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Books that I want to be buried with!

The TVClubHouse: Movies/Library ARCHIVES: Library 2005: Books that I want to be buried with! users admin

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Mameblanche
Member

04-13-2005

Sunday, August 28, 2005 - 10:58 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
What books affected you so much throughout your life that you feel they either shaped or defined you?

For me, as a child, it was an obscure Louisa May Alcott book called Eight Cousins (and the sequel Rose in Bloom.) I still keep it by my bedside although the pages are brittle and yellow with age. Every couple of years or so, I reread it. It's like coming home to a warm hug and a hot cocoa with extra cream.

As a young adult I discovered a wonderful book called "Is There Life After High School" by Keyes. (I think his first name was Ralph but I'm too lazy to walk 10 steps to my bookcase to check.) This book basically takes the theory that those who were popular in high school had their heydays then, and boom, that was it, and those who were not,were inspired to really make something special out of the rest of their lives. Lots of wonderful celebrity quotes and annecdotes. Sidenote: I interviewed the author, and he told me that there was a short-lived Broadway play (that I believe he wrote) that was based on that book.

Then there was that dark summer of my life when ... well, lets put it this way... this next series of books basically saved my life: The Bernie Rhodenbarr series Created by Lawrence Block. It's a hilarious series of books about a fellow who by day runs a second-hand bookstore and by night he's a burgler. His best friend is Carolyn the gay pet-groomer. He keeps getting accidently involved in murders and other nefarious plots while all he's trying to do is simply relieve folks of their precious jewels, etc. So since he's innocent of the big crimes, he has to solve them, so a corrupt cop doesn't send him back to jail again! Trust me, the books are hysterically funnier than I'm describing them. The only sunshine I had that summer were his Burglar books, and I kept reading til I ran out. And then I discovered I was feeling much better. And all was right with the world, or at least I was ready and willing to face it again. :-)

Sidenote: I phoned the author to thank him for basically saving my life. (I'm sure he thought I was nuts, lol) but not long after, when the sun really did come out for me... I called and interviewed him for an article, as a 'real' thank you to him.

So... what books are close to YOUR heart?













Mameblanche
Member

04-13-2005

Tuesday, August 30, 2005 - 10:11 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
.bump C'mon folks... I put a lot of thought into this thread. This is similar to favourite book of all time thread, but not exactly the same, as it incorporates the various books that have affected you in some personal way and changed your life or outlook.

Mamie316
Member

07-08-2003

Tuesday, August 30, 2005 - 1:12 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
I really don't think that they would be able to fit all the books I'd want in a casket with me! I really don't know which ones I would want. Little Women, my all time favorite book. Gone With the Wind was also a book that made me really love the written word.

Mameblanche
Member

04-13-2005

Thursday, September 01, 2005 - 4:49 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
Hi Mamie - my word game buddy... ;) I also enjoyed Little Women, Little Men, the whole enchellada... But I haven't gotten around to Gone With the Wind yet. I'd like to suggest you try Eight Cousins, and the sequel Rose in Bloom. It's a delightful story about an extraordinary family. I've always dreamed of it being filmed.

Mamie316
Member

07-08-2003

Thursday, September 01, 2005 - 6:05 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
It's funny you should bring up Eight Cousins because I was cleaning out a closet today and found my copy of it. My godmother is the one that I contribute my love of reading from. She was the one who always bought me books. She bought me Nancy Drew books, Little Women, Little Men, Eight Cousins, Black Beauty, etc.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Thursday, September 01, 2005 - 10:42 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
LOL Mamie, I love that you couldn't fit all the books you'd want in your casket! Reading the title of this thread my first thought was...none.

A few years ago hubby finally realized I was completely nuts. We'd been joking around about something or other and I told him, quite seriously, when I died, the only thing I wanted him to keep for the kids (I did tell him he could keep anything else he wanted to but this was important to me!) was my books. He looked at me as if I'd completely lost my mind and wanted to know if I was serious.

Where the heck would he store my hundreds and hundreds of books? How long would he have to keep them? And why on earth would that be the one thing I'd want passed down to my children?

My thinking was that these books I've collected over the years have all someohow touched me. They've made me laugh and cry, they've taught me something and entertained me, there have been old favorites that I've worn out the covers. How else to get to know someone than to see and read and discover what made them think and feel?

I couldn't pick one or even just a few. So many books that for one reason or another have touched me. Out of all the books I have theres not one that I wouldn't pick up and read again. I've never been able to pick out one favorite because there are so many!

Mamie316
Member

07-08-2003

Thursday, September 01, 2005 - 11:20 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
I'm the same way, Wargod. I have so many books. I have to keep buying bookshelves to accomodate them. I talked to my godmother the other day and she told me that she was putting in her will that I get her library which is huge! I will have to open a free library at my house! I will have to put in my will that my kids can divvy up the books. I plan on being cremated and so burying me with books won't work. I don't believe in burning books!

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Thursday, September 01, 2005 - 11:54 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Mamie, we bought our house because it had one wall, floor to ceiling built in book cases, LOL. And I still have three other bookcases for mine alone! The kids each have one of their own in their rooms and need more, lol.

I think if I was going somewhere where I could only take one book and I'd have tons of time to read, it'd have to be the World Mythologies (I'm not sure of the exact title and not sure where in the house the book is right now, but thats pretty close) book. I've read through it a couple times (mythologies from quite a few ancient cultures) but I'm always finding something new when I read through it and its not light reading. Can't say its my favorite, but it ranks up towards the top.

Mameblanche
Member

04-13-2005

Friday, September 02, 2005 - 8:06 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
Wargod - sounds to me like you simply have to reserve a mausoleum, so you and your books could go forward into eternity together. Seriously, I so totally respect that you want to keep them for your kids! Wonderful.
Mamie, as always, you've given me food for thought. Wonder if another thread is called for: Burial, cremation, cryogenics, or organ donation? I'm 50 and starting to think about these things. I am deathly afraid of fire (pun intended) but prefer cremation to burial. Mind you I am also toying with the possibility of organ donation. Cryogenics, nah, the way the world is going, we'll probably blow ourselves up before we could defrost ourselves. ;(

Mamie316
Member

07-08-2003

Friday, September 02, 2005 - 8:40 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
We do start thinking about these things as we get older, don't we?

Reiki
Member

08-12-2000

Friday, September 02, 2005 - 11:06 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Reiki a private message Print Post    
I'm going to be cremated and my ashes thrown into the sea and I could never, even in death advocate the burning of a book, but if there is an afterlife I want these books on my eternal bookshelves:

By AA Milne:
When We Were Very Young
Now We Are Six
Winnie-the-Pooh
The House at Pooh Corner


Had I been born a boy, my birthday being so close to Columbus Day, my name would have been Christopher Robin. So the connection to Milne was there from birth. I was given the first 2 books of poetry when I was a little girl. I can remember watching Captain Kangaroo and hearing one of my favorites - "Changing of the Guard" in which Christopher Robin and his nanny Alice watch the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. Alice is marrying one of the guard. The Pooh books were amongst my first favorite stories. I read these poems many times growing up and read them to my nieces and nephews from the time they were born. I was finally rewarded this year by my niece naming her son Christopher Robin.

By Lewis Carroll:
Alice in Wonderland
Through the Looking-glass and what Alice Found There


My older sister gave me an edition that included both books when I was seven years old. I still have that same book, though it is a little worn with use now. What I love about the Alice stories is that you can read them as a child and enjoy them innocently and read them when you get older and understand some of the allegory behind the story.

By Scott O'Dell:
Island of the Blue Dolphins


My fifth grade teacher, Ms. Garafalo, assigned us to read this book about a native girl, Karana, who is accidently left behind on an island in the Pacific when her people migrate to a new island, and her struggle to survive. It is a beautiful story and sparked a passion for reading within me. I have thanked Ms. Garafalo many times over the years to opening this world to me.

By JRR Tolkien:
The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings
The Silmarillion (edited by Christopher Tolkien)
The Father Christmas Stories
Tree and Leaf - Leaf by Niggle, On Fairy-Stories


My brother had a paperback copy of The Hobbit around they house when I was 10 years old. He told me I was too young to read it. So I read it. And then I read the three books of The Lord of the Rings. And I probably was too young the first time I read those, but I loved them anyway. When I got older I tackled the Silmarillion. I honestly can't tell you how many times I have read these stories now. I seem to be always carrying one around with me. Professor Tolkien fascinates me as does the world he created. His life revolved around the study of words, a subject that has always interested me. I'd probably want to add a copy of the "Oxford English Dictionary" to my bookshelf too - the Professor worked on it when on staff at Oxford. This year (October 20th to be exact) marks the 50th Anniversary of the publication of "The Return of the King". Might be a good time to start reading them again.

The Complete works of William Shakespeare.

I'm not going to lie and say I like all the plays. No one likes all the plays. But I love most of them and some I adore. Which ones are which change with my mood. The comedies are probably my favorites, but a good tragedy can sometimes hit the spot. The secret to reading Shakespeare is not to read it. They are plays and were meant to be spoken.

I have many other favorite books and would need an eternal library to house them all, but these are the ones that mean the most to me.

Mameblanche
Member

04-13-2005

Friday, September 02, 2005 - 1:15 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
Reiki - 'eternal library', 'eternal bookshelves'. I love it!

Mameblanche
Member

04-13-2005

Friday, September 02, 2005 - 2:38 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mameblanche a private message Print Post    
Eight Cousins

Mamie, This is the version of Eight Cousins that I have. I've seen many different covers over the years, by far this is the nicest, and most accurate.
Being an odd duck, I have begun collecting this book, but ONLY this edition. I started this because my copy was so well-loved, both front and back covers came off! I just wish I could enlarge the pic for you, its so beautiful.

Coco
Member

07-13-2000

Friday, September 02, 2005 - 8:54 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Coco a private message Print Post    
Reiki, I love all your selected books!

I just had to mention your selection of Scott O'Dell's Island of the Blue Dolphins. It's a story I'll never, ever forget! I was also in 5th grade when I read this book....suggested by my teacher, Mr. Dalton (bless him!).

Thanks for the awesome memory! You made a miserable week have a nice ending, thanks!


Iheartkaysar
Member

08-16-2005

Monday, September 05, 2005 - 7:29 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Iheartkaysar a private message Print Post    
John Irving's A Prayer For Owen Meany has been critical to me at many major points of my life. Has anyone else read it?

Mamie316
Member

07-08-2003

Monday, September 05, 2005 - 7:47 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Mamie316 a private message Print Post    
I have, Iheartkaysar. Very good book. I love John Irving's books. Love your name as well!

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Monday, September 05, 2005 - 8:17 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
I just read it this summer Iheart -- I picked it up because I so enjoyed Cider House Rules and it had "International Best Seller" on the top. After the first chapter I realized I was reading the ORIGINAL version of one of my favorite movies, "Simon Birch." It is definitely a book I will be re-reading next summer when I've finished reading all the novels my students are reading this year. :-)

Iheartkaysar
Member

08-16-2005

Wednesday, September 07, 2005 - 10:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Iheartkaysar a private message Print Post    
I've never seen a movie SO different from the book it is based on, Teachmichigan. Except maybe Forrest Gump, but I won't get started on that!

I've been reading quite a bit of Young Adult novels, too, to help my students choose good books.