Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

[Cato]

Drake,

Consume until your heart's content...and hopefully it will never be; nor, could it be. I was the big science, math and history guy throughout my formal learning. I did well enough at literature to make the grade, but that was it.

I'm 42 now and didn't discover literature 'as an art' until I was in my thirties. I honestly don't think I could have understood the purpose and beauty of fiction until that age. I still prefer non-fiction; however, proper fiction gives everything perspective. What's proper fiction? Only you can say.

I'm currenlty discovering Wodehouse. Old P.G. isn't everything I was told he would be; however, I can't wait to devour the next bit of Jeeves. His analogies, so far, are unmatched. I cannot know your exposure, but in my experience, the works of Shakespeare that I wasn't forced to read were the best.

JonB fancied himself a Joseph Conrad fan. Later, ShellB recommended 'Heart of Darkness'. For what it's worth, I cannot recommend 'Heart of Darkness' more; although, I preferred 'Lord Jim'. I would read 'Heart of Darkness' first though. Enough for now, later!

[Faith No More]

I actually found a first edition copy of "1984" at my grandmother's house and took it home, but when my dad saw it on my bookshelf, he claimed that my grandmother had given him all of her books and took it. I will get it back eventually, though.

As others have said, "Heart of Darkness" is absolutely brilliant. In fact, it may very well be my favorite book. If you've ever seen the movie "Apocolypse Now," it is simply a retelling of "Heart of Darkness" in the Vietnam War instead of the British conquests of the Congo in the 19th century.

Other books I've really enjoyed are:

"A Scanner Darkly" by Phillip K. Dick
"One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" by Ken Kesey
"A Clockwork Orange" by Anthony Burgess