1. To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee—witty, eerie, thoughtful, intelligent—every good adjective in the world describes this book

2. All the Pretty Horses, Cormac McCarthy—the first in a great trilogy

3. The Dark Tower Series and related Stephen King books—which is just about every SK book, so this takes care of them all

4. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis—I think this is the book that made me love reading, like not just LIKE it, but LOVE it

5. The Secret History, by Donna Tartt—this book got a lot of hype when it was published, but for a change, it deserved it. Murder and ennui at a small New England college

6. Ender’s Game, Orson Scott Card—the kind of book that made talk out loud to all the characters while I was reading it.

7. I Capture the Castle, by Dodie Smith -- a wonderful romantic story, written by the same woman who wrote the original 101 Dalmations book.

8. The 3 Musketeers, by Alexander Dumas—as soon as you get used to the really flowery, melodramatic 19th century writing style, this stands out as the best adventure story ever written—edge of your seat kind of stuff

9. The Chroncles of Lymond, by Dorothy Dunnett—this is more adventure and romance, set mostly in 14th century Scotland. All the imagry relates back to a giant chess game, being played in the courts of Europe and Asia. Also contains what might be the best deathbed scene I have ever read.

10. The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald—probably set the stage for literature of the 20th century. Some classics deserve to be classics.

11. The Sun Also Rises, Hemingway—bullfighting in spain, unmentionable war injuries and the most glamourous heroine ever written

12. As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner—a completely blah and pointless story that sucks you in before you even realize it. It’s a mind warp.

13. Eureka Street, by Robert McLiam Wilson—i’m particularly proud of this one, because this guy wasn’t published in America until recently, and i feel like i “discovered” him. He’s from Belfast, and writes about people in Northern Ireland, but not “hit you over the head” political.

14. My Antonia, by Willa Cather—the first paragraph of this book is said to be the single most perfect paragraph written about america, and I agree.

15. The Pursuit of Love, by Nancy Mitford—this title sounds like it’s all about love, but it’s really not—it’s not smarmy at all, it’s wonderful. It’s also is a great portrait of England between the Wars.

16. The Once and Future King, T. H. White—the modernized, tongue-in-cheek retelling of the King Arthur legend.

17. Lizard Music, Daniel Pinkwater -- 11 year old Victor travels to an invisible island off the coast of New Jersey, inhabited by talking lizards named Raymond who have a swing band and like to watch broadcast television news, especially Walter Cronkite.