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The Ten Most Influential Books Meme
I'm coming in so late on this meme that I don't even remember on whose journal I first saw it. It was a fascinating exercise though, sorting through a lifetime of reading and trying to nail down the books that are most important to me. Which is why it took me so long to come up with a list. That, and the irritating spring cold that laid me out flat for the last week.
Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott
One of the very first books I encountered that got repeated and regular re-readings. Jo was one of my first heroines in print, not least because she aspired to be a writer.
Anne of Green Gables, by Lucy Maud Montgomery
There's probably no Canadian female bookworm who hasn't read the Anne books at some time in her life, and I'm no exception. I love Anne as a source of positive, chaotic energy to those surrounding her.
The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Probably not my favourite Holmes story--that would be A Scandal in Bohemia--but the first one I read and therefore important. Holmes was my first literary encounter with a character who succeeded through intellect, not brawn, and became one of my personal heroes.
The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Another book that I re-read constantly from ages 10 to 20. Tolkien's classic appeals to me for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the human face it applies to an epic struggle. And from the first, my chief point of identification in the book was Boromir, which goes to show that my affection for doomed, tragic and misguided heroes has got to be genetic.
The Day of the Triffids, by John Wyndham
Wyndham's classic post-apocalyptic stories are all wonderful, but this is the one that I love best. No doubt the reason I loved the film 28 Days Later so much is because of how well it caught the air of Wyndham's all-but-abandoned England.
The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas, pere
My taste for swashbucklers was first whetted by this, the grandest one of all. Admirable heroes, hissable villains, humour, tragedy and adventure are all to be found within its pages.
The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
The seemingly-effortless wit of Douglas Adams was as irresistible to the teenager that I was as to the adult that I am today.
Gentleman Junkie: And Other Stories of the Hung-Up Generation, by Harlan Ellison
After a childhood of reading polite English classics, finding Harlan Ellison was a revelation. The perpetual angry young man, Ellison's prose is an acid-etched window into a world where nothing is safe and the ordinary can be terrifying.
The Door into Fire, by Diane Duane
There are no doubt better fantasies out there, but I still love the world Duane created in this book, first part of a still un-completed series. And it belongs on this list for no other reason than the fact that it was the first book where I encountered truly sympathetic homosexual characters.
Henry IV, Part 1, by William Shakespeare
The first Shakespeare that I absolutely fell in love with. Prince Hal is one of my favourite characters in English literature, the dissolute heir who loves the commoners who are his friends even as he's all-too-aware of their shortcomings.
Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott
One of the very first books I encountered that got repeated and regular re-readings. Jo was one of my first heroines in print, not least because she aspired to be a writer.
Anne of Green Gables, by Lucy Maud Montgomery
There's probably no Canadian female bookworm who hasn't read the Anne books at some time in her life, and I'm no exception. I love Anne as a source of positive, chaotic energy to those surrounding her.
The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Probably not my favourite Holmes story--that would be A Scandal in Bohemia--but the first one I read and therefore important. Holmes was my first literary encounter with a character who succeeded through intellect, not brawn, and became one of my personal heroes.
The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Another book that I re-read constantly from ages 10 to 20. Tolkien's classic appeals to me for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the human face it applies to an epic struggle. And from the first, my chief point of identification in the book was Boromir, which goes to show that my affection for doomed, tragic and misguided heroes has got to be genetic.
The Day of the Triffids, by John Wyndham
Wyndham's classic post-apocalyptic stories are all wonderful, but this is the one that I love best. No doubt the reason I loved the film 28 Days Later so much is because of how well it caught the air of Wyndham's all-but-abandoned England.
The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas, pere
My taste for swashbucklers was first whetted by this, the grandest one of all. Admirable heroes, hissable villains, humour, tragedy and adventure are all to be found within its pages.
The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
The seemingly-effortless wit of Douglas Adams was as irresistible to the teenager that I was as to the adult that I am today.
Gentleman Junkie: And Other Stories of the Hung-Up Generation, by Harlan Ellison
After a childhood of reading polite English classics, finding Harlan Ellison was a revelation. The perpetual angry young man, Ellison's prose is an acid-etched window into a world where nothing is safe and the ordinary can be terrifying.
The Door into Fire, by Diane Duane
There are no doubt better fantasies out there, but I still love the world Duane created in this book, first part of a still un-completed series. And it belongs on this list for no other reason than the fact that it was the first book where I encountered truly sympathetic homosexual characters.
Henry IV, Part 1, by William Shakespeare
The first Shakespeare that I absolutely fell in love with. Prince Hal is one of my favourite characters in English literature, the dissolute heir who loves the commoners who are his friends even as he's all-too-aware of their shortcomings.