Books that are painful to read, but EVERYONE should!

[expatinscotland]

I'll start:

Schindler's List

All Quiet on the Western Front

The Colour Purple

Lucky/The Lovely Bones

Wild Swans - 3 daughters of china by Jung Chang

amazing and true book about 3 generations of women growing up in china before and during the cultural revolution.

A great read, and highly recommended!!

Also loved Primo levi, as mentioned :)

collision - agree with A Boy Called It. Found it very difficult to read. Helped to then go on and read a Man named Dave.

yes but its a ll a pile of crap isnt it? think he made it up
his borthers duspute it

In Cold Blood
Tuesdays with Morrie
The Kiterunner
La Voz Dormida - The Sleeping Voice

Store up the anger - Wesssl Ebersohn. - South African book written about the apartied years. Has a harrowing description of the death of a young black man in police custordy (very Steve Biko). I can remember shaking with anger whilst reading it....

If this is a man.

One day in the life of...

Hannah's gift, so so sad.

Agree re Never Let Me Go, we are discussing it at book group later this month. Also love Goodbye Mr Tom, makes me cry every time I read it. I find Tess of the D'urbervilles painful, but love Hardy.

The Joy Luck Club -- nearly lost it when she leaves her babies 'cos she can't carry them anymore ...

God that Dave Pelzer is a man who has elevated whingeing to a fine art isn't he??
Just watch while he churns out even more self obsessed crap

'Dave:a mid life crisis'
'A semi retiree called Dave'
'Dave deals with depression after a prostate scare'
'Dave,Dementia and Demons;the fight goes on'
'Goodbye Dave'

What an arse he is.....

moondog - can't believe any human being with an ounce of feeling could say such a thing. His case is the 2nd worst case of child abuse documented in California. If he is "whingeing" I would be interested to hear what you deem as child abuse. I am stunned

Senorcod - his brothers probably dispute it because they were upstairs enjoying a "normal" life and didn't half of what went on.

\link{http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0747538328/qid=1143983960/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_2_1/202-2131963-1022257#product-details\here's one for you Issymum. The Color of Water - a black man's tribute to his white mother}

Moondog doesn't like whingers, mymama.

Primo Levi, definitely - 'If This Is A Man', certainly, but also 'The Drowned and The Saved' for some of the more harrowing details of how the killing was carried out and one incredible chapter where he details his feelings towards Germans.

The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood - read post-children, I wept at nearly every paragraph. Also, somehow, though I haven't thought through how, it seems important to have read it given today's political climate.

second worst mymamma?
How does one measure such things, ray??

between two eternaties.. a story written like it was by the prem baby and his fight for life. oh its so sad.

oi misdee, can I have that back??

yup, i finished it just before the holiday. i really thought it would be a happy ending.

Misdee, I had to go order that now- at you for making me spend money!

Shall nick it back from DH

But at least Amazon tells you the ending

whingers!! I don't like whingers either, but forcing a child to eat his own vomit on a regular basis would be classed as a little more than whingeing to me. I would be interested to hear moondog's version of cruelty.

SICKENED IS HORRENDOUS oh sorry for the caps also lovely bones unfortunatley took that one on my honey moon no one warned me what is was about really upset me
i found angelas ashes really hard to read as mum said if you read this you'll understand what is was to be like us she grew up in nottinghams suburbs in the 60's and it was a similar situation

PandaG the Guardian on line had a Q&A with Ishiguro last month if you want to be a real smart arse at you book group discussion

I red NLMG 12 months ago and it still gives me haunting dreams

Don't let's go to the dogs tonight by Alexendra Fuller is a great book but god does it ever haunt me
I also read an account of the Magdelene laundries in Ireland, which was gut wrenching
Once in a House on Fire Andrea Ashworth

Harpsi,Alexandra Fuller was inschool with my cousins in Malawi.
Yes it does haunt doesn't it? I still think about it regularly.
Mymama,I bet he made it up.like that Millon Little Pieces bloke.

If you like the Alexandra Fuller book, "Before the Knife - Memories of an African Childhood" by Carolyn Slaughter is also excellent, but even grimmer.