Folkbum has challenged me with a book meme. Since he offered me his endorsement today, I feel obliged to offer mine up.

Number of books in my collection: Tough to say, but I'd say around 100. I sold a lot when I moved to DC after college.

Last book bought: I honestly don't remember, but I recently received Seymour Hersh's Chain of Command as a gift.

Last book read: The Jerusalem Syndrome: My Life as a Reluctant Messiah by Marc Maron.

Five books that mean a lot to me:

1. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. It seems people either love or hate this book. I read it back in my junior high days at Waukesha Central, and couldn't put it down.
2. A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn. There's so much information in this book. It took me a lot of time to get through, but reading it opens your eyes to historical events too often ignored by historians and politicians.
3. Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. I had to add these books, because they are just amazing. If you've only seen the movies, you're missing out on one of the best fantasies ever put down on paper.
4. The Collected Tales and Poems of Edgar Allen Poe. Another famous author who I learned to appreciate back in junior high. All his short stories and poems are packed into this book which makes it a great read at any time.
5. Utilitarianism and other Writings by John Stuart Mill. I couldn't let this list be without one of favorite political theory books from college. In On Liberty, Mill speaks of the idea of "negative freedom" and that government should remove barriers on behavior that does not negatively impact the lives of others. In Utilitarianism, Mill advances Jeremy Bentham's theory that in a nutshell promotes "the greatest happiness for the greatest number."

I'll now buck this little exercise over to Craig, Jason, Carlos, and Jeremy.