Beyond the Book: They Influenced Me.

Ten Books That Have Influenced Me

Not long ago, a blogger asked me to list the ten books that have influenced my life the most, but that isn’t the easiest thing to do. Most of what we read influences us in one way or another. As both a reader and an author we adopt some things as our own while rejecting the rest. Still, I’ll give it a try. I’ll start with young adult books and move to adult stuff.

1.Black Beauty. I believe my love of animals and dislike of cruelty started developing after reading this book. It hurt my feelings so much to see how Black Beauty (a horse) was treated.

2.Little Woman. This is a story of four sisters who lived during the Civil War era. Even in the modern world I think the book is valid because it contains a lot of truth about family and being true to yourself.

3.The Trixie Belden Series. Trixie was a perfect heroine. The first books were written in the late 1940’s, but Trixie held her own against the boys and always saved the day. In my own writing I try to have heroines like Trixie. She’s spunky, smart, appealing, and no bad guy can escape her.

4.The Sherwood Ring. This was perfect for me because it combined so many things that I liked. What were they? Ghosts, romance, and history.

5.A Wrinkle in Time. I like science fiction, which might have started with this book. I've written a little science fiction into my book Blue 52.

6.The Bronze Horseman. This is a novel set in Russia during World War II. I found it absolutely compelling. The romance, the suffering, and oh that ending! I was so mad when I finished the book I swore I’d never read anything else she wrote, but that was before I found there was a sequel. Yeah, I read it too. I’m not sure if my characters have ever been a situation as bad as those in The Bronze Horseman, but I’m working on it.

7.Leaving Cheyenne. This is by Larry McMurtry who is one of my favorite authors. McMurtry shows us that even ordinary lives have drama and that love comes in many forms. One of the nicest compliments I’ve ever been given was when a reader said to me, “I don’t like romance novels because they’re unrealistic, but this could happen to anybody.”

8.Salem’s Lot. My first introduction to horror. It scared me so bad that not only did I stop reading horror stories, I never will write anything like it. I did learn a lot about writing from reading the book.

9.The Flame and the Flower. This was my first introduction to romance novels, except for Harlequins. This book is probably why I write romance novels.

10.Aimee, Come Home. This novel merged history with romance and ghosts. I do love that combination and have used it in two of my books, Rest Thy Head and Fortuna.

What about you? What books have influenced you?