the best light novel ever, I laugh more often reading this than by watching the anime. Funny , intense, touching, refreshing, etc, etc. Even I got hooked even though I usually hate reading novel.

A must read.

Kudos to the translation team, for they have so far succeeded in bringing in the Characters so true to their Anime counterparts which we Haruhi fanboys have fallen in love with. Trust me, translation is difficult on its own, but translating with Character-first ideal is even more difficult.

Although I'm a little behind in reading this, this is a must read for those who liked to watch the SHnY anime series. As the manga and more popular anime was derived from this, this will keep you on the edge and thinking back and over again about some of the paradoxes that happens all the time in here. It's great and funny and insanely genius when it comes to plot. How it all fits together is also the amazing thing as well and a great translation from the Baka-Tsuki guys

These would be one of those light novels that I would like some sort of manga/anime company to license and publish and I would actually buy since the light novels are just amazing. Especially when you also consider Noiji Ito's amazing art

Absolute must read. Funny, touching, witty, it's got it all. I'd recommend reading it first, then watching the anime (which covers only the first few volumes). At least read the first volume before watching the anime, you will enjoy both the anime and the novels more that way.
An useful note: the stories within the novels weren't published in chronological order (just like how the anime episodes aren't in chronological order), so you'll probably enjoy them more if you use Baka-Tsuki's timeline to read the stories in the right oder.

go read it, now.

the titile said it all, iam a person who wont read something that has only text but this novel changed me..... XD i recommend it, even for lazy ass readers like me XD, jaz beware of exageration speciall when kyon is describng asahina lol

What can I say? Amazing work by the author, and amazing dedication by the translators. What I love about this is that the Haruhi novels did not become popular because of eye candy but because of awsome characters and hilarious dialogue (and dont forget the monologues!) Although I agree, the anime is better (if possible). Its just that both TANIGAWA Nagaru and KyoAni did PERFECT jobs on Haruhi and eye candy on top of everything else just makes it perfect(er)?

A great seinen novel

its greeaaaaaaaattttttttttttttttt!

If you've watched the anime, you will know the totally insane hilarity of this series, and the book is basically like the anime, except with a few added sentences, and some descriptions that, obviously, wouldn't be in the anime. Personally, I recommend watching the anime, since not only is the art great, but it's much more enjoyable to watch it, however if you're waiting for the next episode to be fan-subbed (like I am XP), it's a good way to pass the time.
Basically--the story is hilarious, the characters are not only distinct and interesting, but some of them are even insane(ly funny) (*cough* Haruhi.. *sweatdrop*) and although the writing style is a bit strange, while some sentences are kind of awkward (I guess through translation, though), it's a pretty good read. Still, I recommend watching the anime, it's much funnier to actually see it happening! ^^