A baker’s dozen: My favorite books

We’ve been cleaning out our closets, garage and bookshelves in the Rossini household to make way for the newest family member arriving. This has led to some serious discussions on what to keep, box up or goodwill (yes, I just made Goodwill a verb), especially in the way of books. It’s no secret that J and I love books, and are running out of room for them! We need a bigger house, not because of the baby, but because of our book obsession. (And, this baby already has quite the collection of books). So, inspired by Jen Laceda’s and Erica Johansson’s “A Suitcase of my Favourite Books” I decided to make my own, this is by no means an exhaustive list of my favorites; I had to stop somewhere. As I don’t like to discriminate, this list includes all types of books. Even cookbooks.

Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen Every girl’s favorite, right? Especially those obsessed with Victorian England. I only allow myself to read this once a year.

Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys A sequel to Jane Eyre (also a classic favorite) about Rochester’s first wife Bertha Mason, the “madwoman in the attic.” I’m not sure if this is my favorite because I love it so much or because I practically memorized it when writing a paper for a conference.

Make the Most of Your Time on Earth: A Rough Guide to the World published by Rough Guides. The book has 1000 places to travel to, with unusual destinations and cliché tourist attractions with descriptions and beautiful photography to boot. I use this when planning our next adventures, or merely when I want to armchair travel.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith I stayed up the entire night devouring this book, and actually cried when I finished (because it was over, and well, you just love that Francie Nolan so much at the end!)

Tulips, Chips & Mayonnaise by Dawn Cairns Chick lit at its finest. An Irish friend passed this book off to me before I left Dublin for my cliché European backpack tour. You’ll cringe and laugh at the familiar recognition of the plight of Sorrell.

A Mile in My Flip-Flops by Melody Carlson Another chick-lit novel, but with a Christian twist. I recently sent a copy of this to my good friend who needed a bit of cheering up. It’s fun and heartfelt with the perfect happy ending.

On The Road by Jack Kerouac My all-time favorite quote comes from this novel. I love the sense of complete and total abandon-adventures of Sal & Dean.

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant The story of Dinah from the book of Genesis in the Old Testament.

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling Basically, I want to attend Hogwarts. Nuff said.

The Autobiography of Henry VII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers by Margaret George This hefty tome may intimidate you, but it need not. The author creates a sympathetic and historically accurate picture of this much-maligned English king.

Weber’s Big Book of Grilling Besides reading, we love to grill. There is not a single loser among the 350 recipes, but my personal favorite is the pulled pork sandwiches. Yum.

Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day I’d rather bake bread over cookies, any day. And this book is hands-down fabulous. I am just diving into the recipes, but so far every loaf of bread has been mouth-watering.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott When I was in junior high, I read this over and over and over pretending that Meg, Jo, Beth & Amy were my sister’s too (I think I was pretty desperate for a sister, eh?)