1. To Serve Them All My Days — R. F. Delderfield

“This is a book about what it means to be a teacher, and to care about your students. That’s me, and I return to it almost annually because it reinforces everything I believe.”

2. David Copperfield — Charles Dickens

“What can you say except that it is such a great book that it can’t be left off any list of ‘favorite’ or ‘best’ books.”

3. Daniel Martin — John Fowles

“Fabulous writing. Contains the most gut-wrenching, haunting farewell scene to the end of a relationship ever written. I felt it as if it were happening to me.”

4. Travels With My Aunt — Graham Greene

“Laughter and extraordinary insight. What a wonderful novel — and only one of many. Greene somehow did not win a Nobel, but he certainly should have.”

5. Islands in the Stream — Ernest Hemingway

“One day (soon) I will disconnect from the ‘e-world’ and become ‘Thomas Hudson.’ Count on it.”

6. Three Men In A Boat — Jerome K. Jerome

“Three friends go boating. Hell, if you don’t enjoy this Victorian era fun fest you are probably already dead.”

7. Sailing Alone Around the World — Joshua Slocum

“Slocum is not only a legendary sailor but also a solid writer. For all of us who have dreamed of this adventure, this book is a must.”

8. The Collected Essays of E. B. White — E. B. White

“All the books on this list speak to me, but this one sings. No one writes or thinks better than White did. No one. Period.”

9. Theophilus North — Thornton Wilder

“The song’s about me. (Okay, I was younger, but what the hell.)”

10. Leave it to Psmith — P.G. Wodehouse

“Not enough people know about the joys of reading Wodehouse and this book is a perfect way to get yourself hooked.”