Good fiction?

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lotusblossom

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Hi!
I have a 30-45 minute commute by train each day to work, so I spend at least most of that awake and love to read. I’ve been doing this commute for the past four years during breaks and have read every book on my shelf almost.

I’m looking for suggestions for good fiction novels and such (Catholic would be a plus!). I’m reading Michael O’Brien’s books right now, and read at least 3-4 times Pierced by a Sword and the other two by Bud MacFarlane. I’ve tried theology books (which I LOVE), but I need more entertainment than learning after spending 8-9 hrs in front of a computer with numbers.

So, any suggestions? 🙂
 
Lord of the Rings. Although not overtly Catholic it’s entire outlook is Catholic by the devoutly Catholic author, J. R. R. Tolkien. It’s quite entertaining, as well, and will take months to read, so you won’t lack reading material until spring!
 
lotusblossom said:
Hi!
I have a 30-45 minute commute by train each day to work, so I spend at least most of that awake and love to read. I’ve been doing this commute for the past four years during breaks and have read every book on my shelf almost.

I’m looking for suggestions for good fiction novels and such (Catholic would be a plus!). I’m reading Michael O’Brien’s books right now, and read at least 3-4 times Pierced by a Sword and the other two by Bud MacFarlane. I’ve tried theology books (which I LOVE), but I need more entertainment than learning after spending 8-9 hrs in front of a computer with numbers.

So, any suggestions? 🙂
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How about Patrick O’Brian? One of the main characters is a Catholic (though not always an ideal one), and the books are fascinating historical novels set in the Napoleonic Wars. The first one is slow-going but once you get hooked they are wonderful.

Edwin
 
Louis de Wohl has several great fictionalized biographies of saints and other Christian heroes I read them in HS and college, they are probably still available, try library or Ignatius Press.
 
lotusblossom said:
Hi!
I have a 30-45 minute commute by train each day to work, so I spend at least most of that awake and love to read. I’ve been doing this commute for the past four years during breaks and have read every book on my shelf almost.

I’m looking for suggestions for good fiction novels and such (Catholic would be a plus!). I’m reading Michael O’Brien’s books right now, and read at least 3-4 times Pierced by a Sword and the other two by Bud MacFarlane. I’ve tried theology books (which I LOVE), but I need more entertainment than learning after spending 8-9 hrs in front of a computer with numbers.

So, any suggestions? 🙂
Click to expand...
Have you heard of the Loyola Classics series, edited by Amy Welorn? Here’s the link:

loyolabooks.org/seriesdetail.asp?prodcatname=Loyola%20Classics

I’ve read several books in the series. I recommend all of John Powers’ books- they’re hilarious! “North of Hope” by Jan Hassler is considerably darker, but quite good.

Pax Tecum,
Jay
 
There is a great “Catholic” book I recommend at every opportunity. It is considered by Italians to be the top one or two Italian novels ever produced. “I Promessi Sposi” or “The Betrothed” or “Promise of Fidelity” by Alessandro Manzoni. There are a few different translations out there, but there are two which I recommend highly:

Promise of Fidelity translated by Omero Sabatini

and

The Betrothed translated by Bruce Penman.

They are from the same original book, but the Sabatini version has been adapted a little into an easier style to read and follow.

I would strongly recommend getting the “Promise of Fidelity” version (Omero Sabatini) for reading on the train first. Then, if you like it (and you will) you can get the Penman version another time.
Doing it this way makes the second reading fantastic because you have the overall story in your head while being able to follow Manzoni’s storyline more easily and you’ll be better able to catch his wry style of writing without feeling bogged down. He is very clever and subtle about his humor. Great book. I’m not kidding—if I knew you I’d buy you a copy myself.
 
Contarini said:
How about Patrick O’Brian? One of the main characters is a Catholic (though not always an ideal one), and the books are fascinating historical novels set in the Napoleonic Wars. The first one is slow-going but once you get hooked they are wonderful.

Edwin
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I give this my whole-hearted thumbs up:thumbsup: ! The first book is slow-going but I read the remaining 19 1/2 almost non-stop.
 
You could go to Dappled Things online magazine and print out stories and essays from their website. They have a lot of nice stuff, plus it is all written by solid young Catholic authors.

They feature very varied sorts of stories and I’m sure you’ll find something great in each issue.
 
Like someone else said, Tolkien is always a great choise, if you like fantasy. I just finished reading a truely awsome book. Again if you like fantasy you’ll love this book. Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke. It’s the best fantasy book I’ve read aside from Tolkien, though I would say it isn’t your general fantasy. It has fantastical ellements, but not overtly fantasy. It is over 800 pages long, so for some people that might be a draw back. And you do have to get past the first 40 or 50 pages before it picks up.
Another great book I read this year was The Scarlet Pimpernel of the Vatican (sorry, can’t remember the author). It’s non fiction, but a really great read. The movie The Scarlet and the black was based on it.
Theres always one of my personal favorites, which is Jane Austen. Classic writer. You can never go wrong with her.
 
Originally Posted by Contarini
How about Patrick O’Brian? One of the main characters is a Catholic (though not always an ideal one), and the books are fascinating historical novels set in the Napoleonic Wars. The first one is slow-going but once you get hooked they are wonderful.
Click to expand...
Edwin
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brotherhrolf said:
I give this my whole-hearted thumbs up:thumbsup: ! The first book is slow-going but I read the remaining 19 1/2 almost non-stop.
Click to expand...
I had a hard time getting into that first book several years ago and gave away my copy. I bought it again a little while back and couldn’t resist the cool “Harbors and High Seas” (atlas and geographical guide to the novels) to go along with it.
As I read Master and Commander now it seems easier to get into than I remember. (*I have stopped reading it again, but not because of the book----I sometimes indulge my bad habit as a “book jumper” * :whacky: )
 
lotusblossom said:
Hi!
I have a 30-45 minute commute by train each day to work, so I spend at least most of that awake and love to read. I’ve been doing this commute for the past four years during breaks and have read every book on my shelf almost.

I’m looking for suggestions for good fiction novels and such (Catholic would be a plus!). I’m reading Michael O’Brien’s books right now, and read at least 3-4 times Pierced by a Sword and the other two by Bud MacFarlane. I’ve tried theology books (which I LOVE), but I need more entertainment than learning after spending 8-9 hrs in front of a computer with numbers.

So, any suggestions? 🙂
Click to expand...
Hello,

I have not read through all of the threads yet but, I have just finished a brand new book. It is by Phil Harris and is call “Cry for the shadows” It is a new fictional book about abortion. It is short and very interesting. I highly recommend it you can order the book at cyberpersonics-store.com.
 
NPS said:
I had a hard time getting into that first book several years ago and gave away my copy. I bought it again a little while back and couldn’t resist the cool “Harbors and High Seas” (atlas and geographical guide to the novels) to go along with it.
As I read Master and Commander now it seems easier to get into than I remember. (*I have stopped reading it again, but not because of the book----I sometimes indulge my bad habit as a “book jumper” * :whacky: )
Click to expand...
Me too. I was reading Richard Adams’s *Plague Dogs *for a while (depressing and disturbing, but very moving, and IMHO a great attack on the inhumanity of modern materialism), and I haven’t picked it up recently. That’s one of the reasons I took a while to get into O’Brian as well–I kept starting the book and just wandering off to something else.

And I wouldn’t like to tell you how many times I started *War and Peace *and *Anna Karenina *before I finally made it through them. . .

Edwin
 
Paradise Passed, it’s science fiction but not overtly. It deals with a group of people who have traveled to Alpha Centari to colonize planets there. It deals with what happens when you find a planet and new life not of Earth.

I’d also recommend Joan Hess. She writes murder mysteries and they are absolutely hilarious. The characters are funny. She writes two different series with the main characters are women. And they tend to be the only sane ones. The one main character, Claire Malloy, is a widow and mother to a teenager who talks in capital letters. The other main character in the other series is Arly Hanks who’s chief of police in this little backwater town in Arkansas (both series take place in Arkansas) where pretty much everyone is related to everyone else, most people don’t have much common sense, and the names are oddball.
 
If you like suspense, try Mary Higgins Clark’s books. She is Catholic and the majority of her characters are Catholic (you see them going to Mass, etc.) and the books are very well-written. I’d suggest skipping “Stillwatch” and “Weep No More, My Lady” since both books deal with either a pre-marital or extra-marital affair (and interestingly enough, neither book was one of her biggest sellers!)
 
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh. About a Catholic family in England. Also a very funny book.
 
Read my books! They’re fun and entertaining, but they’re written with a God-centered universe and have some thought-provoking themes.

I wrote them for older children and teenagers, but adults enjoy them, too. Many adults tell me that they bring back wonderful memories.

Here’s the website with ordering information and sample chapters:

jazzicals.com

The second novel, The Capitol Ghost, features an overtly “Catholic” plot and characters. A real Cathedral in Raleigh, North Carolina, is one of the settings for the plot.

Have fun!
 
I have read almost all of Jodi Picoult’s novels. They are interesting and hard to put down.
Kathy
 
Any Walker Percey or Flannery O’Connor novel, if you like the Southern lifestyle.
 
How about Quo Vadis?

I (finally) read that this summer and enjoyed it a lot.
 
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