Like most of us here reading is my favorite thing. That means there are books I've loved for many years, the ones that make me happy without even opening them, that I've read again and again.

For me, these books generally cover two categories: those that create wonder at the beauty in the world (including the beauty of the words), and those that inspire adventure, either travel or inner adventures/explorations.

Here are some of my favorites, in no particular order:

- West With the Night (illustrated edition), Beryl Markham
- My Journey to Lhasa, Alexandra David-Neel
- Arabian Sands, Wilfred Thesiger
- Letters from Egypt, Florence Nightingale
- Where Gravity Fails, George Alec Effinger
- Dune, Frank Herbert
- The Hounds of Morrigan, Pat O'Shea
- Beauty, John O'Donohue
- Women Who Run With the Wolves, Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes
- If Women Rose Rooted, Sharon Blackie
- The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron
- The Last Unicorn, Peter S. Beagle
- The Forgotten Beasts of Eld, Patricia A. McKillip
- The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett

Do you have books that make you smile just to see them on your shelf, an old friend that's helped define who you are? I'd love to read about yours.