451 Fridays

451 Fridays is based on an idea from Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. In his novel, a group of people (Bradbury calls them Book People) are trying to keep the ideas found in books alive. Instead of actually saving the books, the Book People each "become" a book - memorizing it, word for word, and passing it down to the next generation.

451 Fridays asks what books you feel passionate about. What book do you think is so important that you would be willing to take on the challenge of "becoming"?


Today, I am excited to introduce you to my friend Emily. Well, sort of. Emily is an In Real Life friend, who doesn't have a blog or a Facebook page or a Twitter account or anything. I know, weird, right? She generally prefers to keep her private life private, so I've agreed to her request not to post her picture with this post - apparently, not everyone needs the whole world knowing their business. =) Emily is a nurse, wife, and mom, and one smart cookie. I've know her for about 5 years, spent lots of hours talking books, and I've finally badgered her into joining us here. Welcome, Emily, and thanks for agreeing to enter the cyber-world for the day.

What 5 books do you believe are important enough to be saved, and why?

1. The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene - I am an evangelist for this novel. I think everyone should read this story of a priest trying to find redemption. Themes of sin and atonement and virtue and vice run throughout, making this novel a thought-provoking read.

"There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in."

"And when we love our sin then we are damned indeed."

2. Love You Forever by Robert Munsch - I thought this was a sweet little kids book, and then I had my own kids. Now it makes me weepy every time I read it to my girls. Every kid should have someone to love them forever.


"I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always
As long as you're living
My baby you'll be."

3. The Love of a Good Woman by Alice Munro - sometimes, a short story is all the time a mom of two small kids has time to read. This collection is wonderful - frankly, any collection by Alice Munro is wonderful, but this is the one I've read most recently.

"For we did make up. But we didn't forgive each other. And we didn't take steps. And it got to be too late and we saw that each of us had invested too much in being in the right and we walked away and it was a relief."

4. The Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey - this is the first book Elizabeth and I really had a bonding moment over - if you need to escape for a while to a different world, I can't think of a better one than Pern. I can't count the number of hours I've spent engrossed in these novels, but I haven't regretted a single one.

"I prefer to cope with my disasters one at a time."

"Dragons always fly when thread is in the sky."

5. The Way of Herbs by Michael Tierra - weird choice? Well, maybe, but I'm a nurse, so ancient herbal remedies have always been interesting to me. And trust me, when we're in a post-apocalyptic world, sitting around our campfire roasting our hunt for dinner, someone is going to be happy that I know what plants can cure a burn!

(sorry, no quotes)

Of those 5, which book would you choose to "become"?

Love You Forever. Partly because I already have it memorized. (Yep, I'm a cheater.) Mostly because, in a world that is sure to be scary and uncertain, we will need to be able to remind ourselves that some things really are forever.



Emily, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to share YOUR list of books which must be saved. Bloggers, if you have a non-blogging friend you think would like to join in the 451 fun, send me an email! I'd love to include them!