[Books] Most Disturbing Book You Have Ever Read

[Fayenoor]

My top 2:

1. "Lord of the Flies" - by William Golding.
2. "The Picture of Dorian Gray" - by Oscar Wilde

And please don't bring Henry Miller or De Sade into this.

[Puupi]

"The Prince" - (Though if taken as a satire, which is one interpretation, it may not be as disturbing.)

The Prince as in Il Principe? What's disturbing about it? It's a great book.

[Puupi]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Prince

The way of controlling/governing people described in the book is pretty disturbing.

Disturbing? It's the epitome of realpolitik. It's realism, if reality disturbs you...well, that's weird?

[Deleted]

Uh... no, it is authoritarian, and amoral. Bordering on sadistic in some parts.

Treating people like that is disturbing. Reality is not close(in modern times in the West) to what that book advocates. There may be parallels from time to time, but those are usually called out as being "Machiavellian" which is not a "good" thing to be called out as.

You do understand the time period it was written in yes?

[Puupi]

Uh... no, it is authoritarian, and amoral. Bordering on sadistic in some parts.

Treating people like that is disturbing. Reality is not close(in modern times in the West) to what that book advocates. There may be parallels from time to time, but those are usually called out as being "Machiavellian" which is not a "good" thing to be called out as.

Yes, it's authoritarian, amoral and all that, but most people engaging in politics are just like that. You seem to have a very rosy picture of realpolitik.

[Zaelsino]

Some of the books in "Sword of Truth" series... Darken Rahl was pretty depraved, some of what he did turned my stomach.

I was more disturbed by the good guys. The hero pulls a sword on a ten-year-old and threatens to gut her for the crime of being a brat, and the heroine mind controls a guy into cutting his balls off and devouring them. Although admittedly I never bothered reading past book 1, I hear the series goes downhill fast.

[jahasafrat]

I found The Descent by Jeff Long to be very disturbing but in a good way. It's full of savagery and macabre imagery.
Orwell's 1984 also disturbed me but left me feeling bleak and generally unhappy.

[Gallahadd]

"Haunted" by Chuck Palahnuik. Read it because I LOVED Fight Club, turns out he's something of a one hit wonder because Haunted was utter loose stool water, the most fucker up, pointlessly disgusting book I've ever read.

[Puupi]

Only if you want to play it that way. And the politicians that do, tend to be ones that most people would probably not want to elect.

Hillary tried to pull some of this stuff with Obama when he was running against her.

Politics should be about the people you are trying to represent, not for self gain, or stroking your ego. And if it has become that, you should be voted out.

As I said, you have a very rosy image of politics. The reality is far from that.

[Fencers]

Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West by Cormac McCarthy.

[Stormcall]

Jack Ketchum-The Girl Next Door

[NightZero88]

Don't read many disturbing books so I'll just say Sphere even though it wasn't too bad. I read it when I was like 12-15 at about 2am and it scared the heck out of me.

[dextersmith]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Prince

The way of controlling/governing people described in the book is pretty disturbing.

In that case, 1984 by George Orwell was pretty up there. I haven't read The Prince though.

[Adam Jensen]

Johnny Got His Gun.

The horror of the protagonist's situation *shudder*

[Archmage Alodi]

Bible. /10chars

[Danuel]

Short story
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Have..._I_Must_Scream
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSwfpVRVWlo

its blow my mind

[Nihilist74]

Johnny Got His Gun.

The horror of the protagonist's situation *shudder*

Yah that was excellent, I loved that part where he was dreaming he was playing cards with dead soldiers at the train station, and Jesus shows up.

The Conspiracy against the Human Race - Thomas Ligotti

I believe what the author was trying to say.

[Summer]

Yep, bible. Read it as a teenager, mind was blown.

[Radaney]

I agree with the people that mentioned Sword of Truth. They were certainly special.

[Matchles]

"Haunted" by Chuck Palahnuik. Read it because I LOVED Fight Club, turns out he's something of a one hit wonder because Haunted was utter loose stool water, the most fucker up, pointlessly disgusting book I've ever read.

Came here to mention Haunted. I was working in a mall when I read the book. I remember getting lightheaded and nearly falling off of the stool I was sitting on during the pool story. Definitely not the first book I would recommend from Palahnuik. If you are willing to give his work another shot I'd recommend Lullaby, Rant or Survivor. None have quite the shock value that Haunted did.