I love to read, and I always have. I was one of those annoying kids in high school who actually read the assigned books and didn't buy Cliffs Notes. I firmly believe no movie can ever be better than the book it is based on- even The Lord of the Rings movies that I love so much! In my adult life I enjoy a wide variety of styles, from action/adventure (Lee Child's novels featuring Jack Reacher are awesome- I just can't believe they cast Tom Cruise to play Reacher in the first movie, One Shot. Terrible choice!) to mystery to biography/history to spiritual growth. But as with most people who love to read, there are certain books that I will occasionally return to and re-read even for a third or fourth time. Those are the books that I would have to qualify as my favorites. Here are 7 books (actually 10, but I am counting a series of 4 books as one) that I have read at least 3 times, and will probably read again at some point along the way. Each book has influenced me in some way, and I often return to their pages for inspiration and guidance. Number 1 would of course be the Holy Bible, but I assume you know that about me, so I left it unstated. Here is my list of 7, narrowed down from my original list of 29. It was really tough to leave out Tony Campolo's The Kingdom of God Is a Party, pretty much every book ever written about The Beatles and C.S. Lewis's The Screwtape Letters. And now I haven't! :)
- The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Toilken
- The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning
- Soul Tsunami by Leonard Sweet
- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
- And the Band Played On by Randy Shilts
- Real Christians
Don't Dance by John Fischer
- What's So Amazing About Grace? by Philip Yancey
Most of my choices are well known to a general audience, but some of you may not have heard of And the Band Played On. It is the true story of the earliest years of the HIV/AIDS crisis and the Gay community in USAmerica, and how hatred, bigotry and politics turned a disease into an epidemic. It is a huge book that tells a huge story. Anyway, that is my list. Gimme yours!
Because of Jesus,
I rarely read books over again because I keep finding other great things to read, so mine is more of a list of what I think I will read over again.
ReplyDelete1. Chris Lautsbaugh - Death of the Modern Superhero: How grace breaks all the rules
2. Madeline L'Engle- Walking on Water: Reflections on faith and art
3. Emily Bronte- Wuthering Heights
4. Stephanie Saldaña - Bread of Angels
5. D.L. Smith - The miracles at Santos Fico
6. Stephanie Barron Being a Jane Austen mystery series
7. Alexandre Dumas - The count of Monte Cristo
Strangely my list of favorite authors is different from this. And I have yet to read Les Miserables, so things might change.
My list of books, with only a few exceptions, does not match my favorite authors either, Andrea. I am a big fan of Wuthering Heights and Great Expectations. And I have read Les Miserables, but only once. One of my all-time favorites!
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