Top Ten Tuesday!

Courtesy of The Broke and the Bookish, Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme about making lists. And I love making lists, so it is a match made in Heaven. This week's topic is:

March 28: Top Ten Authors I'm Dying to Meet/Ten Authors I Can't Believe I Met (some other 'meeting authors' type spin you want to do).

Now, I know what you might be thinking. If you are someone who reads my blog regularly, you know that I am slightly into history. It makes sense then that I would want to meet historians. And I so frequently talk about my obsession with Dan Jones and his books, (it probably makes him slightly uncomfortable), so you are assuming this whole post will be about him.

Well guess what?!

You're not totally wrong, I wrote the most about him. And Bernie. But more on that later.

My list this week is going to seem slightly wonky (some of the authors are no longer living, that creates a problem), and I am naturally not totally following the rules, but here are a few authors I would truly love to meet and ask them endless questions about their work and lives and if we can BFFs. Here they are, in no particular order:

1. Mindy Kaling

(Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? and Why Not Me?)

 

Okay, so technically she is not ONLY an author, and she was known for her acting and such first. But she has two books published now so she counts. I dare you to read either of her books and not tell me she is the coolest. I just know we would be BFFs if we knew each other in real life. It is hard for some comedians to be funny in multiple formats, but here she is just as funny as on her television shows. I so desperately hope she is as down-to-earth as she comes across in her books.

2. William Shakespeare

(I seriously doubt anyone needs me to list any of his work)

See what I mean, this one being tricky and all, because he's been dead 400+ years. My reasons are two-fold - I absolutely adore Much Ado About Nothing and would love to meet the person who created Beatrice and Benedick to congratulate him, while at the same time asking wtf is up with Claudio and Hero. I mean, really. Arguably two of his wittiest characters and two of his dumbest. Though, full disclosure, I could really have it in for Hero because Kate Beckinsale absolutely annoyed me in the movie.

3. L.M. Montgomery
(The Anne of Green Gables series)



Again, we have the issue of life and death getting in the way of this meeting.

Oh how I loved Anne Shirley and wanted to BE her, Anne with an 'e'. Every day at recess my best friend Amy and I would play Anne of Green Gables. I would be Anne, she would be Diana, and we would pretend to have all the adventures that those two had in the books we loved so dearly. Unfortunately we could never convince any of the boys to be Gilbert Blythe to re-enact the pond scene. Oh, well. The first book has always been my most favorite, though I loved them all. I loved seeing Anne grow, and then her children as well. I can't wait for my daughter to read this series and I hope she loves it as much as I do.

4. Louisa May Alcott
(Little Women, Little Men, Jo's Boys)

(I could not find the covers of my own copies on Goodreads because, as you an imagine, there are hundreds of different covers to scroll through and ain't nobody got time for that.)

Yes, another deceased author. I know. But it's my list so...whatever.

Little Women is one of my all-time favorite books. I had read the book several times in elementary school, but THEN it was made into a movie and Christian Bale was Laurie and it was all over for me. I was completely obsessed and had to own as many of the different covers as I could find. Every time I went to the bookstore, I had to find a copy of Little Women. I was so heartbroken that even in Hollywood, Jo and Laurie wouldn't be together (though as an adult I realize even Hollywood recognized they couldn't change that; it would change the entire book and that would have infuriated even more people). I treasure my hardcover copies of all three and can't wait to share these with my daughter.

5. Rita Williams-Garcia
(One Crazy Summer, P.S. Be Eleven and Gone Crazy in Alabama)

 

I had the pleasure of meeting Rita Williams-Garcia earlier this month at a family night event at the school where I teach. During the afternoon she gave a presentation to the intermediate students, as school-wide we are reading her first book in this trilogy, One Crazy Summer. I am loving it so far and definitely recommend it, though my class and I are not done with yet. After the presentation students could have their books autographed, so I also got an autograph, asked her a bit about her career and said I was a writer too. She took such a genuine interest in my project, I could have talked for another hour to her, picking her brain about her own journey into authorship and everything that goes along with it. She then returned during family night and gave a presentation to parents about her books. I had brought my daughter to family night and she ended up winning  copy of the third book Gone Crazy in Alabama in the raffle. Afterwards Mrs. Williams-Garcia signed my daughter's book as well, and had been so patient with her when Eleanor insisted on showing off her art project she had made at one of the stations. She was amused and even in her autograph of Eleanor's book, mentioned the art project; it was a very personalized autograph, which she was in no way obligated to do. I thought that was very cool of her.

6. Dan Jones
(The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England
The Wars of the Roses: The Fall of the Plantagenets and the Rise of the Tudors
Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty
Summer of Blood: England's First Revolution)

Imma try real hard to not be crazy here. Bear with me. Basically, Dan Jones is my favorite historian. I've read all his books and am so excited for his Knights Templar book that I can't even stand it. But it is not being released until September and the wait is killing me. I also am quite fond of his series 'Secrets of Great British Castles'. One of my favorite parts of the show is obviously seeing these magnificent structures that still stand today, some I've even been to - Stirling Castle is quite possibly my favorite castle ever. My OTHER favorite part of the show is how adorable it is when he asks the castle historians questions that he already knows the answers to but pretends he doesn't.

Something else that makes Dan Jones pretty cool is that he actually responds to his fans on Facebook and Twitter. I have been lucky to interact with quite a few of my favorite historians, mainly via Twitter. It enhances the reader's experience to know that their opinions are valued by someone they admire. (Also super awesome about this: Tracy Borman and Amy Licence. AND they're great writers too. What a deal.) And here's a little brag: Dan - I can call him by his first name now, right? Like, we're cool like that? - even linked to my review of Summer of Blood. On his Facebook page. And called it 'a kind review'. His statement is pretty kind, because even I did not think it was my best review. Even when his crazy fans write okay reviews, he makes them feel like a million bucks.

All jokes aside, I do have an actual reason for my affinity for him (besides the tattoos, British accent, history knowledge, and the fact that he's a very good-looking man). When I was pregnant with my daughter in 2013, I had just moved to a new city for a new job. I did not know anyone and had no friends. Basically, I lived at the library because all I did was read. I was also in a bind because I had no idea what I was going to name my baby girl. Had she been a boy, no problem, Cameron David (Cameron being 'Cameron Indoor Stadium', where Duke plays and 'David' being my grandpa), boom, named. But I had no name for a girl. Or, I had names, but none sounded right. Then, about a month before my girl was born, I read The Plantagenets: The Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England and I met Eleanor of Aquitaine. I'd found The Name.

So Dan Jones, thank you for helping me find the absolute perfect name for my sweet girl. That is one of the many reasons, but the most important one to me, that I adore you and your work so much.

7. Bernie Sanders

What?! He's not an author, you say?? Then what is this:



I'll tell you what it is. It is a book that made me so happy and was so comforting in those dark days between the election and that event on January 20th. While there was a lot of information I already knew it was still great to read, and as I was doing so, it was like Bernie was reading it to me because it was his voice I was hearing in my head instead of my own. I've never felt the way about a presidential candidate before the way I felt about Bernie and his campaign. This election cycle was the first time I have ever caucused (with my daughter in tow), the first time I donated (multiple times), the first time I bought t-shirts and signs. I truly believe in Bernie (still do) and his message and without getting too political, it is disgusting what is happening to our country right now. That being said, I am not looking for political debate here and will not entertain it. If you want to argue politics, go find someone on Twitter or Facebook to bother.

It's not often you get to see your hero in person, let alone shake his hand, take a selfie, tell him you love him, and ugly cry (see what you have to look forward to Dan Jones?!) while photographers ask for your name and email address. It's also pretty neat when those same photographers email you photos of it all. I am holding my daughter in the picture below and she knew very well who Bernie was. We caucused for him in March of 2016 and she loves watching Bernie videos. Her favorite by far was the one when the bird landed on the podium. We still watch it. It was kind of overwhelming when she saw him in person and she suddenly got shy. But he patted her on the back and told me I had a tired baby, then graciously took a photo with us. It was an unforgettable night and I am so glad Eleanor and I had this opportunity.

So there you have it. Two author I've met, two I hope to meet, and three I can't meet because they are unfortunately no longer living. Which authors are you dying to meet, or which authors have you already been lucky enough to meet? Let me know!

Happy Reading,
Sarah