MH - Books, Books, Books

Well, Clayton has tagged me with the latest meme - I've been watching it spread through the blogosphere and I've enjoyed reading the various responses, but I never thought it would make it all the way to me! I'll be only too glad to take a crack at it.

1. Total number of books I own: Well, between the two of us we've probably got about 800 right now.
2. The last book I bought: Let's see, that would have been a trip to a second-hand store, so that would be Henry and Clara and Two Moons, both by Thomas Mallon; Doing Well and Doing Good by Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, Down With the Old Canoe by Steven Biel, and Jesus by Malcom Muggeridge.
3. The last book I read: Wheat That Springeth Green by J.F. Powers.
4. Five books that mean a lot to me (OK, six):
   Libra by Don DeLillo and The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster - as a writer, those books did more to shape the style of my fiction writing than any other.
   Father Elijah, by Michael O'Brien - changed the way I saw myself and my life.
   The Vicar of Christ, by Walter Murphy - played with grand, epic themes that stayed with me.
   A Night to Remember, by Walter Lord - as a young boy, started me on my lifelong fascination with the Titanic.
   You Gotta Play Hurt, by Dan Jenkins - maybe it's not his greatest book, but it has the single funniest thing I've ever read in my life - I literally fell off the couch laughing at it.
5. Tag five people: Badda-Blogger, Linda, Sharon, Dan, and Rich.

Have fun!