As a result of their passion for reading, artist Jane Mount and writer Thessaly La Force asked 100+ creative people to assemble their ideal “bookshelves.” This select group represented a variety of disciplines, and many of them cited reading as a gateway to their creative pursuits. My Ideal Bookshelf will inspire you, help you find new books to read, and make you think about your own ideal bookshelf. Included is a template that allows you to create your own bookshelf.
Bookshelf of Nancy Pearl, librarian
Bookshelf of Candy Chang, artist + urban planner
Ask your children to assemble their bookshelves (and illustrate the book spines too). The following prompts (taken from the book’s cover illustration) will get them thinking:
The Best Book I Ever Read
The Book I Read Again and Again
The Book That Makes Me Cry Every Time
The Book I Love the Most
A Book That Changed My Life
The Book That Makes Me Who I Am
My Favorite Book
They could also assemble bookshelves for historical figures or fictional characters. For example, what book might Harry Potter love most?
