top 10 books

I am and always have been a lover of books, and as a way of embracing this part of myself, I have written a list of my very favorites.

1.  To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
      I read this first in seventh grade and again in eighth, and then came back to it my junior year of high school and loved it beyond words.  It's one of those books that speaks to you in different ways at different times in your life, and although I could mostly comprehend the story as an eleven-year-old, it is much more meaningful to me now.
2.  The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
     The stories of the women of a missionary family in the Congo, growing and changing together and apart.  Barbara Kingsolver is one of my favorite authors all-around, and this book is one of her best.  One of the things I like most about it is that each chapter alternates between the perspectives of a mother and her four daughters, and each one has a unique voice.
3.  I Am The Messenger (Markus Zusak)
     I first read this in tenth grade for an extra-credit book club.  I started it one afternoon intending to read the first quarter, our assigned reading for the week, and read the entire thing straight through.  It's that kind of book, and every time I re-read it I never fail to be amazed at its clarity, humility, and truth.  The very idea behind it inspires me to be a better person.  
4.  The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
     It's about a girl who, after living with an abusive father following the death of her mother, runs away and finds healing in the home of three sisters who raise bees.  Because it is set in the South during the Civil Rights Movement, she also learns about inequality and love without boundaries.  The story may be simple, but it resonates with a kind of gloriousness and truth that many good books lack.  The essence of what it communicates can be found in every human soul.
5.  Blue Like Jazz (Donald Miller)
     This is a collection of humble, inspiring stories about life and following Jesus.  Like many books on this list, it is simple and deeply profound.  If I can live my life with anything that approaches this kind of honesty and grace, I will have touched many people's lives.
6.  Chronicles of Narnia (C.S. Lewis)

     This is obviously more than one book, but I'm listing them as one entity because they are all so wonderful.  They are an extraordinary blend of imagination and depth of meaning.
7.  The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
     I first read this when I was probably in middle school, after my mom told me she loved it.  My response after reading it was something along the lines of, "I don't get it.  What's the point?"  Then I read it again this summer and it made me cry.  It is so simple, really a children's book, but once you get older it echoes in you like childhood and eternity together.
8.  The Elegance of the Hedgehog (Muriel Barbery)
     The writing in this book is simply exquisite.  The story is good, but it's actually irrelevant sometimes; what's more important is allowing yourself to sink into its words.
9.  The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
     This is another exquisitely written story about redemption and finding our common humanity.  It's difficult to read at times, but the issues it presents are real and relevant.  The difficult moments are woven together with beauty, and the ending is timidly hopeful.

I'm aware that my list of 10 favorite books only has 9 on it.  That's because although I can think of many other amazing books, none of them quite fit in at the level of these.  Also, I know that there are hundreds of wonderful books out there that are still waiting for me to read them.  As always, I would love to hear your suggestions.  :)