Top 10 Can't-Put-Down Books

List of 10 Can’t-Put-Down Books

1. Watership Down (Richard Adams)
Rabbits as heroes? Yet the delicious descriptions of the countryside and habits of rabbits, set in a heroic adventure tale, kept me glued to the story, chapter by chapter, until the impossible to predict and perfect ending. The stories that the rabbits tell each other of their great Rabbit Hero and his sidekick gave the story a luminous inspiration impossible to describe. Do NOT miss this novel. (I listed it first because it is my all-time favorite book.)

2. Loon Feather (Iola Fuller)
To say this novel is early Michigan history of fur trading, set on Mackinac Island, is to miss the magic of Tecumseh’s daughter who describes her life, her family, changes for her people with an awareness and acceptance that develops her quiet strength into a courage that fulfills the prophecies made at her birth. The vision and dignity of Tecumseh shines in this fictional daughter. (This is a book I reread almost yearly.)

3. The Fellowship of the Ring (J. R. R. Tolkien)
This first story in the famous trilogy Lord of the Rings needs no explanation. I was given a well-read paperback in high school, and once I started, I propped textbooks in classes to read behind them, stayed up late, carried the book with me everywhere. The movies focus on the War of the Rings, but Tolkien’s story about the Hobbits’ part in the Great History makes this book (and trilogy) a must read, and one impossible to set down.

4. Twelve Fair Kingdoms (Suzette Haden Elgin)
Funny book, quirky fantasy, and so absorbing and entertaining, I was captivated by the first page. I want to be born a Responsible and have hidden magic at my fingertips, while all the Grannies report to me, and go on a Quest to visit every castle searching for whoever’s determined to stop the Grand Jubilee of the Confederation of Continents. This is the first in a trilogy (with a fourth story later), so I recommend all of them, but the first, told in first-person, will capture you with the voice and personality of Responsible of Brightwater.

5. I Capture the Castle (Dodie Smith)
Found my copy on a library resale table. The title was eye-catching, but any story that begins, “I write this sitting in the kitchen sink,” can only go up or down. Definitely up. Funny, thoughtful, surprising, the author of The Hundred and One Dalmatians wrote a classic that is timeless and filled with humor through the eyes of one memorable Cassandra.

6. Cross Creek (Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings)
Written like an autobiography of MKR’s years in her Cracker house in the semi-tropics of Cross Creek, it flows with poetry and description and love for the people and surroundings. A blend of fiction and fact, it creates a taste of the life she celebrated in The Yearling (among other titles). I’m drawn to reread this book for the luscious detail, the quietly exotic setting, and her masterful story telling.

7. Mary Poppins Opens the Door (P. L. Travers)
My brother and I grew up reading all four Mary Poppins books, (NOT the Disney version of the nanny), and although it’s difficult to choose a favorite, I put the third in the series on this list because it captures the myth and magic present in all the books, with an ending that doesn’t really end. True magic for all ages.

8. The Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame)
In one printing’s foreword, it was mentioned that if a young man gave his beloved a copy of this book, and she returned it or was not impressed, he called off the wedding. Whether we row down the River, or follow the misadventures of Toad, or fear the Wild Wood, there is a spark of divinity and a depth beyond what’s expected from a childhood classic with talking animals. No adult is too old for Mole’s discoveries, the water meadows, and the Piper at the Gates of Dawn.

9. The Diary of a Provincial Lady (E. M. Delafield)
Rachel Johnson writes in the introduction of my copy, “Well done! If I might say so, you have made the perfect selection, for this book is a proper English treat, like a cream tea after a long, muddy country walk.” Laugh-out-loud funny, this story reads like a journal of daily details of family, finances, class levels, and a delight in living. “Exchange customary graceful farewells with host and hostess, saying how much I have enjoyed coming. (Query here suggests itself, as often before: Is it utterly impossible to combine the amenities of civilization with even the minimum of honesty required to satisfy the voice of conscience? Answer still in abeyance at present.) Or “February 28th – Notice, and am gratified by, appearance of large clump of crocuses near the front gate. Should like to make whimsical and charming reference to these, and try to fancy myself as ‘Elizabeth of the German Garden,’ but am interrupted by Cook, saying that the Fish is here, but he’s only brought cod and haddock, and the haddock doesn’t smell any too fresh, so what about cod? Have noticed that Life is like that.” Savor this one for yourself, trust me.

10. Kitchen Table Wisdom (Rachel Naomi Remen)
“Everybody is a story. When I was a child, people sat around kitchen tables and told their stories. We don’t do that so much anymore. Sitting around the table telling stories is not just a way of passing time. It is the way wisdom gets passed along. The stuff that helps us to live a life worth remembering. Despite the awesome powers of technology many of us still do not live very well. We may need to listen to each other’s stories once again,” Rachel Naomi Remen tells us. She offers us stories of people looking for answers, sharing experiences, discovering wisdom. These essays have depth and richness, with a passion for life, for healing, for internal personal strength. Not only am I captivated by the various stories, I’m won by the warm, loving voice of Dr. Remen who counsels cancer patients, children, the dying, and the living. This is a healing book.

These are not my only ten page-turners, but the first group that stood out and called my name. I’d like to hear about yours.