I've been Tagged . . . One Book (sort of)

This is the first time since I've had this blog that I've been tagged for a meme. (Yes, I provided a link, because up until recently, I had no idea what a meme was!)

This sounds like fun and gives me something interesting and dear to my heart to blog about. So thanks Barry, for tagging me.

Here goes . . .

1. One book that changed your life.

I honestly have to say that a book that continues to effect my life in one way or another is "The Best Loved Poems of James Whitcomb Riley." This was one of those books that has been passed down as a family tradition. James Whitcomb Riley was an Indiana poet and his poems are very beloved in this area of the country. My great-grandmother read his poetry to Grandma, who read them to Mom, who read them to me. Now I read them to my children.

I was even named after one of the characters in his poems.

On my 21st birthday, my entire family got together and bought me the complete works of James Whitcomb Riley. It is a treasured addition to my growing library.

2. One book that you have read more than once.

I do not care what you want to say about me and my preferences . . . one of my favorite genres is fantasy. And I have read the Harry Potter Series many, many times.

J.K. Rowling is an amazing author - and I have never before had an experience like this: After reading her books and then seeing the first movie in the theater - the movie actually looked EXACTLY like I'd imagined it in my head. JKR can paint pictures with words in a way I had not experienced before.

Not only that - but she got TONS of school children hooked on reading again . . . how cool is that?

Oh . . . and the final book is my favorite . . .

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

I have to say that I would be a little crazy if I could only have ONE book if I was on a desert island . . . especially if I was by myself. But I have to repeat Barry's sentiment and say I would need my Bible in a situation like that. (I use the NIV Quest Study Bible.)

4. Two books that made you laugh.

Anything by Shel Silverstein is always good for a laugh for me, my Dad, or my kids. A Light in the Attic is probably my favorite.

Also - when I was growing up - I loved the Fudge books by Judy Blume, they CRACKED me up.

(And if we could include comic books in this mix - I'd say Garfield and FoxTrot are always good for a pick me up when I'm down.)


5. One book that made you cry.

This could be pretty much anything I read . . . however, the latest book I read that made me cry was Good Dog. Stay. by Anna Quindlen. If you like to read, and you like animals - you need to read this book.

6. One book you wish you'd written.

This was a hard one for me to figure out. I've been writing 'books' since I was 8 years old, and I still have a fantasy of one day being published. However, I have to say that right now the book I wish I'd written is ScreamFree Parenting: Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool by
Hal Edward Runkle, LMFT.

"Why do I wish I'd written this?", you ask. Well . . . if I had written it, then I wouldn't need to READ it, now would I?

7. One book you wish had never been written.

Everything on this list. (Especially the L. Ron Hubbard book, but that's a different post altogether.) Why? Because it taunts me with my own stupidity of not making it through ANY of them yet.

However, there is one on that list, that I would be sad without. Without Victor Hugo's
Les Miserables . . . I wouldn't have one of my favorite musicals.

8. Two books you are currently reading.

Love in the time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. A have a friend who is a voracious reader and sends me books all the time. She recommended this one - I'll let you know what I think when I'm finished.

I'm also stuck in young adult fiction land and I've been enjoying the Artemis Fowl book series by Eoin Colfer. It's very interesting and a different spin on the kind of novels the Harry Potter craze seems to have sparked.

9. One book you've been meaning to read.

I started this one and never seemed to be able to finish it: Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire. His other books are great reads and some of my very favorites, and his best selling novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West inspired my favorite musical right now.

For some reason though, I'm having a hard time getting into the sequel. I guess maybe its time to try again.

10. Five people that I'll tag: Ha ha. Here's the fun part . . . tagging some of you to do this as well. I tag: Rett, Allison, Jamie, Sam, and UNKA STEVE (which means he'd actually have to post a blog.)

Oh - and I'd tag Ruth, but she doesn't really like to read and she'd kill me. :-)

Have fun!!!