1. Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa:
This rendition of the life of the legendary Japanese swordsman Miyamoto Musashi is one for the ages. The story begins with Musashi's life as the village outcast and follows his evolution from a delinquent to a martial philosopher. The characters from his love interest Otsu to the villain Sasaki Kojiro, all breathe life into the wonderful story. Further, the action in the book is simply breathtaking. The part in the novel when Musashi single-handedly battled an entire school of swordsmen is one of the most memorable scenes in any book I've read. In addition to the action, Musashi's reflections on a life dedicated to the martial arts touches on some very important topics. My life certainly changed when I finished the book and to this day, I am in awe of how meaningful it continues to be.
2. With Fire and Sword by Henryk Sienkewicz:
The first volume in Sienkewicz's famous "Trilogy", the story takes place during the Cossack rebellion against the Polish Commonwealth during the fifteenth century. Written to "uplift the hearts of his countrymen", Sienkewicz's tale deftly weaves history with fiction. Although the overarching story centers on saving the Polish Commonwealth from destruction, the independent stories of each character easily bests those of the Fellowship of the Ring. The main character, Pan Yan Shketuski and his band of merry men, the rogue Pan Zagloba, the morose Pan Podbipyenta, and the dapper Pan Michal, are charged by their king to launch an expedition to against the Cossack hordes. In the midst of the Cossack uprising, Shketuski's love interest gets kidnapped by a swordsman named Bohun and his own band of outlaws. Driven by their loyalty to each other and to their country, Shketuski fights the Cossacks while his friends rescue Yan's girl. The action is bloody, brutal, and breathtaking. Alliteration aside (lulz!), "With Fire and Sword" is about the greatness of duty and friendship. In describing the history of Poland, Sienkewicz crafted a tale filled with memorable characters and rollicking-good moments. Definitely read it.
3. Joseph & His Brothers by Thomas Mann
There are some books like War & Peace, Les Miserables, and LOTR that are so damn epic, they're deadly. But if these books are the Himalayas of literature, Thomas Mann's "Joseph" is the Everest. Totaling at 1500 pages, Mann's revision of the biblical saga of Joseph and his eleven brothers is a climb and a half. Seriously, if you read this book, be sure to get some climbing gear, hire a Sherpa guide, and bring a pack mule. You'll need it. Filled with dense prose and ideas, Mann reconstructs Joseph's odyssey through Judea and Egypt with all the nuances of the Ancient World described in exhaustive detail. What makes this book such a chore to read, is the sheer profundity of knowledge Mann puts into his story. While Mann touches upon the known episodes of Joseph's life - the story of Dinah, the coat, his dream-interpretation - expanding them with Freudian views and long-winded meditations on their character. Mann's prodigious knowledge is daunting, but rewarding for his characters, in spite of his erudition, come alive and are fully realized. The goals and inner truth of men like Abraham, the always-calm Mai-Sakhme, and even the eccentric Pharoah Akhenaten are explored in tremendous detail. After finishing this book, I believe Thomas Mann is the most intelligent writer in the world. If you can finish this rewarding marathon of a book, you sir /madam are a god.
4. And Quiet Flows the Don by Mikhail Sholokhov
When it comes to Russian literature, everybody rushes towards Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, or Solzhenitsyn and crushed underneath this deluge are some Russian authors whose stories are just as good. The books I'm talking about are the "Quiet Don" saga, a two-part series by the Soviet writer Mikhail Sholokhov about a family of Cossacks during the First World War and the Russian Civil War soon after. The best way to describe this story is that it is the Russian version of "One Hundred Years of Solitude". The story takes place along the Don region of Russia, among the largely insular Cossacks. The Buendias of the story is the Melekhov family made up of the the sons Piotra and Gregor, the daughter Dunia, and the patriarch of the family Pantaleimon. There is a mother around somewhere but I'm too lazy to remember her name (lulz). Anyway, the travails of the Melekhovs through the two wars act as a microcosm for the entire Cossack experience as the onset of war and revolution threatens to rupture the Cossack way of life. The first book, "And Quiet Flows the Don", follows Piotra and Gregor as they fight their way through the Eastern Front and later the Socialist Revolution. Thrust out of their pastoral life and into war, they confront the horrors and politics along with their own desire to return home. Sholokhov's poetic writing conjures up the vast expanses of the Steppe and the roaring warfare along the Eastern front. The writing is awesome. The story is awesome. After reading this one, check out its sequel, "The Don Flows Home to the Sea", which is even better but happens during the Russian Civil War. Definitely recommended.
