I read Crime & Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky. I was delighted with Raskolnikov and the philosophical flights of argument he maintained throughout the story. There is a Russian literary theorist named Mikhail Bakhtin who introduced key elements to the understanding of Dostoevsky’s work. I don’t wish to provide any biographical information about Dostoevsky. Anyone can read more about his tumultuous life on the web. I have read some of his other novels too. There are many great Russian authors and I count Dostoevsky as one of the greatest. To this day, I still enjoy reading his tales.
When it comes to fantastical storytellers, I count Haruki Murakami as one of the best. In my 30s, I read 1Q84. The story switches back and forth between two characters: Tengo and Aomame. Aomame is a female assassin working for a powerful female figure. Tengo is a childhood love of Aomame. The story includes a detective trying to unravel the goings-on of the actions described in the novel including a cult, a best-selling novel, and two moons. While reading Haruki Murakami, I always have a sense that the walls are moving outward. It doesn’t take long to get hooked by this one.
Obviously, picking only three books that have had an impact on me is quite limiting. I think every book I have ever read has had an impact on me. I could list ten and write a paragraph on each before the night’s end. I would like to include the non-fiction work Henry David Thoreau’s Walden on this list. However, the third book I have considered to write about is one I have yet to read: The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones. How could you go wrong with a horror tale that takes place in the American West in the 1900s (with vampires!)? Wow. I’m really excited to read this one.
Indiebeats 