My Top-Five Book List

Chronologically speaking, it's fair to say that my life is about half over. Reading has always been an important aspect of my life - a majorly important one, in fact. So I thought I'd come up with a top-five books list for that first half.

I'm not inclueding the Bible in this list. To me, the Bible occupies a special spot, and indeed, it's more than just a book, to me. So don't read anything into its exclusion in this list other than the fact that it is more special to me than a mere book. So here we go:

1. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. I first picked up this book on March 31, 1983. I couldn't put it down. To this dey, the book defines humor to me. This book and its series of sequels and other incarnations have helped me laugh during so many dar times in my life, I can't say enough for it.
   
   
2. 11-22-63 by Stephen King. I am not a Stephen King fan, never have been, probably never will be. But I am a fan of science fiction, particularly time travel. This book grabbed my attention fairly soon after a bit of a shaky start. IF you overlook this book, don't let it be because you're not a Stephen King fan: this is very different from any of his other work, and it is outstanding.
   
   
3. The Martian by Andy Weir. This book hooked me from the beginning. It is very realistic science fiction, a very plausible plot, and suspense that makes the book very difficult to put down.
   
   
4. Innocent Graves by Peter Robinson. I am a huge fan of the Inspector Banks series, by Mr. Robinson. For whatever reason, this book stands out for me as my favorite. Maybe it's because Robinson shows a protagonist making a pretty major mistake, and actually apologizing for his error.
   
   
5. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronté. What can I say? I really admire the character that Jane shows in this book. It's exceptionally well-written, in my opinion.</ol? Favorites are fluid. What may be my top five favorite books of all time today may not necessarily be so tomorrow. Sometimes if I reread a book, suddenly it becomes my favorite. But I think this is a good top-five list expressing my book-reading feelings over the last 44.5 years.