Matt Webb posted about a book blogging thing from days of yore, and I figured I’d have a go at answering it.
How many books do you own?
Somewhere around 1,500 physical books and 3,200 ebooks. I haven’t counted recently.
What is the last book you bought?
The Comanche Empire, by Pekka Hämäläinen. (Purchased five hours ago.)
What is the last book you read?
Rob Wilkins’ biography of Terry Pratchett. (Which I’ll talk about in my next recent reads post.)
What are five books that mean a lot to you?
This question was hard, not only because there are a lot of books but also because my brain is completely awful at retrieving things this way. There is no index on those columns. And what does “mean” mean, anyway? But here’s the best I can do right now:
- The Book of Mormon, for spiritual guidance and being my daily companion through life. This was the easy one.
- The Last Battle, by C. S. Lewis, for its depiction of the afterlife at the end. I don’t remember it being a particularly long part of the book (I haven’t reread it in ages — sixteen years this month, apparently), but that ending always made me cry. If I read it again right now I’d probably think of my dad and almost certainly cry some more.
- The Dark Is Rising, by Susan Cooper. I haven’t reread this in ages either (eighteen years next month), but what a book! One of the best fantasy novels I’ve ever read, at least in my memory. I’m a little wary of rereading it in case it doesn’t hold up now that I’m older, but wintertime is the perfect time of year for reading it so I’ll probably try it soon.
- This Changes Everything, by Naomi Klein. I’ve written before about its pivotal effect on me.
- How the Word Is Passed, by Clint Smith. I’ve also written recently about this book, which has also been pivotal for me.
I won’t tag anyone, but if you do this on your blog, send me a link!