I know it’s Sunday Salon time, but I figure I’d kill two birds with one post.
Over at Top Ten Tuesday this last week, we were allowed to re-visit a topic. Since I never did this one, and it’s something I do a lot of, I thought I’d make it easy on myself and pick the week when they asked us about the Top Ten Books We Recommend.
Easy? Yeah, right.
The hard part isn’t about the recommending, but keeping it to a list of ten, which I didn’t, but what else is new?
- To Kill A Mockingbird
by Harper Lee
If you’ve only seen the movie, the book is better in that some of the characters you only see briefly in the movie have a more important role in the book, especially in supporting the moral and ethical themes of the story. - Shel Silverstein Books
It’d be easy to say Where The Sidewalk Ends or The Giving Tree, but all his books are worth recommending. - Watership Down
This story began as one the author told to his daughters on long car drives. It is a hero’s journey told in a form that anyone can read and follow. - Harry Potter Books
Magical and fantastical, yet like Watership Down it has themes that go way beyond a simple children’s book. Kids of all ages will love this series. - The Pillars of the Earth
Besides Shogun, this novel helped in cementing my love for historical fiction. The detail is dazzling but not overdone, showcasing how valuable good research is in telling a fictional story based on real events. - Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
Another historical fiction based on excellent research as well as a personal connection to the Chinese culture. At it’s core is a story about a complicated relationship that spans a lifetime and how it survives through tragedy and hardship. - A. Lee Martinez books
He writes fantastical stories with a comic flair. I don’t think I’ve ever read a horror novel that made me laugh out loud as much as his do. His characters are ones you will immediately like and the narrative very entertaining. - Belgarion series
Other than Mary Stewart’s books, this series will lure the reader in and never let them go until they finish. Just have some tissues handy. The story will take you places emotionally as well as imaginatively. - Mary Stewart’s Merlin Trilogy
(The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills, The Last Enchantment)
Long before Merlin was a TV series and the Arthurian legend a box office boon, Stewart was bringing these mythological characters to life, giving me (and I’m sure many other readers) a glimpse of a legend we couldn’t get enough of. - The Phantom Tollbooth
(My World Book Night choice this year)
A modern fairy tale that has a universal appeal. It’s easier to read for those who like Lewis Carroll but are unsure it’s appropriate for youngsters that won’t understand all the nuances. They may not in this book too, but that just makes it a book that should be read more than once – even by adults. - The Book Thief
(My World Book Night choice last year)
You’d think that a book narrated by Death would be morose – and being set in Nazi Germany, it could be. But it isn’t Amid tragedy, especially war, life still goes on and in many ways still carries hope and love. - The Good Thief
It’s easy to recognize the Dickensian theme running throughout this novel, but The Good Thief has excellent merits all its own. This is a book where I recommend the reader have time set aside, because once they start, it will be a hard task to walk away from it for very long.
Have you read any of these? Would you recommend them, or are there others you’d add or change on this list?
