It’s hard to come up with only 10 books that have had the most impact on my life. I’ve lived long enough to know there are many more than 10. But once I sat down to write, and began crawling through the recesses of childhood memory, a solid list began to form.
It reads to me like stepping stones, cairns on a map of my life:
- Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Walter J. Black Inc, New York, (1927) – I used to sit and read his mysteries, rocking away and biting my fingernails. When I saw Galway Kinnell a few weeks ago, I was happy to hear that Poe was one of his favorite authors! See PoeStories.com for the latest and greatest on Poe.
- Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse – this book had a huge impact on me, along with The Prophet which I read my first year of college. There’s a great e-book of Siddhartha online.
- The Prophet by Khalil Gibran – I was going through a change in consciousness at the time I started reading this book. Believe it or not, there’s an online fan site for Kahlil Gibran.
- Nancy Drew Mysteries by Carolyn Keene – what’s not to like about Nancy Drew? I loved the Hardy Boys series just as much, if not more. I have a few originals of each around my bookshelves and in my collections. Books like these kept my sense of wonder intact. Nancy Drew is alive and well! Check out Nancy Drew Sleuth.
- Journal of a Solitude by May Sarton – first book I read by May Sarton. My favorite is Kinds of Love. I’ve read everything she’s written. May Sarton changed the way writers look at journals and their relationship to memoir.
- The Color Purple by Alice Walker – had a big impact. But my favorite book is Meridian. I consider Alice Walker one of my mentors. I’ve read everything by her and saw her speak at Borders a few years ago. She has an amazing quiet and calm about her. A peacefulness I want to cultivate in my own life.
- Illustrated Book of Bible Stories – One of my childhood mementos. It’s packed in a box somewhere. I ran across it when I moved in with Liz last December. I grew up Methodist and used to read these out loud to myself in my bedroom, marking the pages as I went. I think Aunt Cassie gave the book to me. Back then, it was tradition in our family to gift signed copies of Bibles and Bible story books.
- Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko – I read this book when I was going to art school. It changed the way I looked at the structure of books and writing. I love the story and her style; I recently read it again.
- Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley – first time I knew a woman could have this much chutzpah, blood, guts, all that and more. I loved this book when I read it at about age 11. I probably knew on some level right then and there that I wanted to be a writer.
- Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut – I read a lot of books of this type in the early 70’s. So I guess for me, this Vonnegut book represents a certain genre that I was reading at the time. It was nearing the end of Vietnam, but war and peace were still at the forefront of campus politics. I remember watching Slaughterhouse-Five (the movie) in a dark college auditorium my 1st year of college. We were having sit-in’s and chanting for peace. We still are.
-from Topic post: Ten Slam Dunks.
Wednesday, May 9th, 2007
OK, if it’s not too late, I want to add Ceremony to my list, and The Color Purple. And Siddhartha (which a boyfriend of mine and I both read, and that reminds me of the time Jim and I read Black Elk Speaks in a tent on a bike tour at a haunted campsite), and The Prophet, which I always turned to for spiritual sustenance for things like breaks-ups.
Good list, QM. Eclectic.
LikeLike
Great list, QM. When I was a junior in high school English, Mr. Schminda gave us a list of books that were considered “must reads” before entering college. The idea was that if we read those 100+ books, we would be able to really write when we got to college, be really prepared to think. Of course, none of us read them. It seemed much more important at the time to consider who our prom date would be.
I’ve made it one of my life goals to read all the books on that list. Many of them are the ones you listed, QM. Mr. Schminda would be pleased. I just got Slaughterhouse Five at the library tonight. There is a huge waiting list for it now. I can only keep it two weeks.
Sinclair
LikeLike
http://pressposts.com/Art/Books-With-Bang/
Submited post on PressPosts.com – “Books With A Bang”
LikeLike
I need to reread Vonnegut. I read Slaughter House Five back in 1982 or so, plus about 3 other Vonnegut books in a row. Last book I read of his was Galapagoes which I found in the school’s library.
I need to add Catch-22 by Joseph Heller to my list. I read that one while living in my 5″x7″ tent on San Juan Island (in Washington) in 1985. I found the book on the used book rack at a mom & pop grocery store in Friday Harbor. I paid $0.35. I had a small Coleman Peak I lantern and I would lay there in the tent in the mist and drizzle and read. Neat way to read a book.
LikeLike
5″ x 7″ should read 5′ x 7′ (5 ft x 7 ft). 5 inches x 7 inches is pretty small tent. A Ken doll couldn’t even fit in it.
BTW is was a Eureka Timberline to give you an idea of the configuration.
LikeLike
I thought maybe with all that bikeriding you’d really slimmed down…
LikeLike
No…I am just the same. Just a Clydesdale on a bike.
LikeLike
LOL 8)
LikeLike
Sinclair: first, I love Mr. Schminda’s name. It’s one of those names that I could say over and over. But what’s really cool is how you still have Mr. Schminda’s list of 100 books. Wow, you must have even then known where you were going with your writing and your life.
LikeLike
Sinclair, you bring to light how great it is to get a good education. Or at least it was when you were growing up. And yet another English teacher who has impacted a writer’s life.
What an admirable life goal to read all 100 books on the list. How many do you have left to read? And I’d love to hear what you think of Slaughterhouse-Five. I’d be interested to know if you think it’s dated – or right with the times.
LikeLike
The book list from Mr. Schminda was on that purple-ish mimeograph paper, the kind teachers used to have to make on a cylinder you’d crank ’round and ’round by hand. At some point, the lettering became faded, and I retyped the list on a typewriter. I haven’t looked at the list lately…I don’t know how many I have left to go. I’ve taken to books on tape lately (something that used to drive me crazy), so I’m going to get a few of the 100 in simply going back and forth to work this summer. I’m devoting all my free time this weekend to Slaughterhouse Five, I’ll stay in touch about it.
LikeLike
Oh, yeah, that smelly mimeograph paper. I used to love the smell of that stuff. I love books on tape. Especially when I get to hear the author’s voice. Sounds good about Slaughterhouse-Five. Looking forward to your take on it.
LikeLike
I’m finding a big difference in books on tape when the actual author is reading vs. a paid actor. I prefer the author…probably for obvious reasons. I’m listening to Huckleberry Finn right now (obviously not read by Mark Twain), and the man trying to do the southern, river, hick accent is driving me crazy. Happily, it is only 2 disks long.
LikeLike
LOL. Sinclair, there is nothing worse than a faked Southern accent. I can’t wait to go back Down South in a few weeks and hear the real thing!
Huck Finn sounds delightful. What a good thing to do over the summer. I wonder if there is anywhere to hear Mark Twain’s voice? Ironically, people often compared Vonnegut to Mark Twain. And you’re going to be reading him next.
LikeLike
I thought of you today at work, QM. I had to talk to several members of an Alabama family who were trying to get their reservations squared away for the State Fair. They talked very ssslllloooowwww. Lots of “Ma’am,” Honey,” and “Sweetheart.” There were no fakey Southern voices with these folks. When you get back from Georgia, will you start calling me Ma’am?
LikeLike
My father uses Ma’am all the time, even with me and even when I was a little girl. “Yes, Ma’am,” he’d always say when I said “Dad?”. I think his parents must have instilled such a strong sense of respect for his elders that he got into the habit of always saying, Yes, Ma’am, or Yes, Sir, whenever anyone called his name.
LikeLike
OH, I love the “Yes, Ma’am, or Yes, Sir.” I miss the politeness that was instilled in us growing up in the South. It was part of our upbringing. I remember when we moved to the North when I was about 11, and everyone said, Yes and No to their teachers. I just could NOT understand it. And everyone talked so fast.
The other thing we had to do in the South was to call all adults (or people we respected) Miss and Mister, followed by their first name. It would be Miss Amelia, for sure! I didn’t know they did the “Ma’am” in the Southwest. But it kind of makes sense. It’s pretty close to Texas, a different kind of South from the Southeast.
I like to study regional differences. All this kind of fits into the topic this week on Place.
LikeLike
When I was teaching, we got transplants from the South every once in a great while. Not as far south as Georgia or Alabama, but maybe Kentucky. I loved how they called me “Ma’am.” Very respectful. One of my teacher friends is from Jamaica. She has taught her sons to do the “Miss/Mr.” thing with all adults. Miss Mary, Miss Jane, Mr. Lyle. I hope a linguist checks this blog. I’d like to know how this all came to be, these Southern styles of being and speaking.
LikeLike
Sinclair, really interesting about the Southern transplants. It would be good to study more where the Southern accent and manners come from. I did start to look into it once. Maybe I’ll do more of that as I gather material for my memoir. It is a rich heritage.
LikeLike
Back to great books, and the ones Mr. Schminda recommended we read before college…
I finished Huck Finn, and got the idea to do a 10-minute write about the book. It seemed like a tangible way to cement the story further in my brain. I remembered (in the write) the class discussion in 8th grade English after we completed Tom Sawyer and Huckelberry Finn. I had forgotten how Miss Hoff detested Tom’s character, how he made so much work & drama out of nothing. I remember feeling way too unsophisticated to analyze characters, and how smart and glamourous Miss Hoff appeared to me.
I love as writers how we all have such memories of our English teachers. And no wonder, people of our own ilk.
LikeLike
Sinclair: you finished Huck Finn already? Do you want to do a separate review post of it on our site? I’d love to know what you thought of it. Maybe others would, too.
What a great idea to do a writing practice after you finished the book to cement the ideas. I really like the idea of that as a practice after reading a book. I’m always amazed at the way practices evolve, deepen, and grow.
English teachers are the best. Good point – we love them as writers because they are us.
LikeLike
Yes, I seem to be on a hot roll. I just finished Call of the Wild. Uncle Tom’s Cabin is next. It’s amazing what I have time for now that life isn’t being drained out of me living a life full of obstructions.
There was a really interesting bio about Jack London at the beginning of Call of the Wild. He came from wretched poverty, developed into an alcoholic, and died an early death (at 40) that looks suspiciously like suicide. He was one of the first American novelists to make a fortune at writing, but was paralyzed after his success with the fear that he would “lose” his creativity. I’m always surprised by that, how human these masters of the written word were/are. I think they are impervious to the insecurities that plague me. I’m going to do my 10-minute write about the book this weekend.
Oh, I also learned that London consulted with Sinclair Lewis on several of his books. I really perked up with that tidbit.
I think for now I’ll pass on the review post. I suddenly think Miss Hoff is the only person who could do that justice. However, it’s nice to check in a bit as I enjoy these classics.
LikeLike
By some odd twist of fate, I spent some time in Jack London Square in Oakland, California, a long while back. He was raised there by his mother. I perused the bookstores and got a vintage copy of Call of the Wild which I read when I got home.
I had the same reaction as you did above – he had it all. Yet was fearful of losing it and turned to alcohol. It’s only now, after giving so much to writing, that I’m kind of beginning to understand why some writers do that.
Writing can be a lonely place; you need a strong structure and practice. I’m thankful to have had mentors and programs to teach me about those things. It’s made all the difference.
I didn’t know he consulted with Sinclair Lewis on a few of his books. I would have liked to have been the walls in that room.
LikeLike
Yes, we are so, so fortunate to have teachers and mentors that show us a different path through this than straight into depression and alcohol. Was it Susan Cheever who wrote about watching her father’s writing friends die one by their own hand?
That is so great you were at Jack London Square. I wonder, did you know you were a writer then, or drawn there by something unidentified? Perhaps pulled there (like Buck) by the ancestoral “call of the wild??” The brutality toward the sled dogs in the book was shocking. Do you remember it?
LikeLike
Yes, I was struck by that brutality with the dogs, too. It was so much about survival. The book I have has all these really cool illustrations, you know, the really classic kind of dramatic drawn images?
When I was there, I was starting to know I was a writer. I was on the path but still looking for something. Maybe I was looking for a place to stand.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin is next? That would be a good one to revist at this time. I don’t remember the style of it. Only the general themes. What made you choose that book to read right now?
LikeLike
I’d really like to see your book and its illustrations sometime. When you say ‘classic dramatic drawn images’ I picture that brown pencil look. Is that what they are?
Uncle Tom’s Cabin…hmmm. When I read it ages ago, I remembering being curious that it had caused such a stir. It seemed very mild to me. I remember thinking that surely people couldn’t have been that naive about slavery. But maybe they were. I once asked my mom how everyone felt about the concentration camps during WWII, and all the Jews being exterminated. She said it wasn’t common knowledge. They were aware of Hitler being a sort of madman, and they hoped he wouldn’t make his way to America. However, my mom was a young girl/teen at the time. Anyway, perhaps it was the same in the with slavery. Everyone blind in big and small ways.
I remember less about the book than about the subsequent reading I did about Harriet Beecher Stowe. I want to know the story again.
LikeLike
Sinclair: yes, sort of like that brown period look. But these have blue ink mixed in. I haven’t looked at the book myself for a while. I’ll have to try to dig it out.
You bring up good points about being blind in big and small ways. What age were you when you had that conversation with your mom? Just curious. I think questions like that are so good to ask. And revealing about how little we might actually know (or want to know) about what’s really going on in the time in which we are living. It’s scary what can become status quo.
Harriet Beecher Stowe. I don’t know much about her.
LikeLike
The current status quo. You’re right. I am convinced there are things going on in our current situation (Iraq, etc.) that we have become dull to, ignore, accept.
The conversation I had with Mom was recent–within the past five years. She said the rationing of WWII was what was on their minds on a daily basis, not what was happening in faraway Europe. Both she and my dad still talk a lot about the rationing lines.
I just read a bit more about Harriet Beecher Stowe this morning. Near the end of her life she was next-door neighbors with Mark Twain. Isn’t that something?
LikeLike
Harriet Beecher Stowe was neighbors with Mark Twain near the end of her life? That is something!
I want to ask a lot of questions like that when I go South in a few weeks. Have those kinds of conversations. It really helps me to know where my writing comes from.
It makes sense that your parents would have been thinking about rationing and trying to survive the day to day impact on their own lives. You know what strikes me is that your parents still talk about the rationing lines.
It makes you realize how the things we go through get carried down generation to generation.
LikeLike
Seriously, QuoinMonkey, I wonder what you will learn when you go South. What you will see and hear. What people will still be talking about. Likely, things you may not expect. Will you be in both rural and urban settings? That will make a difference, too. Will you eat all that great southern food like grits, fried chicken, and peach pie? Please say yes. You can eat lots of lettuce and raw broccoli when you get home.
LikeLike
Yes, a lettuce boycott. Lettuce boycott lettuce.
Just a coincidence, I was unpacking books this morning. They’ve been stored in boxes for two years, because we didn’t have space to put them in the cottage we’ve been living in for two years. There were my books and Jim’s. Jim has Call of the Wild, so now I am inspired to read it again.
Sinclair, your life without obstacles sounds great. Very solid, still, peaceful. All this reading–how wonderful. Have you seen any changes in your writing since you’ve settled in?
LikeLike
Sinclair: Yes, LETTUCE BOYCOTT. You bet, I’m eating every single Southern dish I can get my hands on. I plan to totally indulge. I don’t know when I’ll get this chance again!
I will be in urban and rural settings. And some in-between where I grew up. I will be meeting relatives in Savannah I have never met before. In fact, I’ve never been to Savannah before.
Is it considered urban or rural? I’m not sure. But I bet I will be when I return. What’s your experience of Georgia? How do you know about the peach pie and grits?
ybonesy: amazing that Call of the Wild flew out of a box and landed on your book shelf (after two years and right when we’ve been talking about it). It makes me want to read it again. Maybe it’s connected to Wild Mind.
LikeLike
Ahhh…glad to hear you’re going to let your taste buds live it up in the South. My main source of information on Southern food has been movies like Fried Green Tomatoes. When I went to Georgia, I was camping and eating out of my cooler. Totally boring. Carrot sticks and granola bars.
LikeLike
Whoa, Sinclair. You mean you didn’t have any grits, boiled peanuts, peach cobbler, or hushpuppies? Next time, I’ll direct you to some good Southern places to eat.
BTW, Fried Green Tomatoes is one of my all time favorite movies. I’ve seen it so many times.
It’s a good film for a memoir writer to view. Because it’s about memory and perceptions of memory. And recalling past experiences. Great film with many layers. Film is such a great medium for writers to explore.
LikeLike
Sickening, isn’t it? Surrounded by all those lovely food choices, and I am scrounging in a cooler with melting ice. I did have a sample of boiled peanuts in Plains, Georgia. They were passing out little cups of them in the general store. They were nasty. Sorry. I couldn’t imagine what the fuss was all about. Are hushpuppies fried cornmeal cakes or something?
I think I’ll watch FGT after my evening swim at the Y.
LikeLike
Sinclair:
You’ve really got the life going – evening swims followed by Fried Green Tomatoes. Sounds peaceful and relaxing.
I LOVE boiled peanuts. But I think you’ve got to be a Southerner to appreciate them. They might be an acquired taste. For me, the taste of a boiled peanut is like coming home.
Hushpuppies – yes, deep-fried cornmeal bread. I grew up on fresh catfish and hushpuppies. Here’s a Catfish and Hushpuppies link at Southern U.S. Cuisine (along with a link to a recipe for hushpuppies) if you want to know a little more.
HMMM. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Say Hi to Idgie Threadgoode.
That’s another book I could add to this post of high impact books – Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg.
LikeLike
Just curious…
Will your first purchase after leaving the South be a deep-fat fryer, a pie plate, or a bag of cornmeal? I think you owe it to your Southern heritage. My opinion only.
LikeLike
Oh, dear….I already own all three. 8)
LikeLike
You can take the girl outta the South, but you can’t take the South outta the girl….
LikeLike
Just checking in about Uncle Tom’s Cabin, halfway through the book. I withdraw my earlier comment about it seeming mild. When I read it long ago, I was getting an education in other places about the slaves ships, and what happened in the cargo hold. I was being exposed to the fate of young slave girls (by lecherous owners) in the middle of the night. I was reading accounts of the brutality toward runaway slaves once they were caught. Shocking stuff. Violent. Really violent.
Harriet Beecher Stowe is writing about the emotional reality of being a slave. It is powerful. She also took on the status quo of Christianity, or Christians telling slaves to chin up and look forward to heaven. I’m proud of her, really going toe-to-toe with misuse of religion. There are attitudes she wrote about that ring true in America 2007. To be continued…
LikeLike
Sinclair: no, I guess you can’t take the South out of the girl. 8)
Thanks for the update on Uncle Tom’s Cabin. What year did that come out? That had to have been a brave book to write. It sometimes seems sad to me that we are wrestling with some of the same issues in 2007. I want to think progress moves more quickly.
I like seeing how reading a good piece of literature (even for the second time) is changing you. It reminds me of the lasting power of a good book. Maybe there is hope for us writers after all.
LikeLike
UTC was published in 1852. Brave is right! When Lincoln met her he said, “So you’re the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!” How ’bout that, writers?
I keep thinking of your trip South, QM, and wondering if the wounds from that long-ago era can ever heal there. Maybe it will come up in your conversations there, maybe not.
LikeLike
Sinclair: we’ll have to see. It’s coming up fast. Cool about Stowe. After you wrote that quote from Lincoln, I remembered hearing it.
BTW, there are some conversations going on – check out Anita’s post at Starting Over – Rebel Barn, Pride or Hate? (link) There are so many layers.
LikeLike
[…] -Books With A Bang […]
LikeLike