Book Meme: My Turn

Rick tagged me with the book meme that's going around the blogs like a virus. Okay, fine, I'll bite.

Total number of books owned: I think I'm at around 300 right now. I shed about 100 books or so between my last two moves, so I could be down to 250. I haven't counted in awhile and books are like weeds a new one pops up every time I think I've got them all.

Last book I bought: Crafty Screenwriting by one of my favorite bloggers Alex Epstein.

Last book I read: Besides the one I just mentioned, I read a lot of screenwriting books. The last non-fiction book I read was Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow (frequent contributor to Boing Boing.

Five books that mean a lot to me:

The Number of the Beast by Robert Heinlein. This was my first real sci-fi book given to me by my father. After all of the other Heinlein books I've read, this is the one I always come back to, simply because it was my first.

Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. It's actually a tough call between this one and Cryptonomicon which I also love, but again, I go with sentimentality. My first real boyfriend gave me Snow Crash and it blew my mind (this after he had already turned me on to Pournelle and Niven books). I loan out Snow Crash often -- I just never get it back. I've bought at least five copies of this book since I first read it. I'm currently without a copy.

Mort by Terry Pratchett. I had no idea how funny fantasy could be. I had read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and I knew sci-fi could be funny (this book almost makes the cut for the top 5). Interestingly enough, I was turned on to Mort by Colin Baker at a Dr. Who convention. Yes, in my very young years I attended Dr. Who conventions and took book reading advice from actors. Still, this one was a great one and the entire series of Discworld novels are to this day one of my prized possessions (which continues to grow since the man is still writing them). Mort is actually the 4th Discworld book, but I still recommend it as the best introduction to the series.

Writing Screenplays that Sell by Michael Hauge. This was the first screenwriting book I bought which made me feel I could actually be a writer. I was further encouraged when I listened to him speak at the very first Screenwriting Expo in 2002.

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery. It may seem corny to you, but I was already a voracious reader when I discovered the Anne Shirley books. I would say that prior to seeing Anne of Green Gables on PBS (which, tragically, may have its funding cut because they can't seem to stop serving a liberal agenda -- okay, I'll stop) I had already fallen in love with this character and the story. It made me want to tell stories.

Hmmm, who should I tag with this meme... 5 others, the rules say.

E.B. Langton
Kid Sis
Joshua James
Moviequill
Moses

Anybody else can jump in too!