Sunday, August 07, 2005

I've been tagged!

This is my first to do this. I have been tagged before but for one reason or another couldn't oblige. Sorry guys.

Anyway, I've been tagged by Eruannie a co-member of pinoy teachers network. She's a teacher, storyteller, writer who works as a librarian in one of the best schools in Manila. So, what do you think is the meme about? Books, what else!

So, I'm supposed to enumerate 5 books that I love and own. Hmmm... That should be easy as I stopped buying books when prices skyrocketed. I get my reading materials from the school library and borrow from friends. Anyway, the books that I love and actually have are:

1. The Little Prince by Antoine de St. Exupery - So simple and unassuming and yet very powerful.

2. Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach - gave me the idea that nothing is impossible.

3. The Covenant by James Michener (I can't find this one anymore as the others, like Hawaii) - tells about the history of South Africa in novel form. I've read Chesapeake, too, but I just borrowed it from the library.

4. Shogun by James Clavell - Bought this from a dollar store in Steveston. I've always been fascinated by Japan and the Japanese culture. Incidentally, I've also read King Rat, Tai Pan and Noble House.

5. Dude, where's my country by Michael Moore - this one's a present from my niece who came for a visit from the States. She also brought me Ron Suskinds's The Price of Loyalty. Interesting how Michael Moore put the pieces together.

Additional:

6. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand - this one I have to keep in balance as I might turn out to be greedy. Also had The Virtue of Selfishness and even wrote about it here

So there, that wasn't really hard. Anyway, I am beginning to like Neil Gaiman. i've heard so much about him from bloggers especially from friends in blogkadahan who are big Gaiman fans like Batjay, Doc Emer and Joffin. With people of this caliber saying something, one better listens, right? And they're so right! Neil Gaiman is one hell of a writer. Finished reading Coraline and reading American Gods and loving it.

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Btw, can someone explain to me what happened to my site meter? It had 38000 before until I realize I've lost it. The next time I saw it appear, it was back to two hundred and counting again? Weird. Has this happened to anyone yet?

15 comments:

Zarah C. Gagatiga said...

tito rolly, i should check out "shogun" and "atlas shrugged". they sound like interesting reads!

:-)

rolly said...

Eruannie Yes, they are interesting reads. Add to that list "The Fountainhead" if you haven't read it. Ihope you don't find them outdated, though. 70's thinking pa yata yun eh.

Anonymous said...

Hi Tito Rolly
I'm happy you're a "Shogun" fan too. I've read it twice - once before I saw it on film (Richard Chamberlain!) and again after watching the film .. then I went on to Taipan and the Noble House.
Then Sassy mentioned Gaijin which is part of the 6-book series. It's the third, coming after Shogun and Taipan. So before reading Gaijin, I want to read Shogun and Taipan again. :)
(Oh, just in case you forgot, the order is: Shogun, Taipan, Gaijin, King Rat, Noble House and Whirlwind.)

rolly said...

Bugsybee I missed that Richard Chamberlain film. The closest I've seen to Shogun is that of Tom Cruise's The Last Emperor. And darn, I haven't read Gaijin and Whirlwind.

Thanks for the info. I never knew the right order. At least, I've read Taipan first before I did Noble House. Interesting how the characters or their ancestors met each other in NOble House isn't it?

Anonymous said...

sir tito rolly!-- de saint exupery's 'prince' and 'bach's 'seagull' are two books i read and re-read and re-read! (my sister gave me my 'little prince' as a xmas present & i think i gave her my 'seagull' copy--haha the twist!).

i find the pages always nuanced every time i revisit them. they never fail to offer new meanings, new lessons depending on the stage in life i'm at. and now that i think about it, these two books feel like they are actually growing! ...& somehow, by so doing, they have kept their messages timeless.

(btw, have you read bach's 'illusions: adventures of a reluctant messiah?')

rolly said...

sis Interestingly, I, too, have the same observations. The older I get, the more I am getting from these books.

And yes, I've read Illusions. Right after Jonathan Livingston Seagull. The ending blew me away. It says something like, "Not everything in this book is true." haha

batjay said...

1. "The Seagull" by Jonathan Livingston

2. "Jonathan Livingston's Seagull"

3. "The Living Stone Seagull"

yan ang top three errors sa pag refer sa "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" pag hinihiram sa mga library o kaya tinatanong sa mga bookstore.

rolly said...

Batjay Common error nga yata yan. And I remember you blogging about it.

Anonymous said...

"There was a Master come unto the earth, born in the holy land of Indiana..." oo! ang aliw ng 'illusions'! i felt it was bach at his most radical.

i loved that parable of the bottom-dwelling creatures. and i believe in the 'IS' he espouses, the God who says, "I command that you be happy in the world, as long as you live!" :)

rolly said...

sis those are the same words I liked in Illusions. This is some kind of an affirmation for me. Thanks.

Dr. Emer said...

I'm happy you are slowly becoming a Neil Gaiman fan, Tito Rolly. Next stop --- The Sandman Series. This made him famous, make that world-famous.

rolly said...

Doc Ener I will have to find that one, too. Sounds interesting.

Anonymous said...

'to rolly, i see that you like ayn rand and i just want to say that i've read the fountainhead and that it is good but a little too overwhelming at times. her writing is really good and reflects her own philosophies and views about life. galing! i think objectivism?

i saw that you've recent;y taken up american gods... haha. that one is really good. i finished it in about 8 hours straight. hope you like it too.. and if ever you've started on the "sandman series" could you give me a little review? been meaning to read it but am too scared because of all the gruesome drawings etc... hehe..

rolly said...

Lagu Yes, I've read several Ayn Rand novels. it was some sort of my introduction to philosophy.

Yes, I'm reading American Gods and liking it very much. Naghahanap pa ko ng sandman series.

Thanks for dropping by.

rolly said...

rayray Welcome to my humble abode in cyberlandia. I have read Yasunari Kawabata's "Snow Country" and liked it. I'll try to look for Musashi. Thanks.