296
read William Gaddis

>>8686005
a pal of mine read it and said it was real fluffy beyond the point of being acceptable

Nietzsche's Gay Science really kicked my teeth in. In terms of readability, idea content, variety, etc., it's up there with Montaigne and La Roucheford

>>8685588
You should. It's not too long and very well written (not sure about translations). The whole story is also open for interpretations, it's for example totally possible that the guy unintentionally fell under the devils influence. Or it could be read as the old story of the reformer, who fails because of a conservative society. Probably one of the reasons why it's read in german schools. Theodor Storm is in general a great author who wrote lots of beautiful short stories.

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>>8685679
nice

this is great too

>>8685992
I mean, any country can have great writers, there's nothing preventing them.

>What are other good slavic non-russian authors out there?
Miroslav Krleža, Ivo Andrić, IB Mažuranić, Stanisław Lem, Sienkiewicz.

>>8686112
You seem to know him, so what's essential Stanislaw Lem other than Solyaris? Read that and loved it.

>>8686142
>You seem to know him
Wrong. I liked Solaris as well, but haven't delved more deeply into his works yet.

>>8685230
Seconding the Iliad, but not for that reason.

I did expect it to be 300: the poem, but it turned out to be much more. So many themes are discussed on a relatively short book, giving a great view into the gruesome and bleak reality of war. Homer's descriptions are also very imaginative.
Reading it made me remember and understand many references in other books or even in real life.
The only nuisances were related to Homer's language, as his repetitions and verbatim citations are a tad annoying.

>>8685992
>What are other good slavic non-russian authors out there?

Danilo Kiš

>>8686142
You may try the different side of Lem with Cyberiad, and then The Tales of the Robots.

The Tales, I believe, were split into two books in english: "Mortal Engines" and "The Cosmic Carnival of Stanislaw Lem".

>>8685162
The Picture of Dorian Gray hands down. Read it because this girl I'm dating said it was good. I thought it was varying degrees of flowery garbage until about halfway through and then it started picking up in excitement like a fucking wagon full of screaming monkeys careening down a hill.

10/10 would recommend.

>>8685210
i literally just finished this yesterday. i was surprised by it

>>8685349
i expected it to be good based on what ive heard and i was blown away

All of them; I have pretty low expectations.

>>8685349
kek

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>>8685162

>>8685170
Funnily enough, my German literature class just finished readin Storm's Aquis Submersis. We're Americans, and none of us are very good with the language, but we all agreed we liked it quite a lot.

>>8685162
And Quiet Flows the Don

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Updike isn't talked about enough on this board

>>8685162
The Scarlet Letter.

Specimen Days.

>>8686868
If he's talked about at all, it's too much

Speaking of OP pic, Lermontov is probably the most underrated Russian classic author. Had he not died 26 years old, Tolstoy would've had to look for other themes as a War and Peace would've been written by Lermontov, and a very different one for sure, probably a War and Peace through the eyes of a Dolokhov-like character.

Too bad Lermontov just literally asked to be killed by provoking his fatal duel and probably sought death.

>>8686868
Nice #'s!

>>8685230
I thought it was just Achilles throwing a tantrum based on what I had gleaned from history class and popular media in high school, and it was, but at the same time so much more

>>8686948
What's updike?

>>8685515

Don't think I've ever seen Pancake mentioned on here before. really dig his stuff though, one of the few American writers I appreciate.

>>8686822

What were your expectations reading it?

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About 30% through. His politics are not my politics but he is a thoroughly enjoyable fellow.

>>8687050
>Achilles throwing a tantrum
Oy vey

>>8687627
Oh he killed himself at 26, I'll give it a read. Short too. I'm on a roll with authors who committed suicide. Tor Ulven's Replacement was incredible.

>>8685162
anon kept recommending his diary so I actually sat down and read it

it was pretty good

>>8685286
this, and lol'd