hey all, I am in search of a book to gift my bf as he told me he wants to get into reading more (rather than his required books for Uni). I am struggling to find a book that he might like as I typically read thriller/mystery books which are not his style. He studies philosophy and likes for instance David Chalmers, Nietzsche, Camus. I want to give him a fictional book that has some philosophical undertones. I thought of gifting him midnight library because of its interesting premise, but after reading it myself I found it rather shallow. Does anyone have any other recommendations? Bonus points if there is an element of romance

  • ieatkittensyum@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    Too Like the Lightening (and the whole Terra Ignota series) by Ada Palmer. It’s an amazing sci-fi series with interesting things to say about ideas of gender, war, and other big topics. The author is also a professor who studies renaissance philosophy and there are SO MANY philosophy references!

  • tikhonjelvis@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    The Name of the Rose would be my choice, assuming he hasn’t read it. It covers some fun ideas in a relatively deep, well-thought-out way, while also being a legitimately engaging historical mystery. It was also one of the rare novels where I felt like the conspiracy/suspense side of the story resolved in a satisfying and interesting way.

  • Firstpoet@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    ‘The Name of the Rose’. Umberto Eco was a deeply intellectual guy- professor of philosophy and semiotics etc. The book is a metatextual puzzle as well as being a whodunit mystery.

  • AbsoluTotality@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    The Woman in the Dunes is an existential novel worth considering which I enjoyed reading as a young man.

  • fatcatpotat@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    10 months ago

    Anything by Tom Robbins but especially:

    Jitterbug Perfume

    Another Roadside Attraction

    Still Life with Woodpecker