I regret not keeping a list of all the books I’ve ever read.\u00a0 I would have started it in 1965 when I was in first grade and had just learned to read.\u00a0 I’ll never forget the cover of that first book.\u00a0 It had a picture of two boys in a rowboat.\u00a0 The book, checked out from the library, felt wonderfully heavy and thick; I felt so mature, so accomplished!\u00a0 If I had kept that kind of list it would be a tome by now, a precious treasure and invaluable window into some of my early and ongoing literary influences.<\/p>\n
Here at The Life Literary<\/em>, the editorial staff believes that when it comes to living literarily, it’s never too late to start.\u00a0 Therefore, I’m going to build a list of books I’ve read and am reading<\/span> at the moment.\u00a0 As my memory allows, I’ll include books from my past.\u00a0 So I didn’t start the list when I was six.\u00a0 Who says I can’t start it 45 years later?<\/p>\n What I’m reading now:\u00a0 The Human Comedy<\/span>, William Saroyan (Quirky little book with well-written vignette chapters that form themselves into a very human story.)<\/p>\n The Ultimate Burns Supper Book<\/span>, Clark McGinn (a funny, well-written, concise guide to everything you’ve ever wanted to know about hosting a Burns Supper.\u00a0 My companion every January.) I regret not keeping a list of all the books I’ve ever read.\u00a0 I would have started it in 1965 when I was in first grade and had just learned to read.\u00a0 I’ll never forget the cover of that first … Continue reading
\nA Child’s Christmas in Wales<\/span> – Dylan Thomas
\nGreat Expectations<\/span>, Charles Dickens
\nA History of Scotland<\/span>, J.D. Mackie
\nA <\/span>Man without a Country<\/span>, Kurt Vonnegut (A peek into the mind and heart of one of my favorite writers, also from Indianapolis.\u00a0 I kinda wish I didn’t identify with it so much.\u00a0 Harsh words for lying leaders.\u00a0 Written in 2005)
\nThe Thurber Carnival<\/span>, James Thurber
\nThe Secret Life of Bees<\/span>, Sue Monk Kidd
\nDirt and Deity: A Life of Robert Burns<\/span>, Ian McIntyre
\nThe Undertaking<\/span>, Thomas Lynch (A beautifully written book about death and dying\u00a0written by\u00a0a well-known, published poet who is also a mortician.)
\nEchoes of a Native Land: Two Centuries of a Russian Village<\/span>, Serge Schmemann (An awarding wining New York Times reporter and the son of a well known Russian Orthodox priest writes about the village where one branch of his family lived.)
\nLast Night in Twisted River, John Irving<\/span> (Irving’s latest.\u00a0 Fun for dyed-in-the-wool Irving fans like me)
\nThe Sound and the Fury<\/span>, William Faulkner (One of the great books of the 20th century.)
\nE.B. White: A Biography<\/span>, Scott Elledge (A well-written fun read about one of my literary heros.)
\nWalden<\/span>, Henry David Thoreau (A classic.\u00a0 A life changer.\u00a0 An odd dude.)
\nJohn Adams<\/span>, David McCullough (A beautifully told biography of one of the key authors of the great experiment known as the United States.)
\n1776<\/span>, David McCullough (A book of history.\u00a0 A page turner.\u00a0 A must-read for any student of American history yet also a treat.)
\nJailbird<\/span>, Kurt Vonnegut (Such fun.\u00a0 Lots of laughs.\u00a0 We still quote it.)
\nBreakfast of Champions, Kurt Vonnegut (Dark.\u00a0 Heavy sailing.)
\nThe Girl With the Pearl Earring<\/span>, Tracey Chevalier (If I were to try to write a historical novel, this would be my model.)
\nRabbit, Run<\/span>, John Updike (Luscious.\u00a0 Rich images.\u00a0 Pointed critique of the\u00a0 of 50s and 60s middle America.\u00a0 Part one of four)
\nRabbit Redux<\/span>, John Updike (Continues the saga.\u00a0 He writes about sex and lies, intimacy and rage with a sure hand but without hitting the reader in the face with the whole schmear.)
\nPuddinhead Wilson<\/span>, Mark Twain (A great read.\u00a0 Classic, biting, funny.)
\nThe Kite Runner<\/span>, Khaled Hosseini (About betrayal and redemption, set against the tumultuous backdrop of modern Afghanistan.\u00a0 Dense, creamy prose.)
\nLiberty<\/span>, Garrison Keillor (About lust, middle-age, intimacy and forgiveness .\u00a0 An author for whom “more of the same” is high praise.)
\nA Christmas Carol<\/span>, Charles Dickens (I read it and weep every Christmas.)
\nThe Gift of the Magi<\/span>, (I read it and weep every Christmas.\u00a0 Note to self: read more O’Henry this year.)
\nA Child’s Christmas in Wales<\/span>, Dylan Thomas (I read it – but don’t weep – every Christmas.\u00a0 One of my favorite wordsmiths of all time.)
\nPatriots: The Men Who Started the American Revolution<\/span>, A.J. Langguth (Fun and informative sketches of America’s Founding Fathers.)
\nFrom Every End of This Earth<\/span>, Steven V. Roberts (Oral histories of newly arrived immigrants in the U.S.\u00a0 A book I wish I’d written.)
\nGreat Expectations<\/span>, Charles Dickens (A great book.)
\nEssays of E.B. White<\/span>, E.B. White (One of my inspirations.)
\nThe Old Man and the Sea<\/span>, Earnest Hemingway (Of course a classic.\u00a0 Spare language, a compelling story, a keeper.)
\nThe Coup, John Updike<\/span> (I was surprised to enjoy it so much.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"