Required: Reading Material

If I am to take the train to Budapest then I will need copious amounts of reading material. Work prevents me from having much time to scour bookshops and therefore if anyone has some recommendations I would be grateful.

I would like one work of fiction. Epic in scope, historic in timeframe, not written in the first person person singular.

I would also like a decent slab of travel literature, Europe, Africa or Asia, but nothing post WW2 please.

Ta very much.

Comments

[moizza]

Fiction: The House of Spirits- Isabel Allende (not that I like it much, reeked too much of Marquez to me but all I can think of) OR Atonement- Ian McEwan OR Possession-A.S.Byatt (beautifully written) OR Kite Runner-Khalid Hosseini (set in 1970s Afghanistan and then jumps to contemporary times)

Travel literature: City of Djinns- William Dalyrmple. It's about Delhi.

[Oedipa]

The Crying of Lot 49 by Thomas Pynchon or Stars at Noon by Denis Johnson

[e!]

Aztec by Gary Jennings

http://www.amazon.com/Aztec-Gary-Jennings/dp/0812521463/sr=8-1/qid=1157665097/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-1184253-3552942?ie=UTF8&s=books

[Stephen]

Thank you all...I shall check these out. Aside from the Dalyrmple which I have already :)

[Jenny]

What happened to my comment? Maybe I didn't make one. Maybe I only thought about it. Hmm...

Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

[moizza]

Oooooo Jenny I am just just just getting that. I hear it's a great book.

[Cris]

I have a swede friend there who plays music and lives in budapest if u need help.. his english is exellent.. got a nice manchester accent though. If u want he can show u around. Hey i was also planning to go there by train! But i will go there next month. Hungary was never quite my cup of tea..but the swede guy is cool! Still looks a bit gay though.. hahah.

Well let me know if u want his contact details.