600 BOOKS

The first 600 books I've read (or at least the 600 I remember).

    I love books and for this I have my father to thank. Dad was a voracious reader who was especially enamored with history and the classics.  I on the other hand consider myself to be more of an omnivore who if anything is a bit lacking in the classics department. I’m not a collector of books but I do keep all the books I read except bestsellers.  As a rule I do not lend or borrow books.  
    I have a deep appreciation for books although I would not consider myself a bibliophile.  Unusual as it may seem, I make no bones about judging a book by its cover.  Indeed, it is a rare exception for me to purchase a book without due consideration to design, cover art and binding.  Next time you visit a bookshop ask to see any title from the Everyman’s Library collection published by Alfred A. Knopf (look for the borzoi) or leaf through books from Bibliothèque de la Pléiade published by France’s famous Éditions Gallimard.  For me at least, these are two examples of books at their very best.  For those bibliophiles in Montreal, a real treat awaits you at LIBRISSIME, a bookstore like you’ve never seen before.
    Ever read the colophon of a book?  I do when there’s one to be found because I’m interested in typography (see Helvetica – 50 Years Young). Do you dog-ear the pages of your books or do you use bookmarks?  Do you have any books with bound bookmarks? (Most of the books in the collections mentioned above do.)
    You may consider it an innocent peculiarity or then again you may think it rude but I have to admit that when I am a guest in someone’s house, I make it a point to keep a close eye out for books. I will leaf through coffee-table books if they are to be found or I’ll scan the shelves if a library is at hand.  There is no denying that one can tell a lot about someone from the books they read.  Then again, I’ve been in some homes where not one measly volume is about.  Makes you wonder.  Furthermore, I’m always amazed that some people can sit around a coffee-table that is covered with big beautiful books and not leaf through one of them.  Do they consider it antisocial?  Maybe so.
    Some years ago, I started to compile a list of all the books I have read, no easy task I assure you.  I’ve just reached the 600 mark.  Six hundred books in 54 years. Doesn’t sound like a lot of reading does it?  That’s an average of less than a book a month over my lifetime.  However, on closer analysis, this is not quite accurate.  First, I have not included the textbooks I read through primary school, high school, university, medical school and residency; that’s got to be at least 200 books. Second, I estimate that I’ve forgotten at least15 percent of all the books I’ve read.  So, a rough estimate of the total number of books I’ve read in 54 years is just over 1000.  That makes the lifetime average approximately 18.5 per year. Just to give it some perspective, I know for a fact that since I started this website in May 2005, I’ve read 106 books or over 42 books a year.  I guess I have a bit more time on my hands as I get older. 
  Someone once told me that men read a lot more nonfiction than women but I’ve never been able to verify that.  Looking at my list, I can tell you that just under 35% of the books I’ve read are nonfiction. Before I compiled the list, I would have guessed that the split would be about 50/50.  Looking at the books I’ve read in the last 2 years, 46% are non-fiction.  Not sure if there is a trend there.
    Now, why compile a list in the first place?  I know it’s a bit obsessive but you find reading lists all over the Internet.  I’m interested in what other people read so why not find out what I’ve read first? I wonder if my dad kept a reading list; not likely but I'm sure it would have been a mighty interesting one.  The Internet has made compiling such a list so much easier and Amazon is a wonderful place to start. 
    I guess after all this you’ll ask me to pick my all-time favorite books, right?  It's not easy but here goes: Fiction, A Maggot by John Fowles and non-fiction, Guns, Germs and Steel  by Jared Diamond.  I've always liked historical fiction and A Maggot is that with a bit of a science fiction twist. Guns, Germs and Steel is a book that does a stirling job at explaining many of factors that have shaped man's history.  The book was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction and Guns, Germs and Steel is considered by many one of the best non-fiction books of the 20th Century. Now here’s the bloody list and let’s be done with it (sorry about the poor demarcation between title and author).

100 Masterpieces from the Vitra Design Museum Alexander von Vegesak
1000 Chairs Charlotte and Peter Fiell
102 Minutes Jim Dwyer and Kevin Flynn
1st to Die James Patterson
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Jules Verne
2001: A Space Odyssey Arthur C. Clarke
2107 Curious Word Origins, Sayings and Expressions from White Elephants to Song Dance Charles Earl Funk
397 Chairs Arthur C. Danto
50 Chairs Inovation in Design and Materials Mel Byars
A Brief History of Time Stephen Hawking
A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens
A Clockwork Orange Anthony Burgess
A Conneticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court Mark Twain
A Cook's Tour Anthony Bourdain
A Crack in the Edge of the World Simon Winchester
A Dangerous Fortune Ken Follett
A Death in Belmont Sebastian Junger
A Farewell to Arms Ernest Hemingway
A Food Lover's Companion to Tuscany Carla Capalbo
A Life in Sciences Stephen Hawking
A Maggot John Fowles
A Man in Full Tom Wolfe
A Meal Observed Andrew Todhunter
A Mighty Heart Mariane Pearl
A Moveable Feast Ernest Hemingway
A Painted House John Grisham
A Rare and Curious Gift Pauline Holdstock
A Respectable Trade Philippa Gregory
A Short History of Nearly Everything Bill Bryson
A Short History of Tractors in Ukranian Marina Lewycka
A Tale of Two Cities Charles Dickens
A Taste for Death P.D.James
A Time to Die Wilbur Smith
A Time to Kill John Grisham
A Very Long Engagement Sébastien Japrisot
A Walk in the Woods Bill Bryson
A Year in Provence Peter Mayle
Absurdistan Gary Shteyngart
Accordion Crimes Annie Proux
Acquired Tastes Peter Mayle
Adventures of Huckelberry Finn Mark train
After Dark Haruki Murakami
Airframe Michael Crichton
Airport Arthur Hailey
Alaska James Michner
Alexander Calder and his Magic Mobiles Jean Lipman et al
Alexander Vol. 1 Valerio Massimo Manfredi
Alexander Vol. 2 Valerio Massimo Manfredi
Alexander Vol. 3 Valerio Massimo Manfredi
Alice in Wonderland Lewis Carroll
Alive Piers Paul Read
Along Came a Spider James Patterson
Anatomy of an Illness as Perceived by the Patient Norman Cousins
Ancient Evenings Norman Mailer
Andromida Strain Michael Crichton
Angel of Darkness Caleb Carr
Angela's Ashes Frank McCourt
Angels and Demons Dan Brown
Animal Farm George Orwell
Annapurna Circuit Andrew Stevenson
Anything Considered Peter Mayle
Arthur and George Julian Barnes
As I Lay Dying William Faulkner
Atonement Ian McEwan
Basket Case Carl Hiaasen
Baudolino Umberto Eco
Be Seated A Book About Chairs James Cross Giblin
Bear Attacks Stephen Herrero
Being Digital Nicholas Negroponte
Being There Jerzy Kosinski
Bel Canto Ann Patchett
Bermuda: Five Centuries Rosemary Jones
Berrocal: Antologica Berrocal (1955 - 1984) Ministerio de Cultura
Betrayers of the Truth William Broad
Between a Rock and a Hard Place Aron Ralston
Birds of Prey Wilbur Smith
Black Like Me John Howard Griffin
Blackhawk Down Mark Bowden
Blindness Jose Saramago
Blink Malcolm Gladwell
Blood Work Michael Connelly
Breaking the Spell Daniel C. Dennett
Brunelleschi's Dome Ross King
Burning Shore Wilbur Smith
Calder Sculpture Alexander Calder
Cannery Row John Steinbeck
Caribbean James A. Mitchner
Carpetbaggers Harrold Robbins
Casanova in Bolzano Sandor Marai
Casino Royale Ian Fleming
Catch 22 Joseph Heller
Catcher in the Rye J.D.Salinger
Chair Barbara Prete
Chairman Rolf Fehlbaum Tibor Kalman
Chairs Peter Johnson
Chosen Prey John Sanford
Classic Herman Miller Leslie A. Pina
Close to the Wind Pete Goss
Code Name Ginger Steve Kemper
Cold Mountain Charles Frazier
Collapse Jared Diamond
Complications Atul Gawande
Confessions of a French Baker Peter Mayle
Consilience Edward O. Wilson
Corelli's Mandolin Louis de Bernieres
Creation Gore Vidal
Critical Path R. Buckminster Fuller
Culture and Imperialism Edward Said
Danish Chairs Noritsugu Oda
Dark Age Ahead Jane Jacobs
Days That Changed the World Hywell Williams
Death in the Afternoon Ernest Hemingway
Death of a Salesman Arthur Miller
Death of a Stranger Anne Perry
Debt of Honor Tom Clancy
Deception Point Dan Brown
Deja Dead Kathleen Reichs
Devices and Desires P.D.James
Dictionnaire amououreux du Vin Bernard Pivot
Digital Fortress Dan Brown
Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson
Don't Try This at Home Kimberly Witherspoon
Dr. No Ian Fleming
Eames Design John Neuhart et al
Earthly Powers Anthony Burgess
East of Eden John Steinbeck
Eaters of the Dead Michael Crichton
Eats, Shoots and Leaves Lynne Truss
Eclipse John Banville
Edgar Allan Poe: Complete Tales and Poems Edgar Allan Poe
Eiger Dreams: Ventures Among Men and Mountains Jon Krakauer
Embraced by the Light Betty J. Eadie
Emily Post's Etiquette Peggy Post
Empire Falls Richard Russo
Endurance Alfred Lansing
Epic: Stories of Survival from the World's Highest Peaks Clint Willis
Europe: A History Norman Davies
Evening News Arthur Hailey
Executive Orders Tom Clancy
Eye of the Needle Ken Follett
Fatal Storm Rob Mundley
Fatal Voyage Kathy Reichs
Fierce Pajamas David Remnick and Henry Finder (Ed)
Fire Sebastian Junger
First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong James R. Hansen
Flowers for Algernon Daniel Keyes
For Whom the Bell Tolls Ernest Hemingway
Forever Pete Hamill
Foucault's Pendulum Umberto Eco
Frank Gehry: New Bentwood Furniture Designs The Montreal Museum of Decorative Arts
Frankenstein Mary Shelley
Franny and Zooey J.D.Salinger
Freakonomics Steven D. Levitt
French Women Don't Get Fat Mireille Guiliano
Future Shock Alvin Toffler
Galileo's Daughter Dava Sobel
Girl with the Pearl Earring Tracy Chevalier
God is not Great Christopher Hitchens
Godforsaken Sea Derek Lundy
Going to Extremes Nick Middleton
Golden Fox Wilbur Smith
Goldfinger Ian Fleming
Great Apes Will Self
Great Expectations Charles Dickens
Gulliver's Travels Jonathan Swift
Guns Germs and Steel Jared Diamond
Hamlet William Shakespeare
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets J.K.Rowling
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire J.K.Rowling
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix J.K.Rowling
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone J.K.Rowling
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban J.K.Rowling
Helter Skelter Vincent Bugliosi
Holy Blood Holy Grail Michael Baigent
Hotel Arthur Hailey
How Children Learn John Holt
How Mumbojumbo Conquered the World Francis Wheen
How the Mind Works Steven Pinker
How to Think About Weird Things Theodore Schick
Hunted David Fletcher
I Am Charlotte Simmons Tom Wolfe
I Claudius Robert Graves
Iceberg Clive Cussler
I'm A Stranger Here Myself Bill Bryson
Imperial Life in the Emerald City. Inside Iraq's Green Zone Rajiv Chandrasekaran
In a Sunburned Country Bill Bryson
In Cold Blood Truman Capote
In the Company of the Courtesan Sarah Dunant
In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead James Lee Burke
In the Hand of Dante Nick Tosches
In the Heart of the Sea Nathaniel Philbrick
In the Wake of the Plague Norman F. Cantor
Inca Gold Clive Cussler
Inferno Dante
Into the Wild Jon Krakauer
Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer
Is Paris Burning Larry Collins Dominique Lapierre
Isaac's Storm Erik Larson
Italian Folktales Italo Calvino
Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte
Jonathan Livingston Seagull Richard Bach
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell Susanna Clarke
Jurassic Park Michael Crichton
Kiss the Girls James Patterson
Kitchen Confidential Anthony Bourdain
Kon-Tiki Thor Heyerdal
Krakatoa Simon Winchester
La Chaise: Un objet de Design ou Architecture Centre de Création de Diffusion en Design
Lady Chatterley's Lover D.H.Lawrence
Last Breath: Cautionary Tales from the Limits of Human Endurance Peter Stark
Last Climb John Mallory
Le Petie Prince Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Leadership Rudolph Giuliani
Leonardo Da Vinci - Flights of the Mind Charles Nicholl
Leonardo’s Swans Karen Ussex
Les Francais Aussi ont un Accent Jean-Benoit Nadeau
Letter to a Christian Nation Sam Harris
Lie Down with Lions Ken Follett
Life Millennium Robert Friedman
Life of Pi Yann Martel
Light in August William Faulkner
Like Water for Chocolate Laura Esquivel
L'industrie Thonet Alexander von Veresack
Little Girls in Pretty Boxes Joan Ryan
Live and Let Die Ian Fleming
Live from Golgotha  Gore Vidal
Living History Hillary Rodham Clinton
Lolita Vadimir Nabokov
Long Walk to Freedom Nelson Mandela
Lord of the Flies William Golding
Lore of Running Tim Noakes
Lost City Clive Cussler
Lost Horizon James Hilton
Love in the Time of Cholera Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Lovely Bones Alice Sebold
Macbeth William Shakespeare
Mackintosh to Mollino Fifty Years of Chair Design Derek E. Ostergard
Mademoiselle Victorine Debra Finerman
Magical Thinking Augusten Burroughs
Marcel Breuer Furniture and Interiors Christopher Wilk
Marie Antoinette Antonia Fraser
McGill Medical Luminaries Edward H. Bensley
Memoirs of a Geisha Arthur Golden
Men Myths and Mountains Ronald W. Clark
Mid-Century Modern Cara Greenberg
Middlesex Jeffrey Eugenides
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil John Berendt
Midnight’s Children Salman Rushdie
Moby Dick Herman Melville
Mon Lisa: Inside the Painting Jean-Pierre Mohen
Monsoon Wilbur Smith
Moonraker Ian Fleming
Mortal Fear Robin Cook
Mountain Search and Rescue Techniques W.G.May
My Life and Loves Frank Harris
Napoleon's Buttons Penny Le Couteur
New Italiain Design Nally Bellati
New New Thing Michael Lewis
Night Elie Wiesel
Night Over Water Ken Follett
Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
No Comebacks Frederick Forsyth
Objects of Design from the Museum of Modern Art Paola Antonelli
Octopussy and the Living Daylights Ian Fleming
Of Mice and Men John Steinbeck
Oliver Twist Charles Dickens
On Death and Dying Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service Ian Fleming
On the Road Jack Kerouac
On Wings of Eagles Ken Follett
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich Alexander Solzhenitsyn
One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest Ken Kesey
One Hundred Years of Solitude Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth R. Buckminster Fuller
Oryx and Crake Margaret Atwood
Outside 25 Hal Espen
Paddy Clark Ha Ha Ha Roddy Doyle
PADI Advanced Diver Manual Dennis Graver
Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid Jimmy Carter
Papillion Henri Charriere
Patriot Games Tom Clancy
Pattern Recognition William Gibson
Perfume Patrick Suskind
Pirate Ted Bell
Pleading Guilty Scott Turow
Polar Shift Clive Cussler
Pompeii Robert Harris
Portnoy's Complaint Philip Roth
Power of the Sword Wilbur Smith
Powershift Alvin Toffler
Presumed Innocent Scott Turow
Prey Michael Crichton
Pride and Prejudice Jane Austin
Questioning the Millenium Stephen Jay Gould
Rage Wilbur Smith
Rainbow Six Tom Clancy
Raise the Titanic Clive Cussler
Red Storm Rising Tom Clancy
Rich Man Poor Man Irwin Shaw
Rip Van Winkle and the Legend of Sleepy Hollow Washington Irving
Riptide Douglas Preston et al
Rising Sun Michael Crichton
Risk David Ropeik
River God Wilbur Smith
Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare
Roses are Red James Patterson
Running With Scissors Augusten Burroughs
Sacred Hunger Barry Unsworth
Safe Paola Antonelli
Sahara Clive Cussler
Salt Mark Kurlansky
Secret Prey John Sanford
Selected Poetry of Ogden Nash Ogden nash
Señor Vivo and the Coca Lord Louis de Bernieres
Seven Hundred Kisses: A Yellow Silk Book of Erotic Writings Lily Pond
Seventh Scroll Wilbur Smith
Shalimar the Clown Salman Rushdie
Shock Wave Clive Cussler
Shutter Island Dennis Lehane
Siddahrtha Hermann Hesse
Sierra Club Galen Rowell
Silas Marner George Eliot
Sitting on the Edge Paula Antonelli
Slaughtrhouse Five Kurt Vonnegut
Small Crimes Matthew Kneale
Snow Falling on Cedars David Guterson
Sophies Choice William Styron
Sound of Thunder Wilbur Smith
Sourcebook of Modern Furniture Jerryll Habegger
Sphere Michael Crichton
Stanley: The Impossible Life of Africa's Greatest Explorer Tim Jeal
Starck Taschen
State of Fear Michael Crichton
Steal This Book Abbey Hoffman
Stolen Lives Malika Oufkir
Strange Pilgrims Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Strong Medicine Arthur Hailey
Suite Francaise Irene Nemirovsky
Summerland Michael Chabon
Survive Peter Deleo
Survivors John B Letterman
Swid Powell Objects by Architects Annette Tapert
Swimming to Antarctica Lynne Cox
Taboo. Why Black Athletes Dominate Sports Jon Entine
Taking on the World Ellen MacArthur
Ten Days Jane Smiley
The Adventurers Harold Robbins
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Mark Twain
The Alchemist Paulo Coelho
The Alchemy of Mind Diane Ackerman
The Alienist Caleb Carr
The Ancestor's Tale Richard Dawkins
The Angel of Darkness Caleb Carr
The Aquitaine Progression Robert Ludlum
The Archer's Tale Bernard Cornwell
The Art of Eating M.F.K. Fisher
The Art Thief Noah Charney
The Assault on Reason Al Gore
The Audacity of Hope Barack Obama
The Beatles Anthology Paul McCartney et al
The Bible Zondervan
The Birth of Venus Sarah Dunant
The Blind Assassin Margaret Atwood
The Blind Watchmaker Richadr Dawkins
The Bookseller of Kabul Asne Seierstad
The Bourne Identity Robert Ludlum
The Bourne Supremacy Robert Ludlum
The Boys from Brazil Ira Levin
The Bretheren John Grisham
The Burden of Proof Scott Turrow
The Call of the Wild Jack London
The Cardinal of the Kremlin Tom Clancy
The Carpetbaggers Harold Robbins
The Catcher in the Rye J.D.Salinger
The Cave Jose Samarago
The Chair Elizabeth Wilhide
The Chair Galen Cranz
The Chair Sarah Colombo
The Chamber John Grisham
The Cider House Rules John Irving
The City of Falling Angels John Berendt
The Clan of the Cave Bear Jean M. Auel
The Client John Grisham
The Coffee Trader David Liss
The Communist Manifesto Karl Marx
The Company Arabella Edge
The Complete Book of Running James Fixx
The Corrections Jonathan Franzen
The Crimson Petal and the White Michel Farber
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Mark Haddon
The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown
The Dangerous Summer Ernest Hemingway
The Dante Club Matthew Pearl
The Day of the Jackal Frederick Forsyth
The Death and Life of Great American Cities Jane Jacobs
The Death of Ivan Ilych Leo Tolstoy
The Debt to Pleasure John Lanchester
The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Edward Gibbon
The Demon Haunted World Carl Sagan
The Devil in the White City Erik Larson
The Devil Wears Prada Lauren Weisberger
The Devil's Alternative Frederick Forsyth
The Diversity of Life Edward O. Wilson
The Dogs of War Frederick Forsyth
The Eagle Has Flown Jack Higgins
The Egyptologist Arthur Phillips
The Electric Acid Coolaid Test Tom Wolfe
The Emperor of Ocean Park Stephen L. Carter
The Emperor’s Children Claire Messud
The End of Faith Sam Harris
The English Patient Michael Ondatje
The Essential Lewis and Clark Landon Y. Jones
The Evolution of Useful Things Henry Petrosk
The Fatal Shore Robert Hughes
The Fencing Master Arturo Pérez-Reverte
The Fifth Horseman Larry Collins Dominique Lapierre
The Firm John Grisham
The First Man in Rome Colleen McCullough
The First Word Christine Kenneally
The Fist of God Frederick Forsyth
The Fixer Bernard Malamud
The Food Chronology James Trager
The Food of Love Anthony Capella
The Foreign Correspondent Alan Furst
The Fourth Hand John Irving
The Fourth Protocol Frederick Forsyth
The French Lieutenant's Woman John Fowles
The Geographer's Library Jon Fasman
The Gladiators Fik Meijer
The Glass Menagerie Tennessee Williams
The God Delusion Richard Dawkins
The God of Small Things Arundhati Roy
The Golden Spruce John Vaillant
The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck
The Great Train Robbery Michael Crichton
The Greatest inventions of the Past 2000 Years John Brockman
The Gulag Archipelago Alexander Solzhenitsyn
The Hammer of Eden Ken Follett
The Handmaid's Tale Margaret Atwood
The Historian Elizabeth Kostova
The Hobbit J.R.Tolkien
The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail Michael; Leigh
The Home Office Book Donna Paul
The Hotel New Hampshire John Irving
The Hound of the Baskervilles Arthur Conan Doyle
The Human Zoo Desmond Morris
The Hunt for Red October Tom Clancy
The Ice Limit Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
The Immigrants Howard Fast
The Innocent Man John Grisham
The Intelligencer Leslie Silbert
The Interpretation of Murder Jed Rubenfeld
The Invisible Man Ralph Ellison
The Italian Boy Sarah Wise
The Italian Secretary Caleb Carr
The Jester James Patterson
The Journals of Lewis and Clark Meriwether Lewis
The Jungle Book Rudyard Kipling
The Key to Rebecca Ken Follett
The King of Torts John Grisham
The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini
The Known World Edward P. Jones
The Last Cato Matilda Asensi
The Last Juror John Grisham
The Last Presinct Patricia Cornwell
The Last Trout in Venice Doug Lansky
The Lincoln Lawyer Michael Connelly
The Lonely Sea and the Sky Sir Francis Chichester
The Lord of the Rings J.R.Tolkien
The Lost World Michael Crichton
The Making of the Atomic Bomb Richard Rhodes
The Maltese Falcon Dashiell Hammett
The Mammoth  Hunters Jean M. Auel
The Man from St. Petersberg Ken Follett
The Man Who Refused to Die Barry Wynne
The Meaning of Evolution George Gaylord Simpsom
The Meaning of Night Michael Cox
The Measure of all Things Ken Alder
The Medium is the Message Marshall McLuhan
The Medusa and the Snail Lewis Thomas
The Meme Machine Susan Blackmore
The Merchant of Venice William Shakespeare
The Modern Chair Clement Meadmore
The Modigliani Scandal Ken Follett
The Moneychangers Arthur Hailey
The Mountains of my Life Walter Bonatti
The Murders in the Rue Morgue Edgar Allan Poe
The Naked Ape Desmond Morris
The Natural Superiority of Women Ashley Montagu
The Nautical Chart Arturo Pérez-Reverte
The Negotiator Frederick Forsyth
The New New Thing Michael Lewis
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Alexander McCall Smith
The Odessa File Frederick Forsyth
The Old Man and the Sea Ernest Hemmingway
The Only Way to Eternal Life Chaikou Bah
The Origin Irving Stone
The Parsifal Mosaic Robert Ludlum
The Partner John Grisham
The Pearl John Steinbeck
The Pelican Brief John Grisham
The Pencil Henry Petroski
The Perfect Storm Sebastian Junger
The Physician Noah Gordon
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank Thad Carhart
The Piano Tuner Daniel Mason
The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde
The Pillars of the Earth Ken Follett
The Plains of Passage Jean M. Auel
The Prince of Tides Pat Conroy
The Profet Kahil Gibran
The Proving Ground G.Bruce Knecht
The Rainmaker John Grisham
The Reader Bernhard Schlink
The Right Stuff Tom Wolfe
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany William L. Shirer
The Road Cormac Mccarthy
The Royal Physician's Visit Per Olov Enquist
The Rule of Four Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason
The Runaway Jury John Grisham
The SAS Survival Handbook John Wiseman
The Satanic Verses Salman Rushdie
The Sea John Banville
The Seige of Krishnapur J.G.Farrell
The Selfish Gene Richard Dawkins
The Seventh Grade Reinhold Messner
The Shadow of the Wind Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The Shipping News Annie Proux
The Sound and the Fury William Faulkner
The Source James A. Mitchner
The Stories of John Cheever John Cheever
The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson
The Street Lawyer John Grisham
The Sum of all Fears Tom Clancy
The Summons John Grisham
The Sun Also Rises Ernest Hemingway
The Tempest Juan Manuel de Prada
The Terminal Man Michael Crichton
The Terrible Hours Peter Mass
The Testament John Grisham
The Third Translation Matt Bondurant
The Third Twin Ken Follett
The Thurber Carnival James Thurber
The Time Traveler's Wife Audrey Niffenegger
The Tipping Point Malcolm Gladwell
The Unprivate House Terence Riley
The Valley of the Horses Jean M. Auel
The Wall Jeff Long
The War of Don Emmanuel's Nether Parts Louis de Bernieres
The Witches of Eastwick John Updike
The Work of Charles and Ray Eames Donald Albrect et al
The World Jan Morris
The World According to Garp John Irving
The Worst Journey in the World Apsley Cherry-Garrard
Thonet Alexander Von Vegesack
Three Novels of Ancient Egypt Naguib Mahfouz
Through the Looking Glass Lewis Carroll
Thunderball Ian Fleming
Thunderhead Douglas Preston et al
Thunderstruck Erik Larson
Time to Die Wilbur Smith
Timeline Michael Crichton
To Build a Fire and Other Stories Jack London
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
To Reach the Clouds Philippe Petit
Toddler Taming Christopher Green
Total Immersion Terry Laughlin
Touching the Void Joe Simpson
Treasure Clive Cussler
Tropic of Cancer Henry Miller
Tropic of Capricorn Henry Miller
Turn of the Century Kurt Anderson
Twentieth Century Furniture Philippe Gardner
Twentieth-Century Furniture Fiona and Keith Baker
Two Solitudes Hugh Maclennan
Ultimate High Göran Kropp
Ulysses James Joyce
Uncle Tom's Cabin Harriet Beecher Stowe
Under the Banner of Heaven Jon Krakauer
Under the Tuscan Sun Frances Mayes
Understanding Media Marshall McLuhan
Un-Private House Terence Riley
Vixen 03 Clive Cussler
Wake Up Sir! Jonathan Ames
Walden Two B.F.Skinner
Water for Elephants Sara Gruen
Wheels Arthur Hailey
Where the River Flows Aimée Laberge
White Death Clive Cussler
White Fang Jack London
Whiteout Ken Follett
Who Moved the Stone Frank Morison
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf Edward Albee
Wind Sand and Stars Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Wine and War Don and Petie Kladstrup
Without Remorse Tom Clancy
Women in Love D.H.Lawrence
World Design Uta Abendroth
Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte
Year of Wonders Geraldine Brooks
Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance Lennard Zinn

Joseph Froncioni

Comments

[Ageorge]

adding Kundera would be great too, any of his books.

[KK Foong]

Hello Joseph Froncioni,
I am writing from Malaysia, I have stumbled upon your monster list of books. It is very exciting to read the list. There are a few books that I did not see in there:

On Photography by Susan Sontag
Felicia's Journey by William Trevor
Hawksmoor by Peter Ackroyd
Notes on a Scandal by Zoe Heller
Among the Believers by VS Naipaul
In Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanizaki
Microserf by Douglas Coupland
Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche
The Look of the Century by Michael Tambini (a book that I have "never" finished)

I do not think you have not read them, maybe just left out.

You have a great website, reading your articles (photography, chairs, religion etc.) is like listening to a familiar friend. Please do not stop writing.

Oh, I too read mostly fiction.

Warmest regards
Foong

[Joseph Froncioni]

Patrice,

Your comment is timely. I've just gone through my library and weeded out about 100 books, mostly best sellers or books I had no special attachment to. I am indeed running out of room. I want to assure you though that I do make it a priority to find a good home for the rejects.

Cheers!

[Patrice]

As someone who inhales books at an alarming rate, I am amazed that you keep all of yours. Where do you find the room? I treasure them while I am reading them, keep the classics or those that resonate, and pass the others on. I believe the best place for most books is shared with a friend. You haven't mentioned the Oxford English Dictionary - that is one of the best reads ever (I am easily bored, and even more easily amused).

[Joseph Froncioni]

Jeeze, and those are gems! How could I have left them out? Thanks.

[AndyF]

Ah, c'mon... you're missing so many books here. Being one who's benefited greatly from all the books you used to have around the house, I can tell you you've omitted quite a bunch:

Breakfast of Champions Kurt Vonnegut
Sirens of Titan Kurt Vonnegut
Cat's Cradle Kurt Vonnegut
Brave New World Aldous Huxley

I'm sure I can find 10 or 20 more if I put my mind to it. Still, your list is impressive to me -- I barely read at all.

Thanks for the great list, Joe!

Andy