I’m cheating a bit on this post because it’s so late and I don’t have much time to make the NaBloPoMo deadline, but I’m a sucker for this kind of thing anyway.
Yesterday a Facebook friend invited me to do the following:
The rules: Don’t take too long to think about it. 15 books that influence you or will always stick with you. List the first 15 you can think of in 15 minutes. Tag at least 15 friends, including me, because I am interested in seeing what books my friends choose. Copy the rules, list 15 books and tag 15 friends.
I produced the following list (many of which I blogged about before here), and I was so disappointed that only one of my friends joined in! Feel free to join in yourself in the comments if you wish.
1. The Lords of Discipline (My favorite book by my favorite fiction writer, Pat Conroy–this is arguably my favorite book of all time.)
2. The Art of Natural Family Planning (This set me on the right path before I had a chance to make any mistakes and I am grateful.)
3. Let’s Have Healthy Children (I read it while pregnant with #1 and I credit it with the robust health enjoyed by all my children.)
4. Surrendering to Motherhood (I need to re-read this periodically to remind me of what’s REALLY important.)
5. Kids Are Worth It! (This is best parenting book I EVER read.)
6. How to Raise Healthy Children in Spite of Your Doctor (We rarely go to the doctor and this book is one reason.)
7. Between Parent and Child (I only wish I could always remember to speak to my kids the way Haim Ginott suggests.)
8. The Lord of the Rings (I’ve read it more times than I can remember, including once out loud.)
9. The Song of Bernadette (I understand and appreciate it more with every reading, and I am so grateful to have been able to visit the site where it all happened.)
10. The Greatest Salesman in the World (I’m not a huge fan of self-help but this is lyrical and inspirational with an awesome twist.)
11. Breastfeeding and Natural Childspacing (This was life-changing for me–I breastfed for 13 years.)
12. Humanae Vitae (I’d heard birth control was wrong but no one ever told me why until I read this beautiful encyclical.)
13. Childbirth without Fear (The first book I read on childbirth, it formed my views about what birth could be.)
14. Open Season (This led me to my triumphant VBAC of my 13 lb. 5 oz. son.)
15. Gone with the Wind (I first read it when I was only 8–I’ve read this one aloud as well!)
Won’t you play? What are your favorites?
Great list. Yea, to another Catholic in the blogosphere! So refreshing to me. And I’ve been to Lourdes, too. What an incredible, memorable experience.
My grandmother took me to France when I was 17. Lourdes was the highlight. I wish I could go back.
Why not go back?
In a word, money.
I hear ya. A friend of mine knows a woman who, whenever she wants to go on a pilgrimage: Lourdes, Fatima, Guadalupe, she plans the trip to the dollar, goes to Vegas, wins the amount she needs, to the dollar, quits, goes home, and packs for the trip! It’s not something I would dare try personally, but how cool is that?!
I wouldn’t even have the money to go to Vegas. 😉 But we all have our own leaps of faith to make, right?
True.