Top 10 Favorite Books of All-Time

I love to read. A perfect day for me would involve reading for a good chunk of it. As a reader, I thought it was high time that I created a Top Ten list of my fav's. So, here they are:

1. Peace Like a River - Leif Enger / I've never met anyone who read this book who didn't love it. I love the two main characters Rueben and Swede more than I can say. I think I've read this book at least 4 times in the last 6 years - and I love it more every time.
   
2. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee / I know it's cliche, but this is another one that I can read over and over again. Atticus is one of my greatest heroes - I hope to be half the person he is someday. And Scout's voice is the most honest I've read in my life.
3. East of Eden - John Steinbeck / This book resonates in my soul. I know they are two completely separate locations, but I feel a deep kinship with the families in this book and my Kansas pioneer ancestors. Besides the Biblical morality, this book just feels like home to me every time I read it.
   
4. Atonement - Ian McEwan / One of the most heart-breaking stories of redemption I've ever read. It took me a long time to get into it, but the ending burned my soul with a feeling I'll never forget. The movie is great, but the book is better. Nothing beats being inside these character's heads.
   
5. The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho / This book came to me at a very influential time in my life. I love that the main themes include pursuing your dreams even if they mean leaving those you love for a short time. I read this while Joel was on his mission. Like Fatima, I knew that he would be there for me after I had seen the pyramids.
   
6. Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand / Few books can encapsulate an entire society the way this one does. While it took me several attempts to get going, once I got into it, I couldn't stop. I love its ideas about success, happiness, and contentment. None are the same, and often they cannot exist together. I am John Galt!
   
7. The Road - Cormac McCarthy / A horrificly realistic glimpse at what the world would be like if civilization ended one day. Besides instilling in me an urgent desire to begin our food storage, it also helped me to see that there is good and hope even in the bleakest of situations.
   
8. Everything is Illuminated - Jonathan Safran Foer / I can't believe that this kid is our age. This is one of the most brilliantly constructed novels I've ever read (if you like the non-linear feel of Catch-22, you'll love this), with an incredibly poignant climax. The marked voice of the different characters was also a treat - it kept me laughing out loud on one page, and holding back tears on the next.
   
9. Harry Potter series - J.K. Rowling / I think everyone really loves Harry Potter, but just not everyone admits it. Come on, we all know that you stayed up way too late several nights while reading all 7 of these monster books. Besides the incredibly intricate world Rowling created, the lovable characters, and moral themes, I just have to take my hat off to any author who can get kids of all ages to read books more than 400 pages in length. Go reading!
   
10. Year of Wonders - Geraldine Brooks / A village is besieged by the Bubonic Plague in mid-century England. This village's unique tactic involved a self-imposed quarantine so they would not spread it to neighboring villages. Brooks has an addictive voice, and her storytelling is so well-crafted you'll be thinking about this book years after you read it. It's great!

So, that's my list. These books have helped shape how I see the world and myself in it. While I doubt I'll ever be able to contribute to the literary world like these authors have, I hope I can at least inspire some other people to read these great books as well. :) Happy reading!