I have always loved to read. Beyond just a pastime, books have been my friends, an escape, solace. But there are 2 that have left lasting impressions above and beyond the others. As a child, it was King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry. As an adult, it is The Good Soldiers by David Finkel.
I’ve enjoyed so many books over the years and most have stuck with me. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly why these 2 surpassed the others because many books tell great stories, have great characters, and are beautifully written.
They’re obviously very different books but emotionally they are the same. They affected me so deeply and the memories are so rich, I feel I’ve actually lived them both.
The follow up to Good Soldiers, Thank You for Your Service, is more well known because it was made into a movie with Miles Teller. I have read it and it’s wonderful, but The Good Soldiers transported me to Iraq, put a rifle in my hand, and killed my friends.
I am looking for books like this. Any genre, any age group. Any book that is so ingrained you feel like it’s a part of your life story.
I love Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach. One of my favorite books ever. Released the same year I was born, when I was younger I felt that Bach wrote that book specifically for me. I’ve read it hundreds of times in the last 45ish years. I’ve given copies to each of my children, although they don’t have the same feelings about the book as I did at 7-8 years old reading it for the first time by myself. That book started the foundation that I would build my life upon. I still have the original copy I was given, although it is not the copy I currently read.
Richard Bach also wrote Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah and as a young man, starting out in my career my very first professional mentor gave me a copy of this book and it changed the way that I viewed the world. I’ve only read this book dozens of times in the past 30 years, but it is still one of my favorites.
I think it’s time for me to give each of these books another read.