What to read on New Year's holidays

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

New Year is not only a tree and gifts, but also a long weekend. Things to do? The simplest thing is to take yourself a mini-vacation and fly away somewhere where the ocean, the beach and the sun are. But not everyone has such an opportunity. Our selection is for those who stay at home and love to read. We present to your attention 13 fun books for a cozy stay with a blanket and cocoa.

1. "Twelve chairs"

A satirical novel by Ilya Ilf and Yevgeny Petrov, in which the great strategist Ostap Bender and the retired leader of the nobility Vorobyaninov embark on another adventure. The book has long been scattered into quotes and has been filmed more than once. But this is the case when you can endlessly revise and reread. Do not get bored! On the contrary, with each reading you will find something new for yourself.

2. "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"

A novel by the English writer Douglas Adams, giving an answer to the main question of life, the Universe and all that. It will appeal to those who love science fiction and are not devoid of a sense of humor. The book is easy to read, and the author's satire is as simple as it is witty. Together with Arthur Philip Dent, the manic-depressive robot Marvin and other characters, you will embark on an intergalactic journey and realize that on the scale of the universe, our pressing problems are not so global.

3. "One Hundred Years of Solitude"

A novel by Nobel laureate Gabriel García Márquez that pushes the boundaries of the real to the boundaries of the fantastic. One of the most widely read and translated works in Spanish. The red thread of the story is the theme of loneliness. This feeling is not just a vice of the Buendía family and the essence of the city of Macondo. Loneliness is familiar to all of us. The book captures from the first pages and leaves a long aftertaste. What a pity that she has no sequel …

4. "Monday starts on Saturday"

In this humorous story, the Strugatsky brothers talk about the possibility of a talented person to focus on scientific creativity and knowledge of the secrets of the Universe. Together with the programmer Alexander Privalov, on New Year's Eve, you will stay on duty at NIICHAVO (Research Institute of Witchcraft and Wizardry) and meet all the opportunists, bureaucrats and pseudo-experts skillfully ridiculed in the book.

5. "Jonathan Livingston Seagull"

Richard Bach's story-parable, a sermon on self-improvement and self-sacrifice, a manifesto of boundless spiritual freedom. The book tells about a seagull that learned to fly. According to the author, he was inspired to write this story by the flights of the real pilot John Livingston. Like many other works by Bach, The Seagull is a multi-layered tale. Each reader perceives only that part of the content that he is ready to understand.

6. "Evenings on a farm near Dikanka"

With age, you perceive works from the school curriculum differently. You begin to appreciate Nikolai Gogol's brilliant satire and learn from his writings. "The Night Before Christmas" is a story included in the two-volume Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka. This Christmas tale, like the entire book, can be read aloud by the whole family. The story of the brave Vakul, the capricious Oksana, the insidious Devil, Solokha, the Head and the Dyak will be equally interesting for both children and adults.

7. "Flowers for Algernon"

Sci-fi short story and novel by Daniel Keyes. The main character is mentally retarded Charlie Gordon, who became, as a result of a scientific experiment, one of the smartest people on the planet. This is a poignant story about the extremes of human nature - cruelty and mercy. First, a story was written, for which the author received the Hugo Prize. Later, Keyes completed the story to a full-fledged novel (under the same title) and received the Nebula Prize.

8. To Kill a Mockingbird

An amazing in its atmosphere novel by Harper Lee, helping children to grow up, and adults - not to forget what it means to be a child. The action takes place in a small town in the South of America. Through the eyes of a little girl, the reader sees what it is like to be an honest lawyer, and what it is like to be a black youth accused of raping a white girl. The book, childishly naive, raises questions of tolerance and bigotry, which should have remained there in the 1930s, but are still relevant to this day.

9. "Three comrades"

Erich Maria Remarque's novel about true friendship and true love. One of the few non-military works of the author. Three comrades - Robert Lokamp, Otto Kester and Gottfried Lenz - run a small auto repair shop. They went through the crucible of the First World War, but did not forget how to believe each other and come to the rescue. Therefore, when Robert's beloved is in trouble, he has someone to rely on.

10. "The Master and Margarita"

Classics of Russian literature. But at the same time, Mikhail Bulgakov's novel is not like everything that was in it earlier. From the first pages you plunge into the world of mysticism and irony and you cannot tear yourself away until the very end. Even if you have already read The Master and Margarita, New Year's holidays is a great time to visit a bad apartment again, go to Satan's ball, stand on Pontius Pilate's balcony, fly with Margarita and make sure that the manuscripts do not burn!

11. "The Catcher in the Rye"

A novel by American writer Jerome Salinger about youth, rebellion and the desire for freedom. Seventeen-year-old Holden, with his youthful maximalism, expresses his rejection of deceitful public morality. The work was immensely popular and had a significant impact on the culture of the twentieth century. Publishing House Modern Library included it in the list of the 100 best English-language novels of the last century.

12. "Just together"

A good and kind novel by the French writer Anna Gavald about three completely different people who turned out to be flatmates. The main characters were not lucky either with their families or with the characters. But through personal relationships, quarrels and reconciliation, disputes and consent, they suddenly find inner harmony and begin to feel the taste of life. The book was filmed in 2007. If you've seen the movie, be sure to compare it to the original source.

13. "Blackberry Wine"

This is an easy adult fairy tale written by Joanne Harris. People need fairy tales, and adults even more than children. Do not be surprised when you realize that the story is being told in the name of … wine. After all, wine is capable of working miracles and discovering new worlds. A confused and seemingly lost talent writer named Jay recalls the best moments of his childhood and sets off in search of himself. It is pleasant to read the book over a cup of aromatic warming mulled wine.