If you ever run across a group of serious readers, those people who see books as magic carpets and TARDIS boxes that guide us to understanding, you will always find they accord certain books special significance. “This book,” they’ll say, “was my world at one time. This is the book I picked up, read and re-read for weeks. This book dominated my imagination. It changed the way I looke...
For a now-decreasing segment of the population, the Beatles are a cultural reference point we share. We grew up learning to twist to “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” or teaching ourselves to play instruments by mastering the licks and leads on their records. Our parents hated their innovation (My mom snapped off the car radio in the middle of “Hey Jude” when I was 9 moaning, “What will they be pla...
Many people read the Bible throughout their lives. It teaches and comforts them and never becomes tiring. I like that kind of relationship with a story, where the characters are so developed and the narrative so strong that the book reveals different strengths as you re-read it at different points in your life. I suppose the book I’ve had the longest relationship with is Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre. ...
I may not believe in fate but I do believe in Serendipity, that sunny-natured cousin between Destiny and Coincidence. I’ve benefited from too many “happy accidents” in my life to believe otherwise. My “best friends”, my husband, my home and my career all appeared when I was ready to find them, usually long after I had quit looking. Some of the books I love presented themselves the same way...
To me, books are like Jack’s magic beans. Think about poor old Jack, wandering to town with the family cow, hoping to trade Bossy in for a few days worth of chow. Instead he winds up with a handful of beans his mom flings out the window after she hears of Jack’s impulse trade. The beans don’t look like much in hand but they end up changing Jack’s life because they really have magical...