Only the beginning

I made a big deal out of the question.  Hemming and hawing and acting as if the fate of the world depended on his answer.

"So... uh... what would you think of, ummmmm, reading-aloud-at-night?"

"What?"

He didn't know it then, but essentially I was asking the guy I was dating whether or not he was my prince charming.  Turns out he is.  For all the things I love about my husband Tyler, his willingness to delve into literacy before slumber is my all time favorite.  My mother, brother and I took turns reading aloud every night of my childhood.  Somehow after I left home for college, the lack of this one little ritual set me adrift.  Even though I missed it, I didn't realize how much being read to at night anchored everything else about my day. Until I got it back.  Finally someone to cozy up to in the lamplight, to laugh with at an author's witty joke, to discuss characterization flaws, to marvel at the beauty of a well turned phrase.  I look forward to it all day long and have trouble falling asleep if for some reason we miss a night.

I have been meaning to do this for a while:  we need a compilation of all we've read, before the list grows too lengthy to remember.  My interests have always been classical, while Tyler loves business and economic books.  We've tried to reconcile the topics, but whenever we're in a rut, we always turn to Sherlock Holmes.  Arthur Conan Doyle never fails because he's interesting enough, easy and quick to read, but not without some literary merit.  Some books have been flops because they are either too complicated (which makes it difficult to follow along without seeing the words) or too emotional (remember, I've been pregnant a couple times during this nearly-3-year-marriage) or simply too dry.

From that first night, when he said yes, and we browsed my book shelf for our first adventure, to today, when we're halfway through a classic and looking for suggestions for our next read:

Our List:

Nickel and Dimed
by Barbara Ehrenreich

An experiment in living on minimum wage.  She found out it was impossible.

101 Famous Poems
compiled by Roy J. Cook

I was given a copy of this book in junior high,  by a dear friend who felt confident I would someday be included in a similar anthology.  Part of her inscription reads, "May you never lose your inspiration to write."  In those days, I carried around a notebook at all times to scribble my verse.  I was the recognized poet.  I've lost that for sure, but it's a lovely memory.

Chocolat
by Joanne Harris

We picked this up at Dolly's on our honeymoon.   An easy, beautiful, sometimes melancholy read.  It suited us well.

The Shack 

by William P. Young

My mother recommended this book to me.  It is emotionally loaded, especially for a parent.  You also get a unique perspective on God and our relationship with said entity.  I read it, and then decided Tyler might like it.  We started reading it together while I was pregnant, and it eventually became too much for me, even though I already knew the story.  So sadly we only made it 3/4 of the way through together.

Count of Monte Cristo
by Alexandre Dumas

This an absolute favorite for both of us.  It's very, very long, but we never lost interest.  In fact, there was a couple month hiatus taken in the middle of the story, when Lincoln was born.  Unfortunately newborn Linc did not like falling asleep to Tyler's voice, so we had to give up our nightly routine for a while.  Once he was in his crib, we eagerly reintroduced ourselves to the Count and never looked back.

Team of Rivals
by Doris Kearns Goodwin

This is an incredibly well-researched, in-depth biography of Abraham Lincoln and all the brilliant men with whom he eventually composed his cabinet.  You will be surprised to learn about all the failures Lincoln encountered before he was suddenly the presidential favorite.  It's a fascinating read for an individual, I think, but I became lost amongst all the stories as Tyler read them aloud each night.  I have to admit we only got about a quarter into the book before giving up. 

The Complete Sherlock Holmes
by Arthur Conan Doyle

  We have currently read 3/4 of everything Arthur Conan Doyle published about his detective hero:  4 full-length novels and 56 short stories.  This is our go-to read when we have nothing else at hand.

Banker to the Poor
by Muhammad Yunus and Alan Jolis

The story of successful micro-lending, this book describes how one man pursued his belief that credit is a basic human right, not a privilege of the rich.  Tyler was interested to hear the account of such a visionary.  Somehow we lost track of things toward the end, and didn't finish the last few chapters.  However, I recommend this book to people interested in economics.

Harry Potter (Books 1-7)
by J. K. Rowling

Well... I finally gave in.  I waited until the year 2010 to read the beloved Harry Potter.  If it weren't for Tyler's encouragement, I honestly never would have cared to crack open the first book.  But my husband has a special fondness for this series, and he wanted to share it with me.  Of course I was easily hooked and enjoyed these books quite a bit.  Great books to read aloud!

Enders Game 
by Orson Scott Card

We didn't continue the series, because this is the only book that Tyler really liked the last time he read it.  Even though I'm not a big science fiction fan, Card is an excellent story teller, and I appreciate his skill.

The Dark Tide 
(1st book in the Iron Tower trilogy)
by Dennis L. McKiernan

Here again we only read the first book in a series.  We grew tired of the antiquated language, which is beautiful but hard to read aloud and follow along.  Epic story, though!

Hunger Games trilogy
by Suzanne Collins

We borrowed these from Tyler's sister, Katie, who reads everything under the sun.  They are intriguing, but you just have to get around the fact that you're reading about children killing each other (like in Ender's Game.)  We had fun discussing how dim-witted the main character is, and how her lack of intuition is the author's device for cluing the readers in to what's happening.  Basically, whatever Katniss thinks, assume the opposite.  Luckily her character is redeemed by her kick-butt archery skills and bravery.  This is another good option for reading aloud!

Robinson Crusoe
by Daniel Defoe

Sometimes you forget this is fiction, because the writing is so dry, factual and documentary.  He repeats himself between journal entries and narrative, which also makes you feel as if an old man is truly sitting down and just trying to record everything that happened in his 26 years stranded on an island.  I love the details on how Crusoe created a sustainable household for himself and his pets over the years.  He even figures out how to build pots and an oven in order to bake bread.  This specific book we are reading (not pictured) is a treat in itself: a 1924 illustrated edition, given to me by my grandparents.  It's big, beautiful, and more fragile a book than Tyler would like to handle on a nightly basis.  However, the yellowed pages and golden sketches add to the adventurous feel of the story.  I love it!  

(update: I knew I'd forget something!)
The Time Traveler's Wife
by Audrey Niffenegger

I went to hear this author speak with my best friend Liz at a local book store.  While listening to the Q & A, I realized a lot of her readers perceived The Time Traveler's Wife as more romantic than she intended.  She was almost taken aback by the comment and question: "When I watched the motion feature film based on your book, I saw that Henry was perhaps more disruptive to Clare's life than I noticed at first.  Do you think he was good for Clare?"  I agreed with Audrey's answer and understood it more than I did her reader's query.  She said something to the effect that whether or not Henry was good for Clare is irrelevant.  Neither character was created to be good for the other.  In life we are constantly introduced to people and circumstances which shape us, direct us, and inevitably lead to the makeup of who we are.  How can we measure how much one person affects us?  And especially in this case, Henry was Clare's husband before she even knew him.  To imagine what she would have been like without Henry, would be to write a totally different story.  Anyway, as for Tyler and me, we enjoyed reading this book together.

 

And so the list grows, as long as we both shall live.