I'll play along in so far as I'll answer the questions, but I'll pass on passing:
1. Number of books you have owned:
Too many, I'm sure. I do try to go to library when I can and hold off the purchasing for only the indispensible books (ie, Wendell Berry, Gene Logsdon, Harlan Hubbard, Aldo Leopold, Muir, Thoreau, etc. And now Rowling, of course).
2. Last book I bought:
Seems as if I have purchased one since the last Harry Potter book, but I can't recall what it was.
3. Last book I completed:
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (I finished the new one and then went back and finished the fourth and fifth books, which I had never completed).
4a. Five books that mean a lot to me:
1. The Bible (or, if you'd like me be more specific, James or Matthew)
2. Living in Christian Community, by Art Gish (the book where I first realized that there were people out there - anabaptists - who believed as I do)
3. Payne Hollow Journal, by Harlan Hubbard (even moreso than Thoreau's Walden, the stories of the Hubbards showed me a softer/harder way to live and to live joyously)
4. Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus, by Mary Shelley (what a wonderful morality play warning of the arrogance of humanity and where it leads)
5. Fidelity, by Wendell Berry (probably my favorite book of all time, followed quickly by all of Wendell Berry's other fiction, then followed by his essays and a smattering of his poetry)
and...
6. (sorry) Calvin and Hobbes (take your pick, just because I wanted to include some humor) oooh! No! Even better, how about some of Mark Twain's short stories? Yeah!
4b. What are you currently reading?
Re-reading Wendell Berry's Come Watch With Me (probably my second favorite Berry book) and some goofy horror book whose title I can't remember. I've been doing more skinny-dipping in the literary pond this last year.
5. Which 5 bloggers are you passing this onto?
This is where I'll break the chain and hoped I'm not cursed with a library closing.
Y'all come back now, y'hear (but first commit to reading a Wendell Berry book if you have not yet).
6 comments:
Geez, I never remember the good stuff! I forgot LOGSDON! How could I?!!! I'll have to go back and change my post. That's a great list, Dan, I've been meaning to check out Berry but haven't - I'll be making a library order soon!
great...now even more books i'm going to need to read! hopefully january will come quickly! (classes start monday and i will be reading more than i can possibly absorb till Christmas).
thanks for playing and letting us get another glimpse into your brain!
Berry, Logsdon, Leopold, Calvin & Hobbes...sounds a lot like my library! I'll have to check out some of the works by Berry that I haven't had the chance to read yet.
On Berry: I've heard many people, including myself, say that his poetry is not as high a favorite as his fiction or essays. Nonetheless, be sure to check out his poetry. There are many exquisite pieces of writing amongst them. Be specially sure to read anything that has "Mad Farmer" in the title, as in:
The Mad Farmer Liberation Front
Love the quick profit, the annual raise,
vacation with pay. Want more
of everything ready-made. Be afraid
to know your neighbors and to die.
And you will have a window in your head.
Not even your future will be a mystery
any more. Your mind will be punched in a card
and shut away in a little drawer.
When they want you to buy something
they will call you. When they want you
to die for profit they will let you know...
Just an excerpt. There's more...
What a great list!!!!
Post a Comment