50 Books

50 tomes of wonder that have ignited my imagination through my first 50 years on Earth.

…and finally, after my previous lists of 50 MOVIES, 50 ALBUMS, and 50 SONGS….

From picture books to graphic novels to novel-novels and a few “others” — the books that have shaped me, formed me, and ignited my imagination the most over 50 years on this planet. I can only trust there will be more of everything in the years to come.

This was also a hard list to narrow down to 50, but such is life.

In a few cases, I kind of cheated by treating any books that are part of a continuous story, or a series of sequels, as it were, as one of the 50. So there.

And thus, in no particular order…

• WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE by Maurice Sendak (my favorite picture book of all time and part of the namesake for this newsletter)

• THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH by Norton Juster (illustrated by the now-late Jules Feiffer — my favorite novel of all time)

• THE SONG OF THE DAY BIRDS AND THE NIGHT BIRDS by Dahlov Ipcar

• PROFESSOR WORMBOG AND THE SEARCH FOR THE ZIPPERUMP-A-ZOO by Mercer Mayer

• ONE MONSTER AFTER ANOTHER by Mercer Mayer

• LITTLE MONSTER’S BEDTIME BOOK by Mercer Mayer

• WHY MOSQUITOS BUZZ IN PEOPLE’S EARS by Verna Aardema, ill. Leo & Diane Dillon

• WHO’S IN RABBIT’S HOUSE by Verna Aardema, ill. Leo & Diane Dillon

• ARROW TO THE SUN by Gerald McDermott

• NOAH’S ARK by Peter Spier

• MUGGINS MOUSE by Marjorie Barrows, ill. Keith Ward (1932)

• WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS by Shel Silverstein

• A LIGHT IN THE ATTIC by Shel Silverstein

• CHARLOTTE’S WEB by E.B. White, ill. Garth Williams

• STUART LITTLE by E.B. White, ill. Garth Williams

• THE MAN WHO LOST HIS HEAD by Claire Hutchet Bishop, ill. Robert McCloskey

• BARTHOLOMEW AND THE OOBLECK by Dr. Seuss

• THE KING’S STILTS by Dr. Seuss

• THE SNEETCHES AND OTHER STORIES by Dr. Seuss (this is mainly because it contains What Was I Scared Of? the story of the pale green pants with no one inside them — the best and most frightening thing he ever came up with.)

• DR. SEUSS’ ABC by Dr. Seuss

• REALLY ROSIE - book of the film by Maurice Sendak

• THE SIGN ON ROSIE’S DOOR by Maurice Sendak

• THE NEVERENDING STORY by Michael Ende

• MOMO by Michael Ende

• A WRINKLE IN TIME by Madeleine L’Engle

• ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND/THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS by Lewis Caroll

• THE LION, THE WITCH & THE WARDROBE by C.S. Lewis (and by extension, Narnia Chronicles in general except for Prince Caspian.)

• THE HOBBIT, and THE LORD OF THE RINGS by J.R.R. Tolkien

• PIPPI LONGSTOCKING by Astrid Lindgren

• MRS. FRISBY AND THE RATS OF NIMH by Robert C. O’Brien

• THE TALE OF THE DARK CRYSTAL - storybook adaptation by Donna Bass, ill. Bruce McNally

• THE PURLOINING OF PRINCE OLEOMARGARINE by Mark Twain & Philip Stead, ill. Erin Stead

• TALES FROM OUTER SUBURBIA by Shaun Tan

• THE MYSTERIES OF HARRIS BURDICK by Chris Van Allsburg

• FLORA AND ULYSSES by Kate DiCamillo

• THE MIRACULOUS JOURNEY OF EDWARD TULANE by Kate DiCamillo

• THE WILDWOOD CHRONICLES by Colin Meloy, ill. Carson Ellis

• DU IZ TAK? by Carson Ellis

• THE SECRET OF THE STONE FROG by David Nytra

• BONE by Jeff Smith

• OCEAN MEETS SKY by The Fan Brothers

• THE THIRTEEN CLOCKS by James Thurber

• THE MIDNIGHT FOLK / THE BOX OF DELIGHTS by John Masefield

• POISON FOR BREAKFAST by Lemony Snicket

• THE TEN THOUSAND DOORS OF JANUARY by Alix E. Harrow

• JULIA’S HOUSE FOR LOST CREATURES (and its sequels) by Ben Hatke

• RATSMAGIC by Wayne Anderson

• CREATURE by Shaun Tan

• WALKING ON WATER: REFLECTIONS ON FAITH & ART by Madeleine L’Engle (one of the only non-fiction books included here, simply because it’s the most dog-eared & coffee-stained book on my shelf — a guide that has served me well in my own creativity.)

• A FIELD GUIDE TO EASTERN BIRDS by Roger Tory Peterson (also included because I practically memorized it as a bird-watching child.)

I shall conclude this list with my favorite quote from THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH…

And Milo, full of thoughts and questions, curled up on the pages of tomorrow’s music and eagerly awaited the dawn.

Thanks for going on this journey with me, friends.