Have you ever had a moment when you thought “You couldn’t make this stuff up?” – -that is why I like memoirs. Real life can be sooo much more interesting and poignant, funnier, than fiction. About 10 years ago I started reading memoirs and it QUICKLY became one of my top (if not THE top) favorite genres. So as part of my January Top Lists. Here are five memoirs worth reading –in no particular order.
#1 – Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris. Okay. Don’t read this one. LISTEN to it. David Sedaris is perhaps the funniest memoir-ist alive and he is even funnier if you listen to him read his own writing. I was listening to part of this book one day while driving through the U-District in Seattle (a place that demands your attention) and I had to pull over into a Burger King parking lot because I could not SEE from all the TEARS of laughter running down my face.
#2 – A Circle of Quiet by Madeleine L’Engle. Bragging rights here – I have an autographed copy of this book that my friend Me Ra got for me when she met Ms. L’Engle. L’Engle just simply knows how to WRITE! Here she talks about God, writing, family and life. She is one of my favorite writers and philosophers of all time.
#3 – Traveling Mercies by Anne Lammott. Really any of Lamott’s memoris are suburb. You could pick up any of her memoirs and be changed. She is also one of my influences as a writer (and human being).
#4 – The Glass Castle by Jeannette Wells – This one hits way too close to home for me. I had to read with my hand on my stomach. But, this book is amazingly well-written, compelling, and worth everyone’s time.
#5 – Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert But, of course…
Honorable Mention: Refuge by Terry Tempest Williams. I have not actually gotten past the 1st few pages of this book (only due to trying to find the time to deal with a emotional memoir.). But it came recommended to me by someone I really trust. A story of William’s mother’s death parrelled in the lives of the birds in the marshes of the Great Salt Lake.
I could go on and on about the books below – they are like old friends to me. I would love for YOU to post a comment telling me your favorite book and why. Here are my top ten:
#10 – Seabiscuit by Lauren Hillenbrand – I actually cried the ugly cry at the end of this book. Not because the ending was tragic or heart-wrenching, but because the books was over and I loved Seabiscuit (the horse) just that much… sigh…
#9 – The Red Tent by Anita Diamant - The power of women! And I don’t say that in a flip way. Nothing is more amazing to me than when a group of women get together in harmony with each other. This book may be about more than that, but it also is all about that.
#8 -A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving - One critic wrote that this book was a “meditation on literature, history, and God.” There ya have it.
#7 – The Brothers K by David James Duncan. A friend of mine actually PRAYED for these characters when she wasn’t reading. It’s is just that good. And if you like baseball ( I do!) this book is even sweeter.
#6 – I Capture the Castleby Dodie Smith – Charming!!! The movie is just a poopie (did I really just say “poopie” ???) version of this amazingly intimate, funny, and delightful book.
#5 – To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee – How could anyone in their right mind not put this on their list. Atticus? Jem? Scout? But take my advice, DO NOT name your cat after Boo Radley…
#4 – Rebecca by Daphne DeMaurier – A good old-fashioned freaky, shivery mystery. Don’t read on a cold, stormy night unless you have a nerves of steal.
#3 – Peace Like a River by Leif Enger- Every syllable in this book is worth reading… every one. You will feel like the characters are family on about page 2 and the author only draws you in further as you read. Just like family everyone is quirky with warts — but you love the snot out of them, too. And get ready to gasp in utter HOPE at the end of the novel.
#2 – The Lord of The Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien - Every Sci Fi/ Fantasy book seems to steal from Tolkien. He is the ultimate master of good versus evil, the hero’s quest, rich fake-historical fiction, and making you want to live in Middle Earth, if only to meet Legolas the elf!
#1 – Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery - No other book has shaped my outlook as much as this one. To look at life through the eyes of beauty and adventure, to claim those kindred spirits and bosom friends out there, and to find love in pure simplicity came via the words of one Ms. Anne Shirley. And, yes, there is a part of us all that wishes we could’ve married Gilbert….
Thomas woke up in an elevator. Pitch black. No memories. When the doors finally open he finds himself at the center of a maze – called The Glade - with dozens of boys staring at him. As Thomas tries to fit in to the community around him and make friends with the other Gladers, he learns that each day runners head out into the maze to find a way out, only to return at night while the maze change its pattern for the next day. The boys still return each day trying for years to solve an unsolvable puzzle – can you say frustrating? Furthermore, the walls to the Glade close down each night to protect the boys from the deadly Grievers.
Two days after Thomas’ arrival the only girl who has ever arrived at the maze shows up. And things change. Now the boys have to find a way out. No matter what.
This is high-concept book with an over-arching consipiracy theme – think The X Files or Lost. Why are these boys living in a maze? Why can’t they remember anything about their previous life? What are the grievers and who put them there? How do they get out? Throw in dystopia, telepathy, and deadly viruses and, well, I could not put this book down. It helps that the author ends every single chapter in a nail-biting cliff hanger. I literally had to ask myself, can I make it until tomorrow to find out what happens. I made a lot of coffee the week I read this book, trying to recover from my late night of reading. The author leaves the reader guessing through most of the book, which can be frustrating at times (and if you follow Lost, you know what I mean – this books has the same feel to it) as you are practically begging for an answer, ANY answer rather than more questions.
And this book is scary. Perhaps even nightmare scary, but definitely wide-eyed, holy-crap scary.
My one criticism is the characters need some more developing. As we learn later in the book, these kids are suppose to be the “best of the best”, but even Thomas himself seems a bit whiny and sulky. But, I chose to put the weak character development aside and just enjoy the action.
This book gets my highest recommendation and it will appeal to both boys and girls 12 years old and up. The ending of this book actually makes the reader GROWL in complete and utter surprise and disbelief. Then you will get a DEMAND from your child for the next book in the series – which has not been published yet.
Title: The Maze Runner
Author: James Dashner
Genre: Science Fiction , Dystopia
Age: 12 and up
Maerad (“My Rad“) is a slave in in the worst possible circumstances when she is discovered by a mysterious and powerful traveling Bard. Cadvan soon convinces Maerad to join him on his perilous journey in the service of the Light. It isn’t long until Maerad discovers that she, too, has powers and eventually “the Speech” and that she is needed to help push back the rising threat of the Nameless One — the evil that threatens all of Annar. It is through her journey to the capital city and by facing peril after peril, that Maerad’s true important place in history is revealed.
The Naming is the first book in a quartet about Maerad’s epic journey to reveal her destiny. The hero’s quest and good versus evil (or as we like to say in my family “e-ville”) theme feels very familiar and comfortable. We have a heroine who has humble beginnings but later find out that she is actually aristocracy and that she holds the key to saving the world. Not unlike Luke Skywalker, Frodo Baggins, Eragon, and countless others…so, the “formula” works. The book has many compelling moments where Cadvan and Maerad face enemies, fight them off, and learn from their experiences. These focal-moments of the story are intense and suspenseful without being terrifying. But in between these moments, the book is a bit slow (and even bogged down) with long descriptions of forests and the story-telling that unravels the very complicated mythology of the Bards. The mythology (the history of the Bards, explanations of “The Speech”, and so forth) seemed a bit long and, frankly, not that interesting. I can forgive the masters, like Tolkien, for this but it wore a bit thin here. Like Tolkien, Croggon creates a “real” history and language that is supported by an appendix full of fictitious primary sources. I found myself wanting to rush through this exposition to get to some of the action, which in itself revealed a lot of what the reader needs to know (without being long-winded). The book wasn’t slow enough or dull enough to put down, however, and it does end in such a way that makes it nearly impossible not to continue with the series. The last 8 chapters of the book are so interesting and suspenseful, in fact, that it re-focuses and redeems the entire book — making the first 279 pages a very long, very involved setting of the stage for future books.
I would absolutely recommend this book for ages 11 and up. It is a good, solid read that tweens and teens that enjoy fantasy or science fiction will enjoy and they will most likely end up wanting to complete the series. My 13 year old claims that the story gets better and better with each book. The Naming is a nice send-off into another world where Maerad and Cadvam weave through pitch-black tunnels following a mountain lion, fight off the horrible “wights” from the otherworld, and encounter a secret city with an ethereal queen.
Full Title: The Naming (The First Book of Pellinor)
Series: The Naming, The Riddle, The Crow, The Singing
Written By: Alison Croggon
Genre: Science Ficton/Fantasy/Adventure/Hero’s Quest
Age: Young Adult (age 11 and up)
Every week I try to review at least one book. These reviews are about books I have read and usually one of my kids have read, too. I am not compensated for these reviews — I love books and just want to get the word about good (and sometimes not-so-good) books.
