Top Ten

I recently met a friend's parents and wanted them to like me because I like this friend. You know how that is. Friend's parents are readers. Their house is full of books and their heads are full of books and I immediately like most people who exhibit this characteristic, these people included.

Anyways, as luck would have it, Friend's Dad had a copy of City of Theives on the kitchen table and we were able to get right into a discussion of how much we liked the book and how impressive the story was because it was based in truth and how much the world has changed since World War II, etc, etc, etc... Then (it gets better,) Friend's Dad tells me how thinks maybe going to prison wouldn't be so bad because then he'd have time to read more.

I nearly spit my wine out when I heard this because as a child I used to think a debilitating illness or jail sentence would be a good idea because then I could read more. Once I cleared my windpipe of Malbec, I shared this fact and enjoyed a smug moment at having established such a quick, uncommon bond with the Smart Reader Dad of Friend. 

Except that just after our pact to commit a petty crime together and serve our time where Martha Stewart was imprisoned he asked me what my all-time favorite book was. (Wine-spitting accident number two narrowly averted.) I refused to answer. My favorite book? As if there could just be one.

Then he extended the question to my top ten favorites which caused me to balk for a different reason...what would I say? I have never really ranked my favorites and how could I remember all books I've read over the years? I can't even remember what titles I managed to dredge up but I didn't come close to naming 10 books and I'm absolutely positive I missed some major titles.

This interaction was weeks ago, mind you, and I'm still dwelling on it. I started a list on a post-it note and carried it around with me for a few days, adding and subtracting titles as I thought back through my reading life. And then I thought the right thing to do was to wash and dry it in the pocket of my jeans. So now here I am, sans top ten book list, again.

This blog cannot be washed (or dried) and will never accidentally be thrown away or lost in the detrius of my desk or home, so I thought I'd begin again here.

My "Working" Top Ten Book List:
(not numbered in order of how much I like them but to keep track of how many I've got)

1. The Wild Trees - Richard Preston
2. A Story Like the Wind/A Far Off Place - Lorens Van Der Post
3. Mountains Beyond Mountains - Tracy Kidder
4. Everything is Illuminated - Jonathan Safran Foer
5. City of Theives - David Benioff
6. Merlin/Arthur series - Mary Stuart
7. The Color of Water - James McBride
8. Sailing Alone Around the Room - Billy Collins
9. Bel Canto - Ann Patchett
10. A Widow for One Year - John Irving

If you have a book you think is Top Ten worthy, please pass it (or its title) along. If I forced you to read a book that I once called an all-time favorite, would you remind me of what it was? Do normal people have a top ten book list? What other things am I failing to rank?

I shudder to think.