This one is for you Mrs. Chazbot.

You want nightmare of nightmares? I dreamt that I was somehow coerced into being in a cast of Starlight Express (that really shitty musical that has people on rollerskates)

That my friend is true hell.

chit chat

So my top five books that I picked...

I should explain that I don't really have a top five favorite books, these are just a few of many books which I am fond of

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

This particular book was given to me by my late Grandmother when I was twelve years old. She wasn't an avid reader herself, but she was really great at figuring what I would like for Christmas. I asked for classic books that year and she turned up with that and a few other things which I still treasure. She was more fond of short stories and also gave me a copy of O. Henry's short stories and a book of Wallace Stegner's work. Anyways, so she bought me this particular book and I sat down one day and began to read it. It meant a lot to me, because I think it is a very American story. In my opinion it is one of the best American novels written in the twentieth century. It documents typical life at the turn of the century. The basic human struggle, the humour in the dreary moments of our lives and the minor details of families.
There is a small section in the book that always stuck with me. The family is quite poor and they live in the tenements of Brooklyn and don't have anything. The children pick rags on the weekends to make a little money and that weekend they are sitting having their meal with their mother. She gives them condensed milk in their coffee and they never drink their coffee, and she lets them toss it down the drain. She always does this, even though her sister thinks it is wasteful. Even though they have hardly a thing, she wants her children to have this little bit of luxury. It is such a bittersweet moment.
Definitely has an Oprah-tinged feel about it, because of the whole, "facing adversity, female power" stuff, but that is minimal, because it is more about people surviving.

Then I picked one book that is very dear to my heart.
I Capture the Castle
I have waxed poetical about this book for ages. Essentially this is a book every girl on the brink of adulthood should read. I was seventeen when I read this and it took my breath away. It still does sometimes.
Of course now I am a little older and a little more attuned to my surroundings and you can see why people make the choices they do.
Romantic, but not sappy and delightfully nostalgic. There are moments that make you think of Spring and boys you once fancied.

Tender at The Bone
This is a book for a number of different kinds of people. You can lay this one on baby boomers, because of the shared experiences. Foodies, because of the terrific recipe's and people who love a good story with eccentric characters. This is Ruth Reichl's (the editor of Gourmet magazine) first memoir (I think people ought to read her second one as well) and you see how food and people influenced her life and the comfort she found with both when other things and people were disappointing.
Best recipe for lemon souffle I have ever come across came out of this book. Incredibly simple and easy to figure out.

Then I picked two children's books. Because everyone likes a good simple story.

The Little House This is a classic book. I think everyone had this book on their shelf as a child. I had that and the other books by the author. I used to love sitting and staring at the pictures for hours and watch the transformation. It just broke my heart when she would find herself alone in the city, with no one caring. Essentially this was a great fear of mine as a small child (I was a little too high-strung. my mother can testify to this fact) and I think the author was able to discuss various childhood fears in a simple format of bright colors and a universal story of finding joy and happiness where you are.

Then I picked a book that is filled with beautiful purple illustrations that shall always make me think of my Mother.
Miss Rumphius
My mother would read this to me a lot. She was very accommodating about my requests to be read certain books over and over again. This is the story of a girl who is told by her Grandfather the importance doing something to make the world a more beautiful place. She grows up, lives in a far away place, travels, sees everything and then when she is old, she discovers what she is meant to do to make the world more beautiful. Serene sort of book for a rainy day.

Go forth, read something. Even if it is the back of the cereal box.

I have to come up with five new books that I want to convince the Great American public they ought to read.