Two more books have been added to the bucket list. These are The Clan of the Cave Bears by Jean M. Auel and Death On the Nile by Agatha Christie. You can find the complete, updated list here: http://mybucketofbooks.blogspot.com/2012/07/julias-bucket-list-of-books.html.
Why do I keep adding to this list of "must reads"? Well, there are various reasons. As for the above two books, there are two specific reasons. The Clan of the Cave Bears is 1) a sweeping novel - you know, one of those books that spans years, and 2) a good read of 'what if' Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons co-existed millennia ago. It is a good, good book. Just don't let the size of the book (it's pretty thick) scare you off. As for Death On the Nile, I added this one because Hercule Poirot is not the only famous detective about whom Agatha Christie wrote her books. There are Miss Marple and Parker Pyne for two. Did you know Agatha Christie wrote seven different mystery series? I'd really only heard of three before today. So, expect more Agatha Christie books to be added.
It may seem like I am adding books willy nilly, but there is a somewhat convoluted method to my madness for determining what books to have on my bucket list. I will try to explain it.
About Me
The first thing to know is that I don't remember a day I didn't know how to read. Sometimes I think I came out of the womb reading a book! My family moved a lot when I was young, and I found it difficult to make friends. My comforts were my cat, Butchy, and my books. I never tired of reading and re-reading the stories. Picture books naturally jump-started my imagination. And as I grew older, chapter books allowed me to imagine beyond the five senses.
As with many young families, money tended to be tight. Yet the wonderful institution of Scholastic Books allowed us to purchase books at a steeply discounted rate. And our parents, as teachers, received even more discounts. And as for free entertainment, there was nothing like spending the day at the library and bringing home a stack of books to read. And I didn't limit myself to just a few genres. Everything interested me. Historical fiction, Science fiction, Romance, Non-fiction, you name it.
And therein lies one part of my selection method. I want the books on the list to encompass as many genres and sub-genres as possible. Yes, there are many in the same genre, but look again. There are differences in the core audience, writing style, character development, setting, and more. These differences offer up a wider spectrum of experience. They stretch the imagination muscle.
Books I've Already Read
There are several books on the list that I read years ago; for example The Clan of the Cave Bears. Why add a book to the bucket list that I've already read? Because it offers up something none of the other books have. In this case, I think it is the only book I have read where the characters are Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons and the setting is in the midst of the Ice Age. Wow! Imagine what it would have been like! How did these peoples live or communicate or even interact? What a great concept!
Famous Authors
Several books on the list are written by internationally known authors such as Agatha Christie and Jane Austen. Up until a few weeks ago I had not read even one book by either of these authors. And many of their books have been made into movies, TV series, plays, and more. So many people have read books by these authors, they must have written something worth reading. So, I selected as few as one and as many as twelve (to date) to add to the bucket list.
I could add more books written by, say, Ernest Hemingway, but that is where I take artistic license and decide for myself. The Old Man and the Sea, for example. It was mandatory reading for a literature class in high school. I read it but I didn't much enjoy reading about a man who battles a fish through an entire book. I was probably too immature to comprehend the deep meanings intended by Ernest Hemingway. But given my high school impressions, I am not all that willing to try another of his books....for now. Because I may change my mind.
Famous Books
Several books on the list are well known, and just like Famous Authors above, these books have been read by so many and are so well known, there must be something in them that captured the imagination. So, I added A Clockwork Orange and The Lovely Bones. I will admit, I added these and a few more with some trepidation. I hesitate to read tear-jerkers. And some of the books may be a bit too off-kilter for me. But it is the experience I am going for here. I want to read it. And if I don't like it, at least I can say "I don't like it because..." with authority.
Recommendations
Several books on the list were recommended to me by one or several friends and associates. Same Kind of Different As Me and 11/22/63 are two examples. These were recommended to me by several avid book readers like myself, and I trust their judgement. Why? Because they've steered me right before. We often have different tastes in books, but we all greatly appreciate a good story.
Books I Am Curious About
Also there are books I've heard about that may or may not be "best sellers". In fact, several of them are books from which movies were made. I may have seen the movie not knowing it was based on a book, and upon finding out, I want to read the book. As we all know, movies are summaries of the books. And in the transition from book to movie, a lot can get lost in translation. When a movie intrigues me and/or leaves me asking questions, I want to read the book. I am curious about the details that weren't addressed in the movie. A few examples are The Handmaid's Tale and Never Let Me Go, both of which appear to be of the dystopian genre.
Classics
And then there are the classics. There isn't a list large enough to encompass all the books regarded as Classics. So, I again took artistic license and selected books I either wanted to read or felt that I should read. It is not without hesitation that I added Les Miserables and Catcher In the Rye. But now that they are on the list, there they will stay. And I will read them. As for Shakespeare and Chaucer, I am looking forward to reading those that I haven't read though I know the verbiage will be a bit tricky at first.
These are not all the reasons why I selected the books on the bucket list, but they pretty much encompass most of why I chose the books I chose. More books will come. And as for why more books will be added; well, it's all about experiencing the story!
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