The one where books are listed

USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books List Top 150 books of the last 15 years:

1 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPre

2 Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution Robert C. Atkins

3 The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown

4 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPre

5 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPre

6 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPre

7 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPre

8 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPre

9 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire J.K. Rowling, art by Mary GrandPre

10 Who Moved My Cheese? Spencer Johnson

11 The South Beach Diet Arthur Agatston

12 Tuesdays With Morrie Mitch Albom

13 Angels & Demons Dan Brown

14 What to Expect When You're Expecting Heidi Murkoff, Arlene Eisenberg, Sandee Hathaway

15 The Purpose-Driven Life Rick Warren

16 The Five People You Meet in Heaven Mitch Albom

17 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Stephen R. Covey

18 The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini

19 Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus John Gray

20 The Secret Rhonda Byrne

21 Rich Dad, Poor Dad Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter

22 To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee

23 Don't Sweat the Small Stuff ... And It's All Small Stuff Richard Carlson

24 The Secret Life of Bees Sue Monk Kidd

25 Eat, Pray, Love Elizabeth Gilbert

26 Twilight Stephenie Meyer

27 The Notebook Nicholas Sparks

28 The Memory Keeper's Daughter Kim Edwards

29 The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger

30 Memoirs of a Geisha Arthur Golden

31 A New Earth Eckhart Tolle

32 Oh, the Places You'll Go! Dr. Seuss

33 The Four Agreements Don Miguel Ruiz

34 Angela's Ashes Frank McCourt

35 The Lovely Bones Alice Sebold

36 Body-for-Life Bill Phillips, Michael D’Orso

37 New Moon Stephenie Meyer

38 Night Elie Wiesel, translations by Marion Wiesel and Stella Rodway

39 Chicken Soup for the Soul Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen

40 The Greatest Generation Tom Brokaw

41 Breaking Dawn Stephenie Meyer

42 The Celestine Prophecy James Redfield

43 Wicked Gregory Maguire

44 Good to Great Jim Collins

45 Eclipse Stephenie Meyer

46 Eragon Christopher Paolini

47 Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood Rebecca Wells

48 Your Best Life Now Joel Osteen

49 In the Kitchen With Rosie Rosie Daley

50 Simple Abundance Sarah Ban Breathnach

51 A Child Called It Dave Pelzer

52 A Million Little Pieces James Frey

53 The Testament John Grisham

54 Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Kimberly Kirberger

55 Deception Point Dan Brown

56 The Alchemist Paulo Coelho

57 Marley & Me John Grogan

58 Dr. Atkins' New Carbohydrate Gram Counter Robert C. Atkins

59 Life of Pi Yann Martel

60 The Brethren John Grisham

61 The South Beach Diet Good Fats Good Carbs Guide Arthur Agatston

62 The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town John Grisham

63 For One More Day Mitch Albom

64 The Polar Express Chris Van Allsburg

65 The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald

66 The Last Lecture Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow

67 What to Expect the First Year Arlene Eisenberg, Heidi Murkoff, Sandee Hathaway

68 Love You Forever Robert Munsch, art by Sheila McGraw

69 Green Eggs and Ham Dr. Seuss

70 A Painted House John Grisham

71 The Rainmaker John Grisham

72 Skipping Christmas John Grisham

73 Cold Mountain Charles Frazier

74 The Curious Incident of the Dog In the Night-Time Mark Haddon

75 Life Strategies Phillip C. McGraw

76 Seabiscuit: An American Legend Laura Hillenbrand

77 The Summons John Grisham

78 Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil John Berendt

79 The Hobbit J.R.R. Tolkien

80 The Runaway Jury John Grisham

81 Goodnight Moon Board Book Margaret Wise Brown, art by Clement Hurd

82 The Perfect Storm Sebastian Junger

83 Snow Falling on Cedars David Guterson

84 The Giver Lois Lowry

85 Embraced by the Light Betty J. Eadie

86 The Chamber John Grisham

87 You: On A Diet Michael F. Roizen, Mehmet C. Oz

88 The Prayer of Jabez Bruce Wilkinson

89 Holes Louis Sachar

90 Digital Fortress Dan Brown

91 The Shack William P. Young

92 The Devil Wears Prada Lauren Weisberger

93 Water for Elephants Sara Gruen

94 A Thousand Splendid Suns Khaled Hosseini

95 The Seat of the Soul Gary Zukav

96 Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne, Marci Shimoff

97 The Partner John Grisham

98 Lord of the Flies William Golding

99 Eldest: Inheritance, Book II Christopher Paolini

100 The Broker John Grisham

101 The Street Lawyer John Grisham

102 A Series of Unfortunate Events No. 1: The Bad Beginning Lemony Snicket

103 The Poisonwood Bible Barbara Kingsolver

104 Into the Wild Jon Krakauer

105 The King of Torts John Grisham

106 The Tipping Point Malcolm Gladwell

107 The Horse Whisperer Nicholas Evans

108 Hannibal Thomas Harris

109 The Audacity of Hope Barack Obama

110 Running With Scissors Augusten Burroughs

111 The Glass Castle: A Memoir Jeannette Walls

112 My Sister's Keeper Jodi Picoult

113 The Last Juror John Grisham

114 The Devil in the White City Erik Larson

115 Left Behind Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins

116 America (The Book) Jon Stewart and The Writers of The Daily Show

117 The Red Tent Anita Diamant

118 John Adams David McCullough

119 The Christmas Box Richard Paul Evans

120 The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Ann Brashares

121 Sugar Busters! H. Leighton Steward, Sam S. Andrews, Morrison C. Bethea, Luis A. Balart

122 Blink Malcolm Gladwell

123 The Power of Now Eckhart Tolle

124 90 Minutes in Heaven: A True Story of Death and Life Don Piper, Cecil Murphey

125 The Fellowship of the Ring J.R.R. Tolkien

126 1776 David McCullough

127 The Bridges of Madison County Robert James Waller

128 Where the Heart Is Billie Letts

129 The Ultimate Weight Solution Phillip C. McGraw

130 Protein Power Michael R. Eades, Mary Dan Eades

131 Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne, Marci Shimoff

132 Into Thin Air Jon Krakauer

133 Middlesex Jeffrey Eugenides

134 Three Cups of Tea Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin

135 You: The Owner's Manual Michael F. Roizen, Mehmet C. Oz

136 1,000 Places to See Before You Die: A Traveler’s Life List Patricia Schultz

137 Self Matters Phillip C. McGraw

138 She's Come Undone Wally Lamb

139 1984 George Orwell

140 The Chronicles of Narnia C.S. Lewis

141 The Millionaire Next Door Thomas J. Stanley, William D. Danko

142 The Other Boleyn Girl Philippa Gregory

143 The Zone Barry Sears, Bill Lawren

144 The Pilot's Wife Anita Shreve

145 The Lost World Michael Crichton

146 Atonement Ian McEwan

147 He's Just Not That Into You Greg Behrendt, Liz Tuccillo

148 Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury

149 The World Is Flat Thomas L. Friedman

150 Cross James Patterson

http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2008-10-29-top-150-books_N.htm

I have only read 45 of these, which seems low. I have heard of them all, some just don't intrest me I guess. How many have you read? Are there any on the list you would recomend?

The one where I diss Oprah

Last night I had a negative knee jerk reaction when someone mentioned a book they had recently read and enjoyed. I have not read this book, but I have already formed an opinion about it based on one person. Oprah. This book happens to be her current book club pick. I have a strong dislike for reading Oprah books, which is irrational because she usually picks good books. I just feel like such a lame follower whenever I read one.

Also I will never forgive her for picking East of Eden when I was about halfway through it. Thanks for almost ruining Steinbeck for me Oprah!

So, yeah to Oprah for getting people excited about reading, but for now I'll pick my own books.

Ack!

I called my mom on the way to work this morning to see how her Thanksgiving prep was going. The following conversation ensued:

Me: "How's the cooking going?"
Her: "Not good. The turkey has some sort of metal rod in it holding it together and I can't get it out.
Me: "That's really gross."
Her: "I know. Hey, do you think you could stop by before work and try to break the neck so I can get the rod out?"
Me: Screaming
Then I hang up.

Happy Thanksgiving

woe is me

I am not meant to be in a relationship. It's not sad so don't pity me, it's just a fact. Whenever one ends I'm amazed to realize how much I like myself and like being alone. When most people get dumped they spend a lot of time wondering why. What was wrong with me? They moan, Why didn't he like me? I'm like this: "Oh wait, this is me? Long time no see, I forgot how awesome you are!"

But seriously, I love being alone. I love not having to tell anyone in the world where I am or what I'm doing. I love not having to do dishes or clean if I don't want to. I love flaking out on plans with no explanation, deciding to do things on a whim without having to consult with a significant other, staying up until 2:00 in the morning watching Veronica Mars, or going to bed at 7:30 if I feel like it.

Does that mean I don't ever want to find someone to settle down with? No. I just have it pretty good right now. I might settle down someday, but I'll never just settle.

Can I have the envelope please?

And the winner of the first annual funniest person I know award goes to....ME! Oh my god I was not expecting this!

To those of you who feel like you should have received this years award, get over it. You obviously aren't funny enough. So plaster on a fake smile and clap politely while I make my acceptance speech.

"This is such a surprise, thank you everyone. There are so many people. First I want to thank my mom. You taught me sarcasm, the proper use of eye rolling, and most importantly the ability to laugh at people who hurt themselves. Yes, while most parents instilled their children with compassion and empathy, not you. Thank you. And my dad. You taught me off color jokes, the importance of knowing your audience, and the way a well placed swear word can add emphasis. Thank you. To my extended family- thank you for being so ridiculous. After spending time at family gatherings we would go home with hours of priceless material to amuse ourselves with. Thank you for being you.

Next I would like to thank The Simpsons for the word Jeebus, hilarious. And Super troopers for, well everything. To Catholic school for instilling me with large amounts of guilt and self loathing, without which no one is truly funny."

[Music Starts]

"Oh no, I'm not done. Okay okay, I need to thank the most important person off all, without whom this would not have been possible, me. I could not have done this without my incredible wit and good humor. Thank you, me, for being who you are."