From Veggie Mom's Library, to Yours

Everyone in the Pop'rs Family is a reader. Aunt Julie and Veggie Mom, who've been SILs since the Dawn of Time, often exchange books back and forth, and count The Poisonwood Bible as a mutual favorite; The Boys and Uncle Lynn, but especially Shark Boy, prefer James Patterson-type novels; Moker reads everyone and everything; College Girl is currently reading Marley & Me, and The Wild One is the most unusual in the bunch: Although she received the Olsen Twins' book, Influence, for Christmas, she is most into books she reads in college these days, Plato's Republic among them.

Annie sent this Bloggy Book Meme my way the other day. She received the gift from BookWormMom, who was gifted by A Reader's Respite. The meme originated with A Striped Armchair.

A few Rules, natch:

1. Tag 3-5 people, so the fun keeps going!
2. Leave a comment at the original post at A Striped Armchair, so that Eva, the originator, can collect everyone’s answers.
3. If you leave a comment and link back to Eva as the meme’s creator, she will enter you in a book giveaway contest! She has a whole shelf devoted to giveaway books that you’ll be able to choose from, or a BookMooch Point, if you prefer.
4. Remember that this is all about enjoying books as physical objects, so feel free to describe the exact book you’re talking about, down to that warping from being dropped in the bath water…
5. Make the meme more fun with visuals! Covers of the specific edition you’re talking about, photos of your bookshelves, etc.

So, here goes:

The books that’ve been on your shelves the longest. That's easy. The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh, by A.A. Milne, and Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White. Oh, and don't forget Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans.

A book that reminds you of something specific in your life (a person, a place, a time, etc.). When I was a senior in high school, I went on this Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning kick. This is the purest of love stories, made even more romantic because both Robert and Elizabeth were poets. The 19th-century lovers began their courtship in letters. For college graduation, my Dad bought me The Letters of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Volumes I and II, which covered the courtship as well as the years of their marriage. Here's a photo of the books, which have a place of honor on one of Grandma Vera's marble tables in my living room. Dad also gave me the antique brass bookends that support this 1897 collection.

A book you acquired in some interesting way (gift, serendipity in a used bookstore, prize, etc.). A couple of years ago I was traveling on Midwest Airlines. After making a connection in Milwaukee, I noticed a book left behind by a previous passenger: For Whom the Bell Tolls, by Ernest Hemingway. The book was stamped with the name of a high school in Madison, Wisconsin. I started reading, and took Hemingway with me when we landed. A couple of days later I finished the classic, and tracked down the address of the high school. I mailed the book back, knowing the kid who left it behind would probably have to pay a fine for losing it!

The most recent addition to your shelves. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, by Junot Diaz. Won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction last year. I just started it a couple of days ago, but I'm hooked!

A book that’s been with you to the most places. I drug my old tattered college copy Roget's Thesaurus around with me for years. Now computers, Word and Google make Roget's almost beside the point. But I still thumb through it on occasion. Sort of like comfort food for the brain.

A bonus book that you want to talk about but doesn’t fit into the other questions. The Opposite of Fate, by Amy Tan. This collection of essays speaks to me. This might be why: "Who knows where inspiration comes from," Tan says in one of her pieces. "Perhaps it arises from desperation. Perhaps it comes from the flukes of the universe, the kindness of the muses."

And the three I tag for this meme?

• Mindless Junque. Heather is a Daughter of the Universe. I know her choices will be cosmic!
• Lulaville. We'll have to pull her away from Battlestar Gallactica and Lost, but I know Lula definitely will have something to say! Count on Twilight being included.
• Texas Word Tangle. Rhea is a reader. Plain and simple.