Ripping Good Yarns: Final Vote Book Lover's Hall of Fame

PLEASE VOTE!

The nominations have been made and now I need your input as to this year's Hall of Fame winner.  

There were some people who were very helpful in offering nominations for this year's selection.  I am very, very grateful to them.  If your favorite is not in the mix, please be sure to be a part of the nominating process next year,.

Books that received nominations from multiple people were given strongest consideration. The nominating overall was somewhat limited so my hand is pretty heavy in it too, I'm afraid. Maeve Binchy was named by people but it was always a different book, so I will save her for consideration next year.  I also for this year eliminated series that were still ongoing, like George RR Martin's Song of Fire and Ice and Diana Gabaldon's The Outlander Series. 

So please vote for one of the following.  If you wish, you can divide your vote among one or more books, and I will apportion accordingly,  And yes, I know about apples and oranges.  Having done similar contests for several years on Facebook one cannot help but know about apples and oranges.  But that is the nature of the beast..

Please vote from the following nominees:: 

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee - even though my Dad was a school principal in the north and not a lawyer in the south, Atticus Finch is the character in literature most like my own father.  A great book that shows the virtues and flaws of a small southern town.

Cold, Sassy Tree by Olive Burns -  Another classic slice of Southern life, set in 1906.  A widower dares to marry a Yankee!

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien - the entire trilogy.  Revolutionized the way I look at books and inspired a great deal of my own writing.  Samwise to me is one of the greatest characters in literature.

Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maude Montgomery - a young orphan girl grows up on Prince Edward Island.  Despite my lack of affinity for these type of books, I grew to love this character and her adopted father, Matthew, when I did the play version at Flying Dragon.

The Stand by Stephen King - best post-apocalypse story ever.  A great journey that I have reread a few times, it swirls with well-defined characters, exciting events, and a surprisingly spiritual framework.  It's one of those rare books that I never tire of re-reading.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain - we may never have had a better writer in America, and this is best book.  A great journey through Americana, the story of Huck and Jim is one for the ages..

A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith - coming of age in the big city of New York...

The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells - the best work by the writer who began the genre of modern science fiction.

Catcher In The Rye by J. D. Salinger - a more intense, personal coming of age book..

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald - a fabulous story about wealth, class and privilege in the 1920s.

There you have it!  I know!  Many great books and authors missing!  All I can tell you is to be sure to nominate next year.  But this year, to make this work, I really, really, really need your vote.  Please vote here, on Facebook, or in private message.

I intend to keep this open for at least a week, and then on until I get at least ten votes.  You may see this repeated ad nauseum on Facebook, so be prepared! 

Let the voting begin!