Tuesday's Meme Express: Bibliophiles

What are you reading this summer?
So far I have read:
Cheaper By the Dozen
The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt
The Distinguished Guest by Sue Miller
Lost in the Forest by Sue Miller
I am currently reading Where Angels Fear to Tread by E.M. Forester

What is the best book you have ever read? How many times have you read it?
Oh, there are so many on my shelves that I read and reread again and again always finding something new in them. One of my favorites is Joanna's Husband and David's Wife by Elizabeth Forsyth Hailey and I've read it at least half a dozen times.

What was your favorite book as a child? Why?
I loved so many, but three come to mind:
The Poky Little Puppy - It's a classic. I think I always connected with the puppy's independent spirit.
No, No, Joan - The book is shaped like a cat. Joan is a cat and is pictured doing naughty things, such as clawing the curtains and knocking over plants, throughout the book. Really, the illustrations tell the story as the only words in the book are "No, No, Joan!" until the last page when Joan does something (I can't remember what) "right" and the words beneath the picture say "Yes, Yes, Joan!" I think I liked using my imagination and I love cats.
Miss Rumphius - This is such a beautiful story for young and old alike. Miss Rumphius is an unconventional woman who travels the world, lives her dream, eventually settles by the sea, and is trying to find a way to make the world a more beautiful place. She stumbles upon a way to make the world more beautiful when the lupine in her garden begin spreading all over her yard. She resolves to spread lupine seeds everywhere she goes thereby making the world more beautiful. Just a great, great story.

If you could write your own book, what would you call it?
I have written two books, one for my niece and one for my nephew. "Laughing Lily" and "Jumping Jackson" are the titles.
For seven years, off and on, I have been working on a memoir tentatively titled "Just Boyfriends."

What would it be about?
If I ever finish my memoir, it will be about the four boys I dated before I met my husband, how my life has been shaped by those relationships, and how the lessons I learned from those relationships led me to my husband. The boys sort of fall into categories: "The First Boyfriend", "The Long Distance Relationship", "The Cheater", and "The Bad Boy" (so bad in fact he had been in juvenile hall before we met, went to jail a month or so after we broke up, and is in jail (according to the internet) as I type this).

There is a link to the Meme Express blog in the Notable Blogs section to the right of this post.