Book Meme

I've been slacking, really slacking. So in an effort to get back up and ride that horse again, I will start out easy. Melessa (sort of) tagged me for a book meme. And because it's books, well I just can't turn that down, right?

Here are the rules for this one:

Just select 4 books:


1. Fiction

2. Autobiography

3. Non-fiction

4. A fourth book of your choice from any genre


Explain why the books are essential reads in no more than 30 words per book (this part might not be so easy).


1. Fiction: The Tale of Desperaux, by Kate DiCamillo. A good, humorous children's fairy tale, satisfyingly concluded without the "fairy tale ending," about getting along with all the other people in your world, good, bad or in-between.

2. Autobiography: I'm bad about this category. No autobiography is essential. I'm not sure that I've completed an autobiography since high school. Is that bad? Maybe I should set a goal? Suggestions?

3. Non-fiction: A Framework for Understanding Poverty, by Ruth Payne. Wow! This taught me compassion and understanding, as well as why "fixing" poverty is so ... complex.

4. My Choice: Persuasion, by Jane Austen. (How could I not have a J.A.?) Simple, but emotionally mature, humorous, and ends with realistic redemption. My favorite Jane Austen.

Whew, that was hard. Narrowing my book choices down to so few. I changed my mind about 900 times. As Melessa said, I'm not going to actually tag anybody. But I'd really love to hear from you either in my comments or on your blogs. It'll give me future reading material (like my 3-foot-high to-be-read-pile needs any help). Yeah, I'm talking to you Allison, and you Karen, and you Taryn, and you Staci, and you Jenn.