Born and raised in Evansville, Altstadt has been employed at the University of Southern Indiana for nearly 18 years, currently as Administrative Associate in Publishing Services. She attended the University of Evansville. In addition to reading, her interests include music, cooking, and most importantly spending time with her family. She is the mother of three grown sons.

My Five Favorite Books

by Karen Altstadt

Naming my “top five favorite books and why” has proven to be a somewhat daunting task. Let me start by saying that I am not a writer--a reader, yes, but not a writer. So bear with me as I struggle to express what it is I loved about each of these books and why they are special to me.

There are so many good books--some more appealing at certain stages of life than others. In fact, the following list of my five favorites, with the exception of a couple, might vary from day to day, depending on my mood.

My number-one choice has remained so through the years. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee captures the rhythm of 1930’s southern life through the clear and pure narrative of 10-year-old Jean Louise “Scout” Finch. Every sentence, every word rings true. The characterizations are superb, particularly that of Atticus Finch, surely one of the most honorable fictional characters ever developed.

The themes of racial inequality, poverty, ignorance, and bigotry, as well as the love of family, courage, bittersweet friendships, emerging awareness of the good and evil that exists around us, one’s place in the world, and righting the wrongs are richly portrayed in a riveting story. This book truly transports you to a particular time and place, and its profound lessons remain with you for a lifetime. It is simply flawless.

Another great novel, Lonesome Dove, was recommended to me by the late Dr. Aldo Cardarelli as one in which you can “smell the horses.” So true! This book by Larry McMurtry depicts a group of cowboys, led by a couple of retired Texas Rangers in what may be the tough old-timers’ last big adventure, on a cattle drive from a scrappy southern Texas town (Lonesome Dove) to Montana. The story is rich with well-defined characters (including the landscape itself), and the reader grows to respect both as the story progresses. Full of rollicking adventure, wry humor, intelligence, homespun wisdom, and the abiding (though not often articulated) love of friends, this book is one you simply cannot put down.

Night, by Elie Wiesel, illustrates the horrors he experienced as a teenager in a Nazi concentration camp. The story will surely urge the reader to ask the same questions Wiesel asked: Where is God in the midst of this suffering? Why would a loving God allow such suffering? What are the limits of a person’s faith? How does one retain a sense of hope? What are the lessons learned and what do you do with those lessons? How does one continue to live? Wiesel offers no answers; the book simply prompts the reader to contemplate the questions. Though not revealed in the book, the reward might be in knowing that Wiesel has survived, miraculously, with a sense of hope and purpose. Wiesel continues to write and speak on these issues, and to emphasize how important it is to know -- and to never forget.

The Spectator Bird by Wallace Stegner is one of the sweetest, most poignant books I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading. Maybe it has something to do with growing older, but I was able to identify with the main character, who is prompted by circumstances to revisit a diary he kept some twenty years earlier while on a trip to Denmark with his wife. As he reads the diary aloud to his wife, we become aware of the enduring love of a long marriage--not perfect, but good; we hear the words of a man who is true and moral, with a strong sense of duty; questions and uncertainties are eventually revealed and resolved between the two. As with other books from this master writer, the sheer decency of the man shines through his written word. I’d recommend anything and everything he has written.

What can I say about Dog of the South by Charles Portis? It’s futile to try to describe the plot, which is loose, to say the least, or to explain the characters, who are beyond description. The story follows Ray Midge, hot on the trail of his wife Norma, who has left town with her ex-husband. Midge pursues Norma into Central America, meeting a cast of more-than-eccentric characters along the way.

Dog of the South is one of the funniest books I’ve ever read. On my recommendation, our book club read it, and some were not as enamored with it as I. However, once we started talking about the situations and dialogue, we were laughing hysterically. It may take a bit of pondering to “get it.”

Through all of the absurdity, somehow there emerges a sweetness and a truth nearly impossible to describe. You just need to read it to understand. Ray Blount, Jr. has said of this book that 'no-one should die without reading it.' I couldn’t agree more. It’s also been said that Portis is a writer’s writer. That’s probably true--he’s also a reader’s writer. Give him a try. Any of his novels are great--this one just happens to be my favorite.

It’s been my great fortune to be a member of a wonderful book club for the last ten years or so. These bright, introspective women continue to inspire me to read more and to think about what I’m reading. They’ve also provided me with opportunities to read books I might never have selected on my own. And our discussions never fail to bring a fresh perspective.

Thanks to The Boneyard, for asking me to write about some of the books I’ve read and loved. It was fun to reminisce and to analyze a bit. I thank my lucky stars that I grew up in a home where reading was an important part of life.