Bookified : Leah Cypess

Since Kim’s blog is all about books and reading, I thought I’d talk about some of my favorite books. There are several dozen of those, so I’m going to narrow it down to “books I have read at least five times.” That means there won’t be any recent publications on this list, since these days I barely have time to read all thegreat-sounding books out there even once! On the plus side, if anyone’s moved to read any of these books based on my recommendation,they’ll all probably be at your library without long hold lists attached to them.

1] The Belgariad and the Malloreon by David Eddings. Ten books encompassing a long, sprawling high fantasy epic about a humble farmboy with a hidden destiny, knights and sorcerers, feuding gods,and an epic battle between good and evil. And also lines like these:

"I like nice, simple situations and nice, easy solutions," said Belgarath.

"Good and Evil?" Durnik suggested.

"That's a difficult one, Durnik. I prefer 'them and us.' That clears away all
the excess baggage and allows you to get right down tocases."

I can recite entire scenes by heart and still laugh every time I read them. I love the sprawling high fantasy drama, of course, but what really makes these books stand out is the humor.

2] Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk. This book is a little controversial, because some critics think its central message is about women's abilities (or lack thereof); but to me, this is a book about growing up, about not being blinded by glamor, and about being careful to pick dreams that match your talents. Also, the most realistic bad-boy romance ever.

3] Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery. Anne of Green Gables gets all the attention – and admittedly, she was fabulous – but in my mind, she had nothing on Emily. First of all, Emily was a writer… I guess Idon’t have to explain why that appealed to me. Second of all, Emily had the Sight, making these books borderline fantasy (and really,really spooky at times). Third of all, as best friends go, Anne’s Diana has nothing on Emily’s Ilse. (The description of their first fight is one of the most slyly humorous things I have ever read.) To me, the appeal kind of filtered out by the third book of the “Emily”trilogy, especially with the introduction of a romantic interest thatI found a little sleazy. But the first one will always be one of my most-loved books ever.

About five more books have now popped into my mind, but I’ll leave them in my mind (where they have plenty of company) before I end up writing a dissertation and making Kim regret inviting me to do a guestpost. Thanks, Kim!

Thanks for stopping by, Leah! :D I really loved your book.

To check out my review of Mistwood by Leah Cypess, please click here. To learn more about Leah Cypess, please go to her official website.