Whats some good advanced literature?

Question

im really into reading and i am damn good at it but i am having a hard time finding something challenging, ive read Truman Capote, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald and more, but i cant seem to find any other authors or titles that are just as or more challenging to read, i love a good challenge

Answer 1

Time Magazine has a list online--search 100 greatest books of the 20th Century. If you want a real challenge, however, read Charles Dickens, especially David Copperfield and Great Expectations. I also recommend The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden by John Steinbeck. And have you read Gone with the Wind and Catcher in the Rye? If you like Hemingway, try James Michener. Well--you asked!

To enhance your reading pleasure and comprehension, read critiques of the books you read--you'll find some online. They will help you discern the moral lessons intended by the author. You know how sometimes when you finish a book you think, "What was that all about?" Reading the writing of some of these critics will make it crystal clear. It will also help you know the characters better and get inside their heads. Always glad to help a fellow reader.

Wait! Don't miss Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. That's the book and movie that made me respect books and look at reading as a right and a privilege.

Answer 2

It sounds like you've read (and enjoyed?) mid-20th Century American writers. I think Sometimes a Great Notion by Ken Kesey is a good starter-- its style and form are perplexing and the writing is rich. Since it's challenging (moderately) on only a formal level, you'll be able to connect with the story and understand the plot.
Moving up the ladder, try Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon. It's difficult to follow and some of the references will probably be unfamiliar, but damn is it a great read.
Hearing I liked Pynchon, a friend suggested anything by Umberto Eco. I've yet to try.
Good luck and have fun!

Answer 3

Well, I'm not sure if it's going to be a challenge for you but have you ever read "Lust For Life" by Irving Stone? It's a great book about Vincent Van Gogh. Check it out! And also I see your a Capote reader, try "In Cold Blood" if you haven't read it yet.

Answer 4

Many good names mentioned here - James Joyce, Ayn Rand etc. I would add Don Quixote and Les Miserables to that list. Sometimes reading a really long challenging book feels so wonderful. It is a great experience and you are so much more enriched when you are done. Enjoy. Pax - C.

Answer 5

No modern author has greater literature. it really is 2006, the creation of an era the position artwork and literature regrettably seem out of date. To be honest, how can one write in a time the position the muse is lacking and no the position to be discovered.

Answer 6

My top picks for advanced literature:

The Bible - very difficult to understand at some points and very long

"The Count of Monte Cristo" - by Alexandre Dumas; can be challenging because of length, but is completely absorbing

"The Odyssey," "Plutarch's Lives," "The Aeneid" - extremely old stories that make you feel like you've acomplished something by reading them

Answer 7

You should go into depth with Greek Mythology and if you want go down into more details, read the four Vedas of Indian Origin like the Yechur Vedha, Adharva Vedha, etc.

Answer 8

You should read the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. Some of the stories are a little dirty. Hope you like it.

Answer 9

James Joyce, J.M. Coetzee, Rilke.

Answer 10

Read Faulkner, or James Joyce. Can't get much more challenging than that.