10 Formative Books

I came across this idea in a blog somewhere about, oh, 3 or 4 years ago and it stuck with me. These are supposed to be 10 books that made an impact on me (not necessarily my *favorite* books, by the way, though a few fit that bill). This makes the list very personal, since what's important to me may not be important to you, etc. etc.

I thought about this a long time. I'm sure that I'm leaving some important book out and will later have a hand-to-forehead moment where I'll wish my memory was better. But maybe the fact that these are the books that sprang to mind is significant on its own.

I can say that I read all of these books by the time I was 15. I have two older brothers, and though it doesn't feel that way now, when I was a kid they seemed so much older to me (5 and 7 years). I used to borrow their books and read them. They never complained (at least not beyond the strict admonition to be careful of the pages and the spine!). My parents never took exception to anything that I wanted to read, either. They felt that if I picked a book up and read it, that I was old enough to do so--and if I had questions about what I was reading, I always asked.

So here's my list, in alphabetical order by author, which seemed to be as logical a way of listing them as any other order. I suppose it's no surprise that 7 of the 10 are SF or Fantasy?

10 Formative Books - My Version

1. Louisa May Alcott - Little Women
I believe I read Little Women in the fifth grade--for pleasure, not for a class assignment. This was the first book that ever made me cry. I think I was fascinated that the story was about sisters, as well, since I found the whole sister concept rather, well, alien.



2. Isaac Asimov - Foundation trilogy
I first read these books in elementary school and while I loved all three, the first one in the trilogy is my favorite. I was fascinated by the idea that history could be a science. That one might be able to predict the future based on quantifiable data and behavioral patterns of the past. Yes, I was always drawn to the "hard sciences" and thought that if you couldn't measure it, it couldn't be science, now could it? Why do you ask? ;-)

3. Arthur C. Clarke - Childhood's End
This is one of the few science fiction books from that time period that I've only re-read once, so my recollection of the story is very hazy. I think the first time I read it I was about 12 or 13. The impression that it made, so many years later, is still extremely strong. I recall being faced with concepts that shook me and that forced me to think about certain things (like religion) that I'd only accepted and taken for granted to that point.

4. Arthur C. Clarke - Tales from the White Hart
This was the first Clarke book that I ever read. I don't recall any of the short stories in it, but what I do recall is the dry humor and the sense of wonder. And the science! You could do that? (Well, I knew that you couldn't actually do that, but that maybe, someday you could -- and science was the key).



5. Robert Heinlein - Stranger in a Strange Land
Another book that just rocked my little world, though not the first Heinlein I'd read. I read this book the year I was 12, the summer *after* the Summer of Love. There were powerful concepts and not a little cynicism in that book (a person could start their own religion? cool). Too bad it was mostly downhill for Heinlein from there (at least for me).


6. Larry Niven - Ringworld
I read Ringworld when it was published--as soon as I could get my little hands on my brother's copy. The concept of the Ringworld, the idea of creating such a construct, dazzled me. I was already a Known Space fan, so it wasn't a stretch to love this book. Besides, who could resist Louis Wu and his Motley Crew or a character named Halrloprillalar?


7. William L. Shirer - The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
This book, more than any other on my list, had a profound impact on me. I read it when I was 10 years old. I've believed that Evil exists and that men can be Evil ever since. This book helped shape my perceptions of the world--of just what men are capable of and the stupidity of hatred and prejudice and the horrors that stem from them. To this day I'm amazed that my parents let me read it -- but then, they never censored my reading material at any age.

8. Bram Stoker - Dracula
This is the first book to scare the bejeezus out of me. I made the mistake of starting to read it on a Friday night when the rest of the family was at my oldest brother's high school basketball game. I ended up staying up all night until I finished it. There was absolutely no way that I was going to sleep until I knew that the Count was no more. I still remember the feeling of utter terror that kept me glued to the pages. I read the book before I'd ever seen a movie version of Dracula. I've never seen a serious movie version that comes anywhere close to evoking the fear I felt reading the book. This is one of the few books that I've never been able to re-read. I've thought about it on occasion, but the experience was so disturbing the first time that I still shy away from it.

9. J.R.R. Tolkein - The Lord of the Rings trilogy
I read the Hobbit in fifth grade (again, my brother's copy) and enjoyed it, but didn't really think anything too much of it. I started The Fellowship of the Ring in seventh grade and found myself passionately involved in the characters and their stories. Up until a few years ago, I'd re-read this trilogy every couple of years like clockwork, always discovering something new within.

10. Herman Wouk - The Winds of War
As you may have noticed from the previous 9 entries, I wasn't much into "main stream fiction" as a kid. The Winds of War was a revelation. I only picked it up because of the time period in which it took place, but once I started it, I couldn't put it down. And it still may be true that if it wasn't set during the time before WWII, that I wouldn't have read more than a few pages. However, read it I did. I was drawn into the world of the '30s and was fascinated. I still have my mother's hardbound version, though it's starting to fall apart now.