Reading. 3/23/2007
I first started reading books, seriously, from age 9. The first book I ever read was Enid Blyton’s “Valley of Adventure”, which belonged to my mother. This started a very serious passion, which I had in common with my dad, much to the despair of my mother. My father taught me how to appreciate books, and to use their contents to improve my knowledge of the world around me. I remember, as a young lad, going to the club where he was a member. While he spent time playing tennis, I would be comfortably ensconced in the club library, with the librarian keeping an eye on me. This club library wasn’t just a couple of bookshelves filled with cast off books. It was the real deal, with reading tables, a proper card index and everything. I spent many happy hours in there, with the kind librarian (I remember her being a very nice chinese girl) sometimes giving me sweets or cakes, or getting one of the waiters to bring me up a soft drink from the members’ lounge downstairs.
As I got older, I kept badgering my dad to get me more books. Soon enough, I had a room filled with books, of all sorts. A fair number of them weren’t exactly recommended reading for an impressionable 12 year old. I read voraciously, reading anything I could lay my hands on. My uncle had left a collection of Reader’s Digests from the 60s in my grandparents house, and my granddad told me some years ago that he recalled me reading every single issue, cover to cover, when I spent a month in their house during the school holidays. I went through my dad’s 30 plus year collection of National Geographics, and he then started using me as his index system, asking me specific questions about things, and then asking if I knew which article, month and year of National Geographic it came from. And I would, about 98% of the time, be able to quote him the exact month and year, and sometimes even the author’s and photographer’s names.
As I got older, the collection of books I had grew, and grew. At last count, which was at the turn of the century, I had something close to 12,000 books, spread across 3 households. Some books are favourites, which I will re-read again and again. Others are read once, and never looked at again, or perhaps pulled down from the shelf at a slack moment. Still others get thrown out an open window from 12 storeys up. I think the last book I threw out the window in disgust was a Michael Crichton novel. In and all, I still have a fair amount of books in my place, many still in boxes, some others on the shelves.
Since books are a very large part of my life, it was with some interest that I perused these lists that I read from Lainie and Meesh. I took the list, and decided to fill it in, to see what the results would be. So, below, you will find my take on the book list meme. The coding is, bold the books you’ve read, italicize the ones you want to read, cross out the ones you won’t touch with a 10 foot pole, put a cross (+) in front of the ones on your book shelf, and asterisk (*) the ones you’ve never heard of. In my case, my caveat is that there are books that I have read, have on my bookshelf, and I certainly don’t want to ever read again. The very first book in the list is a good example.
1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown) +
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee) +
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell) +
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien) +
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien) +
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien) +
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery) +
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown) +
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden) +
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Rowling) +
17. Fall on Your Knees(Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King) +
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban(Rowling) +
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien) +
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger) +
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams) +
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte) +
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert) +
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell) +
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel) +
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella) +
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. Bible +
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy) +
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas) +
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt) +
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens) +
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card) + (This is a bloody excellent read. I have both the series, as well as the short story the books are based on.)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens) +
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald) +
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough) +
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrew Niffenegger) +
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy) +
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch–22 (Joseph Heller) +
69. Les Miserables (Hugo) +
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint–Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell) +
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White) +
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams) +
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer) +
91. In The Skin Of a Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck) +
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield) +
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)
Strange list. Whoever first came up with it obviously wasn’t much into science fiction or military history, both of which feature prominently in my library. Or hard science, for that matter. One of the books I enjoy re-reading is Philip K. Dick’s “Do androids dream of electric sheep?” which was the basis of the excellent Ridley Scott movie, “Bladerunner”, along with the follow on books, “The edge of human”, “Replicant night” and “Eye and talon” by Kevin W Jeter. I also have several books on the military, both fiction and non fiction. Of course, when I say several, I am refering to a number with 3 digits.
I also find it funny that Terry Pratchett didn’t make the list. I think his writing is very funny, very satirical, and very political. His Discworld series of books are excellent reads in themselves, and also a very funny and accurate reflection of the state of the human condition. When reading his books, you will recognise something of yourself, or of things you have observed in others. I’ve been a Pratchett fan since 1994, and I have almost everything he’s published.
I’ve resolved not to buy any more books this year, or at least, not buy books on impulse and by the yard, which is what I used to do. And spend hours in bed at night reading. The last book I bought was Neil Gaiman’s “Fragile Things”, which I shared with someone. I enjoyed it, immensely. The next purchase on my list will be a couple of replacements, which I found in the Kinokuniya today. I rather stupidly lent those books out years ago, before the internerd and Amazon came into being, and I never got around to replacing them. What are they? A pair of books which are essential reading for any rider wanting to perfect his craft.
- Posted in : General
- Author : thesnark
Comments»
I was wondering about the list as well. I suspect it might be the top 100 all time best selling books.
I also own most of what Pratchet has released. The list has me wondering if I should try to dig up some of the books just to see what makes them so popular.
I also would have had a larger SF and Non-Fiction content if the list had of been based on my library.
Two writers that made my life complete in different ways. J.G.Ballard - every book, every short story since I was a teenager. The ultimate in dystopian vision, and the explorer of inner space.
And more recently, Haruki Murakami - transports my whole being into another entity as I read, I feel myself slowly calming and being absorbed into a dreamscape of surreal perfection. There are so many others, of course, but these have had profound effects on me.
Enid Blyton was my fave too… Reading was something i did a lot b4.. no longer now. (siighh)
Neil Gaiman rocks, also a fan of another Neal, the Stephenson kind.
And William Gibson of course, can’t say I’m a fan of Pratchett, I do like some George RR Martin though and Raymond E Feist.
From the list though I have read most, can’t say I like a lot of them, and I do own quite a few (Whole Dune series is a good one) on one continent or another.
Ender’s Game is awesome!
I’m surprised you haven’t read Crime & Punishment, fantastic book, dark and sickly, right up your alley
Hallo Snark! Did u finish the whole seria like Mountain of adventure etc ? Now that u mention it, reading those story book bring sweet memories & due to extensive reading reading I end up wearing spec! Sadly from your list I only read catch 22.
Dabido : I don’t think it’s the 100 best sellers. “Quotations from Chairman Mao” isn’t in the list, and that definitely sold several hundred million copies. Neither is “The Three Musketeers” or “Man in the iron mask”, both of which would definitely make the top 100, or the Quran, for the matter.
Grant : I enjoy Ballard too. But I found Murakami a little over rated. Good in some ways, but slightly over hyped, if you know what I mean.
Sasha : There’s always time to read. Even if it’s just 3 pages in between waiting for the car to arrive.
Shaolin Tiger : Gibson is another favourite, as is Greg Bear. Another of my favourites is Karl Edward Wagner. I have a first edition of “The Book of Kane”, with illustrations. If you can find it, it’s worth the read. Makes all the fantasy writers they have on bookshelves these days look stupid.
Horny AM : Yes, I did finish the whole series, along with a gazillion other Blyton books, Famous Five, Secret Seven, Five Find-Outers, St Clare’s. You name a Blyton, I’ve probably read it. Along with Hardy Boys, Perry Rhodan, Burrough’s Mars series, my childhood reading list goes on and on.
where are all the hardcore chinese kung fu series from jing yong?
So, someone has to ask: What are the two titles “which are essential reading for any rider wanting to perfect his craft”?
Seriously!
Mine, back in the Bloodrunners days was the UK Police Motorcycle Training Manual
yes, the guys in the MBC have expressed admiration for our local traffic cops and their ability to weave thru traffic on a Honda CBX-750.
too bad the training manual isn’t public reading
KY : You’re asking someone who reads in several languages. But I never mastered Mandarin or Japanese. Unfortunately. I know I’m missing out on some really good reading material.
Grant : I’ll be reviewing the books soon. You would definitely have heard of them.
Jeyadev : I’ve had the benefit of undergoing local traffic police motorcycle training, as have some (well at least one other) of the readers of this blog.
Grant : Actually, I tell a lie. There are 3 books. I’ve managed to re-find 2 of them. The 3rd is one I really regret letting out. It happened to have been autographed by Kenny Roberts Sr., Randy Mamola, Mike Baldwin, Freddie Spencer, and a couple of other riders whose names escape me now. Also signed by Kel Carruthers. From back in the 80s when Grand Prix machines were fire breathing man killers. The title of the book was “The Art and Science of Motorcycle Road Racing”. It was filled with everything you ever wanted to know about designing and building a racing motorcycle. Taught me a lot about suspension and frame design, lessons which I still apply today. The contents were good, but those signatures made the book valuable, because there was a picture in the book of Freddie Spencer dicing it out with the King, and I managed to get both of them to sign the same picture. The look on Kenny’s face when he saw that pic of Spencer gearing up to overtake him, and the signature on it, was priceless.
The person who didn’t give you back that one should be hunted down and shot!
Great anecdote, though.