Books for Ashley {Reposted}

Since Ashley won my little newspaper game awhile ago, she got to pick a blog post topic and she wanted a list of my favorite books, or books she might like, or something like that. :)

So I thought I would give you the list that I compiled for the spiel I gave at our Relief Society meeting on the importance of books. Like I said there, though, I am sort of reluctant to give book recommendations. I feel like favorite books are kind of like favorite jeans - the style, size, fit, etc. are unique to the individual and what works for one person really might not work for someone else.

But, given that caveat, here are some of my favorite books that came to my head when I made the list (by no means comprehensive). Most of them are books I've read in more recent years, although not all are. So if you haven't read some of these, I'd say give them a try. You just might like it (or not).

And Ashley, if you have read all the books on this list, then get back to me and I'll rack my brain a little more for you. :)

Here goes (in no particular order):

1. I capture the Castle - Dodie Smith
2. The Thirteenth Tale - Diane Setterfield
3. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
4. A tree grows in Brooklyn - Betty Smith
5. Peace Like a River - Leif Enger
6. Kitchen Table Wisdom - Rachel Naomi Remen
7. Reading Lolita in Tehran - Azar Nafisi
8. The book thief - Markus Zusak
9. Goodnight, Mr. Tom - Michelle Magorian
10. A circle of quiet - Madeleine L'Engle
11. Life on the Refrigerator Door - Alice Kupers
12. Tess of the D'Ubervilles - Thomas Hardy
13. The Bridge Across Forever - Richard Bach
14. Walden - Thoreau
15. Lust for Life - Irving Stone
16. The Twenty-One Balloons - William Pene Du Bois
17. Spilling Clarence - Anne Ursu
18. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek - Annie Dillard
19. The man who mistook his wife for a hat - Oliver Sacks
20. books by Robert Fulghum
21. Jacob have I loved - Katherine Paterson
22. Our Town - Thornton Wilder
23. The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver
24. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
25. My name is Asher Lev - Chaim Potok

(anybody really like or dislike any books on this list? what books would you recommend as "must-reads"?)