Let's play a game. You've traveled into the future and can only take three of your books with you. In the story, mankind has warred himself back to Stone Age living- so you are starting society from scratch. Which 3 do you take? Now you can't say books that you don't actually own, that's cheating. You have to have these books in your home. I would take:
1- JRR Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. I have the trilogy in a beautiful leather-bound edition. It makes for great story telling and since the future has no television or libraries or radio, it's stories around the campfire for entertainment.
2- The New Testament. Yes, I'd leave the Old or Hebrew Testament behind because of the contradictions: it does not condemn slavery, a number of the laws are incompatible with my beliefs, like 'an eye for an eye,' and polygamy, and there are some things I can't reconcile, like the Great Flood called up by God to destroy everyone except Noah. I feel it's important to have a moral guide and the New or Christian Testament embodies how we should behave.
3- Swiss Family Robinson, by Johann D. Wyss. A family marooned on an island must survive on what is available. Talk about an interesting how-to book! Of course it works best if you're stuck on a tropical island, and if I have to be stuck anywhere, it has to be in the tropics. Unfortunately I can't find my copy, so obeying my own rules, I have to choose another book.
4- Patriots: The Men Who Started the American Revolution by A.J. Langguth. This tells the story of the Founding Fathers and how they not only started the Revolution, but why, and how our Constitution and Declaration of Independence were created. If you're starting society over, let it be on a basis where all humanity is represented. (I'm not talking about past mistakes, I'm looking toward the future where we can get it totally right.)
Those are my 3, with an extra for the one I can't find, but would really love. Let me know your choices and why.
Char
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