3.1.14

Desert Island Books

Image credit: vicnt / 123RF Stock Photo
Many people listen to music a lot and use it as a form of comfort, escape or cheer. Maybe some use it as a memory device, a wallowing in a mood thing or just an entertainment thing. I like music, but I don't love it and the words are always the important bit for me. Going onto a desert island I would be hard pressed to think of music that means that much to me, maybe I'd pick the latest albulm I'm enjoying (would be something by Stornoway as they have the most amazing lyrics and great tunes)

Books on the other hand...books. They are full of words, awesome, awesome stories, poems, memories, worlds..things strange or normal. I love books.

So I picked books rather than tracks for my desert island, here are my desert island books.

  1. The Life of Pi - many people don't like it, but it changed the way I think about things, it is beautiful writing, a strange tale and a curious finale. Well worth a read but you must read to the final page, none of this 'it was too long' lark. If you start it, finish it. I could reread it forever on an island.
  2. To Kill a Mocking Bird - a true classic, set in middle class, middle town, middle America, a story of growing up and discovering both the horror and the joy the world can contain.
  3. Night Watch - a comedy, and a fantasy and there is religion and time travel, good and evil, love and truth, it's all therein this frankly amazing book by Terry Pratchett. A detailed take on the history of one of my favourite discword characters, Sam Vimes.
  4. Rebecca's World, Journey to the Forbidden Planet - now out of print although maybe available on CD. A children's story, with a young girl as the lead, telling the story of travel through a weird land, meeting unusual people, discovering friendship, and often very very funny. A great read for young and old, I'd take it to read alound to my goats.
  5. The River World Series - a whole series of science fiction books, dealing with the themes of life after death, but also alternative lands and human nature. With some famous historical figures thrown in. I love these books and plan to reread them soon.
  6. The Neverending Story - Another children's book that has a mystical feel. Lose yourself in this book (hopefully not as literally as Bastian does) the original printing was in two colours, one for this world and one for Fantasia. Explores the themes of bullying and friendship.
  7. The White Dragon - I've always wanted a dragon, by reading any of the Pern books by Anne McCaffrey you can have one, if only for a book's length. This is my favourite of all the stories. her dragons are marvelous.
  8. Anything (possibly Everything) by Oscar Wilde - proper clever wit, some horror, some poetry. Perfect to read and reread.
  9. 1984 - we were forced to read this at school for A level but oddly it didn't put me off. A brillaint political horror/satire and a terrible view, not so much into the future as into the here and now. Nice to read it on a desert island where I would be the one in power...
  10. Guess How Much I love you - a silly picture book is my last choice. I used to read this to DD when she was small and it would remind me of family, home and love. I would read it through tears to keep me connected to my daughter. I love her...to the moon....and back.

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