top 5 favorite books

As a professed nerd, it's no big surprise that I like to read. If you do, then I have some books you may want to check out. If you don't, check them out anyway (Literally! At a library!). Bad library humor aside, here are my top five favorite books (in no particular order as to not show favoritism to any potential authors who may stumble upon my site after Googling themselves).

The Shores of Space by Richard Matheson

As a kid, I was engrossed in nerdiness. I read comic books, loved Star Wars, and Weezer's Blue Album was the first CD I ever bought. Not to mention I wore big glasses and loved the library. One summer when I was about 12 years old, my local library had a book sale and I snagged this classic for $1.00. A collection of short stories from sci-fi legend Richard Matheson (writer of I Am Legend, Requiem for a Dream, and many Twilight Zone episodes), it had stories about all kinds of things that interested me. A robot boxing league that a human tries to enter. A little girl who is sucked into a time portal in her couch. A woman and man dealing with a pregnancy neither can explain. Yes, heavy stuff for a 12 year old, but over time I read and re-read this book until it became one of my favorite literary pieces.

The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks

This is a more recent discovery for me. I was in Oxford's Off-Square Books store and found this helpful guide lying in a $4.00 bin. I thought it looked interesting...and boy is it ever. Brooks writes as if a zombie apocalypse is reasonable and almost makes me want to get ready for the inevitable. From the humble beginnings of the "disease" to selecting your weapons and strategy of making necessary kills, zombies had better think again before trying to invade.

Steinbeck by John Steinbeck

(I couldn't find the cover, but here's his handsome mug)

As a lover of the English language as well as the subject, no author captured my interest in my early college days like Steinbeck. Of course "The Grapes of Wrath" is epic, but my early favorite was "The Pearl", a story of loss & redemption that I'm sure most of you have read in one fashion or another. I found a huge (I mean huge) compilation of his most famous books at a bookstore a few years ago that has been as enjoyable to read as it is uncomfortable to hold. I need to get it on Kindle.

Stuff Christians Like by Jonathan Acuff

Matthew Paul Turner's book The Christian Culture Survival Guide was the first funny Christian book I'd ever read, but I'm saving it for another post. More recently, Jon Acuff's foray into the ink & paper world has caused many belly laughs for this guy. If you're a Christian who isn't afraid to laugh at your own ridiculousness, you need this book. Acuff references the sometimes Pharisitical lines we draw in our culture with humor and a dash of repentance on all of our behalf. I laugh every time I say "just" in prayers to God...which I think is a good thing.

Snake 'n Bacon's Cartoon Cabaret by Michael Kupperman

This book is more of a graphic compilation of short stories, and has some of the most strange and hilarious comic strips with awesome characters like: Underpants-On-His-Head-Man; the Mannister (a man who transforms into a bannister!); Two-Fisted Poe ("quoth the raven...LIGHTS OUT!"); and finally, Snake 'n Bacon...who are of course a snake and a piece of bacon. I found this book at a small bookstore about ten years ago and I read it every few months. I love Kupperman's style of drawing, and his humor is definitely a required taste but oh so very funny.

I urge you to tell me of your favorite books in the comments section and please, no Twilight references.

Good day!