Struck By Lightning by Chris Colfer

Struck By Lightning is a coming-of-age novel by Chris Colfer best known for playing Kurt Hummel on Glee.

The story begins with the growing up of young Carson Phillips in a small town in the US. Carson's parents divorced when he was a kid which had a huge impact on his personality formation. Carson's father didn't participate in his life very much and his mom never got over her broken marriage and started heavy drinking and substance abuse. 

Being a highschool student, Carson found himself alienated from the entire population of his town and it became his paramount ambition to get into Northwestern University and leave Clover for good. 

However, on the way to his dreams, Carson encounters a lot of obstacles and has to make tough decisions. Having had to blackmail nearly every senior student of his school he is getting closer to his destination, however, he is yet to find out what the future holds for him.

Lives of The Saints by Nino Ricci

Lives of The Saints is a novel written by the Canadian author, Nino Ricci with Italian origins in 1990. 

The setting of the story is Italy, small village Valle del Sole in 1960s. The novel brings up social issues of the designated time period and with the focus on gender inequality, marginalization social prejudice towards women. The main character of the story is a young Vittorio Innocente whose mother has become a victim of social judgment and would not yield to the society for she believed in equality. As the situation between the Innocentes and the villagers starts to escalate, young Vittorio becomes the next victim of social judgment. 

When young Vittorio Innocente's mother, Cristina, is bitten by a snake during an encounter with a blue-eyed stranger in the family barn, the superstitions and prejudices rampant in their small Italian town immediately roil t the surface. But the worst is yet to come for the independent-minded Cristina. Eight months pregnant and unable to abide her treatment in the village any longer, she books a passage to Canada for herself and Vittorio, although it will not be to join her irascible husband Mario, who sailed there when Vittorio was an infant.

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

Les Miserables is a historical novel written by the world famous author Victor Hugo in 1862. It is believed to be one of the best novels of the 19th century.

Victor Hugo's tale of injustice, heroism and love follows the fortunes of Jean Valjean, an escaped convict determined to put his criminal past behind him. But his attempt to become a respected member of the community are constantly put under threat: by his own conscience, when, owing to a case of mistaken identity, another man is arrested in his place; and by the relentless investigations of the dogged policeman Javert. It is not simply for himself that Valjean must stay free, however, for he has sworn to protect the baby daughter of Fantine, driven to prostitution by poverty. A compelling and compassionate view of the victims of early nineteenth-century French society, Les Miserables is a novel on an epic scale, moving inexorably from the eve of the battle of Waterloo to the July Revolution of 1830.

Victor Hugo is famous for his very detailed descriptions and precision storytelling, thereof, the story is is told on no less than 1,300 pages giving all the specifics to the reader. However, if you like to get right to the meat of the story, there is a shortened the Penguin edition which walks the readers through the main storylines with minimum specifics and historical facts.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is a 2005 mystery novel by an American write Jonathan Safran Foer.

The setting of the story is New York after the tragic terrorist attack on the Twin Towers. The story is built around a 9 year old boy Oskar whose father died in the terror attack on the world trade center. The mysterious things start happening to Oskar causing a chain of events leading to investigation of his father's  death.

The twisted plot is not the only thing keeping the reader's interest; the novel offers exciting artistic images throughout the book giving the full flavour to the the story-line.

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Lord of the Flies is an award wining novel by an English writer William Golding. The author has been awarded the Nobel Prize for literature.

The plot is built around a group of British boys who got in a plane crush and ended up on uninhabited island without elders. The novel collides the survival instincts and humanity in boys aged 9-13 while they are trying to live on the island. As days go, they lose hope for being rescued and established their own social order. In a very democratic way, the order satisfy the most but does not fit the needs of all of them causing a split.

The novel is a very complex and heavy on one's mind while showcasing kids' cruelty and will for power. Lord of the Flies has a lot of controversial reviews as the story questions nature and nurture human behaviour.

Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

Fight Club is a 1996 novel by an American author, Chuck Palahniuk. The novel is classified as transgressive fiction - a genre of literature that features the protagonist confronting the social norms.
The novel won the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award and Oregon Book Award for best novel in 1997.

The story begins with the protagonist with unrevealed name suffering insomnia for an extended period of time. While seeking some sort of medical help he finds relief in crying in groups of people who suffer fatal illnesses. However, once he finds the treatment for his sleep, bizarre things start happening to him.

At this moment of his life, he is to meet Tyler Derden; a rebel of the modern world, the opposite of what is considered a human being in the society. As our protagonist gets closer to Tyler, he adopts his lifestyle and perspectives on things.

The novel is an absolute must-read for each and everyone as it questions the social norms and behaviors very reasonably.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a novel by American writer Stephen Chbosky published in 1999.

The story takes place in early 1990s when a 15 year old, socially awkward teenager Charlie starts writing anonymous letter to an unknown recipient. The plot takes off with Charlie's first year at high school after the suicide of his best friend  mixed with his harmful childhood memories of his favourite aunt Helen's tragic death,

The letters are the story itself which helps the author to create a very intimate connection with the reader. 

After a series of events triggering different emotions  that Charlie has never thought he would experience he decides to move on and try to "participate" in life. The moral of the story is, "Even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there."

This book would make a great fiction for anyone at any stage of life to experience a wild spectrum of emotions a 15 year boy would have.

Arch of Triumph by Erich Maria Remarque

Arch of Triumph is a novel written by Erich Maria Remarque in 1945. The Author is well-known for his best war novels ever written.

Arch of Triumph reveals not only the political views from the perspective of an immigrant at the beginning of a war but also reminds the readers that people are loosing their humanity. "All right. Take a good look at this summer. The Summer of 1939. It smells of sulphur. The roses look like snow on a mass grave in the coming winter. We are a gay people in spite of it aren't we? Long live the century of non-intervention! Of the petrifaction of moral instincts! There is much killing going on tonight Boris. Every night! Much killing! Cities are burning, dying Jews are wailing somewhere, Czechs are perishing miserably in the woods, Chinese are burning in Japanese gasoline, the whip-death is creeping through concentration camps..." (Arch of Triumph 404). In this piece, the author shows his attitude towards the passiveness of some European countries towards the capturing of other European countries by Nazi Germany in World War II. Not only it refers to the particular event but also implies casual, every-day situations: people would rather remain un-involved than help each other.

I would highly suggest Arch of Triumph to those who enjoy reading war novels and likes to be educated on history, art and life as a whole.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper Lee in 1960. It has become a famous piece of American literature in 1961 winning Pulitzer Prize.

The novel reveals the most controversial issues of the 20th century from the perspective of a little girl. For example, "Cry about the simple hell people give other people- without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give coloured folks, without even stopping to think that they're people, too" (To Kill a Mockingbird 269). In 1960, when the book was first published, there were a lot of debates around the novel, for racism was not commonly considered to be wrong. Literature does not just create awareness but teaches people on what is right and what is wrong.

I have chosen to write about this particular novel because I believe that the issues discussed in the book are still relevant today.

I highly recommend To Kill a Mockingbird to those people who have ever been concerned about injustice and unfairness of the world we live in.

1984 by George Orwell

1984 is an anti-utopia written by George Orwell in 1949. The novel reflects the author's perception of the world in a relatively close future.

George Orwell's 1984 is the second world's anti-utopia after Yevgeny

Zamyatin's We. The book reveals the importance of freedom and the meaning of a total dictatorship. The never aging ideas of population suppression are striped naked and explained in the tiniest details by the author. To illustrate, "WAR IS PEACE. FREEDOM IS SLAVERY. IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH" (1984 21). From the first sight the quotation appears not to make any sense but the closer to the plot advance to the end, the more a detailed explanation of each phrase appears.  First of all, Orwell suggests that a state with a dictatorship needs to be in a war so there is always a promise of a better life once the state is in peace. Secondly, "Ignorance is Strength" is explained as following: being ignorant benefits masses by keeping them away from the actual order of things, which is incredibly hideous, thus, keeping the masses happy and optimist and, thereby, strong. "Freedom is Slavery" is left open to interpretation of the readers, so everybody has their own views on the matter.

I highly recommend the novel to those interested in politics and history. Also 1984 would make a perfect fiction for people who love suspense and references to the real world's history.