It would seem I've been tagged

Thanks Marc.

This is a slightly awkward question, as I'm not at all sure what the answers are for most of this.

Number of books I own

Frankly, I have no idea. And as I'm lazy counting ain't gonna happen. As a guesstimate I'll say 347.65 with a standard deviation of 48.2, but the real value is anyone's guess. More than my wife would prefer me to have is a reliable value.

Last book I bought

Blowed if I can remember - libraries here are pretty good. I *think* the last book I bought was "Billy" by Pamela Stephenson to keep me occupied on a flight to Houston.

Last book I read

I'm in the middle of "Deathstalker war" by Simon Green - one of Ben's library books. We have tastes that are not too dis-similar in our entertainment. It's a lighthearted tale of political violence and oppression on a galaxy-wide basis, while a bunch of people are fighting their way through a planet full of nursery toys gone bad. You'd need to read it......

Five books that mean a lot to me

I struggle with how to interpret this. 'Mean a lot' as in changed my life or as in favourites? Nuts, I'll go with favourites: too many books have influenced my life to be able to pin it on any single volume.

Well it's corny to say it, but I read the bible most days, usually while eating breakfast, so that's one I'd definitely take.

People are going to think I'm showing off, but I'd place the Illiad second. Certainly a book that I've enjoyed reading, and one that takes me to a side of Greece that can be felt tucked away just out of sight when we've been there. The version I have was translated by E.V. Reiu, and was published in Puffin Classics.

Marc has already used it, but I'd include LOTR in my top 5 too.

Number 4 is a difficult one, but I'd choose 'Ringworld' by Larry Niven. Niven's worlds feel credible, even if the people in them are slightly implausible, and he's long been a favourite author.

Finally I'd suggest The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison. Comic science fiction at it's finest, when Harrison was writing this character freshly and was still inspired.

So there you go: another window into my head. Mostly entertainment, rather than anything weighty and philosophical or contemplative. Most of the Christian books I've read have been great at the time, but what they've had to say has either been built in or rejected, and then I've moved on. They are generally not books I would choose to re-read much. As for passing the tag on, I'm at the bottom of the blogging food chain, so I guess I get to keep this male rabbit.