One Does Get Lucky, Sometimes

I have been meaning to compile a list of books that I chanced upon, without any prior idea about the author or the story and found them to be absolute marvel.
Well, I found many that way, so I guess, this list will definitely make sense. I am sure many of us do it - pick up a random book and love it to death. It could be the cover page, or the colour, or the title, or the name of the author that sounded good, or the price or even the size. OR ANYTHING.

Here goes the list:

1. The Shipping News - Annie E Proulx. Didn't know the book or the author at the time of buying.
Two reasons: This one was a super duper deal in a second hand book seller on the road side; at 10 bucks, I would have picked up anything. Lucky, I picked this. Second, the magic words on the front cover - Pulitzer prize winner (now, I know not all winners are the same)

2. We Weren't Lovers Like That - Navtej Sarna. Didn't know the book or the author while buying.
I liked the cover page - A flight of stairs with leading some place, may be to an old grand fort. The contrast of the blackened steps with the bright green creeper with tendrils and well-spaced leaves was quite impressive. The story on the book cover was interesting. Thank God I bought this book.

3. On Beauty - Zadie Smith. Had heard the name of the author but not read anything by her before; didn't know about the book either.
This book was huge. I don't know why picked it up. Since it was a library book, I just thought I would try it out. Simply brilliant writing. I LOVED it.

4. Mosquito and Other Stories - Premendra Mitra. Didn't have a clue about the author or the book.
This was an impulse pick up from the library. The unusual title was the clincher. Superb book. This definitely goes into my book collection (not the library book, I plan to buy one copy for myself!!)

5. The Pat Hobby Stories - F Scott Fitzgerald. Although, I knew about the author, and read one of his novels, I had no idea about this book.
Simply beautiful. The humour hits you when you least expect it. Every now and then I was aware of how much of fun I was having due to a sudden chuckle or a burst of laughter; I was so lost in the book.

For now, this list will stop here. I will go ahead with the list as and when I come across these gems on the river side.

The Reading List - 5

Completed:

14. The Bar on the Seine - Georges Simenon (Fiction: murder mystery)
15. The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald (Fiction: literary classic)
16. The Pat Hobby Stories - F Scott Fitzgerald (Themed short stories)
17. We Weren't Lovers Like That - Navtej Sarna (Fiction: literary)

Not looking forward to reading anything for the time being now...