My Ideal Bookshelf

In February my daughter gave me a copy of a book, My Ideal Bookshelf  with a note that she knew I would love it.  She was right, I do! The moment I opened the book I not only dived right in but started organizing my own ideal bookshelf.

Visit the Ideal Bookshelf Website to get all the information about this fabulous project, look at the art by Jane Mount, and learn how you can get a picture painted of your ideal bookshelf from popular groupings or create a custom page.  That would be an awesome gift. Since I'm a huge Jane Austen fan, I considered the possibility of getting one with all her books until I remembered that I'm not actually sure I've read all the books.  Then I found the Chronicles of Narnia and was tempted especially since Mount painted the books in the right order!

The book highlights the ideal bookshelves of 100 famous (semi-famous) people: authors, editors, cooks, designers, artists,  etc. I immediately turned to Nancy Pearl's page. She is a retired Seattle Public librarian who now has a spot on Public Radio talking about books. I confess I haven't even heard of one of the books on her shelf. Many of the other bookshelves were stuffed with classic books or large tomes. I wondered if anyone's bookshelf would be more down-to-earth like mine. Stephanie Meyer, of Twilight fame, had several books on her shelf that I'd read and like. Gina Trapani, an app designer, has two of the same books as on my shelf.  After perusing the whole book I certainly had a few more books to add to my TBR pile, too.

In lieu of a painting or print of my Ideal Bookshelf, here is a photograph. I had a hard time limiting myself to just ten books. My current choices are:

• The Chronicles of Narnia (represented by the first book in the series, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe)--- it is a sentimental favorite since I read it as a young girl and then reread it to my daughters when they were young.
• Pride and Prejudice/Persuasion by Jane Austen---when people ask, I usually say that my favorite book is P & P, but I actually like Persuasion just as much. My husband paid me the ultimate compliment this year when he said he likes it that I am an Austenphile. How'd I luck out?
• Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns---this is not only a fabulous story, it is also the book that brought me back to reading after a very long hiatus.
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green---this book represents both excellent and ethical YA literature. When I started as a teen librarian eight years ago I wasn't a YA reader and wondered if I would be able to relate to any of it.  After reading Looking for Alaska, Green's first novel,  I became a huge YA lit fan.
• Peace Like a River by Leif Enger---something about this story, a family in crisis and the miracles that happen, really speaks to my heart. 
• The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver---My parents were missionaries in Africa, this novel is about just that. I ate it up! Quite a few of Kingsolver's books could be on my bookshelf.
• Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling---so many good things have happened because of these books in my life and the lives of my children and students.
• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle---the first book I remember loving. The memory of what this book meant to me has remained vivid.
• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee--- (on my iPod)---I've never "read" this book, just listened to it on an audiobook and I've listened to it more than once.
• The Bible---so important to my life!

What books are on your ideal bookshelf?