Favorite Books... really?!

In addition to my own posts for the 31 Days of Writing series, I'm participating in Jessica's #31bookpics on Instagram. She has given a prompt for each day, and we post our pictures of those book-ish things. She also has a linkup every Friday (here's today's). Today's photo prompt was "Favorite Books" -- and there was no way a single picture could do that topic justice today...

Do you know how hard it is for a bookworm, who also works at a library, to choose favorite books?? I started by making a list of books that have had some impact on my life, ones that I would read again (if I haven't already!). Then for my Instagram photo, I limited myself to those books we had on the shelf at my library today.

Books featured above:

• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis - I enjoyed the entire Narnia series, but this is by far my favorite. I love the metaphors and parallels to the story of Jesus.
• The Secret of Shadow Ranch by Carolyn Keene - Again I love the entire Nancy Drew series (the originals, not the new stuff), but this is the first one I can vividly remember reading as a child. 
• The Black Stallion by Walter Farley - Most girls go through a horse-loving phase at some point, and this series fed that passion for me. The library ladies interloaned the next book in the series each week for me before I even asked. :) 
• The Circle Series by Ted Dekker - I had never been much of a modern fantasy/suspense/sci-fi reader before Dekker's books. There are definitely some of his that are waaaay too creepy and scary for me (I did NOT like House), but Black, Red, White, and eventually Green are an amazing, well-thought-out and written series. 
• A Voice in the Wind by Francine Rivers - I love Rivers' writing (Redeeming Love anyone??), but the Mark of the Lion series is by far my favorite of hers. I ate up this story of a young slave girl in first-century Rome who is persecuted for her faith but falls in love with an aristocrat. I bawled my eyes out at the end. Sigh, I should read this one again soon...
• The Return of the King by JRR Tolkien - I have to include Lord of the Rings. While I've only read through the series once, this story sticks with me. Yes the movies helped, they are also some of my favorite movies of all time. But Tolkien's intense, descriptive language easily makes this a classic for me.
• Stories Behind the Best Loved Songs of Christmas by Ace Collins - The one non-fiction book featured here (see below, all my other favorites were checked out!). I love Christmas music in general - I'm one of those freaks who would listen to it year-round if I could get away with it - but every Christmas season I love pulling this book out and learning where my favorite songs came from (did you know "O Holy Night" was the first song to ever be broadcast over the radio?).

And some additional books I would have added to my picture if they'd been in stock:

• Notes from a Blue Bike by Tsh Oxenreider - This was one of those books that when I finished it, I put it down and immediately said "I'm going to have to read that again!" Not because I couldn't understand it, but because I know I need to be constantly reminded to slow down and live my life to the fullest.
• Serve God, Save the Planet and Go Green, Save Green by Matthew and Nancy Sleeth - In the midst of all the global warming and environmentalism of a couple years ago, these two books came out with a Christian perspective and practical ways to change our lifestyles. 
• For Women Only by Shaunti Feldhahn - A small book that is packed with information. Based entirely on research surveys of thousands of men, Shaunti dives into many different topics about why my husband is the way he is, and what I can do with that knowledge to make our marriage better.

I'm sure I'm forgetting some. And there are tons more books on my "B" list, ones that I've enjoyed immensely at the time but am not quite ready to re-read them now.

Are any of your favorite books the same as mine?

(here's a link to my Instagram page, if you want to check out my other photos for #31bookpics!)