Saturday, August 12, 2006

Book Meme From Big A little a

1. One book that changed your life?

None.

There are books I love, or books that have special meaning. And there have been books where I've read something and there's been that internal "click", of either recognition or insight. But changed my life? Not really. I know I blogged about Harry Potter, but I wouldn't go so far as to say one book changed my life.

I'll add why I'm resistant to the idea of one book changing my life. Because when book banners or censors start talking about why they don't want a child to read a book, it gets tied to how they are afraid of the impact that book may have. How can I respond that it takes more than a book to have an impact on a child, if I'm going to say that a book had an impact on me? If I acknowledge that a book can save a child -- why isn't the flip true, that a book could damage a child?

So I think there are many factors that change us. Books are one of them.

2. One book you have read more than once?

I haven't had time recently for rereading. Authors I love to reread include old favorites like Ellen Emerson White and Norma Johnston. I also want to revisit some of the "classics" that I may have read too soon.

3. One book you would want on a desert island?

Tough call, because what I want to read can vary based on my mood. What would I want on a desert island -- something that gives me comfort and makes me feel less lonely. Something that offers escape. (I guess it would be cheating to say The Dummies Guide to Getting Off A Desert Island?) I'd say Pride & Prejudice, because it has romance and family.

4. One book that made you laugh?

Most recently: King Dork.

5. One book that made you cry?

As a child, it was Master Skylark.

6. One book you wish had been written?

All of them? Naming just one, A Room On Lorelei Street. Silly me, I read it as what book do you wish YOU had written. What book do I wish had been written? The much rumored but never published Meg Murray O'Keeffe as an adult book by Madeleine L'Engle.

7. One book you wish had never been written?


There are books that I finish reading and think, well, there's three hours of my life I wont' get back. But often it turns out that my hate is another's love, so I don't wish any book unwritten.

8. One book you are currently reading?

I just finished Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist and am in love with it.

9. One book you have been meaning to read?

So many books, so little time.

10. Now tag five people:

Tag. You're it.

Started by Big A little a; check there for a list of sites who filled this out.

3 comments:

web said...

I actually think both are true - a book can save a child and a book can damage a child. Or an adult. The problem is, there's no way of anticipating which book will do what to whom.

Anonymous said...

While there's no book that strongly features Meg Murray O'Keefe as an adult, there are books that are about her family (Arm of the Starfish, Dragons in the Waters, A House Like a Lotus). So at least we get a glimpse of how she turned out. I love how L'Engle's books are all connected with each other.

Anonymous said...

In response to Jen Robinson's comments about the glimpses of grown-up Meg in later L'Engle novels, the most tantalizing for me was the comment made in A House Like a Lotus that one character felt Meg (as mother of seven, subverting her own interests to those of her husband) was on the verge of "doing a Gaugin." A book about that would be fascinating!