My Most Memorable Books

This is a list I'm thinking just off the top of my head, so it could be affected by things like time since I've read it, how old I was, etc...
1. Musashi, Eiji Yoshikawa. I recently finished this book but it really resonated with me. Partially for the reasons I listed in my last post, but also because I was really comparing myself to the characters. I saw aspects of myself in each of the male characters. The language, the subtle but vivid imagery, and the dramatic storytelling made this one of my favorite and definitely most memorable books.
2. Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger. This book really resounded with me. I personally had a very similar experience with Holden Caulfield. I remember having such a strong feeling of disgust and disillusionment about the people in and the structure of society that I wanted to have nothing to do with it. Particularly the scene where Holden is watching his little sister on the merry-go-round. Something so simple gave him such a strong realization. I remember that something sweet and simple brought me back into dealing with the society I hated instead of running from it. Luckily, I didn't end up in an institute like he did, though, ha, ha.
3. The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway. I love modern literature and I was an expatriate at one time as well, though it was not for any societal reason besides the fact my father had a job out of the country. What I remember about the book was thinking that the way these characters interact is often disgusting but not different from the way many people and groups of people I know interact. I really love the ending of the book too, (spoilers for those who haven't read it). That simple acceptance of Bret and Jake knowing they would have been great together but can never be together while at the same time maintaining the status quo and the close nature of their friendship was a fantastic scene.
4. Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe. While I wasn't enthralled by his writing, the situation Okonkwo is in really garnered a strong emotional response from me. I have always adored the diversity of our planet and to see a culture be taken over in such a way that drives Okonkwo to take the actions he does. I ended up hating everything about story but loving its anger at the same time. This book convinced me to read No Longer at Ease and Arrow of God, but I still have not gotten around to doing so.
5. The Odyssey, by Homer. Epic: the one word to describe this book. One of the original tales that helped to bring us the fantastic fantasy stories we have today. While I had liked Greek mythology before, I really wanted to keep reading more of it after this poem.
6. The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson. While this wasn't technically an entire book, I'll cheat a little and put this short story on here. I was relatively young when I first read this, about 11, and I remember being just confused. I finally figured out the messages Jackson was putting into the story and partially agreeing and disagreeing with them. I really enjoyed reading this short story the second time, when I was about 13.
7. Watchmen, by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. Again, this may be cheating, but this graphic novel was a great way for me to see how different people responded and offer solutions to the Cold War, ranging from creating a common enemy to accepting the world as a terrible place. I was 15 when I first read this series in its entirety. It really is a long step away from your classic superhero comic, but it's a step in a more mature direction.
8. Mahabarata (specifically the Bhagavad Gita), by Vyasa (a central figure to the Hindu religion). The only reason this "book" is lower on the list than Homer's epic poem is that I have not technically read the Mahabarata in its entirety (something I plan on doing some time in the future). I have, however, read abridged versions because of its sheer length. I loved the Bhagavad gita more than I did any specific chapter of the Odyssey. While equally fantastical and epic as Odysseus's journey. Krishna's journey, particularly in the Bhagavad Gita asked much more questions that made me think philosophically and about one's religious duty.
9. Into the Wild, by Jon Krakaur. I like to think myself as adventurous. The journey that "Alexander Supertramp" goes on is great except for its outcome. This book half convinced me to do something similar because I know I have better survival skills than Christopher McCandless. I decided not to do something like that, though only because my mom would be driven into a deep depression, ha, ha. She specifically told me after we had both read this book that if I did anything like this, she would be terribly depressed. I remember the long rants: "He should have at least left a letter!"
10. Calvin and Hobbes, by bill Waterson. I've been cheating quite a bit throughout this post, so why not one more time. Calvin and Hobbes is more than just a comic to me. I loved the series even before I understood what Calvin's six-year-old intellect was saying. You'd be surprised what kind of vocabulary this kid has if you haven't read any of the comics. I remember my imagination being similar to Calvin's and my pretending to be various things. What's great about this series of comic strips is that both 9-year-old me and 17-year-old me can enjoy them without feeling stupid or immature. I remember reading them every day in the car as my mother drove me to school.