99 Books on the Shelf
In Tom Stoppard’s play “The Real Thing”, Henry, a supposed intellectual writer, is agonizing over his list of favorite things to take to an imaginary desert island for the hit U.K. radio program “Desert Island Discs” (Check out Sir Paul in Desert Island Discs in link below) on which he is to appear. His actress, wife, Charlotte inquires if he has selected a favorite book yet. Henry replies “Finnegan’s Wake” to which Charlotte deadpans “Have you read it?” My fear in drawing up a list of books was that I would, like Henry, be overwhelmed with a desire to appear smart or clever in my selections. With that proviso in mind, I have endeavored only to list books that would come to mind when asked to recommend a good read to a friend. I’ve done my best to compile an eclectic list from classics to pulp fiction to memoirs; a little something for everyone. If you happen to read a book from this list, I would love to hear from you. ***Click on book covers to get to full