BOOBS!...I Mean, BOOKS!--The Books That Made Me Me

Oh wow, sorry for the confusion! But now that I have your attention, allow me to make it up to you by sharing a listicle about books, and feel free to feast your peepers on my most recent office shelfies:

I’ve had a love affair with reading for as long as I can remember, and books are a big part of my personal and professional life. I like paperbacks, hardcovers, ebooks, audiobooks, you name it. During the latter part of my time as an undergrad and for most of grad school, reading often felt like a chore, but I’m back to having time for recreational reading and have been rediscovering the joys of losing myself in a great book.

Below is a brief list (in no particular order) of some of the books that have touched me or changed me or taught me something of value. They’re not necessarily great books or perfect books, but they’re books that have affected me in some meaningful way. I've linked each title to its page on Amazon for ease in case you'd like to check any of them out for yourself.

1. 
   The Stand by Stephen King
   This is possibly my favorite book of all time; I've read it more than a dozen times, and it never gets old--a fantastic example of King's gift for rich characterization.

2. 
   1984 by George Orwell
   It almost goes without saying how important this book still is, but it's got a special place on the bookshelf of my heart because of Orwell's focus on the role of language in social control.

3. 
   Princess Bride by S. Morgenstern (William Goldman)
   I always loved the film adaptation of this book, and I didn't even realize it was a real book until I was an adult. I was delighted to find how clever and funny the book is.

4. 
   Harry Potter (all of them) by J.K. Rowling
   When I was pregnant with my eldest daughter, I read the first book of this series aloud and was surprised that it lived up to all the hype. Multiple re-reads later, and I'm so glad I was just silly enough to feel like I needed a "children's" book to read at my pregnant belly.

5. 
   Battlefield Earth by L. Ron Hubbard
   I always feel a little goofy when I mention how much I enjoy this book, but it's an impressively deep sci-fi novel, and I swear it's never compelled me to dabble in Scientology.

6. 
   The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (the whole series) by Douglas Adams
   I don't think I could hold on to my geek cred without a nod toward Adams' brilliantly ludicrous series.

7. 
   Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
   This is a beautiful novel with timeless themes. I taught it in a Brit lit class a couple of semesters ago and was so pleased by how much my students enjoyed it.

8. 
   Lord of the Flies by William Golding
   I first read this one as a freshman in high school, and I'm pretty sure it's the first book in which I was able to identify and understand the symbolism. Now I can't stop finding symbolism everywhere.

9. 
   Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
   My favorite high school English teacher assigned this book as required reading, and I had prepared myself to slog through a drippy romance novel. But I laughed aloud so often reading it that I read it again almost immediately after finishing it.

10. 
    The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
    Atwood's writing style is actually outside my usual preferences, but something about this book just clicked for me. It actually inspired my eventual master's thesis about the use of language in dystopias as a means of control and defiance.

And a bonus shout out to two of the books that started my love of reading:

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume

Matilda by Roald Dahl

If you also like any of these books throw me an upvote and a howdy in the comments! I'd also love to get some reading recommendations from my fellow Steemians, so if you've got a similar list, link it and I'll check it out.

All book images from Amazon.