Ten(ish) Books

Last month Laney had a former high school teacher post a challenge on her facebook page asking her and her friends to share ten books other than the Bible that had stuck with them in some way. I kept checking back on that post to see what people posted. It was super interesting to see what people said. Some were sincere answers where you could feel the book love oozing from their words. A couple seemed less sincere ... more like the sort of books that they thought they should put down rather than actual books that really touched them in some way. 

Seeing that post made me think of my own list of ten books that had some sort of impact on my life. Since the Bible was excluded as a possibility in their post I'll also exclude The Book of Mormon although I will say that both the Bible and Book of Mormon had the most lasting impact in my life and probably deserve their own separate posts. As for more secular choices, here are ten books that have touched me deeply in one way or another or books that have just stayed in my heart and head for some reason...

First, a caveat ... a read a lot. I love to read. Although I am not violently opposed to reading heavy topics I prefer to read lighter, happier books that are more escapist. Any Judgey McJudgey's out there who are going to shake their heads over that should probably stop reading now and make your own list that makes you feel happy inside. These books hold a special place in my heart for different reasons, and hopefully, everyone else can enjoy my picks without feeling any need to form opinions about my personal worth. I hope you can appreciate it for the fun that it has been for me to compile this list and not place any sort of eternal significance on my thoughts.  Here are my books in no particular order:

I think I first read this book in high school (maybe it was in college), and I didn't fully appreciate it because it was an assignment. Reading it as an adult I fell in love with this beautiful story. Gabriel Oak may have the most perfect name of any character in all of literature. He is an example of constancy, even when Bathsheba (another PERFECT name) doesn't deserve it. It's a classic that deserves more attention.

I have hated the words and 
I have loved them,
and I hope I have made them right.

Like I said, I don't really like to read sad books, so I stayed away from this one for a long, long time. It is a sad one. But it is such a beautiful story. Really it is just a collection of events in the life of a girl living in Germany during World War II. The movie doesn't quite do the book justice, but I loved the movie too. But this book is one of those books that had me weeping and weeping and weeping. Ugly tears. War sucks, you know?

Rainbow Rowell is one of my favorite authors, although I haven't really loved some of her newer stories. I love the subtlety of her writing where ordinary people live ordinary lives, but in the process manage to touch my heart. This is the story of a terribly awkward guy who had the job of monitoring company emails in the 90s, a time when email was a new thing and somehow companies thought that one guy would be able to keep tabs on everyone. As he monitors the communication of a coworker (it sounds creepier as I write it than it does in the book) he falls in love with her. It's a super sweet story that made me smile.

Cassandra Clare is better known for her Mortal Instruments series, but I never really liked those stories at all (apologies to all the mega-fans out there). But I absolutely loved this Infernal Devices series so, so much. It's a steampunk story with automatons living in the midst of 19th century life, so not everyone will find this to be their cup of tea, but it worked for me. This final book in the series was my favorite of the bunch with the most beautiful, wonderful, and equally heartbreaking epilogue ever. Another one that broke me down with big ugly tears. Poor Minsy was really worried that I had lost it when she found me in a puddle of tears while finishing this great story.

I can still remember my 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Brockmeier, reading this story to us. I fell in love with it then, and I fell in love with it again as I read it as an adult. This is the story of a wealthy girl who is pampered at her boarding school until a horrible change in fortune destroys the life she has known and turns her into a pauper. Even in the midst of horrible treatment, however, this little girl finds strength that proves that you don't have to have wealth to be a princess. This is one of those stories that will always have a warm spot in my heart because it reminds me of being a little girl. Every little girl should read this once in their life. Love it!

Jane Eyre may get the honor of being my favorite book of all time. It's a fluid honor, so it may not hold this place forever, but for now it is a book that I love the most. I love romantic stories, but I really, really love romantic stories with depth. This is not just a story full of happy romantic moments and trivial struggles that keep the protagonists apart. This a story with heart, and it makes my heart happy seeing the growth of the relationship between Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester, even when it was so full of completely wacky experiences and tragedy. How in the world does Mr. Rochester think he is going to get away with his ridiculous marriage plans?

This was another book that was required reading in high school, and I LOVED it. It's been a long while since I've read it, and just sticking it on this list makes me want to go back and read it again. I'm not sure if it will have the same effect on me now as an old lady as it did when I was in high school, but at the time I read this I was transfixed. I won't share it now (or probably ever on this blog), but I have a terribly awful fear for my children that directly corresponds to the outcome of the life of the character Phineas in this book. It makes no rational sense, but at the time I read this story it hit my heart and mind so intensely that I have never been able to shake this fear. This book is definitely going onto my to-read list for 2016.

This may be the most beautiful story I have ever read. It is a retelling of the Celtic swans myth. An evil sorceress turns a girl's six brothers into swans, and the only way for the curse to be lifted is for this girl to remain completely silent as she weaves and creates shirts for her brothers from a horribly prickly plant ... a process that takes years. It is a story of love on so many levels, but maybe most importantly about the love of a sister for her brothers, and it is beautiful how this love is expressed entirely in silence for much of the book. So absolutely beautiful. I adore this inspiring story, but as a warning, there is a rape scene in this story that is not exactly graphic, but it is terribly disturbing, so some may want to avoid reading it.

Have you guys read this book yet? No? You need to read this book. I LOVE These is my Words. It is a novel told in journal format about a girl who becomes a woman as she travels to the Arizona territories to start a new life with her family. This is another one of those books that turned me into an ugly crier. But I would read this one again and again even if it reduced me to those tears every single time. Sarah Prine is one of the strongest female characters in literature. And Captain Jack Elliott is da bomb! Loved him! Oops ... there goes another tear. (Thanks for recommending this Sammy Jacobson!)

How could I have a list like this without including Harry Potter? I love this series for the magic and the joy and the power of good over evil. I love how it seems like J.K. Rowlings wrote these books as if she knew the end at the very beginning. Everything ties together so well at the end. I enjoyed all the books in the series, but this final book was my absolute favorite even though there was so much more heartbreak in this book than in the others. The scene where Harry heads into the woods, believing that he was sacrificing himself to save everyone else and then being joined by his friends and family members who had died earlier ... it brings me to tears every time I read it. This is a series that I could read again and again and one case where the movies didn't ruin the books for me.

And because I had a hard time limiting myself to just ten choices, here are six honorable mentions ...

This is the one book where I included a quote instead of the book cover because Walden by Henry David Thoreau is a book full of quotes that make me want to change my life. I can't help but want to sell all my possessions (well, maybe not all of them ... gotta keep my pictures), and head out into the woods to live off the land and simplify. People who spend their days freaking out about all the crazy news out there should take a minute to read Thoreau's feelings about what is truly important news for us to know. Spoiler alert ... 99% of what we call news in our day wouldn't make the cut. This is a book that truly makes me want to eliminate the excess of my life and begin to LIVE.

I once told a high school lit teacher recently that Pride and Prejudice was one of my favorite books, and she rolled her eyes at me. Seriously. Rolled her eyes. I get it. It seems almost cliche to choose this book. But I'm owning my feelings here. It's a great book. It's funny and pointed in its criticisms of the aristocratic pride of the time. The romance is rewarding, if not the sort of romance that I'd wish for the people I care about. Sure, I've seen the BBC mini series probably three hundred times. I'm not ashamed. It is a book that I don't mind re-reading every once in a while when I'm in the mood for a classic feel good novel.

The Kite Runner is not a book for everyone. It tells the story of a boy growing up in Afghanistan before the Soviet invasion many years ago. It is a beautiful story, and it made me really, really sad for what has happened to that country ... to its history, its culture, and its people. Such a tragedy. A powerful book, but there is some violence in the story that is difficult to handle. Like I say, not a book for everyone.

Ethan Frome is a super short book. It would probably be more accurate to call it a novella, but it is a powerful one. The entire story basically takes place in the middle of a desolate winter, and that sets the stage for a horribly bleak story. Someone told me once that this was a beautiful story of redemption. I'm not sure what story that guy was reading, because what I read was horribly depressing and bleak ... and infuriating. There are few stories that have left me feeling so angry at the end for the way circumstances left the characters at the end. But this is a story that has stuck with me ever since. If you ever want to read a reason why it matters that you choose well when you marry someone, this is it. 

Don't judge me. I know that Twilight has a lot of haters out there ... especially after those movies kind of ruined the whole thing. But when I was first introduced to this series I just fell in love with the story. I know that there is a lot to criticize with this series, but what I loved about the story was that giddy feeling that reminded me so much of how it felt to fall "in love" for the first time in high school. Sure, it wasn't really love, and it probably was not exactly the healthiest thing in the world, but, oh man!, those feelings are just intense. That's what this series made me remember, and I really loved it.

Villette is not a widely read novel by Charlotte Bronte. People generally only think of Jane Eyre when they think of her. However, Villette is a more personal tale that mirrors some of Charlotte Bronte's real life experiences and feelings, and I really enjoyed it. In some ways it was a better book than Jane Eyre, although I don't think it will ever take away the deep love I have for that novel. Still, Bronte is able to display absolutely precious humor throughout this story that had me giggling at times, something that rarely happens as I read classic literature. Delightful and worth the read.

So there you go. I hope you've enjoyed my list. It has been fun for me to compile. What books have touched your life?