I have been reading a lot lately. I admit there are periods of time when I get into kicks with my reading. I generally try to read a book a day, but with work, I rarely have time to do so anymore. So, when I get into reading kicks, I find myself devouring one book after the other. At this point, used bookstores are heavenly. Cheap books by the boatload.

Now, I should say over the past several days I have read one good book and about three terrible books. There are many poorly written books out there. And I’ve read more really than I would care to admit. But that is how things are. You have to shift through the shit to find things that are worth while. Without that dichotomy, everything would languish in the realm of mediocre. You need the bad to truly appreciate the good.

So, I thought I would give you a list of my five favorite books of all time:

1. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami (This is my all-time favorite book. Murakami truly does capture many of my thoughts through the entropy of his words.)
2. The Color Purple by Alice Walker (The first time I read this book I was sucked into it. I can still read it over and over and over again.)
3. Fool on the Hill by Matt Ruff (An underappreciated classic in my mind. I most definitely want to be the Bohemian Minister of Freedom.)
4. A Quiet Life by Kenzabura Oe (This man did not win the Nobel Prize for literature for nothing.)
5. The Stand by Stephen King (Yes, it’s a weakness, I know. I really like this book and this fact shames me slightly.)

Now, there are authors that I go out of my way to look for who are not on this list. I enjoy Tom Robbins, good ol’ Kurt, Chuck Palahniuk, Tim Sandlin, Jeffery Eugenidis and more recently Christopher Moore (thanks monogodo). I also read some series of books despite the fact that it drives me slightly mad not knowing how things will end. Yes, I’ve read all the Harry Potter books, but I’ve also been keeping up with the Clan of the Cave Bear series.

I love books and I love to read. If I could, I would make reading my job, but I don’t think there is much call out there for speed readers. (Not an editor or anything, just a speed reader.)

Posted by Utopia at July 10, 2006 10:13 AM

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