My favourite part of this 'book' was the reading lists! :) I think I copied those out, and then promptly bookmooched it away.

I'm so glad you liked this book too! Anna Quindlen is right on the money with her crisp and quiet prose. I enjoy the way she can turn a phrase. She is one of my favorite essayists. I thought it was interesting to hear her quoted in conference this weekend!!! I turned back to my book journal and found a few quotes that I remember being impressed with when I first read this in 2004 -
"There is something in the American character that is even secretly hostile to the act of aimless reading, a certain hale and heartiness that is suspicious of reading as anything more than a tool for advancement." p. 9

"While we pay lip service to the virtues of reading, the truth is that there is still in our culture something that suspects those who read too much, whatever reading too much means, of being lazy, aimless dreamers, people who need to grow up and come outside to where real life is, who think themselves superior in their separateness."

I also did write down the book lists and have tried a few gems that I had never heard of. It was like blogging before blogging was popular!

Have you ever tried these books on reading or books?

Shelf Life: Ten Original Short Stories to Benefit Proliteracy Stories by the Book (compiled by Gary Paulsen)

The Mother-Daughter Book Club; How Ten Busy Mothers and Daughters Came together to talk, laugh and learn through their love of reading by Shirleen Dodson (I used it for great titles when I worked in a bookstore and when my daughter and I read together.)

100 Books for Girls to Grow On (I got some great books from this one!)

The Little Guide to Your Well Read Life: How to get more books in your life and more life from your books by Steve Leveen (An awesome little book that kept me pondering.)

Shelf Life: Romance, Mystery, Drama and other page-turning adventures from a year in a bookstore by Suzanne Strempek Shea (charming, funny and easy to read. It was a good read to remind me of my bookstore days)

Of course I have adored Jim Trelease's work for over 25 years and Nancy Pearl is my book hero; gotta love someone who calls it Book Lust!

Maybe you have other titles on this too. I would love to hear of some your recommends! Your blog and reviews are awesome!!
Gaye

Eva - I was surprised by how many of the books on her list I hadn't read. I have such a love/hate relationship with book lists. The hate part is because I'm always reminded of how many books I HAVEN'T read.

Gaye - Okay, I must not have been listening very well to Conference. Who quoted Anna Quindlen?

I liked the quotes you mentioned, too. The second one is especially funny and true.

I've read a couple of books by this author. I went to the library the other day and checked out a couple more of her novels. I'm excited to read them. I also noticed she has several non-fiction books, so I will have to look at them as well.

The others you mentioned sound interesting. I haven't read any of them, except Nancy Pearl's, of course. Thanks for the recommendations!

She was quoted in Elder Ballard's talk (on women and motherhood).

Anna Quindlen used to (or may still, we don't get it any more) write an opinion piece for Newsweek, which I usually enjoyed. I've never read any of her books though. I'll have to look into it.