Life changing book

[HandbagsnGladrags]

OK maybe not life changing but am looking for one of those books which stays with you for a long time for an upcoming holiday. I read lots of run of the mill books but like to have a 'special' one for a holiday that I can look forward to reading. Here are some of the ones I've read and loved so far which I would define as 'special':

Lessons in Chemistry
Where the Crawdads Sing
And The Mountains Echoed
The Kite Runner
A Terrible Kindness
The Paper Palace

Would love to hear your favourites?

Music and Silence is a masterpiece. As is Restoration by the same author.

Slightly left field, but American Gods by Neil Gaiman stayed with me a long time after I first read it.

Is The Lord of the Rings too obvious?!

American dirt
eleanor oliphant
The Long Walk by Stephen King
The Rats by James Herbert - has stayed with me for all the wrong reasons 😆
loved The Giver of Stars

Eek I'm going to need multiple holidays to get through all of these! Thanks everyone.

I was just about to write this EXACT post, about both books. Uncanny.

The Road has haunted me ever since I read it. My sons were a similar age to the boy in the book. I sobbed and sobbed at the thought of them going through the same thing. Honestly, I am quite a non-crier in general life but that book.......

Midnight Library - it's Emperor's New Clothes IMO. Badly written, cheesey, unoriginal. Sorry, Matt.

Oh yes, Eleanor Oliphant! Yeah, that's a good'un!

The Giver of Stars - Jojo Moyes - got me back into reading after several months when I read nothing

Also completely fell in love with Still Life by Sarah Winman.

The Song of Achilles
Elinor Oliphant is Completely Fine

Agree on Burial Rites.
Also loved Golden Hill by Francis Spufford. Fantastic book.
The Stand by Stephen King
Out of Love by Victoria Clayton

Oh and if going much older....Manhattan Transfer. That's a proper life changing book.

All the light you cannot see
American Dirt
A Gentleman in Moscow
A prayer for Owen Meany

@CurlyhairedAssassin that is spooky!

yep, The Road is incredible. I’ve never read anything that moved me so much since I read it over a decade ago.

OK so I'm going again, just in case you didn't hear me the first time.....

Burial rites - hannah Kent

Also loved All The Light We Cannot See

Have you tried Life After Life by Kate Atkinson bloody marvellous

Mudbound by Hilary Jordan is immensely powerc6

Nothing to add but want to mark my place - I used to LOVE escaping into a book but haven’t done it for years.

Will add some of these to my kindle and see how I get on.

Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer

The first last kiss, I can't remember the author's name.

Both books in my mind are absolutely sublime and really bring home what's important in life.

My favourite books this year:

Captain Corelli's Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.

The Poisonwood Bible
Can't believe no one has said it yet! Best thing I ever read in my life.

Also another vote for others that I'd consider to be 'up there':
Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine
Captain Corellis mandolin or anything by Louis de bernieres
Anything by Kate Atkinson

I read a weird book this year which really stayed with me and I'm recommending it although it's very different to what I'd normally go for: the ocean at the end of the lane by Neil gaiman. Bizarre and extremely beautiful, especially the redemption at the end.

In addition to The Kite Runner, Birdsong and others that have already been mentioned:

A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth

I forgot about the poisonwood bible! Amazing book.

Also The Lacuna by the same writer.

Was just coming on here to say The Poisonwood Bible. Has really stayed with me.

Birdsong ditto.

Song of Achiles. Really loved this too.

The Heart's Invisible Furies is one of those books I wish I hadn't read because I'd still have it to look forward to. Brilliant book.

Interesting to see The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy mentioned. One of my favourite books of all time.

A Gentleman In Moscow - beautiful writing, really funny at times, main character is just perfect.

Beloved, Toni Morrison. Everyone should read this.

We Need To Talk About Kevin is haunting and unputdownable.

The Time Traveller’s Wife is so much better than the film.

Atonement, Ian McEwan. Best thing he’s ever written.

American Wife, Curtis Sittenfield. Inspired by Barbara Bush. I think about this years later.

And for classics: you can’t read the Sherlock Holmes stories and not love them, and Armadale by Wilkie Collins has one of the best villains you root for (Lydia Gwilt) that you’ll ever read.

Perfume by Patrick Suskind is good.

Shantaram
The Kite Runner
A thousand splendid suns

classics - the picture of Dorian Gray, Les Miserables

I've since found the writing style is a bit marmite, but 'if nobody speaks of remarkable things' has stayed with me for years and years.

Most recently - crawdads, of course, and I've just read It Ends with Us which is memorable for completely different reasons.

Oh, I'd forgotten Golden Hill. A tour de force.
Talk of The Poisonwood Bible reminds me of what I think is actually Kingsolver's masterpiece: Prodigal Summer.