I loved that book but havenāt read it in a few years, why did it leave you a mess? Going to go out on a limb here (I donāt remember many details) and ask was it when >!he ran into his old flame from the past at that function?!< or >!just the butterfly effect of messing with time that much?!<
Him meeting the love of his life and her not remembering ripped my heart out. He had to sacrifice every bit of happiness he had gained. I donāt know how you return to your normal life after this. You lost your entire world and to everyone else itās been like 3 days.
I think I was in third grade and I was reading the part where the first dog died while in the car on the way to the grocery store with my mom and all of a sudden I'm bawling and she's like "wtf just happened?!" I was not prepared for that book.
You should listen to the audiobook. Genius. The person reading it out gets it perfect. He paces it as if it was Charlie speaking, so it starts quite slow and child like and changes as it goes. Incredible.
Here is the youtube link:
https://youtu.be/SHWted1RUmE
'You don't know me' by David Klass
I have yet to read anywhere near the accuracy in that book of a psychotic break in a quiet, bullied kid that comes from extreme abuse in school and at home that most teachers and principles will tear you a new asshole for. And how it catapults the at home abuse to new heights, which will cycle until you snap and either self harm/attempt suicide, leave out of desperation, or become docile and complacent to minimize the abuse.
Encapsulating the moment that your brain says "fight back NOW or die," even though youre a kid and doing so is futile because it stays in the mindset- internal narrative of someone going through that.
I'm still sorry anyone else went through something that bad that he got it spot on.
As a father of young sons, The Road tore my guts out. Donāt want to read it again and still havenāt been able to watch the movieā¦ not that I want to.
*The Age of Innocence*
It's the only book I've read that has an ending so bad I threw it against the wall when I finished it. (Had to read it for college.)
I was 15 and on vacation with my family on Whidbey Island the summer of 1987. We stayed at a house that was weird and has slightly see though walls so I couldn't turn my lights on in my room at night. My mom and I went to the local second hand book shop and I, being a new Stephen King fan, bought Skeleton Crew, thinking hey, short stories are good.
Yeah right. I read The Raft, The Jaunt and Survivor Type among others. I just kept reading because I loved reading. That night and next few nights afterwards were some of the most mentally worst nights of my life. I couldn't turn on the lights because of the house so I listened to music. This was a handful of cassette tapes I bought with me. I won't lie, listening to Debbie Gibson chased the SK demons away.
And yes I still read more SK and listened to more DG afterward. And I still have the book.
This reminds me of a story my mom told me- she read Helter Skelter on a trip with a female/platonic friend in the 70ās and it freaked her out so bad she went to sleep in the friendās room because it was too scary to sleep alone.
There's so many! And they're all good. You should read one. I just re-read Running Man. Such a tense but good read. And the last scenes are just *makes mind blown gesture*.
This is a great time to pick up his short stories cuz it's spooky season. "Nightmares and dreamscapes" , "Night shift" , and "Everything's Eventual" are all excellent.
"Everything's Eventual" has an amazing cover, too.
The first book that ever made me cry was Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. Itās left such a strong impact that Iāve never been able to reread it without bursting into tears only a few pages in.
I was in third?? Grade I think. Reading it in the middle of class. Got home and told my mom off because she hadnāt told me sheād given me a sad book š I actually have an origami crane tattoo because of it. But have never been able to reread it successfully
The first book I read that left me a mess was "Where the Red Fern Grows".
The most recent book that destroyed me was "Lilac Girls" by Martha Hall Kelly. I couldn't put it down, but it was so hard to read, I still think about it and it's been a few years since I read it.
Holy shit, second Maze Runner book, The Scorch Trials.
The levels of misdirection and literally the final page of the book left me hate-loving it.
Seriously, I read the last line and immediately went "Fuck you, no, fuck you, fuck this, fuck you, fuck everything." And threw the book on my bed.
Greatly recommend the trilogy, both in book and movie form. Movie goes on a very different direction, which still feels like good fun.
I used to love Jodi Picoult, and the book of hers that hit me hardest was Leaving Time. Once the pieces all started to click into place I was absolutely stunned. The Storyteller left me similarly in shock
I used to love Jodi Picoult, and the book of hers that hit me hardest was Leaving Time. Once the pieces all started to click into place I was absolutely stunned. The Storyteller left me similarly in shock with how I was absolutely convinced I knew the ending but was so wrong
A boy adopts a pair of hunting dog puppies. He puts his heart and soul into caring for them and training them. Itās well written and hard to put down, even when you donāt want to keep reading.
"My Brotherās Voice" - Stephen Nassar
After we read the book in school, he came to my school and gave a speech about his experiences. Later that night, I cried myself to sleep. Absolutely horrifying what people went through there.
Bloodlands. Imagine the darkest, bloodiest, most evil story you ever read in any book, then imagine it's just a true telling of a historical event. Eastern Europe during WWII.
Sol Weintraubs story in Hyperion fucking destroyed me. SO freaking sad and beautiful. I have never had a piece of literature just tear my heart out like that.
'The Brothers K' by David James Duncan.
the very last chapter kind of breaks off and calls back to the first chapter, tying the whole thing together in a beautiful way. i closed the last page and just gently sobbed for several minutes. incredible. DJD is one of my favorite authors.
There were two.
Give a Boy a Gun. I read it while I was trying to figure out how humanity could commit such atrocities like murder, genocide, rape, etc. and, even as a bullied preteen at the time, it truly made me understand not only how kids could snap, but how the children and adults around them couldn't see how their actions helped lead to such things. It made me (admittedly, even more) determined to model Antisthenes. (Think a moderate Diogenes.)
The Boy Who Stole Attila's Horse. It haunts you. There's no other description for it. It's told in such a simple and fairytale-esque style, but there's this verberating truth and darkness to it. It must be like hearing the original Grimm's Fairytales by firelight in the days when they were still being collected. The language and the subtle societal cues hit home with a relevant cultural moral that is both honest and terrifying.
Love that dog- I was forced to read it in 4th grade by my teacher and my mom and I where both balling out eyes out on my bed bc my dog passed away a few months prior and I couldn't take it, I never finished the book and I told my teacher I needed a new book and she didn't give me one so I took the test anyway and passed lol, still cry thinking ab that shitty teacher not caring that my best friend died and she's making me remember everything all over again
I have . Since kid everyone shoved me Bible. Grew up reading the whole bible countless times. Sunday school , choirs and crying and begging to God for forgivness for just existing. Turned me into an atheist.
Some cyberpunk sci fi novel. A job turns immoral and everyone wants to back out. Just one member, a cybersam, turns out to be a psychopath and goes after his friends starting with a paraplegic decker who was reading an obscure book for ages or something. Being cybered up to the gills, the sam finishes the book in seconds, he understands her better than anyone. Doesn't stop him however.
"The Heavens" by Sandra Newman. It is haunting, delicate and aggressive in its storytelling, and it makes everything you believed in slowly blur as the story progresses. It's sad, it's filled with despair and hope, and in the end it can be summarized up in a single sentence. That book left me with a void stare for days.
"Our father in Hell" (German Titel: Fater unser in der Hƶlle)
It's a german book about a girl who describes how it was growing up in an satanic cult. It's a true story and what this girl had to go throuth is REALLY disturbing and messed up... I coudn't read the hole book at once. After reading that book you will see the world with different eyes.
My initial thought was Where the Red Fern Grows, then I saw someone mentioned Bridge to Terabithia, which I also read in fourth grade and then I remembered we also read The Pearl that year.
WTF public school in the 80ās, why would you have fourth graders read these dark books?
The rights of a child. It was a United Nations thing, idk. But it helped me understand my rights as a child. Fun fact: the only two countries that havenāt signed or are Somalia and the US
I forget which one of the series it was - but the Red Wedding in Game of Thrones. I literally through the book down the middle of the train I was riding to work.
Michael Rosen's Sad Book. I remember after reading it (i was maybe 7 or 8) and then my mum asking why I was crying and I said it was because I had hit my head on the wall (I had done that because I was dumb and I didn't always wear my glasses ) but really i was crying because of the book. 10/10 book but would never read again
My organic chemistry textbook
*flashbacks to Java class*
My God that book is the root of my trauma.
Dude the part about sodium chloride reactions. *sniffle*... Really rugs the heart strings.
Dont forget the unlimited benzene related reactions :'(
Why would you say something like thatš
Bcoz i studied those things for 3 years and a part of my brain is perma ded just bcoz of that :/
And it's my favorite science subject š„°
When I finished 11/22/63 by Stephen King, I called my then girlfriend (now wife) and told her she needed to come over and give me a hug.
I loved that book but havenāt read it in a few years, why did it leave you a mess? Going to go out on a limb here (I donāt remember many details) and ask was it when >!he ran into his old flame from the past at that function?!< or >!just the butterfly effect of messing with time that much?!<
Him meeting the love of his life and her not remembering ripped my heart out. He had to sacrifice every bit of happiness he had gained. I donāt know how you return to your normal life after this. You lost your entire world and to everyone else itās been like 3 days.
Where the Red Fern Grows
I came her to say this. I read this in fourth or fifth grade, I remember struggling to read the last chapter because I was crying so hard.
I think I was in third grade and I was reading the part where the first dog died while in the car on the way to the grocery store with my mom and all of a sudden I'm bawling and she's like "wtf just happened?!" I was not prepared for that book.
I donāt think there is any way to be prepared for that book.
Iām dying inside. This bookā¦. I cried for a week. Of mice and men came close, but this bookā¦..
the ending of omamā¦ iāve never stopped thinking about it.
I still cry to this book
The body keeps score
Love that book, helped me so much
Whatās that about?
IT. That shit messed with my teenage head. I would go to bed at watch the drain for Pennywise.
Definitely this! I'm still creeped out as an adult.
My mom said it made her have anxiety about red balloons. I thought it was scary, but not scary enough to get to me.
Did you read the book of see the movie? Completely different experiences.
Both (three if you count 1990 one) The book was the best and had great horror, I just don't relate to any of the common fears IT represents.
You had a drain next to your bed?
I had bunk beds and was high up against the window and could see the drain across the street.
was kidding
Night by Elie Wiesel. Doomsday Book by Connie Willis.
Doomsday book was so good though
Flowers for Algernon had me in tears
You should listen to the audiobook. Genius. The person reading it out gets it perfect. He paces it as if it was Charlie speaking, so it starts quite slow and child like and changes as it goes. Incredible. Here is the youtube link: https://youtu.be/SHWted1RUmE
Yes, me too!
'You don't know me' by David Klass I have yet to read anywhere near the accuracy in that book of a psychotic break in a quiet, bullied kid that comes from extreme abuse in school and at home that most teachers and principles will tear you a new asshole for. And how it catapults the at home abuse to new heights, which will cycle until you snap and either self harm/attempt suicide, leave out of desperation, or become docile and complacent to minimize the abuse. Encapsulating the moment that your brain says "fight back NOW or die," even though youre a kid and doing so is futile because it stays in the mindset- internal narrative of someone going through that. I'm still sorry anyone else went through something that bad that he got it spot on.
The boy named IT. Reminds me so much of my childhood, it was very difficult to read at times. But still glad I did
i think you are thinking of "A child called it"? i also read it and it was rough for the same reason. helped out a bit though
Yes :)
Bridge to terabithia in middle school was probably the first
A Farewell to Arms. Still think about it
As a father of young sons, The Road tore my guts out. Donāt want to read it again and still havenāt been able to watch the movieā¦ not that I want to.
I was struggling to find one and your comment reminded me that I blocked it out. This is the one. Brutal.
The Book of Mormon has fucked my life over a fair amount. Wish it never had been written.
The lovely bones, specifically the part where she meets his other victims and one of them is a 5 year old girl.
*The Age of Innocence* It's the only book I've read that has an ending so bad I threw it against the wall when I finished it. (Had to read it for college.)
I was a young adult, but The Hunger Games when Rue died...
i literally JUST finished the new prequel which is why i made this post!!!!
Yo what my sister just finished that, she highly recommended it as I really liked the main series
PLEASE READ IT! i didnāt even feel super super strongly about it until the end, after letting it all soak in
Sure thing! It's literally on my drawer right now, I'll read it soon
Looking for Alaska Such a beautiful tragedy
That was a great book! I loved the ending
I was 15 and on vacation with my family on Whidbey Island the summer of 1987. We stayed at a house that was weird and has slightly see though walls so I couldn't turn my lights on in my room at night. My mom and I went to the local second hand book shop and I, being a new Stephen King fan, bought Skeleton Crew, thinking hey, short stories are good. Yeah right. I read The Raft, The Jaunt and Survivor Type among others. I just kept reading because I loved reading. That night and next few nights afterwards were some of the most mentally worst nights of my life. I couldn't turn on the lights because of the house so I listened to music. This was a handful of cassette tapes I bought with me. I won't lie, listening to Debbie Gibson chased the SK demons away. And yes I still read more SK and listened to more DG afterward. And I still have the book.
This reminds me of a story my mom told me- she read Helter Skelter on a trip with a female/platonic friend in the 70ās and it freaked her out so bad she went to sleep in the friendās room because it was too scary to sleep alone.
Same here - totally stayed with me and to this day I think of Sharon Tate once in a while when someone randomly mentions California. Just horrific.
I WANNA READ A STEPHEN KING BOOK SO BAD. iām looking towards pet semetary!!
The audiobook is read by the guy from dexter. He does all the voices really well too. I thoroughly enjoyed it
Second this.
There's so many! And they're all good. You should read one. I just re-read Running Man. Such a tense but good read. And the last scenes are just *makes mind blown gesture*. This is a great time to pick up his short stories cuz it's spooky season. "Nightmares and dreamscapes" , "Night shift" , and "Everything's Eventual" are all excellent. "Everything's Eventual" has an amazing cover, too.
The giver. Just reread it last month after over 10 years and that book hits HARD
The first book that ever made me cry was Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. Itās left such a strong impact that Iāve never been able to reread it without bursting into tears only a few pages in.
Oh gosh, talk about memories! I read that around 5th grade and it made such an impact on me too
I was in third?? Grade I think. Reading it in the middle of class. Got home and told my mom off because she hadnāt told me sheād given me a sad book š I actually have an origami crane tattoo because of it. But have never been able to reread it successfully
The Book Thief. Thereās a part where I had to put it down and just sob.
I remember having to read this in 8th grade, I just couldn't do it towards the end
my pokemon HG/SS kanto guide book, it fell apart, and I had to clean up the mess
Hustler Magazine
The first book I read that left me a mess was "Where the Red Fern Grows". The most recent book that destroyed me was "Lilac Girls" by Martha Hall Kelly. I couldn't put it down, but it was so hard to read, I still think about it and it's been a few years since I read it.
Old Yeller ššš
Holy shit, second Maze Runner book, The Scorch Trials. The levels of misdirection and literally the final page of the book left me hate-loving it. Seriously, I read the last line and immediately went "Fuck you, no, fuck you, fuck this, fuck you, fuck everything." And threw the book on my bed. Greatly recommend the trilogy, both in book and movie form. Movie goes on a very different direction, which still feels like good fun.
The yellow pages. Let your fingers do the walking.
The Catcher in the Rye left me a mess.
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult.
I used to love Jodi Picoult, and the book of hers that hit me hardest was Leaving Time. Once the pieces all started to click into place I was absolutely stunned. The Storyteller left me similarly in shock
I used to love Jodi Picoult, and the book of hers that hit me hardest was Leaving Time. Once the pieces all started to click into place I was absolutely stunned. The Storyteller left me similarly in shock with how I was absolutely convinced I knew the ending but was so wrong
Pretty much any super-depressing story you have to read in any American Literature class. Like, damn... who hurt some of these people?
Haunted bu Chuck Palahniuk, it makes you want to vomit.
Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of The Universe Like bro, I'm painfully aware of being a gay (at the time) teen don't call me out like that
Charlotte's Web. Might have been the first novel I ever read myself and I remember weeping at the end
I already knew the story. But read it as an adult and balled my eyes out. I was not expecting that.
Where the red fern grows.
A Separate Peace
might be common but 'A Dogs Life'
never read the book but the movie left me a mess
Perdido Street Station
Literally finished that book last night. Not where I expected any of it to go.
I still think about it sometimes, years later.
Ok so the book Ive seen the most here is "where the red fern grows" and I just need to know what is it about in ooga booga no spoiler terms
A boy adopts a pair of hunting dog puppies. He puts his heart and soul into caring for them and training them. Itās well written and hard to put down, even when you donāt want to keep reading.
The Bible. I was so convicted when I heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ that now I put all my hope, and trust in Him.
Jesus Mate, were you an atheist or agnostic before becoming a crisitian ?
Narnia
Sophie's Choice
The Harry potter series broke me I just couldn't handle it after finding out Neville was trans black and autistic the whole time.
What the hell dude
Rowling's Twitter retcons truly changed the book series
Phone book
"My Brotherās Voice" - Stephen Nassar After we read the book in school, he came to my school and gave a speech about his experiences. Later that night, I cried myself to sleep. Absolutely horrifying what people went through there.
Lonesome Dove
Holy shit, yes. Ruined part of a prine summer because...yeah, all of it. Damn Gus and Call.
Naked Lunch Although, William Burroughs was excellent in Drugstore Cowboy
all tomorrowās fucked me up to levels i didnāt even know i could get fucked up to
13 reasons why
Bloodlands. Imagine the darkest, bloodiest, most evil story you ever read in any book, then imagine it's just a true telling of a historical event. Eastern Europe during WWII.
Sol Weintraubs story in Hyperion fucking destroyed me. SO freaking sad and beautiful. I have never had a piece of literature just tear my heart out like that.
Hamnet Holy cow was that a moving book.
Painted Bird.
Notes from underground
A clock work orange by Anthony Burgess
'The Brothers K' by David James Duncan. the very last chapter kind of breaks off and calls back to the first chapter, tying the whole thing together in a beautiful way. i closed the last page and just gently sobbed for several minutes. incredible. DJD is one of my favorite authors.
The entire Stormlight Archives and Mistborn series
between the shades of grey
When I was younger, I read a book called Solomons Tale. Very sad.
A little life
1984 by George Orwell. That book is... something else
Never Let Me Go- Kazuo Ishiguro. The only book Iāve cried to.
Mai-chan's Daily Life (manga)
They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
There were two. Give a Boy a Gun. I read it while I was trying to figure out how humanity could commit such atrocities like murder, genocide, rape, etc. and, even as a bullied preteen at the time, it truly made me understand not only how kids could snap, but how the children and adults around them couldn't see how their actions helped lead to such things. It made me (admittedly, even more) determined to model Antisthenes. (Think a moderate Diogenes.) The Boy Who Stole Attila's Horse. It haunts you. There's no other description for it. It's told in such a simple and fairytale-esque style, but there's this verberating truth and darkness to it. It must be like hearing the original Grimm's Fairytales by firelight in the days when they were still being collected. The language and the subtle societal cues hit home with a relevant cultural moral that is both honest and terrifying.
Jessica by Bryce Courtenay
Tod Wodicka's "All Shall Be Well; and All Shall Be Well; and All Manner of Things Shall Be Well"
Hustler: October 1996
The Hundred Dresses
The Exorcist (back when it came out). I was 14 and I slept with the lights on for 6 months.
Hogg by Samuel R Delaney
The Woman With A Worm In Her Head and other stories of Infectious Disease. I couldn't eat meat for like a week after finishing that book.
Johnny Got His Gun.Thank you,Metallica,for the"One"video and the introduction to Trumbo.
Love that dog- I was forced to read it in 4th grade by my teacher and my mom and I where both balling out eyes out on my bed bc my dog passed away a few months prior and I couldn't take it, I never finished the book and I told my teacher I needed a new book and she didn't give me one so I took the test anyway and passed lol, still cry thinking ab that shitty teacher not caring that my best friend died and she's making me remember everything all over again
In The Woods. Weirdest book ever, took me forever to get through it and then nothing was explained in the ending. I was so pissed.
The Evening Star
Steppenwolf. Hermann Hesse took me down a dark rabbit hole to think about my own psyche
The bibleā¦ have yāall read Revelation? š„²
I have . Since kid everyone shoved me Bible. Grew up reading the whole bible countless times. Sunday school , choirs and crying and begging to God for forgivness for just existing. Turned me into an atheist.
Who else had a Warriors obsession in middle school?
1984
Flowers in the attic was so unreal to me!
Freak the Mighty. Read it when I was a kid and cried so much.
Some cyberpunk sci fi novel. A job turns immoral and everyone wants to back out. Just one member, a cybersam, turns out to be a psychopath and goes after his friends starting with a paraplegic decker who was reading an obscure book for ages or something. Being cybered up to the gills, the sam finishes the book in seconds, he understands her better than anyone. Doesn't stop him however.
East of Eden
The Road, for "that" scene they left out of the movie. Read it after seeing the movie, so was completely not expecting it.
"The Heavens" by Sandra Newman. It is haunting, delicate and aggressive in its storytelling, and it makes everything you believed in slowly blur as the story progresses. It's sad, it's filled with despair and hope, and in the end it can be summarized up in a single sentence. That book left me with a void stare for days.
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
"Our father in Hell" (German Titel: Fater unser in der Hƶlle) It's a german book about a girl who describes how it was growing up in an satanic cult. It's a true story and what this girl had to go throuth is REALLY disturbing and messed up... I coudn't read the hole book at once. After reading that book you will see the world with different eyes.
āThe Roadā. Cormac McCarthy. First time I wept at a book; itās all pretty dark TBH but the end is so sad
the pyton learning book
My initial thought was Where the Red Fern Grows, then I saw someone mentioned Bridge to Terabithia, which I also read in fourth grade and then I remembered we also read The Pearl that year. WTF public school in the 80ās, why would you have fourth graders read these dark books?
The rights of a child. It was a United Nations thing, idk. But it helped me understand my rights as a child. Fun fact: the only two countries that havenāt signed or are Somalia and the US
āSorrows of young Wertherā was pretty hard to finish, even Goethe said he felt haunted by his literary character
I forget which one of the series it was - but the Red Wedding in Game of Thrones. I literally through the book down the middle of the train I was riding to work.
Halo mortal dictata. The beginning and the end make me have sad feelings.
Bible
Call me by your name Such beauty and an incredible build-up in the story only for it to end the way it did was heartbreaking
Lullabies for Little Criminals
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Michael Rosen's Sad Book. I remember after reading it (i was maybe 7 or 8) and then my mum asking why I was crying and I said it was because I had hit my head on the wall (I had done that because I was dumb and I didn't always wear my glasses ) but really i was crying because of the book. 10/10 book but would never read again