Hello from Snowpocalypse 2008! On days like this when I lived in Colorado, I would hunker down with a good book. That's hard to do with two cabin-fevered children running about, but it inspired me to share my top five book lists with you, in case you need some recommended reading for the next time you're snowed in. So, here are my top five top fives (interspersed with new snow photos for you).
Top 5 Novels
1. In the City of Shy Hunters by Tom Spanbauer, a Portland local. It's the story of a gay man who moves to New York City during the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and the people he befriends there. But it's oh so much more, and brilliantly written.
2. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. I think this one is her masterpiece. It's the story of an Evangelical Baptist who takes his family on a mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959 and is told from the perspective of his wife and daughters.
3. The Bone People by Keri Hulme. It's the story of an unusual friendship between a Maori woman artist and a little boy that takes place along the New Zealand Sea.
4. Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie (and it's short story companion, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven). The stories of Thomas-Builds-the-Fire and the other members of the Spokane Indian reservation.
5. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. It's the story of what happens when an opera singer and several other guests are taken hostage by terrorists during a dinner party at the vice-president's home in an unnamed South American country.
I'm cheating. I can't do novels in less than 10. I tried, but I just can't.
6. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. The biblical story of Jacob from the women's points of view.
7. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. The story of a twin sister and brother set in India in the 1960s.
8. The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx. The story of a newspaperman living on the Newfoundland coast.
9. A Yellow Raft in Blue Water byMichael Dorris. A story of three generations of women, set in Seattle and a reservation in Montana.
10. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. Set in Alabama in the 1930s, the story of Idgie Threadgoode as told through the eyes of a relative at a nursing home to a younger woman at a turning point in her life.
Top 5 Novels
1. In the City of Shy Hunters by Tom Spanbauer, a Portland local. It's the story of a gay man who moves to New York City during the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and the people he befriends there. But it's oh so much more, and brilliantly written.
2. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. I think this one is her masterpiece. It's the story of an Evangelical Baptist who takes his family on a mission to the Belgian Congo in 1959 and is told from the perspective of his wife and daughters.
3. The Bone People by Keri Hulme. It's the story of an unusual friendship between a Maori woman artist and a little boy that takes place along the New Zealand Sea.
4. Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie (and it's short story companion, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven). The stories of Thomas-Builds-the-Fire and the other members of the Spokane Indian reservation.
5. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. It's the story of what happens when an opera singer and several other guests are taken hostage by terrorists during a dinner party at the vice-president's home in an unnamed South American country.
I'm cheating. I can't do novels in less than 10. I tried, but I just can't.
6. The Red Tent by Anita Diamant. The biblical story of Jacob from the women's points of view.
7. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. The story of a twin sister and brother set in India in the 1960s.
8. The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx. The story of a newspaperman living on the Newfoundland coast.
9. A Yellow Raft in Blue Water byMichael Dorris. A story of three generations of women, set in Seattle and a reservation in Montana.
10. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg. Set in Alabama in the 1930s, the story of Idgie Threadgoode as told through the eyes of a relative at a nursing home to a younger woman at a turning point in her life.
Top 5 Books of Poetry
1. Words Under the Words by Naomi Shihab Nye.
2. In Mad Love and War by Joy Harjo.
3. Vesper Sparrows by Deborah Digges.
4. The Dead and the Living by Sharon Olds.
5. Transformations by Anne Sexton.
Top 5 Non-Fiction Books
1. Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. His memoir of growing up in Limerick, Ireland.
2. Everyday Acts and Small Subversions by Anndee Hochman. Profiles of women doing extraordinay things with their daily lives.
3. The Autism Trail Guide: Postcards From the Road Less Traveled by Ellen Notbohm. A collection of essays about raising a child on the autism spectrum.
4. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. Her account of the year her family spent growing their own food and eating locally and how it permanently and positively impacted their lives.
5. First Comes Love by Marion Winik. Her heartbreaking memoir of her husband who died of AIDS.
Top 5 Young Adult Novels
1. Habibi by Naomi Shihab Nye. The story of an Arab-American 14-year old girl who moves from St. Louis back to her father's home in Jerusalem.
2. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. No explanation necessary.
3. The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Again, no explanation needed (what is it with young adult novelists and using initials for their first names, anyway?).
4. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. Part of a sci-fi series I loved as a child.
5. Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie. A fantastical adventure tale.
Top 5 Children's Book Illustrators
(Again, I'm cheating. I have a huge collection and couldn't pick just five books.)
1. Shaun Tan.
2. Christopher Myers.
3. Lizbeth Zwerger.
4. Gennady Spirin.
5. Barry Moser.
What's missing? Let me know which of your favorites I left out!
1. Words Under the Words by Naomi Shihab Nye.
2. In Mad Love and War by Joy Harjo.
3. Vesper Sparrows by Deborah Digges.
4. The Dead and the Living by Sharon Olds.
5. Transformations by Anne Sexton.
Top 5 Non-Fiction Books
1. Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. His memoir of growing up in Limerick, Ireland.
2. Everyday Acts and Small Subversions by Anndee Hochman. Profiles of women doing extraordinay things with their daily lives.
3. The Autism Trail Guide: Postcards From the Road Less Traveled by Ellen Notbohm. A collection of essays about raising a child on the autism spectrum.
4. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. Her account of the year her family spent growing their own food and eating locally and how it permanently and positively impacted their lives.
5. First Comes Love by Marion Winik. Her heartbreaking memoir of her husband who died of AIDS.
Top 5 Young Adult Novels
1. Habibi by Naomi Shihab Nye. The story of an Arab-American 14-year old girl who moves from St. Louis back to her father's home in Jerusalem.
2. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. No explanation necessary.
3. The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Again, no explanation needed (what is it with young adult novelists and using initials for their first names, anyway?).
4. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. Part of a sci-fi series I loved as a child.
5. Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie. A fantastical adventure tale.
Top 5 Children's Book Illustrators
(Again, I'm cheating. I have a huge collection and couldn't pick just five books.)
1. Shaun Tan.
2. Christopher Myers.
3. Lizbeth Zwerger.
4. Gennady Spirin.
5. Barry Moser.
What's missing? Let me know which of your favorites I left out!
1 comment:
I big pink puffy heart A Wrinkle in Time. I read it over and over and over in my youth. Now I'm gonna have to see if the library has it so I can read it again.
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