I've never read a light novel before, but I've become interested in reading one. Have you ever read a light novel? Did you enjoy? What's your favorite?
Haruhi is the only one I've ever read. It was good. That is all.
Haurhi, Konosuba, and Spice & Wolf are probably the series I'd recommend to someone new to LNs. But I'm also a weirdo that likes shit like Boogiepop and that one LN series with the vampire astronaut so I have no idea what its like to have good taste.
https://royallib.com/read/Takimoto_Tatsuhiko/Welcome_to_the_NHK.html#0
In my early teens I did not understand it so much or did not want to understand it, but as I got older I realized I had lived all of it and how truly pathetic I was. I appreciate this novel a lot now. I think anyone who ends up here will find it relatable, either the present or from a past self.
mushoku tensei, the anime's ending got me interested in the rest of the story and it only recently released the final volume in english.
i don't have much experience with LNs either, but that one is really simple and easy to read.
Boogiepop Series is really fun if you read it while listening to the songs that are referenced in the book
boogiepop? sounds like a song
Seconding Welcome to the NHK. If you're the sort of person who's browsed textboards a lot, it almost certainly hits home on a number of topics relating to old school "otaku" culture, depression, and addiction.
The worst LNs I ever read were Sword Art Online 1-3, when assured by my friend that the anime (which I had not, and still haven't watched) was garbage and the LNs were actually good. This was not the case - I will never get back the time spent on those novels.
My overall vibe was "reminiscent of [type-moon's] Nasu's work, but a lot worse", though I get that the series started as a fanfictiony web novel. Maybe this is par for the course for many LNs though and I'm being too harsh. I read the Haruhi LNs back in the day for validation about my pet theories on Kyon's abilities but they never came. It was good I guess - it's been too long to really think about it objectively. Perhaps a re-read is in order!
Welcome to the NHK isn't an LN!! It's just a novel.