STAFF PICKS - Our Desert Island Selections

Dee

These are books that will make you think, laugh, cry and keep you on the edge of your seats. If I could I would take all of Dorothea Benton Frank and Nancy Thayer with me. I hope you will check some of these out and have a great summer.

1. My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
2. Shem Creek by Dorthea Benton Frank
3. The Saving Graces by Patricia Gaffney
4. The Millionaires by Brad Meltzer
5. The Bone Garden by Tess Gerritsen
6. The Hot Flash Club by Nancy Thayer
7. Until the Real Thing Comes Along by Elizabeth Berg
8. Small Town Girl by Lavyrle Spencer
9. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
10. The Winner by David Baldacci

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Michelyn

Yes, most of my desert island picks are romances. Because, honestly if I'm trapped on a desert island...I can't really imagine anything more escapist that I would want to read. These 10 books are all my go-to-books that I pick up and read and re-read at anytime.

1. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
2. Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
3. Son of the Morning by Linda Howard
4. Loving Evangeline by Linda Howard
5. Bridget Jones' Diary by Helen Fielding
6. Lover Eternal by JR Ward
7. Persuasion by Jane Austen
8. Kiss an Angel by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
9. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
10. Patty Jane's House of Curl by Lorna Landvik

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Amber

Glancing at my picks, you’d think I might want to be trapped on a deserted island, or anywhere exotic. Different places, different times; I was born with gypsy in my blood and books are the easiest way to travel. These are in order mostly as they popped into my head.

1. The Old Man and The Sea  Ernest Hemingway
2. Chronicles: Volume One  Bob Dylan
3. On The Road  Jack Kerouac
4. Lolita  Vladimir Nabokov
5. Death Comes for the Archbishop  Willa Cather
6. Life of Pi  Yann Martel
7. An American Tragedy  Theodore Dreiser
8. Heart of Darkness  Joseph Conrad
9. Under the Volcano  Malcolm Lowery
10. Kim Rudyard Kipling

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Judy

Each of the books I have chosen to entertain, inspire and comfort me while stranded on a deserted island has done so for me in the past. It was difficult to narrow it down to 10...if I hadn't brought along so many clothes, I would have packed more.

1. The Secret Garden by Frances Burnett
2. Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
3. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
4. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
5. The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy
6. Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert Massie
7. The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir
8. The Woman He Loved by Ralph Martin
9. On the Beach by Nevil Shute
10. The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone

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Lori

If I were stranded on a desert island, I would have to take those books that I revisit whenever I'm stressed out and in need of a quick escape...

1. Stardust of Yesterday by Lynn Kurland - This is a classic fairy-tale for grown-ups!
2. Inca Gold by Clive Cussler - One of the most fantastically contrived escapes ever...just what I would want to escape my island...
3. Kiss an Angel by Susan Elizabeth Phillips - This one is super sweet and always makes me cry.
4. Shades of Twilight by Linda Howard - A book set in Alabama, just in case I get homesick!
5. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon - A great book to immerse yourself in and dream of other times.
6. Blue Skies by Catherine Anderson - I love the family in this book and the attention to detail.
7. Out of Control by Suzanne Brockmann - I love the characters you meet in this book!
8. The Duke and I by Julia Quinn - This book is always great for a few laughs and a few sighs...
9. Heartbreaker by Julie Garwood - A spine-tingling read, with a little light romance...
10. The Immortal Highlander by Karen Marie Moning - I love these characters!

*I would love to be able to take everything by all of these authors!

Katie

A little note about my picks: if you are looking for a list of books that expand the mind and make you think, then this isn’t the list for you.  If I’m stuck on a desert island, then I want to have some great books to take my mind off of my plight.

1. Sarah’s Child by Linda Howard (she is from Gadsden, AL)-Not exactly upping the ante intellectually, but it is a great story packed with a little bit of tragedy, alpha masculinity and just a great romantic story.  I have probably re-read this book at least 100 times.
2. Beach Music by Pat Conroy -Pat Conroy is a great southern author who is capable of highlighting the beauty and flaws of the region. 
3. Lover Awakened by J.R. Ward - The love story is hot and the plot is quick - great book to read when whiling away your time on an island.
4. Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris-His brother, Rooster, is an outrageous riot and whose outlook on life is nothing if not unique.  Don’t miss “Rooster at the Hitchin’ Post.”
5. Dairy Queen by Catherine Murdock - This is a Young Adult novel, but it is one of the most heartwarming books you will read. 
6. Shades of Twilight by Linda Howard - I read this book about 12 years ago and it was my first Howard novel and I continue to re-read it periodically.
7. Harry Potter and the…(fill in the blank here); books 1-7- Considering you must read all the books to find out what happens, I have decided to only count it as one.
8. Corbin’s Fancy by Linda Lael Miller-This is a light-hearted book that features the classic clash of a hard-headed woman and hard-headed man.
9. Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer-This Young Adult apocalyptic thriller will surely take your mind off of your desolate desert island.
10. Once in Paris by Diana Palmer - I own all of her books (well over 100 and counting) and this is probably favorite.  It’s on my re-reading shelf.