Friday, July 24, 2009

Ye Olde Book Meme

Not only does falling out of a sail boat make you feel like a clumsy fool, but it qualifies you for a book meme. Actually, I don't mind this meme. I love to read books.

The rules: List fifteen books that had a profound impact on you in less than fifteen minutes.

It will be difficult to make it to fifteen, so I'll just list as many as I can think of in a reasonable amount of time in no particular order.

Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
This is one of my all-time favorite books. I love the satire. I originally read Pride and Prejudice in high school and have reread it many times since. After falling in love with this book, I decided to read other Jane Austin books and a Jane Austin biography.
Emma – Jane Austen
Yep, another Jane Austen. I loved this book immediately.
Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
This is the book that changed my reading habits forever. Even though I was never a teen-aged boy, I felt like I related to Holden Caulfield. I too felt different, lonely, restless. Obviously, it's one of my favorites. After I read it the first time, I decided to do a little research about the book and I was surprised to learn about it's controversial history. How could anyone consider banning this book?
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
What's not to love about this book? It's dark, beautifully written, the characters are fantastic and a good chunk of the story takes place in a Gothic manor.
Animal Farm - George Orwell
This was a book I read in high school and while I was loving it, most of my classmates were hating it. Thanks to this book, I cringe when people mention utopia.
Nineteen Eighty-four – George Orwell
This book freaked me out. It took me three attempts to finally make it through to the end. The Newspeak kicked my ass.
I wasn't sure I would like this book, but once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down. I thing it really stands apart from other books in the Vampire genre. I'm not saying it's the best Vampire book, but I love how the story unfolds. I've read the other books in the series, and while I find them entertaining, they don't compare to Interview.
I love the Beatles. Love, love, love the Beatles. I read this book when my obsession with the music was just starting to unfold. Many consider this book the most authoritative book concerning the Beatles and rightfully so. Peter Brown was the Beatles' business manager and close friend. If you like this band, I highly recommend giving it a read.
This book is a great piece of American fiction and I love the Gothic feel. It's not full-on Gothic, but I think there is an undertone.
Charlotte’s Web - E. B. White
I read this book during the third grade. For a certain period of time each day, we would follow along in the book as the teacher read the story aloud. My entire class was in tears when we read about Charlotte's passing in the book. I loved the story anyway and was dying to raise my own pig.

I'm completely out of steam now, so those will have to suffice.

5 comments:

chall said...

It was an interesting list. I have a somewhat complicated relationship with Jane.I think I should like her, and yet I can't remember any of the books I have read and liked... it's all very strange. I wonder if it is a translation fault, that I picked a poor translation... or if it is something else.

I have an idea to reread at least one, guess Emma might be the best one? and see if I can see the better thing nowadays. Same goes for the Brontoe sisters... something about that romantic style maybe? But I would really like to like them. Female writers and all.

Cath@VWXYNot? said...

It's really interesting how many people are choosing books they (probably) read as early teens; it really must be our most impressionable time! I agree about To Kill a Mocking Bird - I forgot that one for my own list.

Cath@VWXYNot? said...

p.s. Chall, have you seen any of the TV or movie adaptations?

quietandsmalladventures said...

hmmmm, i'm more of a franny and zooey kind of gal. i wish i liked jane and the bronte's, but sadly i get bored rather quickly trying to read her (or even watch the movies, maybe i fidget too much....). and damn, i totally forgot to kill a mockingbird!

JaneB said...

I didn't 'foget' about MockingBird - I had to study it in school which ruined it for me. I will never read it again, because reading it takes me back to that awful class...