Širak's bookshelf: all en-US Sun, 26 Oct 2025 01:31:54 -0700 60 Širak's bookshelf: all 144 41 https://www.goodreads.com/images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 2666 63032 1128 Roberto Bolaño 843396867X Širak 0 to-read 4.23 2004 2666
author: Roberto Bolaño
name: Širak
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2004
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/10/26
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]]> <![CDATA[The Unbearable Lightness of Being]]> 9717 The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera tells the story of a young woman in love with a man torn between his love for her and his incorrigible womanizing and one of his mistresses and her humbly faithful lover. This magnificent novel juxtaposes geographically distant places, brilliant and playful reflections, and a variety of styles, to take its place as perhaps the major achievement of one of the world’s truly great writers.]]> 314 Milan Kundera 0571224385 Širak 0 to-read 4.11 1984 The Unbearable Lightness of Being
author: Milan Kundera
name: Širak
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1984
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/05/28
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]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)]]> 6 734 J.K. Rowling 0439139597 Širak 5 4.56 2000 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Širak
average rating: 4.56
book published: 2000
rating: 5
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date added: 2024/04/04
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]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)]]> 136251
In this final, seventh installment of the Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling unveils in spectacular fashion the answers to the many questions that have been so eagerly awaited.]]> 759 J.K. Rowling Širak 5 4.61 2007 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Širak
average rating: 4.61
book published: 2007
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter, #6)]]> 1 652 J.K. Rowling Širak 5 4.57 2005 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter, #6)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Širak
average rating: 4.57
book published: 2005
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter, #5)]]> 2
There is a door at the end of a silent corridor. And it's haunting Harry Potter's dreams. Why else would he be waking in the middle of the night, screaming in terror? It's not just the upcoming O.W.L. exams; a new teacher with a personality like poisoned honey; a venomous, disgruntled house-elf; or even the growing threat of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Now Harry Potter is faced with the unreliability of the very government of the magical world and the impotence of the authorities at Hogwarts. Despite this (or perhaps because of it), he finds depth and strength in his friends, beyond what even he knew; boundless loyalty; and unbearable sacrifice.

This stunning illustrated edition brings together the talents of award-winning artists Jim Kay and Neil Packer in a visual feast, featuring iconic scenes and much loved characters -- Tonks, Luna Love good, and many more -- as the Order of the Phoenix keeps watch over Harry Potter’s fifth year at Hogwarts. With its oversized format, high-quality paper, ribbon bookmark, and color on nearly every page, this edition is the perfect gift for Harry Potter fans and book lovers of all ages.]]> 576 J.K. Rowling Širak 5 4.50 2003 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter, #5)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Širak
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2003
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2)]]> 15881
And strike it does. For in Harry’s second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageously stuck-up new professor and a spirit who haunts the girls’ bathroom. But then the real trouble begins – someone is turning Hogwarts students to stone. Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever? Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told? Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects… Harry Potter himself!]]> 341 J.K. Rowling Širak 5 4.42 1998 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Harry Potter, #2)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Širak
average rating: 4.42
book published: 1998
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3)]]> 5 547 J.K. Rowling 043965548X Širak 5 4.57 1999 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Harry Potter, #3)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Širak
average rating: 4.57
book published: 1999
rating: 5
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]]> Knygą gali parašyti bet kas 42139996
Knygoje „Knygą gali parašyti bet kas“ rasite 7 tekstus ir 80 paties autoriaus sukurtų iliustracijų, kurias vizualizavo ir leidiniui pritaikė iliustratorė Gintarė Kavaliauskaitė. Olego tekstai knygoje – tarsi trumpi stand-up pasirodymai, kuriuose rasite tik šiam komikui būdingo drąsaus, aštraus humoro, kartais ironijos ar sarkazmo ribą peržengiančios socialinės kritikos ir net visiškai netikėto atvirumo bei nuoširdžių prisipažinimų.

Knygoje „Knygą gali parašyti bet kas“ aprašytos įvairios gyvenimiškos situacijos, autorius naudoja skirtingus komedijos žanrus ir, kaip pats teigia, šia knyga nepretenduoja į literatūrą, o tiesiog siūlo skaitytojui pramogą.

O. Šurajevas yra sakęs, kad nuo pat vaikystės jautė, jog jis mąsto kažkaip kitaip nei visi ir kelia keistesnius klausimus nei iš jo tikimasi. Gana ilgą laiką jis to savo kitoniškumo gėdijosi, tačiau galiausiai suprato, jog tai ir yra jo jėga ir stiprybė. Dabar Olegas drąsiai kalba ir rašo tik tai, ką galvoja, atvirai ir drąsiai kritikuoja bei analizuoja šalies gyvenimą – politiką, kultūrą ir leidžiasi į filosofines diskusijas apie gyvenimo prasmę ir žmonių elgesio motyvus. Jo mąstymo kitoniškumas akivaizdus ir knygoje „Knygą gali parašyti bet kas“. Ją perskaityti galite maždaug per porą valandų, tačiau dar ilgai nešiositės šypsenas ir mintis, kurias ji sukels.

Oleg Šurajev yra populiarus rusų ir ukrainiečių kilmės lietuvių komikas. Jau po pirmojo savo stand-up pasirodymo jis sulaukė prieštaringų vertinimų dėl itin atvirų ir aštrių pasisakymų, tačiau daug kam patiko šviežio oro gūsis Lietuvos humoro scenoje, todėl komikas pradėjo rinkti ištikimų gerbėjų būrį. Vėliau Olegas kūrė TV ir interneto projektus, subūrė tūkstančius gerbėjų socialiniuose tinkluose. 2018 metais autorius pristatė vaidybinį filmą „Grąžinti nepriklausomybę“ – buvo vienas iš scenarijaus autorių bei prodiuserių.

„Knygą gali parašyti bet kas“ – pirmoji Olego knyga, kurioje jis teigia išnaudojęs galimybę pasakyti daugiau ir kitaip nei tai daro socialinėje erdvėje. Savo projektuose, rengiamose laidose, interviu ar pasisakymuose Olegas dažnai provokuoja, nebijo nejaukių socialinių situacijų, kurios atskleidžia visuomenės stereotipus ir demaskuoja melą, kurį toleruojame kaip mandagumą.]]> 112 Oleg Surajev 6094752090 Širak 5 3.66 2018 Knygą gali parašyti bet kas
author: Oleg Surajev
name: Širak
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2018
rating: 5
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]]> The Little Prince 157993 96 Antoine de Saint-Exupéry 0152023984 Širak 5 4.33 1943 The Little Prince
author: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
name: Širak
average rating: 4.33
book published: 1943
rating: 5
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date added: 2024/04/02
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]]> <![CDATA[The Most Beautiful Woman in Town & Other Stories]]> 50451
Bukowski's writings have addicted legions of American readers, even though the high literary establishment continues to ignore them. In Europe, however (particularly in Germany, Italy, and France, where he is published by the great publishing houses), Bukowski is critically recognized as one of America's greatest realist writers.]]> 240 Charles Bukowski 0872861562 Širak 5 3.98 1983 The Most Beautiful Woman in Town & Other Stories
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1983
rating: 5
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]]> Ham on Rye 38501 288 Charles Bukowski 006117758X Širak 5 4.16 1982 Ham on Rye
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1982
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/12/20
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]]> <![CDATA[Pulp: Charles Bukowski's Final Hardboiled Noir Comedy – Lady Death, Aliens, and the Absurd]]> 141526 208 Charles Bukowski 0876859260 Širak 5 3.72 1994 Pulp: Charles Bukowski's Final Hardboiled Noir Comedy – Lady Death, Aliens, and the Absurd
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 3.72
book published: 1994
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/12/16
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]]> Women 38500 291 Charles Bukowski 0061177598 Širak 5 3.84 1978 Women
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 3.84
book published: 1978
rating: 5
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]]> Steppenwolf 16631 Steppenwolf is a poetical self-portrait of a man who felt himself to be half-human and half-wolf. This Faust-like and magical story is evidence of Hesse's searching philosophy and extraordinary sense of humanity as he tells of the humanization of a middle-aged misanthrope. Yet his novel can also be seen as a plea for rigorous self-examination and an indictment of the intellectual hypocrisy of the period. As Hesse himself remarked, "Of all my books Steppenwolf is the one that was more often and more violently misunderstood than any of the others".]]> 256 Hermann Hesse 0140282580 Širak 5 4.15 1927 Steppenwolf
author: Hermann Hesse
name: Širak
average rating: 4.15
book published: 1927
rating: 5
read at: 2023/10/05
date added: 2023/10/05
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]]> Beyond Good and Evil 12321 Beyond Good and Evil is translated from the German by R.J. Hollingdale with an introduction by Michael Tanner in Penguin Classics.

Beyond Good and Evil confirmed Nietzsche's position as the towering European philosopher of his age. The work dramatically rejects the tradition of Western thought with its notions of truth and God, good and evil. Nietzsche demonstrates that the Christian world is steeped in a false piety and infected with a 'slave morality'. With wit and energy, he turns from this critique to a philosophy that celebrates the present and demands that the individual imposes their own 'will to power' upon the world.

This edition includes a commentary on the text by the translator and Michael Tanner's introduction, which explains some of the more abstract passages in Beyond Good and Evil.

Frederich Nietzsche (1844-1900) became the chair of classical philology at Basel University at the age of 24 until his bad health forced him to retire in 1879. He divorced himself from society until his final collapse in 1899 when he became insane. A powerfully original thinker, Nietzsche's influence on subsequent writers, such as George Bernard Shaw, D.H. Lawrence, Thomas Mann and Jean-Paul Sartre, was considerable.

If you enjoyed Beyond Good and Evil you might like Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra, also available in Penguin Classics.

"One of the greatest books of a very great thinker." —Michael Tanner]]> 240 Friedrich Nietzsche 014044923X Širak 0 currently-reading 4.04 1886 Beyond Good and Evil
author: Friedrich Nietzsche
name: Širak
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1886
rating: 0
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]]> The Road Back 6058 352 Erich Maria Remarque 1931541744 Širak 5 4.29 1931 The Road Back
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.29
book published: 1931
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/09/30
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]]> Hollywood 38505 320 Charles Bukowski 843391426X Širak 5 3.82 1989 Hollywood
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1989
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/09/19
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]]> Milk and honey 23513349 Milk and Honey is a collection of poetry and prose about survival. About the experience of violence, abuse, love, loss, and femininity.

It is split into four chapters, with each chapter dealing with a different pain. Healing a different heartache. Milk and Honey takes readers through a journey of the most bitter moments in life and finds sweetness in them -- because there is sweetness everywhere if you are just willing to look.]]> 204 Rupi Kaur 1502784270 Širak 5 3.95 2014 Milk and honey
author: Rupi Kaur
name: Širak
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2014
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/07/09
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]]> Miego brolis 25829381 162 Robert Schneider 9986160375 Širak 5 3.76 1992 Miego brolis
author: Robert Schneider
name: Širak
average rating: 3.76
book published: 1992
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/07/04
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]]> Love Is a Dog from Hell 23534 A classic in the Bukowski poetry canon, Love Is a Dog from Hell is a raw, lyrical exploration of the exigencies, heartbreaks, and limits of love.

Charles Bukowski was a man of intense emotions, someone an editor once called a “passionate madman.” Alternating between tough and gentle, sensitive and gritty, Bukowski lays bare the myriad facets of love—its selfishness and its narcissism, its randomness, its mystery and its misery, and, ultimately, its true joyfulness, endurance, and redemptive power.]]> 312 Charles Bukowski 0876853629 Širak 0 to-read 3.99 1977 Love Is a Dog from Hell
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1977
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/07/04
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]]> <![CDATA[The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories]]> 4645 144 Ernest Hemingway 0684862212 Širak 4 3.89 1936 The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories
author: Ernest Hemingway
name: Širak
average rating: 3.89
book published: 1936
rating: 4
read at: 2023/07/04
date added: 2023/07/04
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]]> Factotum 497199
Charles Bukowski's posthumous legend continues to grow. Factotum is a masterfully vivid evocation of slow-paced, low-life urbanity and alcoholism, and an excellent introduction to the fictional world of Charles Bukowski.]]> 205 Charles Bukowski 0876852630 Širak 5 3.94 1975 Factotum
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 3.94
book published: 1975
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/04/13
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]]> Flotsam 672965 From the beloved author of All Quiet on the Western Front, Flotsam is a terrifying portrait of Europe as the Nazi shadow falls over the continent.

Political dissidents, Jews, medical students, petty Among the thousands of displaced persons traveling the unpaved roads of Europe, there are Steiner and Kern. Both have irritated officials for outstaying their two-week sojourn in Czechoslovakia. And so they must leave. Not that either has any place to go. Not in 1939. But when a man is led by a guard to the border of one country, he must try another. Until he is escorted from that one too.

Living hand-to-mouth, selling shoelaces and safety pins for a few pennies, Steiner and Kern find that, remarkably, there are still pleasures to be had. Paris, for one; love, for another. For amid the heartless cruelty and cold-blooded laws of the Nazi state, there is still humanity and kindness. And there is incomparable joy in falling in love, surviving, and telling your story so it is never forgotten.]]> 448 Erich Maria Remarque 0449912477 Širak 5 4.41 1939 Flotsam
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.41
book published: 1939
rating: 5
read at: 2023/04/02
date added: 2023/04/02
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]]> Post Office 40409718 162 Charles Bukowski Širak 5 3.88 1971 Post Office
author: Charles Bukowski
name: Širak
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1971
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/03/28
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]]> Spark of Life 64097  
For ten years, 509 has been a political prisoner in a German concentration camp, persevering in the most hellish conditions. Deathly weak, he still has his wits about him and he senses that the end of the war is near. If he and the other living corpses in his barracks can hold on for liberation—or force their own—then their suffering will not have been in vain.
 
Now the SS who run the camp are ratcheting up the terror. But their expectations are jaded and their defenses are down. It is possible that the courageous yet terribly weak prisoners have just enough left in them to resist. And if they die fighting, they will die on their own terms, cheating the Nazis out of their devil’s contract.
 
“The world has a great writer in Erich Maria Remarque. He is a craftsman of unquestionably first rank, a man who can bend language to his will. Whether he writes of men or of inanimate nature, his touch is sensitive, firm, and sure.”— The New York Times Book Review]]> 424 Erich Maria Remarque 0449912515 Širak 0 to-read 4.52 1952 Spark of Life
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.52
book published: 1952
rating: 0
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]]> Arch of Triumph 672948 Forbidden to return to his own country, and dodging the everyday dangers of jail and deportation, Ravic manages to hang on – all the while searching for the Nazi who tortured him back in Germany. And though he’s given up on the possibility of love, life has a curious way of taking a turn for the romantic, even during the worst of times….]]> 464 Erich Maria Remarque Širak 5 4.44 1945 Arch of Triumph
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.44
book published: 1945
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/24
date added: 2023/02/24
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]]> A Matter of Death and Life 55842121 A year-long journey by the renowned psychiatrist and his writer wife after her terminal diagnosis, as they reflect on how to love and live without regret.

Internationally acclaimed psychiatrist and author Irvin Yalom devoted his career to counseling those suffering from anxiety and grief. But never had he faced the need to counsel himself until his wife, esteemed feminist author Marilyn Yalom, was diagnosed with cancer. In A Matter of Death and Life, Marilyn and Irv share how they took on profound new struggles: Marilyn to die a good death, Irv to live on without her.

In alternating accounts of their last months together and Irv's first months alone, they offer us a rare window into facing mortality and coping with the loss of one's beloved. The Yaloms had numerous blessings—a loving family, a Palo Alto home under a magnificent valley oak, a large circle of friends, avid readers around the world, and a long, fulfilling marriage—but they faced death as we all do. With the wisdom of those who have thought deeply, and the familiar warmth of teenage sweethearts who've grown up together, they investigate universal questions of intimacy, love, and grief.

Informed by two lifetimes of experience, A Matter of Death and Life is an openhearted offering to anyone seeking support, solace, and a meaningful life.]]> 222 Irvin D. Yalom 1503613763 Širak 0 currently-reading 4.39 2021 A Matter of Death and Life
author: Irvin D. Yalom
name: Širak
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2021
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/02/04
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]]> <![CDATA[Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death]]> 2062034 306 Irvin D. Yalom 0787996688 Širak 5 4.24 2008 Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death
author: Irvin D. Yalom
name: Širak
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2008
rating: 5
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date added: 2023/02/04
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]]> When Nietzsche Wept 21031
Josef Breuer, one of the founding fathers of psychoanalysis, is at the height of his career. Friedrich Nietzsche, Europe's greatest philosopher, is on the brink of suicidal despair, unable to find a cure for the headaches and other ailments that plague him. When he agrees to treat Nietzsche with his experimental "talking cure", Breuer never expects that he, too, will find solace in their sessions. Only through facing his own inner demons can the gifted healer begin to help his patient.

In When Nietzsche Wept, Irvin Yalom blends fact and fiction, atmosphere and suspense to unfold an unforgettable story about the redemptive power of friendship.]]> 310 Irvin D. Yalom 0060748125 Širak 0 currently-reading 4.36 1992 When Nietzsche Wept
author: Irvin D. Yalom
name: Širak
average rating: 4.36
book published: 1992
rating: 0
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date added: 2023/02/04
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]]> <![CDATA[The Judgment and other stories]]> 16244632 137 Franz Kafka Širak 5 3.81 1912 The Judgment and other stories
author: Franz Kafka
name: Širak
average rating: 3.81
book published: 1912
rating: 5
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]]> The Castle 333538 Translated and with a preface by Mark Harman

Left unfinished by Kafka in 1922 and not published until 1926, two years after his death, The Castle is the haunting tale of K.’s relentless, unavailing struggle with an inscrutable authority in order to gain access to the Castle. Scrupulously following the fluidity and breathlessness of the sparsely punctuated original manuscript, Mark Harman’s new translation reveals levels of comedy, energy, and visual power, previously unknown to English language readers.]]> 328 Franz Kafka 0805211063 Širak 4 3.95 1926 The Castle
author: Franz Kafka
name: Širak
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1926
rating: 4
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]]> The Trial 17690
In his brilliant translation, Breon Mitchell masterfully reproduces the distinctive poetics of Kafka's prose, revealing a novel as full of energy and power as when it was first written.]]> 255 Franz Kafka Širak 4 3.99 1925 The Trial
author: Franz Kafka
name: Širak
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1925
rating: 4
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]]> The Metamorphosis 485894 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 0553213695 / 9780553213690

"As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect. He was laying on his hard, as it were armor-plated, back and when he lifted his head a little he could see his domelike brown belly divided into stiff arched segments on top of which the bed quilt could hardly keep in position and was about to slide off completely. His numerous legs, which were pitifully thin compared to the rest of his bulk, waved helplessly before his eyes."

With it's startling, bizarre, yet surprisingly funny first opening, Kafka begins his masterpiece, The Metamorphosis. It is the story of a young man who, transformed overnight into a giant beetle-like insect, becomes an object of disgrace to his family, an outsider in his own home, a quintessentially alienated man. A harrowing—though absurdly comic—meditation on human feelings of inadequacy, guilt, and isolation, The Metamorphosis has taken its place as one of the most widely read and influential works of twentieth-century fiction. As W.H. Auden wrote, "Kafka is important to us because his predicament is the predicament of modern man."]]> 201 Franz Kafka 0553213695 Širak 5 3.92 1915 The Metamorphosis
author: Franz Kafka
name: Širak
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1915
rating: 5
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]]> The Plague 11989 The Plague is a novel by Albert Camus, published in 1947. It tells the story from the point of view of a narrator of a plague sweeping the French Algerian city of Oran. The narrator remains unknown until the start of the last chapter, chapter 5 of part 5. The novel presents a snapshot of life in Oran as seen through the author's distinctive absurdist point of view.

The book tells a gripping tale of human unrelieved horror, of survival and resilience, and of the ways in which humankind confronts death, The Plague is at once a masterfully crafted novel, eloquently understated and epic in scope, and a parable of ageless moral resonance, profoundly relevant to our times. In Oran, a coastal town in North Africa, the plague begins as a series of portents, unheeded by the people. It gradually becomes an omnipresent reality, obliterating all traces of the past and driving its victims to almost unearthly extremes of suffering, madness, and compassion.

The Plague is considered an existentialist classic despite Camus' objection to the label. The novel stresses the powerlessness of the individual characters to affect their destinies. The narrative tone is similar to Kafka's, especially in The Trial, whose individual sentences potentially have multiple meanings; the material often pointedly resonating as stark allegory of phenomenal consciousness and the human condition.]]> 308 Albert Camus Širak 4 4.05 1947 The Plague
author: Albert Camus
name: Širak
average rating: 4.05
book published: 1947
rating: 4
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]]> Shadows in Paradise 499437
Yet even as the war draws to its violent close, Ross cannot find peace. Demons still pursue him. Whether they are ghosts from the past or the guilt of surviving, he does not know. For he is only beginning to understand that freedom is far from easy--and that paradise, however perfect, has a price. . . .]]> 400 Erich Maria Remarque 0449912485 Širak 5 4.19 1971 Shadows in Paradise
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1971
rating: 5
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]]> Heaven Has No Favorites 397507 320 Erich Maria Remarque 0449912493 Širak 5 4.29 1961 Heaven Has No Favorites
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.29
book published: 1961
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[A Time to Love and a Time to Die]]> 132749
After two years at the Russian front, Ernst Graeber finally receives three weeks’ leave. But since leaves have been canceled before, he decides not to write his parents, fearing he would just raise their hopes.

Then, when Graeber arrives home, he finds his house bombed to ruin and his parents nowhere in sight. Nobody knows if they are dead or alive. As his leave draws to a close, Graeber reaches out to Elisabeth, a childhood friend. Like him, she is imprisoned in a world she did not create. But in a time of war, love seems a world away. And sometimes, temporary comfort can lead to something unexpected and redeeming.]]> 379 Erich Maria Remarque 0151904707 Širak 5 4.42 1954 A Time to Love and a Time to Die
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.42
book published: 1954
rating: 5
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]]> The Black Obelisk 1297123 From the author of the masterpiece All Quiet on the Western Front, The Black Obelisk is a classic novel of the troubling aftermath of World War I in Germany.

A hardened young veteran from the First World War, Ludwig now works for a monument company, selling stone markers to the survivors of deceased loved ones. Though ambivalent about his job, he suspects there’s more to life than earning a living off other people’s misfortunes.

A self-professed poet, Ludwig soon senses a growing change in his fatherland, a brutality brought upon it by inflation. When he falls in love with the beautiful but troubled Isabelle, Ludwig hopes he has found a soul who will offer him salvation—who will free him from his obsession to find meaning in a war-torn world. But there comes a time in every man’s life when he must choose to live—despite the prevailing thread of history horrifically repeating itself.]]> 434 Erich Maria Remarque 0449912442 Širak 5 4.38 1956 The Black Obelisk
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.38
book published: 1956
rating: 5
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]]> The Night in Lisbon 125432 History and fate collide as the Nazis rise to power in The Night in Lisbon, a classic tale of survival from the renowned author of All Quiet on the Western Front.
 
With the world slowly sliding into war, it is crucial that enemies of the Reich flee Europe at once. But so many routes are closed, and so much money is needed. Then one night in Lisbon, as a poor young refugee gazes hungrily at a boat bound for America, a stranger approaches him with two tickets and a story to tell.
 
It is a harrowing tale of bravery and butchery, daring and death, in which the price of love is beyond measure and the legacy of evil is infinite. As the refugee listens spellbound to the desperate teller, in a matter of hours the two form a unique and unshakable bond—one that will last all their lives.]]> 272 Erich Maria Remarque 0449912434 Širak 5 4.34 1961 The Night in Lisbon
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.34
book published: 1961
rating: 5
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]]> To Kill a Mockingbird 2657 "Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."

A lawyer's advice to his children as he defends the real mockingbird of Harper Lee's classic novel - a black man charged with the rape of a white girl. Through the young eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores with exuberant humour the irrationality of adult attitudes to race and class in the Deep South of the 1930s. The conscience of a town steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy is pricked by the stamina of one man's struggle for justice. But the weight of history will only tolerate so much.

"To Kill A Mockingbird" became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made into an Academy Award-winning film.]]> 323 Harper Lee 0060935464 Širak 5 4.26 1960 To Kill a Mockingbird
author: Harper Lee
name: Širak
average rating: 4.26
book published: 1960
rating: 5
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date added: 2022/03/10
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]]> Animal Farm 170448 Animal Farm is the most famous by far of all twentieth-century political allegories. Its account of a group of barnyard animals who revolt against their vicious human master, only to submit to a tyranny erected by their own kind, can fairly be said to have become a universal drama. Orwell is one of the very few modern satirists comparable to Jonathan Swift in power, artistry, and moral authority; in animal farm his spare prose and the logic of his dark comedy brilliantly highlight his stark message.

Taking as his starting point the betrayed promise of the Russian Revolution, Orwell lays out a vision that, in its bitter wisdom, gives us the clearest understanding we possess of the possible consequences of our social and political acts.]]> 141 George Orwell 0451526341 Širak 5 4.10 1945 Animal Farm
author: George Orwell
name: Širak
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1945
rating: 5
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]]> The Gambler 12857 The Gambler, Dostoevsky reaches the heights of drama with this stunning psychological portrait.]]> 188 Fyodor Dostoevsky Širak 3 3.95 1866 The Gambler
author: Fyodor Dostoevsky
name: Širak
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1866
rating: 3
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]]> Between Shades of Gray 7824322 The haunting and powerful Second World War novel by Ruta Sepetys that inspired the MAJOR FEATURE FILM, OUT NOW.

One night fifteen-year-old Lina, her mother and young brother are hauled from their home by Soviet guards, thrown into cattle cars and sent away. They are being deported to Siberia.

An unimaginable and harrowing journey has begun. Lina doesn't know if she'll ever see her father or her friends again. But she refuses to give up hope.

Lina hopes for her family.
For her country.
For her future.
For love - first love, with the boy she barely knows but knows she does not want to lose . . .

Will hope keep Lina alive?

Set in 1941, Between Shades of Gray, is an extraordinary and haunting story based on first-hand family accounts and memories from survivors.

]]> 344 Ruta Sepetys 0399254129 Širak 5 4.35 2011 Between Shades of Gray
author: Ruta Sepetys
name: Širak
average rating: 4.35
book published: 2011
rating: 5
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]]> The Stranger 49552 The Stranger has long been considered a classic of twentieth-century literature. Le Monde ranks it as number one on its "100 Books of the Century" list. Through this story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on a sundrenched Algerian beach, Camus explores what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd."]]> 123 Albert Camus Širak 5 4.04 1942 The Stranger
author: Albert Camus
name: Širak
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1942
rating: 5
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]]> The Count of Monte Cristo 7126 An alternative cover edition for this ISBN can be found here

Thrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantes is confined to the grim fortress of If. There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and becomes determined not only to escape but to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration. A huge popular success when it was first serialized in the 1840s, Dumas was inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment when writing his epic tale of suffering and retribution.]]> 1276 Alexandre Dumas 0140449264 Širak 5 4.31 1846 The Count of Monte Cristo
author: Alexandre Dumas
name: Širak
average rating: 4.31
book published: 1846
rating: 5
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]]> Three Comrades 91203
Written with the same overwhelming simplicity and directness that made All Quiet on the Western Front a classic, Three Comrades portrays the greatness of the human spirit, manifested through characters who must find the inner resources to live in a world they did not make, but must endure.]]> 496 Erich Maria Remarque 0449912426 Širak 5 4.49 1936 Three Comrades
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.49
book published: 1936
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters & Seymour: An Introduction]]> 5114
"Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters" is a story about the Glass family, narrated by Buddy, the second oldest brother. Buddy is attending his brother Seymour's wedding to a gal named Muriel, but he's on Army leave during active duty in World War II. At the wedding, everyone is stunned when Seymour does not show up.

The action of the story picks up when several characters end up carpooling together following the failed wedding. The others (the Matron of Honor and her husband, and a couple of stragglers) are talking about Seymour and the disappointment of his not showing up, and Buddy never tells them that he is secretly Seymour's brother, so they talk more openly with him than they otherwise would.

They criticize Seymour and speculate about his character flaws and deficiencies, but Buddy finds their assessments quite judgmental and biased. He then decides to tell the car who he really is, shaming them for their loose criticisms.

He finds Seymour's journal, and he discovers a strange message from their sister Boo Boo for Seymour on their bathroom mirror: "Raise high the roof beam, carpenters. Like Ares comes the bridegroom/ taller far than a tall man." This is a fragment from the Greek poet Sappho.

"Seymour: An Introduction" is a kind of elegy for Seymour from Buddy, told in the form of an introduction to the reader. The reader makes Seymour's acquaintance while knowing that Seymour technically isn't alive when the story is published, having killed himself in 1948.

This portion of the story is told in stream of consciousness, and it discusses Eastern religious mysticism.]]> 256 J.D. Salinger 0316766941 Širak 5 4.13 1963 Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters & Seymour: An Introduction
author: J.D. Salinger
name: Širak
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1963
rating: 5
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]]> Franny and Zooey 5113 ‘Everything everybody does is so—I don’t know—not wrong, or even mean, or even stupid necessarily. But just so tiny and meaningless and—sad-making. And the worst part is, if you go bohemian or something crazy like that, you’re conforming just as much only in a different way.’

First published in The New Yorker as two sequential stories, ‘Franny’ and ‘Zooey’ offer a dual portrait of the two youngest members of J. D. Salinger’s fictional Glass family.

Franny Glass is a pretty, effervescent college student on a date with her intellectually confident boyfriend, Lane. They appear to be the perfect couple, but as they struggle to communicate with each other about the things they really care about, slowly their true feelings come to the surface. The second story in this book, ‘Zooey’, plunges us into the world of her ethereal, sophisticated family. When Franny’s emotional and spiritual doubts reach new heights, her older brother Zooey, a misanthropic former child genius, offers her consolation and brotherly advice.

Written in Salinger’s typically irreverent style, these two stories offer a touching snapshot of the distraught mindset of early adulthood and are full of the insightful emotional observations and witty turns of phrase that have helped make Salinger’s reputation what it is today.]]> 201 J.D. Salinger 0316769029 Širak 5 3.97 1957 Franny and Zooey
author: J.D. Salinger
name: Širak
average rating: 3.97
book published: 1957
rating: 5
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]]> The Old Man and the Sea 2165 Librarian's note: An alternate cover edition can be found here

The last novel Ernest Hemingway saw published, The Old Man and the Sea has proved itself to be one of the most enduring works of American fiction. It is the story of an old Cuban fisherman, down on his luck, and his supreme ordeal: a relentless, agonizing battle with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream.

Using the simple, powerful language of a fable, Hemingway takes the timeless themes of courage in the face of defeat and personal triumph won from loss and transforms them into a magnificent twentieth-century classic. Written in 1952, this hugely successful novel confirmed his power and presence in the literary world and played a large part in his winning the 1954 Nobel Prize for Literature.]]> 96 Ernest Hemingway 0684830493 Širak 4 3.82 1952 The Old Man and the Sea
author: Ernest Hemingway
name: Širak
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1952
rating: 4
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]]> The Catcher in the Rye 5107 It's Christmas time and Holden Caulfield has just been expelled from yet another school...

Fleeing the crooks at Pencey Prep, he pinballs around New York City seeking solace in fleeting encounters—shooting the bull with strangers in dive hotels, wandering alone round Central Park, getting beaten up by pimps and cut down by erstwhile girlfriends. The city is beautiful and terrible, in all its neon loneliness and seedy glamour, its mingled sense of possibility and emptiness. Holden passes through it like a ghost, thinking always of his kid sister Phoebe, the only person who really understands him, and his determination to escape the phonies and find a life of true meaning.

The Catcher in the Rye is an all-time classic in coming-of-age literature- an elegy to teenage alienation, capturing the deeply human need for connection and the bewildering sense of loss as we leave childhood behind.

J.D. Salinger's (1919–2010) classic novel of teenage angst and rebellion was first published in 1951. The novel was included on Time's 2005 list of the 100 best English-language novels written since 1923. It was named by Modern Library and its readers as one of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. It has been frequently challenged in the court for its liberal use of profanity and portrayal of sexuality and in the 1950's and 60's it was the novel that every teenage boy wants to read.]]> 277 J.D. Salinger 0316769177 Širak 5 3.81 1951 The Catcher in the Rye
author: J.D. Salinger
name: Širak
average rating: 3.81
book published: 1951
rating: 5
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]]> <![CDATA[All Quiet on the Western Front]]> 355697
In 1914 a room full of German schoolboys, fresh-faced and idealistic, are goaded by their schoolmaster to troop off to the ‘glorious war’. With the fire and patriotism of youth they sign up. What follows is the moving story of a young ‘unknown soldier’ experiencing the horror and disillusionment of life in the trenches.]]> 296 Erich Maria Remarque 0449213943 Širak 5 4.07 1928 All Quiet on the Western Front
author: Erich Maria Remarque
name: Širak
average rating: 4.07
book published: 1928
rating: 5
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date added: 2022/02/22
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]]> The Diary of a Young Girl 48855 Anne Frank’s Diary has become a timeless classic; a powerful reminder of the horrors of war and a moving testament to the resilience of the human spirit.

In 1942, as the Nazis occupied Holland, thirteen-year-old Anne Frank and her Jewish family fled their home in Amsterdam and went into hiding. For the next two years, until they were betrayed to the Gestapo, the Franks and another family lived in the cramped “Secret Annexe” of an old office building. Cut off from the outside world, they endured hunger, boredom, the strain of close quarters, and the constant fear of discovery and death.

Through it all, Anne documented her experiences in a diary filled with vivid observations. At times thoughtful, poignant, and even unexpectedly funny, her writing offers a remarkable window into the strength and vulnerability of the human spirit. It’s both a compelling self-portrait of a bright, spirited young woman and a heartbreaking glimpse of a life that should have been far longer.]]> 340 Anne Frank Širak 5 4.19 1947 The Diary of a Young Girl
author: Anne Frank
name: Širak
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1947
rating: 5
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date added: 2022/02/22
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]]> The Alchemist 18144590 The Alchemist has become a modern classic, selling millions of copies around the world and transforming the lives of countless readers across generations.

Paulo Coelho's masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different—and far more satisfying—than he ever imagined. Santiago's journey teaches us about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life's path, and, most importantly, following our dreams.]]> 182 Paulo Coelho 0062315005 Širak 5 4.01 1988 The Alchemist
author: Paulo Coelho
name: Širak
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1988
rating: 5
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date added: 2022/02/22
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]]> <![CDATA[Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, #1)]]> 3 "Turning the envelope over, his hand trembling, Harry saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger and a snake surrounding a large letter 'H'."

Harry Potter has never even heard of Hogwarts when the letters start dropping on the doormat at number four, Privet Drive. Addressed in green ink on yellowish parchment with a purple seal, they are swiftly confiscated by his grisly aunt and uncle. Then, on Harry's eleventh birthday, a great beetle-eyed giant of a man called Rubeus Hagrid bursts in with some astonishing news: Harry Potter is a wizard, and he has a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An incredible adventure is about to begin!]]> 309 J.K. Rowling 0439554934 Širak 5 4.47 1997 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, #1)
author: J.K. Rowling
name: Širak
average rating: 4.47
book published: 1997
rating: 5
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date added: 2022/02/22
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]]>