Five Favorite Novels

I was asked recently by a reader what my top five or ten novels were. I could list a bunch of titles depending on the category, but these five are ones that stick out.

The Prince Of Tides by Pat Conroy is probably the most beautiful novel I’ve ever read. It’s sweeping and poetic. The Southern family is one I can relate to. The drama is dark and brutal. This is a classic.
I could list several Stephen King titles, but The Stand is probably my favorite. It’s so epic in scope, yet the characters are so real and memorable. I’m listening to it again on audio. This showed that you can write a huge novel about big events with a large cast and pull it off.
A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving was a funny and heartbreaking story that again showed me how one author can pull off something vast and sweeping. This book is all about the voice and the random events that meant something in the end. I wanted to put my name on this book. The end brought me to tears. It’s one of the reasons I write.
As I have delved into writing about fear, I’ve come to believe that perhaps the scariest thing out there is loss. Losing a loved one, losing a life once led, losing something that meant something to you. The Road by Cormac McCarthy had already gotten so many accolades before I read it. I was already a McCarthy fan, but this novel broke me. It was perhaps one of the darkest and scariest books I’ve ever read. Perhaps being a father is the reason. Regardless, his sparse and bleak prose made it a masterpiece.
Sometimes all you need to write is one special story. Sometimes the magic can come together and you can create something that lasts and transcends. I don’t need to say anything about Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird. But this coming-of-age novel with the Southern setting makes me want to give up my writing career because I know I’ll never be able to pull off something so wonderful.
Then again, there’s a part of me that says maybe one day I’ll write my To Kill A Mockingbird. Or my Prince of Tides. Or my Prayer For Owen Meany. Or my Road. Or my Stand.

I go back to these books often to marvel at their creations. And to remember why I keep writing.

4 Comments

  1. Great list, Travis. Loved "The Road" and "To Kill a Mockingbird." Pat Conroy and John Irving are amazing writers. I've really come to enjoy Stephen King over the last few years, but I didn't read "The Stand" until many years after it was written. For that reason, it felt very dated and lost much of its hold on me. Still epic in scope and personal in character, which I loved.

    Thanks for sharing. Keep being inspired, so that you in turn can inspire the next generation.

  2. Thanks Eric. I understand that about The Stand–it is dated in many areas. But it's like any kind of art–you remember the first time you saw a movie that meant something to you. Or that amazing album you put on for the first time.

    Ditto on the inspiration. Look forward to hearing what doors open up for you in your writing. You're young and just getting started.

  3. I ended up doing a deconstruction of Prince of Tides for a Southern fiction class in grad school. I've read most of his books and enjoy them, but that one still leaves me breathless with its brilliance. The phrase "Remember the turkey"–brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it.

    It's interesting reading others' lists of work that has made an imprint on them. We can have some overlap, but it's all so personal.

  4. Of your list I've only read 'Prince of Tides' and 'To Kill a Mockingbird', each of which have stayed with me over the years. I'll look for the others as your comments on them have piqued my curiosity- always love a new book and its difficult to dig out the classics from the fluff sometimes.
    So, thank you.

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