Childhood Books: These books lit my imagination and gave me a love of reading. I think every child should've had this part of my childhood. Reading was a family affair.
Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss—Oh, how many nights this put me to sleep.
The Giving Tree by Shel Siverstein -- It was the first book I remember reading to myself. The lesson on how to give is with me to this day, some 25 years later.
Charlotte's Web by E.B. White—This was a family affair. We all took turns reading a chapter to each other. I loved the movie, but the book was even better.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle –This was the first chapter book I remember reading to myself (with a little help from Mom at bedtime).
The Lion, The Witch, and The Warbrobe by C.S. Lewis—This my brother used to read to me when Mom wasn’t available to read to me.
The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks—Oh, how I adored this book. I don’t know how it got off my favorites list to begin with.
The Boxcar Children Series by Gertrude Chandler Warner—My friends and I bonded over Free Willy, Michael Jackson songs, and the Boxcar Children.
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Star Trek: These books are taken collectively together. I spent years 10-13 reading primarily Star Trek novels. Jan Micheal Friedman was my favorite author for a while and when William Shatner brought back Captain Kirk from the dead, using the Borg, oh, game was ON!!!
Perchance to Dream by Howard Weinstein
All Good Things... by Michael Jan Friedman, Ronald D. Moore, Brannon Braga
Shadows on the Sun by Jan Michael Friedman.
Saratoga by Jan Michael Friedman
The Ashes of Eden by William Shatner
The Return by William Shatner
Avenger by William Shatner
Trials and Tribble-ations by Diane Carey
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Hamlet by William Shakespeare -- This was my introduction to Shakespeare at the tender age of 12. It brought me into the world of character and King's English. I devoured Shakespeare after this. It is some of the most beautiful poetry I have ever read, and it's supposed to be dialogue! Thank you, Star Trek, for letting me know who Shakespeare is!
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High School: High School was where I stretched my legs and re-entered the world of non-science fiction books. After living on Star Trek and Star Wars novels, I was finally ready to take on some of the classics and learn a thing or two along the way. I spent my Friday nights going to the movies with my father. After we would eat and see the movie, we would drive to the local Borders books and I would at least get one book. It was a very fruitful time, although I was confused a lot by what I read.
Animal Farm by George Orwell—This book opened me up to the world of Communism and the Cold War. “Some pigs are equal; some pigs are more equal than others.” It was a view into Russian history.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury -- As a Freshmen High School student, the talk about censorship and free thought helped to shape me. I read it over and over again. It has made me a staunch defender of free speech.
The Poetry of Robert Frost -- "The Road Not Taken" became a mantra as I went through life's turmoils.
On Writing by Stephen King—I found some useful tips in this book towards trying to be a writer. Before I had taken any classes to that end, King’s book was like the Bible to me.
The Partly Cloudy Patriot by Sarah Vowell -- This was an amazingly funny and insightful commentary when I was budding into my political philosophy. It put politics on the map for me. It's dated, since it deals with contemporary issues (2000), but its style stuck with me as I tried to write and learned to look for more insightful books.
Plan of Attack by Bob Woodward—I changed parties over the Iraq War. A PBS Frontline episode and this book are the reason why I never supported the war.
Oedipus Rex by Sophocles—Of course, I read the English translation. This was my first reading assignment in college and I loved it! I read it in about three hours before class and the structure of the story—Oedipus’s hubris to tell the city that he is going to save the day—confronting his father without knowing him and killing the man, becoming the very enemy he sought to destroy: pure tragedy.
Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White—Required of me in my Composition course in Freshman year of college, it told me the rules, which ones I needed to learn and the ones that I continue to break. Like fragmented sentences. It should be required for anyone that has to write (and used even when posting on Trekbbs.
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In the wake of my father's death (2006-07), I tried to become a writer. I wanted to write a great piece of American Literature. This led to reading a tremendous amount of books and they have stuck with me as it was one of the richest times in my life. I felt like I was completing the person I wanted to become. The following books were read in that time and, while there are others, I chose the ones that made a lasting imprint:
Eugene O'Neill: Beyond Mourning and Tragedy by Stephen Black—This introduced me to psychoanalysis as Black recounts the life of America’s first great playwright through the prism of his works.
The Iceman Cometh by Eugene O'Neill—O’Neill’s brother, James, was an alcoholic and apparently, he liked to drink as well. That explains the setting for probably his most famous work.
Mourning Becomes Electra by Eugene O'Neill—Both James and Eugene had budding Oedipus complexes, according to Black. This explains the relationship between the soldier that’s come home and his mother.
The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams—I was enthralled with this play because I saw myself as a choice between the two children—either the child so broken that it cannot handle losing the Glass Menagerie or the one that was determined to make a life for himself.
The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales by Edgar Allan Poe—This book has been with me everywhere. I love it to death and I wouldn’t ever want to be without it.
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad—Recommended by a Composition teacher in Freshmen English, I decided to buy a copy and it was one of the first books, as an adult, I felt was over my head. I had a hard time getting through it. And that is why it is on this list.
Let Me Tell You A Story by Red Auerbach with John Feinstein—I am a huge basketball fan. The history of Red Auerbach, from designing the Celtics’ logo to drafting Paul Pierce, was awesome.
The Punch by John Feinstein—Another basketball book. This one about Michigan legend Rudy Tomjanovich.
Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer -- One of the best non-fiction books I have ever read, it expressed, in the wake of 9/11, my views about the violence, and dark side, of theism.
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck—Another book I took to heart like
Menagerie. It was a very turbulent time in my life.
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The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream by President Barack Obama -- Never has a book expressed my philosophy while challenging me with new information, simultaneously. It's not a book I have read more than once, but it stuck with me.
Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham—I relate to Phillip. I never had a club-foot, but I did grow up in a deeply religious background and I had similar reactions to people and that background. Always eager to please, always looking for an adventure, I relate to him in many ways.
The Bonobo and the Atheist: In Search of Humanism Among the Primates by Frans De Waal -- This book was eye-opening, and I reference it a lot now. It opened my mind to the science and philosophy of morality.
The Art of Falling by Kathryn Craft -- VERY new, it touched me in such a profound way, that it became a part of me, its dialogue spoke the words within my soul.
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So...That's the anthology. If you took the time to read all of that, I appreciate it.
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You're dead to me.
