What novels have you read that you consider perfect?

[harry chickpea]

Originally Posted by stardust05

Hands down the Hyperion series by Dan Simmons in Science fiction genre is the best ever.

I wouldn't go that far, but I will say that the first half dozen pages of "The Poet's Tale" chapter in Hyperion is some of the most brilliant insight into the craft of writing that I have ever read. It took me a while to get over the chuckle of his expressing an analogy, but when I re-read and GOT what he was saying I was impressed.

I don't see a perfect book, because like any artwork the author only brings part of the experience. The reader brings personal experiences and knowledge and then the two dance.

[zipun]

I think, the perfect novell - it is "The Doppelganger" by Dostoevsky. It's a dark psycological text about shame and madness, and Dostoevsky describes their with a perfect precision. When you read, you feel crazy yourself.