Good readin'

My publisher/boss and I were having a great conversation about good books last night, and I thought I'd compile a brief list for others of you who consider fiction and/or memoirs a great escape. I use fiction for entertainment, to broaden my understanding of other people/times/places, to understand the market, and to appreciate great writing. (Please don't hate me if they're not you're thing. :) So please note that because of this, many of these (if not most) aren't from my own worldview.

Christ the Lord: Road to Cana (Anne Rice)
Interpreter of Maladies (Jhumpa Lahiri)
The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
Three Dog Life (Abigail Thomas—actually a memoir)
Monster (Frank Peretti; kind of pop fiction, but still an interesting read)
Dream When You’re Feeling Blue (Elizabeth Berg)
Ellen Foster (Kaye Gibbons)
Breathing Lessons (Anne Tyler)
Peace like a River (Leif Enger)
The Appeal (John Grisham)
When Crickets Cry (Charles Martin)
Some Wildflower in My Heart (Jamie Langston Turner--writing's much better than the title)
Palace Walk (Naguib Mahfouz)
Girl Meets God (Lauren Winner)
Hood (Stephen Lawhead)
Madman (Tracy Groot)
Safely Home (Randy Alcorn--a little preachy, but worth the insight into Chinese persecution)
Count of Monte Cristo (Alexander Dumas)

Happy reading!