Word Out 2010

Department of Meta: 7 Favourite Lists from a Book of Lists

July 7, 2010 | Alan H. | Comments (47)

7 favourite lists from Inventory: 16 Films Featuring Manic Pixie Dream Girls, 10 Great Songs Nearly Ruined by Saxophone, and 100 More Obsessively Specific Pop-Culture Lists:

  1. You Got Your Moog in my Keytar! (10 highly pretentious musical instrument) - pg. 18
  2. Click Here for Severed Face (30 disturbingly specific Internet Movie Database keywords) – pg. 59
  3. Panic at the Arcade (11 videogames that prompted fear and outrage) – pg. 90
  4. Lost In Translation (20 not-so-good-movies based on good books) – pg. 133
  5. So It Goes (15 things Kurt Vonnegut said better than anyone else ever has or will) – pg. 171
  6. Waste of a Good Flight Ring (5 crazy-ass members of the Legion of Super-Heroes) – pg. 179
  7. The McRib Has No Bones! (13 particularly horrible fast-food innovations) – pg. 186



3 reasons I like books of lists:

  1. Individual lists can be quickly read and appreciated in short time spans such as while waiting in line at the store or microwaving canned soup.
  2. The predictable progression of numbers helps to provide an anchor of order in a world of chaos and uncertainty.
  3. Provides inspiration for making my own lists.

A questions about lists you can answer yourself!

  1. List 4 favourite books in a category of your own devising (see example below)

Alan-O-Rama : 4 Books I Like by People Also Named Alan

  1. Watchmen by Alan Moore
  2. Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. (Alan Alexander) Milne
  3. Dictionary of Canadian Place Names by Alan Rayburn
  4. The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner by Alan Sillitoe

4 Alternating True/Untrue Facts About Alan H.

  1. Alan H. is a web librarian at Toronto Public Library
  2. Alan H. is writing his own comic book about the adventures of a heroic librarian and it will be more popular than X-Men + Superman put together
  3. Alan H. reads a lot
  4. Alan H.'s first name is actually Alan*

* However, Alan H. is not a pseudonym, even though this is an untrue fact!

Comments

47 thoughts on “Department of Meta: 7 Favourite Lists from a Book of Lists”

  1. I have this book for my Pop Culture’s class! It’s a really fun and interesting read, so if you are bored, I would recommend a flip-through. Here’s my list!
    Sarah’s Top 5 Lead Male-Interest Roles in my Fav Teen Novels:
    1. Damen from The Immortals Series by Alyson Noel
    2. Jace from The Immortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare
    3. Edward from Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
    4. Patch from Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
    5. Daniel from Fallen by Lauren Kate
    I’m interested in reading other people’s Lists!

  2. Four books detailing unprecedented adventures and their findings
    1. Over the Edge of the World: Magellan’s Terrifying Circumnaviagation of the Globe by Laurence Bergreen
    2. Planet Earth: As You’ve Never Seen It Before by Alastair Fothergill and David Attenborough
    3. Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
    4. Seeds of Terror: How Heroin is Bankrolling the Taliban and al Qaeda by Gretchen Peters

  3. Hi guys,
    Well, this is my list……………
    My top 15 favorite books, that turned into movies.
    1. I, Robot, by Isaac Asimov
    2. The War of the Worlds,by H. G. Wells
    3. The Lord of the Rings,by J.R.R. Tolkien
    4. Howl’s Moving Castle,by Diana Wynne Jones
    5. Castle in the Air, by Diana Wynne Jones
    6. My Sister’s Keeper: A Novel,by Jodi Picoult
    7. The adventures of Oliver Twist. By Charles Dickens
    8. Harry potter, J.K. Rowling ( love all of them)
    9. The Golden Compass ,by Philip Pullman
    10. Holes,by Louis Sachar
    11. The Sword in the Stone,by T. H. White
    12. Charlotte’s Web,by E. B. White
    13. Jumanji,by Chris Van Allsburg
    14. Kiss the Girls,by James Patterson
    15. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants,by Ann Brashares

  4. Oops….. Forgot it should only be 4, my bad….
    There… I shortened it for u all =)
    1. I, Robot, by Isaac Asimov
    2. The War of the Worlds,by H. G. Wells
    3. The Lord of the Rings,by J.R.R. Tolkien
    4. My Sister’s Keeper: A Novel,by Jodi Picoult
    Ummmmm….. I changed my mind for some of them, hope that’ll be all right.

  5. My top four books with the best covers:
    1. The 13th Tale by Diane Setterfield
    2. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer (the one with the ribbon on it)
    3. Graceling by Kristine Cashore (the one with the sword)
    4. Avalon High by Meg Cabot (the one with AH calligraphy)

  6. my top 4 favorite books:
    1. Wizard’s First Rule, by Terry Goodkind (the whole series)
    2. Fallen, by Lauren Kate
    3. The Pretty Little Liars (series), by Sara Shepard
    4. Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

  7. I really liked the Pretty Little Liars series too, did you read the last book? If you did, did you like how the author ended the series?

  8. My Top four Favourite series:
    1. Harry Potter By J.K. Rowling
    2. The Hunger Games By Suzanne Collins
    3. The Gemma Doyle Trilogy By Libba Bray
    4. The Pretty Little Liars By Sara Shepard and The Luxe Series By Anna Godbersen

  9. Top four series that I COMMITTED to reading every single book… and enjoyed every single one:
    1. Harry Potter Series (7)- J.K. Rowling
    2. Jessica Darling Series (5)- Megan McCafferty
    3. House Of Night Novels (7)- P.C. & Kristin Cast
    4. Twilight Series (4)- Stephenie Meyer

  10. OMG, my list is the exact same. Those 4 series are my most favourite. What did u think about the ending for the Gemma Doyle trilogy. I thought it was sad but epic and memorable in its ow way. It definitely suited the series.

  11. 4 favorite fiction novels that are inspiring
    Rose Madder – Steven King
    Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden
    Duma Key – Steven King
    Bag of Bones – Steven King
    ….yes i LOVE steven king, he’s an AMAZING writer who makes the reader hear, feel, smell and see all that they read!
    that is what a true author whould do!!

  12. Top 4 favorite books:
    1)Don’t Judge A Girl By Her Cover
    By: Ally Carter
    2)Lock & Key
    By: Sarah Dessen
    3)The Truth About Forever
    By: Sarah Dessen

  13. Four of my most favorite books:
    1. The Harry Potter Series (All)- J.K Rowling
    2. Olive’s Ocean- Kevin Henkes
    3. Hybrids- David Thorpe
    4. The Alchemist- Paulo Coelho
    I have a lot of other favorites…

  14. My favourite 4 books from A-T 🙂
    -Secret of the Rose
    -Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment
    -Heir Apparen’t
    -Triss

  15. My favorite books + their characters are:
    1) TWILIGHT, ECLIPSE, BREAKING DAWN (Edward)
    (Can’t pick the best cuz they’re all so good!)
    by Stephanie Meyer
    2) NEW MOON (Edward)
    by Stephanie Meyer
    3) PERFECT CHEMISTRY (Brittany)
    by Simone Elkeles
    4) GOTCHA! (Paige)
    by Shelly Hrdlitschka
    5) A KISS IN TIME (Jack)
    by Alex Flinn

  16. Well, what do u know…..
    It looks like Twilight & The Harry Potter series are everyone’s favourite xD
    Well… That wasn’t much of a surprise….
    R u guys excited about Eclipse ,or how about Harry Potter & the deathly hallows ………..

  17. I thought the ending was bittersweet, but I don’t think the author could have ended it as well any other way. Did you like the ending of the Pretty Little Liars series?

  18. MY list of my top 4 favourite books/series
    1) the Vampire Diaries by L.J. Smith (also the TV show)
    2) the Night World series by L.J. Smith
    3) the A-List series by Zoey Dean
    3) the It Girl series by Cecily von Ziegesar
    HOpe you all to try these series!! 😀

  19. My fav books this month are:
    1) A Trip to Europe by Racheal Hawkthorne
    2) A Message in a Bottle by Nicolas Sparks
    3) Summer in the City
    4) The Best Girl 🙂

  20. Harry Potter and the deathly hallows for sure
    i want to know how well they have showed the events.
    The last book has A LOT of details to cover!

  22. my top 5 films that have lived up to the books
    1. Harry Potter
    2. High Fidelity
    3. Fellowship of the Rings
    4. Fight Club
    5. Clueless (a 1990s take on Emma by Jane Austen)
    honorable mention – Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth from 1994 (albeit a mini series) but great none the less.
    Tatted Librarian is Malvern’s youth librarian whose sole purpose, according to her cat, Slayer, is to buy him loads of treats.

  23. umm, i’m actually on Killer, but, OMG it’s sooo good!!!
    can’t wait to read Heartless and Wnated!!! XD

  24. Top Four Books That I Remember Crying/Tearing Up To Because I Was So Emotionally Attached:
    1) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows
    2) The Chronicles of Narnia: The Last Battle
    3) Milkweed
    4) The Time Traveler’s Wife

  25. Hah! I liked that Alan-o-Rama list. Fun stuff xD
    LIST A–Fantasy Books I’d Reread More Than Once
    1. His Dark Materials – Phillip Pullman
    2. Harry Potter – J.K. Rowling
    3. Keys to the Kingdom – Garth Nix
    4. Looking Glass Wars & sequels – Frank Beddor
    LIST B–Series I Couldn’t Stop Reading Because They Were Addictive
    1. Private – Kate Brian
    2. The Clique – Lisi Harrison
    3. Gossip Girl – Cecily von Ziegesar
    LIST C–“Mindlessly Read-into-the-Night” Action-Packed Novels
    1. Angels and Demons – Dan Brown
    2. Uglies Quartet – Scott Westerfeld
    3. Gone series – Michael Grant
    4. Holes – Louis Sachar

  28. Well done! Not many people actually know that “The Lord of the Rings” is one book in three parts and not three books. Very good picks.

  29. My Top 5 Favourite Books / Series, so far:
    1) Uglies Series by Scott Westerfield
    2) Holes by Louis Sachar
    3) Awake and Dreaming by Kit Pearson
    4) Stargirl by Jerry Spenelli
    5) The Pendragon Adventure Series by D.J. MacHale
    What other great books do you recommend? 🙂

  32. Top 4 favourite fantasy/supernatural series:
    1. Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
    2. Maximum Ride by James Patterson
    3. Gone by Michael Grant
    4. The Immortal Instruments

  33. Opps, forgot to add the author for the Mortal Instruments and I put spelt it wrong (was looking at the post above).
    4. The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare*

  34. 4 books I loved that will become movies in 2011
    1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II
    2. It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini
    3. The Giver by Lois Lowery
    4. The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

  36. XD
    the last book was just wow
    so much stuff happened
    and is it just me but is Pendragon comparable to Harry potter
    i thought it was

  37. my top4 books are:
    1)Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment
    2)Shattered
    3)Angels in pink
    4)Harry Potter series

  38. The Maximum ride series is pretty cool, isn’t it? I was looking at the new installment in the series and I think (spoiler here!) that James Patterson has done repeats of stuff…they always seem to be battling rich and foreign villans…however, it seems he’s introducing a more serious moral this time.
    Still waiting for conclusion of this series. What do you think?

  39. Here’s four thought-provoking and amazing books (in no particular order):
    1. “My Name is Asher Lev” by Chaim Potok
    2. “Blindness” by José Saramago
    3. “Le Petit Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
    4. “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding
    Plus “My Name is Asher Lev” is my favourite book of all time so far. It’s so beautiful!

  40. 4 Epic Books/Grpahic Novels by Canadians
    1. “HaveMercy” by Jaida Jones & Danielle Bennett (Dani = Canuck)
    2. “Scott Pilgrim” volumes 1-5 by Bryan Lee O’Malley
    3. “Silverwing” by Kenneth Opal
    4. “For the Win” by Cory Doctorow (Haven’t read yet, but the summary sounds awesome)

  41. Four books/series that I wish I’d known about along time ago =)
    1. The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
    2. Shiver – Maggie Stiefvater
    3. The Gemma Doyle Trilogy – Libba Bray
    4. The Darkest Powers Series (The Reckoning was my favourite) – Kelley Armstrong

  42. My top favourite…MANGA!! All the way!
    it was hard to pick (trust me)
    1) Absolute Boyfriend by Yuu Watase
    2) Special A by Maki Minami
    3) Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya
    4) Lovely Complex by Aya Nakahara

  43. 4 books that have a “WOW” ending
    – Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
    – Acceleration by Graham McNamee
    – Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry
    – Awake and Dreaming by Kit Pearson

  44. I really enjoyed some of the lists, I liked the musical instruments and the internet database one. I came up with my own list
    Top 3 Books I read and ABSOLUTELY HATED
    1. Fifth Buisness by Robertson Davies
    2. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
    3. Brave New World by Huxley
    I’m halfway through Inventory and loving it.

  45. Haha.. I love the Alan-O-Rama List xDD
    Top 10 Books I Have Claimed I Loved (But which I soon forgot about, but claimed I still loved them out of habit -.-)
    1) No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman
    2) Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
    3) Storm Cycle by Iris Johansen
    4) Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
    5) City of Bones By Cassandra Clare
    6) Evermore by Alyson Noel
    7) Briar Rose by Jane Yolen
    8) Airborn by Kenneth Oppel
    9) Macbeth by William Shakesphere
    10) The Host by Stephanie Meyer
    *sigh* This is all I can remember from the top of my head 😀

  46. List of Book Characters That Were Claimed Perfect By The Authors (Perfectly annoying T.T)
    1) Edward Cullen
    2) Jace Wayland (Lightwood, Herondale??)
    3) Damen Auguste
    List of Books I Hated:
    1) Set in Stone by Linda Newbery
    2) Blue Bloods by Melissa De La cruz
    3) Exlipse by Stephanie Meyer

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