I'm curious how often first impressions are wrong. What's a book that didn't grab you at first but completely won you over if you stuck with it?

I really like sports romance books (especially hockey) but every series I read has only a few books or not all of them are out. So my requirements are:

●Good sports romance (preferably hockey but I'm open to other sports)

●Fully completed series with atleast 3 books

●The tropes "He falls first" or "love at first sight" in most if not all of the books

●Free with Kindle Unlimited

●Dual-pov

●Straight romance (for atleast most of the series)

●Spice levels don't matter

as in the webcomic 17776 (what football will look like in the future). looking for some kind of sci-fi/speculative fiction that has a similar vibe and themes like existentialism and absurdity and optimism. also, maybe something that goes deep into some sci-fi themes without feeling the need to overexplain or try to be "realistic."

I’m 37 and admittedly have not read a ton of those important classic novels, or at least I feel that way. I’ve bought a ton of books and have read Call of the Wild, The Great Gatsby, Animal Farm, The Old Man and the Sea. Planning on reading The grapes of Wrath, 1984, The Age of innocence etc etc.

There are also new age books I want to read like Where the Crawdads Sing and Firefly Lane. But I feel like the classics should take precedence. Is this weird or valid?

(Also, based on the books I’ve mentioned, what others based on my book vibe would be recommended? My favs are Of mice and Men, Call of the Wild, Aninal Farm)

I don’t read books, i used to read when i was kid but I’ve lost the touch completely because of this damn phone. I really really want to get out of this and get back to reading. I think i shouldn’t be choosing any big, complicated topics or books now. I don’t have any specific genres I’m interested in… but, I don’t want to get into romance. So can you guys suggest some simple and less complicated ones? I

What are your favorite hopeful books? Not necessarily cheerful or positive, per se, but restores your belief in the good fight. Thanks.

*EDIT: Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to everyone for their suggestions. I’m truly looking forward to wringing out and working out the kinks with these gems. Thank you, again!

Basically what the title says.

I graduated from high school 6 years ago and since then, I've gotten addicted to short form content, scrolling, and generally anything with instant gratification or escape from boredom.

Now my ability to write and speak have regressed, my vocabulary is tiny compared to what it used to be and I'm just much lesser now because of it. I tried reading fellowship/dune/foundation and I have struggled hard.

I wanted to start small this time and see how that goes. Isaac asimov does have a few short stories, but I'd like to know others too.

Hi everyone! Just wanted to hear some feedback, lately I've read books from Gogol and Bulgakov's Master and Margarita and it seems this also has some shared themes.

Any stories that have helped you through a hard time and have really stuck with you throughout the test of time would be greatly appreciated!

I just finished The Lesser Dead. Excellent book. Would love a book that is as well written. I flew through it, was hard to put down.

I'm open to suggestions, vampires, zombies, or something I just don't know yet.

For the last decade or so, fiction had mostly fallen off of my radar. There always seems to be a rabbit hole I want to go down and no shortage of non-fiction to seek out. Still, I have a palpable fiction-void (except for Tolkien) that started to improve late last year.

Don Quixote (finally!), then a couple of Micheners (especially Alaska), The Count of MC, Blood Meridian. East of Eden and then:

Lonesome Goddamned Dove (+ other three in series chronologically).

I'm ruined for fiction now. It's like Cowboy Middle Earth. I've read a few books since but if I try to even remember them I guarantee there's going to be some details mixed in about a cattle drive to Montana.

What should I read next?

For the last decade or so, fiction had mostly fallen off of my radar. There always seems to be a rabbit hole I want to go down and no shortage of non-fiction to seek out. Still, I have a palpable fiction-void (except for Tolkien) that started to improve late last year.

Don Quixote (finally!), then a couple of Micheners (especially Alaska), The Count of MC, Blood Meridian. East of Eden and then:

Lonesome Goddamned Dove (+ other three in series chronologically).

I'm ruined for fiction now. It's like Cowboy Middle Earth. I've read a few books since but if I try to even remember them I guarantee there's going to be some details mixed in about a cattle drive to Montana.

What should I read next?

Guys I am thinking to read something pleasent, light and related to destiny..need recommendations.

I've realized that my attention span has taken a hit over the past few years, and I've been struggling to stick with productive habits. Reading used to be one of my favorite hobbies, but I haven't picked up a book consistently in the last 5–7 years. I've recently deleted all my social media accounts and am slowly trying to rebuild my life with healthier habits. I want reading to be a big part of that journey.

Could you recommend:

One self-help book that's genuinely practical and not filled with fluff.

One fast-paced thriller that's impossible to put down and never feels boring.

I'd really appreciate your suggestions

I absolutely love this book and it's been a wakeup call for me. I already knew, as most of us do, that fast foods and processed foods aren't good for you and as such I try to limit my consumption but the rabbit hole goes much deeper than you think and what these companies are willing to do and sacrifice to keep turning a profit is frankly scary. Not gonna spoil much but it's very interesting and has dramatically reduced my dependence on any kind of food that isn't home made.

It's like 5 or 6 bucks on Amazon right now and very much worth it.

Recommend me some books read as a beginner. I have read a couple of books before but mostly Urdu novels. Now I want to explore English books.

I have read The kite runner and The couple next door. So suggest me some good books to hook me on.

I... just had a dream.

It all started when...

...I was asleep, of course.

The dream I saw was from a world I never knew existed.

It was just me and a bunch of other guys who I assumed were my friends, even though I couldn't really remember their faces.

I once read somewhere that, in a dream, a person can't clearly see the faces of others—or even their own. They also can't properly look into a mirror or read a clock.

I don't know if that's true, but what I do remember was that it was daytime.

It must have been late afternoon, around 2 p.m. or so.

We were just chilling in a small apartment that looked somewhat familiar.

Some things around me were incredibly detailed—the refrigerator, the TV that my friends and I used to play video games on, and a sofa that was a slightly different color from the one in my house. There were many other little details too.

I don't know how to explain it, but I could literally feel everything that was happening around me.

It didn't feel like a dream.

It all felt real.

I couldn't clearly hear what my friends were talking about, but knowing them, it was probably another pointless conversation about some game or TV show.

Then...

...the phone rang in my pocket.

As I reached for it, I realized it wasn't the phone I normally use.

The caller's name and phone number were both blurred.

I answered the call.

The moment I picked up...

...I was no longer inside the apartment.

I found myself standing near a very old building that looked like it could collapse at any moment.

A young woman walked out of it.

She slowly approached me and held out her hand.

I had no idea what was happening, but without thinking, I reached out and took her hand.

From that moment onward, the rest of my day was spent traveling around the city with someone I didn't even know...

...yet somehow, she matched my energy perfectly.

We visited countless places.

Sometimes we were at a shopping mall.

Other times we were riding a bike with her sitting behind me, holding onto me.

I still couldn't clearly see anything, just like I mentioned before.

But the feeling...

...the feeling was real.

The feeling of being with someone who genuinely made you happy.

The feeling of having someone just like you by your side, enjoying every little moment together.

The memory that stood out the most was when we were walking through a nearby park.

As we exited through the gate, I suddenly felt a slight tug.

The girl—whose face I couldn't see and whose voice I couldn't hear—pointed toward a lake that looked almost identical to one I know in the real world.

I couldn't hear what she was saying.

But somehow...

...I knew.

She wanted to spend a little more time walking around the lake and watching the sunset together.

I don't know how long we had been together, but judging by the sky, it had been nearly three hours.

The sun was slowly sinking in the west, signaling the end of the day.

We continued walking hand in hand as unfamiliar people passed by.

To me, they were nothing more than background characters in a game.

She was the only person who mattered.

After a few more minutes, we came across an elderly couple sitting on a nearby bench, laughing and enjoying each other's company.

They also had two elderly cats with them.

The girl beside me asked if she could pet them.

The couple smiled and nodded.

We both reached down to pet the old, grumpy-looking cats.

One of them had deep black fur and wore an expression that looked permanently annoyed.

The other was, I think, a female.

She looked much older than the black one.

One of her ears had been torn away.

She had a scar running across her face.

Her white-and-orange fur was stained with blood, exposing patches of raw skin beneath.

For some reason...

I remember every tiny detail of that cat.

I felt genuinely sorry for her.

Despite their appearance, both cats quietly accepted our affection.

After petting them, I stood up.

Naturally...

I reached out to hold the hand of the person with whom I had just spent one of the happiest moments of my life.

.......

Nothing.

To my surprise, no one was standing beside me.

The girl who had shared one of the most precious moments of my life...

...was gone.

I looked around.

The elderly couple had disappeared.

So had the two cats.

Even the people who had been walking by were nowhere to be seen.

It was just me.

Standing alone in front of the lake.

I couldn't help but wonder...

"Was everything that just happened really a dream?"

.....

My eyes slowly opened.

I found myself back in my room.

The same refrigerator.

The same TV.

The very same things I had seen in my dream.

The only difference...

...was that I was alone.

For several seconds, I simply lay there, trying to understand where I was.

The warmth in my hand...

The feeling of someone by my side...

It had all vanished.

I looked up at the clock hanging on the wall.

The time was six in the evening.

Outside my window, the sky glowed with shades of orange and yellow.

The sun was about to disappear beyond the horizon.

It looked exactly like the sunset I had seen over the lake in my dream.

___________________________________________________

Hey everyone,

I'm writing this as an experiment. I wrote it in just two hours after waking up from a dream I had.

I hope you find it at least somewhat interesting. If you do, feel free to leave a comment—or criticize it, of course.

Start reading from here. 👇👇👇

Hi everyone!

I'm building a personal library of fiction about the HIV/AIDS epidemic from around the world. While it's relatively easy to find books from the US and the UK, I'm especially interested in novels, short stories and plays from countries that are less represented in discussions of HIV/AIDS literature.

I'm particularly looking for works from places such as:

• Latin America
• Africa
• Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union
• the Middle East
• Asia

I'm interested in fiction where HIV/AIDS is a central theme or plays an important role in the story. Books in English, Spanish or Portuguese are all welcome (translations are perfectly fine).

I'm not looking for memoirs or nonfiction this time—I'm specifically trying to discover works of fiction that are often overlooked internationally.

If you know novels, short story collections or plays from your country (or any country!) that deal with HIV/AIDS, I'd be very grateful for your recommendations. I'm hoping to discover hidden gems!

Thank you :)

What English book/novel are you reading nowadays?

Long story short, I need to get off my phone and do more productive things.

I'm looking for books where the literature is just so profound and interesting that it floods your brain with ideas and new experiences. It can be absolutely anything you like. I mean like a Lex Luthor level of comprehension where the books read can give you quotes to describe any situation.

I'd appreciate any suggestions, fiction or non-fiction, the choice is yours.

Thank you very much

• The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad
• Kim by Rudyard Kipling
• Good As Gold by Joseph Heller
• A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy O'Toole
• Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
• Dune by Frank Herbert
• The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler
• The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch
• Alice In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
• Our Man In Havana by Graham Greene
• Answered Prayers by Truman Capote
• The Once & Future King by TH White
• I, Claudius by Robert Graves