Books, Glorious Books
A conversation with my friend Karen got me thinking about my favorite books. Here is a list (today's list, that is) of some of the most important books in my life. I'm not entirely sure if they're my "favorites" or the ones that have had the greatest impact on my life, or what, but it's a list of those works that I hold closely, that have been immenselly entertaining, and that helped shape who I am in one way or another. Exciting, hunh?
I give you, in no particular order, the list.
1. New York Trilogy by Paul Auster. Auster is one of my most favorite writers of all time. He loves to play with words and realities and he's awfully good at it. Leviathan is a good place to start with him but the New York Trilogy is his master work.
2. Biko by Donald Woods and In the Spirit of Crazy Horse by Peter Matthiessen. These books go together. Both drive home the terribly frightening lesson that it all can go so horribly wrong just by virtue of your race, your politics, where you were born, and where you live. They are striking and important works and you'll never look at life or governments the same way again.
3. The All-of-a-Kind Family series by Sidney Taylor. I still read these delightful books every few years. They're the story of a Jewish immigrant family in New York in the early 1900s. I yearned to be one of the sisters (specifically Charlotte) and always felt jealous as a Jewish kid growing up in a predominanetly gentile suburb and school, that my experience with Judaism couldn't be more like theirs. If you love children's books and historical fiction, these are for you. Taylor wove together touching stories, creating a loving picture of life at the time and Judaism. And if you're not Jewish, you'll learn a lot.
4. Stories That Could Be True by William Stafford. One of my prized possessions in life is a signed first edition of this now out-of-print book. Stafford was one of my favorite poets and I was lucky to meet him and share a drink with him about 15 years ago. I treasure that memory. He was a Westerner who wrote on regional themes but much, much more. Reading his poetry is like drinking a long, cool drink of water.
5. Deborah, Golda, and Me: Being Female and Jewish in America by Letty Cottin Pogrebin. I haven't read this book in a few years but each time I have read it, it's knocked me off my feet. Pogrebin was a founding editor of Ms. magazine and someone who had abandoned Judaism for many years. This book is her story about how she was able to reconcile her feminism and her Judaism and embrace the two together.
6. The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger. Sure, it's the cliched entry but it's a marvelous book. I still read this one about once a year or so and while I feel old now reading it, I get something new from it each time. It is the quintessential "coming of age" story and it withstands the test of time. Franny and Zoey still knocks my socks off, too, but Catcher in the Rye remains #1. Another of my prized possessions is my dad's paperback copy.
7. The Second Treatise of Government by John Locke and The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Everyone who knows me knows that I'm a political junkie and I especially love political theory. These two works are where it's at. Locke and Rousseau's writings were critical in the development of the American political system and Jefferson, et al, would not have been able to build the magnificent system of government we have today if not for these philosophers who came before them. And if you think their works aren't relevant today, I recommend reading both. The concepts that governement is to serve the people and that we have human rights and dignity are more important now than at any other time in recent history.
(For the Locke book I linked to a volume that combines his first and second treatises--both are important but the second is the critical one.)
8. Immortality by Milan Kundera. Given my love of Paul Auster, it should be no surprise that I love Kundera, too. He is best known for The Unbearable Lightness of Being, but I like this book more. In his lyrical and nonlinear style, it is the story of Goethe, his wife, and his friend Bettina, interwoven with a modern-day story of three Parisians. It's a thinking book and it takes some work and patience, but it is beautiful and well-worth the journey.
9. Anagrams by Lorrie Moore. Another author who is a master of wordplay and shifting realities. Moore is known mostly for her short stories but it's her novels I like best.
10. The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje. Yeah, Naveen Andrews is in the movie but it sucked. The book, however, is stunning. It took me several tries to get into it but it was worth every effort. Far and away, this is one of the finest novels of the last 25 years. Another one I'll put in that category is AS Byatt's Possession: A Romance. Again, I had several false starts (and again, the book is much better than the movie) but the payoff was worth it. Not only does she create two different and beautiful stories of the four primary main characters, but she writes loads of terrible romantic poetry that makes you laugh throughout this otherwise serious book.
11. Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America by Steve Almond. I learned that it's okay to embrace and celebrate my inner candyfreak. Almond's website is also great fun--he's a fantastic writer. Bon appetite!
(And a note to any books and authors I left off--it was not intentional and I promise I'll get to you!)
I give you, in no particular order, the list.
1. New York Trilogy by Paul Auster. Auster is one of my most favorite writers of all time. He loves to play with words and realities and he's awfully good at it. Leviathan is a good place to start with him but the New York Trilogy is his master work.
2. Biko by Donald Woods and In the Spirit of Crazy Horse by Peter Matthiessen. These books go together. Both drive home the terribly frightening lesson that it all can go so horribly wrong just by virtue of your race, your politics, where you were born, and where you live. They are striking and important works and you'll never look at life or governments the same way again.
3. The All-of-a-Kind Family series by Sidney Taylor. I still read these delightful books every few years. They're the story of a Jewish immigrant family in New York in the early 1900s. I yearned to be one of the sisters (specifically Charlotte) and always felt jealous as a Jewish kid growing up in a predominanetly gentile suburb and school, that my experience with Judaism couldn't be more like theirs. If you love children's books and historical fiction, these are for you. Taylor wove together touching stories, creating a loving picture of life at the time and Judaism. And if you're not Jewish, you'll learn a lot.
4. Stories That Could Be True by William Stafford. One of my prized possessions in life is a signed first edition of this now out-of-print book. Stafford was one of my favorite poets and I was lucky to meet him and share a drink with him about 15 years ago. I treasure that memory. He was a Westerner who wrote on regional themes but much, much more. Reading his poetry is like drinking a long, cool drink of water.
5. Deborah, Golda, and Me: Being Female and Jewish in America by Letty Cottin Pogrebin. I haven't read this book in a few years but each time I have read it, it's knocked me off my feet. Pogrebin was a founding editor of Ms. magazine and someone who had abandoned Judaism for many years. This book is her story about how she was able to reconcile her feminism and her Judaism and embrace the two together.
6. The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger. Sure, it's the cliched entry but it's a marvelous book. I still read this one about once a year or so and while I feel old now reading it, I get something new from it each time. It is the quintessential "coming of age" story and it withstands the test of time. Franny and Zoey still knocks my socks off, too, but Catcher in the Rye remains #1. Another of my prized possessions is my dad's paperback copy.
7. The Second Treatise of Government by John Locke and The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Everyone who knows me knows that I'm a political junkie and I especially love political theory. These two works are where it's at. Locke and Rousseau's writings were critical in the development of the American political system and Jefferson, et al, would not have been able to build the magnificent system of government we have today if not for these philosophers who came before them. And if you think their works aren't relevant today, I recommend reading both. The concepts that governement is to serve the people and that we have human rights and dignity are more important now than at any other time in recent history.
(For the Locke book I linked to a volume that combines his first and second treatises--both are important but the second is the critical one.)
8. Immortality by Milan Kundera. Given my love of Paul Auster, it should be no surprise that I love Kundera, too. He is best known for The Unbearable Lightness of Being, but I like this book more. In his lyrical and nonlinear style, it is the story of Goethe, his wife, and his friend Bettina, interwoven with a modern-day story of three Parisians. It's a thinking book and it takes some work and patience, but it is beautiful and well-worth the journey.
9. Anagrams by Lorrie Moore. Another author who is a master of wordplay and shifting realities. Moore is known mostly for her short stories but it's her novels I like best.
10. The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje. Yeah, Naveen Andrews is in the movie but it sucked. The book, however, is stunning. It took me several tries to get into it but it was worth every effort. Far and away, this is one of the finest novels of the last 25 years. Another one I'll put in that category is AS Byatt's Possession: A Romance. Again, I had several false starts (and again, the book is much better than the movie) but the payoff was worth it. Not only does she create two different and beautiful stories of the four primary main characters, but she writes loads of terrible romantic poetry that makes you laugh throughout this otherwise serious book.
11. Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America by Steve Almond. I learned that it's okay to embrace and celebrate my inner candyfreak. Almond's website is also great fun--he's a fantastic writer. Bon appetite!
(And a note to any books and authors I left off--it was not intentional and I promise I'll get to you!)
Labels: Books
posted by Kay at
7:41 AM
2 Comments:
LOVED All of a Kind Family. Thanks for reminding me of it.
The rest is trash.
No, I kid. Catcher in the Rye is one of my all time favorites.
Catcher in the Rye is also one of my faves.
Leviathan and Candyfreak were much appreciated recommendations. I loved them both.
Can I just sit back and Imagine Naveen if I read The English Patient? If I can, cool.
KP
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