Capitães da Areia (something like Captains of Sand) by Jorge Amado, a book about a group of kids, most boys, who were orphans or abandoned who chose to live in ruins and to commit crimes in the state of Bahia, a great state in the Northeast of Brazil which is heavily influenced by African culture(s), hence also the great socioeconomic drama we find there up to the present day. Jorge Amado is a great author, most of his bookd are famous and have been adapted to cinema and television. It's my favourite book, very crude and extremely painful, if you consider it's based on real stories (at least the group of boys existed).
Hey ! I am an enthusiastic reader, too. I am currently working on a Christmas gift for a friend. I am doing a list with 20 books that I would like to read with him. So each of us just has to buy 10 books (which is nice if you are a broke student like me) and you can enjoy one of the classical books you would never chosen if you just choose spontaneous. (because let's face it you always choose something in this decade or in this millennium, at least I do).