Meme: Books!

[hells_half_acre]

I've stolen this from franztastisch (who stole it from tumblr) and my sister (who posted it on FB)....

Rules: In a text post, list ten books that have stayed with you in some way. Don’t take but a few minutes, and don’t think too hard — they don’t have to be the “right” or “great” works, just the ones that have touched you.

So, in no particular order:
1. For Those Who Hunt the Wounded Down by David Adams Richards
2. No Great Mischief by Alistair MacLeod
3. Hold on Geronimo by Marilyn Halvorson
4. Hamlet by William Shakespeare (though technically not a book as in "novel", I read it as though it were one the first time I encountered it.)
5. The Hatchet by Gary Paulson
6. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
7. Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
8. My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
9. Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare
10. Night by Elie Wiesel

So, interesting note: At least four novels in that list contain a plotline of "teenage boy must survive in the wilderness with limited supplies." It was a favourite genre of mine growing up, apparently. And the rest, except for HGTTG are horribly depressing.

Okay, I've procrastinated sleeping long enough - eventually I'm going to have to admit that I need to return to work tomorrow and doing so on even less sleep then I could have had is pretty stupid.

Comments

[franztastisch]

Haha snap! I've only read two of these! (Ender's Game and Hitchhikers Guide).

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Haha! Symmetry! I love it! :)

[franztastisch]

Which were the two of mine that you've read? (I'm guessing the Lord of the Rings and either American Gods or the Book Thief).

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

You called it - Lord of the Rings and American Gods.

I haven't read the Book Thief, because after studying the Holocaust so in-depth in Uni, I'm really reluctant to read fiction based in that time. Though, I hear I should get over myself and read it anyway.

[franztastisch]

Aah I remember that conversation. The Book Thief is very good though. And... well, it has a slightly magical slant that... doesn't diminish the horrible parts, but really lifts the hopeful, wonderful bits.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Yeah, perhaps one day I'll get to it... maybe before the movie comes out? Who knows. I have so many books to read it's ridiculous. :P

[franztastisch]

I thought the film was already out? Or have I just been seeing a bunch of trailers that fooled me into thinking it was already out?

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Oh man, it might be. I am so out of the loop it's ridiculous.

[franztastisch]

Or it might not be. I haven't heard much about it so unless it sank like a stone...

ETA: I have no idea why that comment didn't reply to the one before. Oh well.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

According to IMDB it came out in November and was nominated for 1 Golden Globe...so, um, yeah, apparently it DID come out. It has a good rating too, so it couldn't have been THAT horrible.

[franztastisch]

Oh.

Well, that completely bypassed me.

[khek.livejournal.com]

I love Hang on Geronimo! Marilyn Halvorson isn't readily available in the US (although that book was) and I remember that when I realized there was an amazon.ca, I went online and got all her other books.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Oh my god! I've never met another person who has read Hold on Geronimo!! This is awesome!

Marilyn's books are hard to find in Canada too. I found Hang on Geronimo at a used bookshop as a kid, and I remember trying to go hunting for Let it Go, which was the first book with that character - and I couldn't find it. Mind you, this was pre-internet days.

One of her books was made into a movie in Canada - "Cowboys Don't Cry." But Hold on Geronimo is actually the only book of hers that I've ever read.

[khek.livejournal.com]

I'd heard there was a movie, but I've never been able to get my hands on it. Cowboys Don't Cry (and the sequel, Cowboys Don't Quit) are two of the books I bought online.

I also loved Dare, which is about a kid who blames himself for his mother's death, so he's all prickly and pushes people away until he and his little brother are taken in by the school guidance counselor who sees through his act. It's just as good as Hang on Geronimo...maybe even better! :) I have a crappy paperback copy of Let it Go, with a bad 80s cover that I withdrew from the library and kept. (Hey, I tried to make people borrow it, but no one would. So I followed policy, I just got to keep it.) It's good too...it's told from Red's point of view, but it's all about Lance and his mother and how he hurt his hand.

I don't think I've met anyone who's read these books (besides the kids I tried to convince) either!

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Man, now that the internet exists, I should buy Let It Go. It always really annoyed met hat Hold On Geronimo sort of starts in media res when it comes to Lance's hand, and I really wanted to know the story behind it!

I should buy more of these books really - just start reading all the YA books that I couldn't track down as a kid, because the internet was as young as I was. :P