Welcome to Sophie’s Choice 2009. That’s how we felt when we were asked to choose the best and most influential books we have ever read.

To pare it down to a list of 40 was a task, but that task made us think about how reading has enhanced the quality of our lives. If we could come up with hundreds of books that hold meaning for us or take us back to a specific time of our lives, so could many of you.

Take the time to jot down your most memorable reads; it’s really not that different from looking through your favorite old photos. In the meantime, we hope you enjoy this diverse literary canon and the memories it may spark or help to create.

Angie: “It” by Stephen King

Horror Fiction

As a reader I am suspicious of the horror genre and expect to be diappointed. I feel like eventually every story has to be told. There are only so many things that can live under our beds or go bump in the night. “It” proves me wrong. It’s an epic tale at 1,138 pages and the scariest story I ever read. I put it down many times petrified to turn another page and went through a box of tissues. Terrifying and sad, real horror is both. Long live the King.

Mandy: “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee

Southern Gothic Fiction

If you attended a high school in the United States, you no doubt read this classic. In my experience, when being coerced to read something, we don’t enjoy it as much. Upon rereading Harper Lee’s classic, I found the themes resonating in a more meaningful way as an adult as compared to my forced reading as an adolescent. I challenge you to go back and read this book; I suspect it will be well worth your time.

Angie: “Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit” by Daniel Quinn

Philosophical Fiction

Once you get past the fact that Ishmael is a talking gorilla and accept him for the guru he is, then Quinn takes you back through the history of mankind with a new pair of eyes. Seen from a non-human point of view, homo sapiens are fascinating and tragic. The teacher-student dialogue has Ishmael telling our familiar tales and stories in a way that is unrecognizable and riveting. If you’ve ever wanted to change the world, here is your beginner’s manual.

Mandy: “Night” by Elie Wiesel

Autobiography

This memoir of the Holocaust is not long, but it is the most powerful and beautiful book I have ever encountered. And hidden behind the masterfully written (and terrifyingly honest) prose is a message of perseverance and humanity. I had a chance to see Wiesel speak a few years ago, and knowing his story, was struck by his faith in humanity and his belief that we are all connected.

Angie: “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen

Novel of Manners

Leaving “Pride and Prejudice” off a literary list is like snubbing “Thriller” on any one of a billion VH1 countdowns. It’s a classic and, be honest, it’s comforting to see it here. Class wars? Who cares. We want to know if Elizabeth will end up with Mr. Darcy. 196-year-old spoiler alert: She does.

Mandy: “Revolutionary Road” by Richard Yates

Fiction

Living in a time when it sometimes feels that the feminist movement should be called the feminist stagnation, I found this book to be a reminder of all the progress that has been made over the last 50 years. The story of the Wheelers, a young, married suburban couple of the 1950s, is about lost youth, abandoned dreams and a woman’s right to choose. While this book goes there and includes abortion, the abortion is not necessarily literal; rather, it represents the absence of choice in this character’s life.

Angie: “Twilight” by Stephanie Meyer

Young Adult Fiction

This is truly a pop culture phenomenon. I have had conversations with strangers at the gas station, a hotel lobby, and the sauna at my gym about this book. Vampires are fun and the story is entertaining, but it’s the “Twilight” community that’s worth reading the book for. So, for the 12 people who haven’t read this book, come on already, even my grandmother has. Give in to it, we’re waiting for you.

Mandy: “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck

Fiction

While “Of Mice and Men” often gets Steinbeck the most adulation, “The Grapes of Wrath” is a more affecting novel. The Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, the destitute desperation of people trying to survive, and the amazingly simple style of classic Steinbeck. One word: extraordinary.

Angie: “Flowers in the Attic” by VC Andrews

Gothic Horror Fiction

“Flowers in the Attic” is about a family in crisis and repercussions of one accident. This story is the literary version of a Rorschach test. Andrews has this amazing way of writing a story so that by the end you aren’t sure what you want to happen because rooting for any of the options will surely strip you of all moral decency. Open it and discover the dark corners of your mind.

Mandy: “There Are No Children Here” by Alex Kotlowitz

Nonfiction

This true story of boys living (and trying to survive) in an impoverished, Third World environment didn’t happen in India or Mexico or Somalia. Nope, it was Chicago’s very own Cabrini Green Housing Project. Kotlowitz has written many books that shine a looming light over the inequalities that exist in our country, but this one stands out due to the connection the reader has with the boys. Have tissue at the ready, folks.

Angie: “Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers” by Mary Roach

Nonfiction

Right off I have to say that Mary Roach is laugh-out-loud funny. “Stiff” is written from a scientific point of view about cadavers. Obviously, we decompose but Roach discovers there are a lot of options out there for our bodies once we are done with them. This read takes a strong stomach. The details can be gorily specific and also side splittingly hilarious. You’ve been warned.

Mandy: “Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking” by Malcolm Gladwell

Nonfiction

A perennial favorite of mine, Malcolm Gladwell is a social scientist who, in this book, argues that a human’s ability to know something in the blink of an eye is instinctual. Our need to analyze these things over and over has extinguished our ability to use our speedy instincts. You will be thin-slicing all over the place after you read this.

Angie: “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” by William Shakespeare

Romantic Comedy

Shakespeare is the literary man, the classical OG. If you’ve wanted to introduce him into your reading rotation but didn’t know where to start, this is it. “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is a romantic comedy with royalty, fairies, and a lot of mishaps. Plus, for the Gen X crowd they can get acquainted with a Puck that doesn’t like to farmer’s blow his nose. True story.

Mandy: “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley

Gothic Horror

As a requirement for a British literature class in college, I read this book with dread and apprehension. I don’t like horror. I don’t like science fiction. I was shocked at how much I loved this book. The societal commentary that was written by Mary Shelley over 200 years ago holds true still: Does society create monsters or are they born?

Mandy: “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold

Fiction

Who doesn’t enjoy uncomfortable topics such as abduction, rape and death? Even if you just exclaimed “I DON’T!” you should read this book, which includes (but is not limited to) those very topics. The main character narrates this novel from a place that might be heaven, but is more likely purgatory. She, being an adolescent, watches her family grieve and search for her murderer. Its untidiness leaves you wondering for years. But, somehow, it’s not at all unsettling. Brilliant.

Angie: “A Child Called It” by Dave Pelzer

Autobiography

Whether this autobiography is true or embellished, it will make you sick to your stomach. Pelzer tells the alleged story of his abusive childhood by the hands of his mother. Like James Fray’s “A Million Little Pieces” at the end you may not care if it was all true. In fact, you’ll be hoping it wasn’t.

Angie: “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy

Fiction

“The Road”, the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, is about a father and son’s quest for the sea in a post-apocalyptic world. The sun is blacked out by ash, the characters aren’t named, and we never discover what brought Earth to her knees. McCarthy gives away nothing, which makes the reader feel like they earned every word. Oh, and there’s cannibals too. Yikes!

Angie: “The Lorax” by Dr. Seuss

Children Literature

“The Lorax” is a fable about the industrialization of society. The Once-ler cuts down the Truffula trees to make his Thneeds (that everyone needs) despite the numerous warnings to stop from the Lorax. Soon all that remains is one Truffula seed. Theodor Geisel was a genius who happened to use children’s books as his medium. Pick these books up as an adult — you will be amazed. Here’s a hint: The Lorax sounds like “lower axe” and Thneeds is really “the end.”

Mandy: “The Butter Battle Book” by Dr. Seuss

Children Literature

“The Butter Battle Book”is about the disagreements on how to live between the Yooks and the Zooks. At the heart of the battle: whether to eat your bread with the butter side up or butter side down. This issue becomes a divider like no other when each side creates a bomb … who will drop it first? Yep, it’s about the Cold War, but it is whimsical and silly, too.

Mandy: “A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius” by Dave Eggers

Memoir

Eggers is probably one of this generations best and most unique writers. He is especially talented at writing nonfiction in the form of a story as opposed to a collection of events. In this book, Eggers writes of the unexpected death of his parents and his subsequent decision as a 23-year-old to raise his 8-year-old brother. It’s inspirational without becoming preachy or losing literary credibility.

Angie: “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Fiction

I feel pity for this novel. It makes people shudder with memories, or should I say nightmares, of high school English classes. If you can get beyond your adolescent discrimination of “The Scarlett Letter” will discover a great read. Admittedly, I may be prejudice because I am a sucker for symbolic tales and guilty clergy. It’s the Puritan version of every Dan Brown novel.

Mandy: “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” by Dee Brown

Nonfiction

We often learn of westward expansion in our history classes from the perspective of the powerful: the white men who wanted the land. Prior to this book, there wasn’t one source available in which to learn about that same time period from the perspective of the Native American. “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” is a gruesome, yet poignant, historical masterpiece meant to remind us that the growth of our country was not all glorious.

Angie: “Lolita” by Vladimir Nabokov

Tragicomedy Fiction

I originally read this because Amy Fisher was called “The Long Island Lolita.” I was curious. I also think if my parents had known a shooting in New Jersey would led to their daughter reading a book about pedophilia they may have changed the channel. Lucky for you, they didn’t. “Lolita” is a tragicomedy and has invaded popular culture with more than just its name.

Mandy: “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” by JK Rowling

Fantasy Fiction

The last book in the “Harry Potter” series is exhilarating. So exhilarating, in fact, that when I finished it, I actually went for a run. I don’t run. Ever. I just had all this excitement, happiness, sadness, grief, etc. to deal with; I didn’t know what else to do with myself. This book wraps up the story magnificently and leaves no mysteries behind.

Angie: “The Lord of the Flies” by William Golding

Allegorical Fiction

Can civilization last? Not according to Golding and the horrific results of stranding boys on a deserted island. This book reads like screenplay for “Survivor.” Only getting voted off this island means your light really is extinguished. Poor Piggy just wanted to go wee wee wee wee all the way home.

Angie: “Cat’s Cradle” by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

Science Fiction

I LOVE reading about politics without having to actually read about politics. This pretty much makes Vonnegut my BFF. His writing style is completely unique, as are his stories. “Cat’s Cradle” is about an arms race for a biochemical weapon called “ice-nine.” Once the world is destroyed Vonnegut uses satire and black humor to explore the virtues of science and religion.

Mandy: “A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Khaled Hosseini

Fiction

Hosseini, also the author of “The Kite Runner,” describes life under the Taliban in these two novels. While “The Kite Runner” gets more play in the media, his second novel was more powerful for me personally. This story of women surviving together amidst severe oppression details, with great historical accuracy, the ways everyday people in Afghanistan endured and sacrificed for one another. It also reminds us that Afghans mourned the loss of their culture as they watched their past wither away.

Angie: “Animal Farm” by George Orwell

Satire

If Vonnegut is my soul mate then Orwell was my first love. Orwell’s novel is a dystopian tale about Joseph Stalin before World War II. His main theme being the corruption of revolution by its leaders, who happen to be talking pigs. It’s becoming a clear pattern that I like to learn my life lessons through talking animals. I blame Walt Disney.

Angie: “What Could He Be Thinking: How a Man’s Mind Really Works” by Michael Gurian

Nonfiction

This is not a self-help book, a genre of which I am no fan. Gurian has published 25 books and co-founded the Gurian Institute. “What Could He Be Thinking” is a neurobiological look at the thought processes of men. This book revolutionized my marriage. My husband isn’t ignoring the dust, he really doesn’t see it. I would suspect Gurian is trying to pull a fast one on us ladies if it weren’t for all that science getting in the way.

Mandy: “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak

Fiction

I am going to steal a thought from my friend, Jennifer Vogt-Erickson: the father/daughter relationship in this book is reminiscent of the Atticus/Scout relationship in “To Kill a Mockingbird.” It is sweet, genuine and realistic. “The Book Thief” is narrated by Death, who, because of World War II, is busy in 1940s Germany. Death, though, becomes captivated by a little girl who steals books. She is so bold in her love of books that she even steals a novel from a Nazi book burning event. The power of words, both good and bad, is highlighted here by Zusak.

Angie: “How to Read Literature Like a Professor” by Thomas Forster

Nonfiction

This book is for anyone who loves to read. It’s easy to follow, so easy, in fact, I felt foolish for missing some very blatant literary measures. Symbolism I get, but who knew there were so many Christ figures out there?

Mandy: “March” by Geraldine Brooks

Historical Fiction

This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel tells a familiar story from a new perspective: Louisa May Alcott’s classic story “Little Women” from the point of view of their beloved father. While “Little Women” glorifies war and renders their father heroic and nearly perfect, “March” explores the dark side of battle revealing the brutality of March’s experience.

Angie: “The Odyssey” by Homer

Greek Epic Poem

This story is approximately 1,200 years old. For it to still be known in pop culture and entertaining is amazing in itself. Odysseus has been fighting in the Trojan War for 10 years. He wants to go home, but he hits a few snags, and it’s going to take him another 10 years to get there. “The Odyssey” is his epic journey home. Think of it as “Star Wars” but wordier.

Mandy: “Nonviolence: The History of a Dangerous Idea“ by Mark Kurlansky

Nonfiction

Did you know that the Revolutionary War could have been avoided? Neither did I. Kurlansky writes of several instances where the use of nonviolence was used to provoke change; he also writes of times when a conscious choice was made to use violence and suppress nonviolent movements. In the end, the question remains: had the United States won independence nonviolently, how different would our history and culture be today?

Angie: “Jurassic Park” by Michael Crichton

Science Fiction

Crichton doesn’t dumb down the science, but it’s not all factual either. His novels have to be read with a flare of “truthiness.” You have to be willing to find the facts out yourself. For instance, dinosaurs cannot be cloned. I know I’ll sleep better with that knowledge and thought you might too. “Jurassic Park” is a modern day “Frankenstein.” It examines the consequences of science without a conscience.

Mandy: “The Bell Jar” by Sylvia Plath

Semi-autobiography

Sylvia Plath is known for her poetry and untimely death. In this semi-autobiographical account of a young girl suffering from depression, Plath exposes the unfortunate treatment of those afflicted by mental illness during the first part of the 20th century. Plath’s poetic background shines in this novel through the writing style she chose to use. She wrote with such ease and beauty about such a distressing and life altering experience.

Mandy: “Beloved” by Toni Morrison

Contemporary Fiction

Now, for a moment of self-disclosure: I did not read “Beloved.” I listened to an audio reading of it because, after attempting to read it countless times, I realized I might not be smart enough to understand it. I am glad I was unyielding in my desire: “Beloved” is a beautifully written story of loss, redemption, and family history Here, Morrison created a literary puzzle waiting to be put together. But this puzzle can be so different depending on who is solving it.

Angie: “The Pact” by Jodi Picoult

Fiction

This was my first Picoult novel. I tried to put the book down, I was on a long weekend with my girlfriends after all, but whenever I walked away from it I found it was the only thing I could think about. As a mother with an average of one weekend a year away from home, that’s the highest recommendation I can give. The novel centers on a teenage suicide pact, but, as with most Picoult novels, there’s a twist surrounded by heartache.

Mandy: “The Historian” by Elizabeth Kostova

Historical Fiction

A book in which you take a visually stunning tour of Europe seeking to unravel a family mystery that includes the possibility that Dracula is real and still exists? Yes, please. In Kostova’s novel, which I will warn you is long, you’ll find yourself lost in the world she creates for you. It’s scary, engaging, tumultuous and satisfying. I sure hope they make “The Historian” into a movie.

Mandy: “Me Talk Pretty One Day” by David Sedaris

Essay Collection

Trust me: Sedaris is hilarious. In this collection of short stories, David Sedaris caused me to cry tears of riotous laughter, unabashedly snort like a baby swine, and breathe heavily into a paper bag due to a probable case of hyperventilation. The stories are quite brief, but they pack a wallop of familial love and candid ridiculousness that will endear Sedaris to you for life.