From the Writing Fix.com:
"You're going to be intentionally stranded on an island for a year. What five books do you bring or what five songs do you bring (assume you can play them on something!!!)?"
If I weren't concerned about weight considerations, I'd start by selecting some thicker books from our shelves, both for entertainment and education.
First, I'd choose The Complete Works of William Shakespeare because I've often wanted to read more of his plays. This choice would also be helpful if I were traveling with other people. What better entertainment than reading, or even performing, some Shakespearean plays together?
Next into the luggage would be the Anthology of American Literature, Volume II. I acquired this heavy 2377 page volume for a literature class in college. I've only read a handful of the pieces, so I'm sure the rest could keep me busy for a few months. Also, given the high quality of writing, which includes poetry by Robert Frost and T. S. Eliot and stories by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Amy Tan, it wouldn't be boring to re-read the same writing again, if I somehow managed to finish the whole book.
To keep my technical skills sharp, I'd pack a text book of some sort. A couple years ago, I purchased High-Speed Digital Design by Howard Johnson and Martin Graham, but I've only read the first few chapters, and it's still waiting to be finished. Another possibility would be a thick book on Perl or Verilog. Or perhaps I'd decide on a refresher course and take one of my battered college text books along. If I needed survival skills on the island, I'd change this selection to something more appropriate.
Read and Write Chinese by Rita Mei-Wah Choy would go into the bag next. One of my neglected hobbies is learning foreign languages, and I've collected a handful of Chinese language books. However, since I spend most of my time on electrical engineering, writing, and looking after our household, my language hobby rarely gets attention. The Teach Yourself Swedish book would be a close runner-up, especially if I were planning to visit my friend in Uppsala after the year on the island, but the Chinese book would probably be a better choice because of the intellectual challenge, especially with writing. Even if I didn't have any paper, I could practice character writing using beach sand.
Finally, I'd pack a thick notebook of blank paper - and an extra pack of paper if I were allowed. Then I could write my own book. Leave with four books, come back with five!
If the trip required packing light, I'd trade the thick Shakespeare for Homer's Odyssey, which seems like an appropriate reading choice when you're stuck on an island in the middle of nowhere. I've read it twice already but still love it. I'd make sure the technical text book was not something that was too bulky, but I'd still make room for the literature anthology, the Chinese book and the notebook.
It would also probably be a good idea to take a fountain pen with a couple spare bottles of ink, since trips to the corner store to replace a dead pen would be out of the question.
by Christy Devonport