Welcome to Tash & Jim's Favorite Books
Take home any title that you like
Natasha's Favorite Titles
In alphabetical order by author
Austen, Jane
Pride and Prejudice
Natasha is usually more organized than Jim and can keep track of all the characters in Pride and Prejudice while Jim cannot. Hence, Natasha loves this novel and Jim is inclined to leave it on the shelf. Though Jim and Natasha do not appreciate this classic in the same way, they do agree that the ever-poised Yi Zhang belongs in this book as a proper distant relative visiting from China.
Buck, Pearl S.
The Good Earth
Natasha is actually just as intrigued by the disappearance of the original manuscript of this book as she is by the work itself. After being displayed in a museum in New York, the text went missing in the 1950s until 2007 when the FBI finally tracked it down. Historical fiction turning into a real-life crime mystery! That's something Natasha can get excited about.
de Saint-Exupéry, Antoine
The Little Prince
Natasha loves this story's creative viewpoint and would make only one edit. The famous line: "One sees clearly only with the heart" should really be amended to "One sees clearly only with the heart (and potentially a slice of pizza and/or a bag of Cheetos)."
Dumas, Alexandre
The Count of Monte Cristo
One of the first great novels Natasha ever read, The Count of Monte Cristo inspired Natasha to seek justice in the world (see the wedding site to make an optional donation to The Innocence Project). Beware: if Natasha were falsely accused of treason today, her wedding day, like Edmond Dantes, she would definitely plot her revenge while behind bars as well.
Eliot, TS
Murder in the Cathedral
If Natasha were to name her worst vice, it would be wrath. Anger aside, however, the questioning of authority runs in Natasha's blood. Villacortas (and Estebans) do not get pushed around.
Eliot, TS
The Waste Land And Other Poems
Natasha has had to schedule Jim's tax appointment with H&R Block every year for the last nine years. For this reason she fully agrees with TS Eliot: "April is the cruelest month."
Golden, Arthur
Memoirs of a Geisha
Natasha decided to complete the reverse commute described in this book and left New York City for a trip to Kyoto, Japan last summer with her mother, Merle, her niece, Ella, and Jim. It rained the entire time there but the group enjoyed Kaiseki, visited the Arashiyama, and laughed at Jim's inability to maneuver around a very tiny Air BnB.
Graves, Robert
I, Claudius
Spying, deception, the double-cross, and the Roman Empire? - the makings of any good literature or film. Before the series Rome was released in 2005, Natasha was obsessed with this classic in historical fiction. Interestingly, Natasha has had only one instance of deja vu in her life and it happened on Palatine Hill. She thinks she might have lived a prior life in the time of Claudius.
Herbert, Frank
Dune
In the world of Dune, "the spice" gives life and abundant mental abilities. Any type of salty snack or fried chicken does the same for Natasha.
Keegan, John
The Face of Battle
As Natasha's great-grandfather was Major General Paulino Santos, the Commanding Officer of the Philippine Army in 1936, she has always taken an interest in the tactics of battle. This worries Jim a little bit as he knows his partner is persistent in drawing up intricate plans like those presented by John Keegan.
Kundera, Milan
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
A heavy book for sure. If Natasha were to modernize this text, she'd probably recast the film using characters from Pixar's Inside Out. Tereza = Natasha (Sadness, Disgust, Anger); Jim = Franz (Joy and Fear).
Machiavelli, Niccolò
The Prince
A political science major, Natasha loves studying the rise and fall of power. She would like to amend Machiavelli's tome, however, by noting that the "ends justify the means" mostly when trying to order Chick-fil-A at rush hour.
Macrone, Michael
Brush Up Your Poetry!
Jim will say he knows more poetry than Natasha but that is blatantly false. Natasha herself favors breadth over depth and she has it in spades with handy books like this one from Michael Macrone. It's just a great overview of some of the master works.
McCannn, Colum
Let The Great World Spin
So many plots, so many twists and turns, all coming together. Natasha loves a seemingly disconnected story that meshes in the end.
Morrison, Toni
Beloved
The big question: Is Beloved a real person or ghost? Natasha's money is on ghost.
O'Neill, Eugene
Mourning Becomes Electra
Natasha cannot resist a good, modern retelling of a Greek classic. This play is technically not "modern" as it debuted in 1931, but Natasha would argue that it is timeless. Incidentally, this work is also the most frequently referenced play in her favorite sitcom, Frasier.
Orwell, George
Animal Farm
Natasha gave this book a re-read after visiting Jim's Uncle Andy and Aunt Tanya's pig farm. It was pretty humorous for her to picture the real life pigs staging a rebellion - they seemed pretty content to just hang out in the shade (something Natasha enjoys doing as well).
Shakespeare, William
King Lear
What is Natasha's favorite verse in all of Shakespeare? Well, it's Cornwall's exclamation: "Out, vile jelly! Where is thy lustre now?" as he scrapes out Gloucester's second eye. Jim finds Natasha's love of this line extremely creepy and unsettling. Jim's concerns aside, Natasha and Jim made it a point to see John Lithgow portray King Lear at Shakespeare in the Park in 2014 (thanks to tickets from Poly and Carla).
Tolkein, J.R.R.
The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings
Beyond making Jim read the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Natasha made sure to bring him to each of the movie releases. He fell asleep during pretty much every film but Natasha thoroughly enjoyed them.
Watterson, Bill
The Indispensable Calvin and Hobbes: A Calvin and Hobbes Treasury
As a freshman at Wellesley, Natasha employed her usual screening question to find new friends: "So what's your favorite comic?" Only one individual, the immutable Saadia Qazi, answered Calvin and Hobbes, and a lasting friendship was formed.
White, E.B.
Charlotte's Web
Natasha loves (well-behaved) children so it's only appropriate she includes the number one selling children's book of all time on her list. This book always reminds Natasha of her three beautiful nieces.
White, E.B.
Elements of Style
A favorite of both Natasha and her father, Natasha keeps a copy of this writing guide close by. Though Jim was an English minor, Natasha still frequently acts as both partner and editor to him.
White, E.B.
Here is New York
New York City has long been important to the Villacorta family (Natasha's Tita Becky and Tita Lou were even regulars at Studio 54 back in the day!). E.B. White writes: "[T]here is the New York of the person who was born somewhere else and came to New York in quest of something.." Technically, Natasha came to New York for a job, but Jim was a really nice find.
Wiesel, Elie
Night
Before she even met Jim, Natasha came across a commencement speech Wiesel gave at Dartmouth College in 2006, which sounded to her as if it were written by her father Rolando: "I have learned that learning is a passion that must not diminish with years. That applies to memory as well. It needs to be shared, lest it remains stifled, icy, silent."
Wodehouse, P.G.
Carry On, Jeeves
Before his name was hijacked as a search engine in the dotcom era, Jeeves was respectable valet and occasional butler. Natasha prefers to remember him as P.G Wodehouse intended.
Jim's Favorite Titles
In alphabetical order by author
Albom, Mitch
Tuesdays With Morrie
The ultimate story of learning from those who have been there before. Jim thinks about this book often as he remembers Professor Joel Levine at Dartmouth College advising him to pursue business instead of law (a wise and fateful suggestion as the decision led him to meeting Natasha).
Bradbury, Ray
The Stories of Ray Bradbury
Bradbury is the groom's favorite author and Jim actually visited Bradbury's special collection in Waukegan, IL while working in Chicago in 2015. Fun fact: Jim and his father's New Year's Day tradition is watching Twilight Zone marathons. Bradbury happened to be Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling's idol and even wrote one episode for the series, "I Sing The Body Electric" (Season 3, Episode 35).
Burgess, Thornton
Old Mother West Wind
Jim's grandmother, Phyllis Hahn, loved these stories so much she kept an original, dog-eared copy of Old Mother West Wind for his mother to share with his sisters and him. Burgess references a convent in one particular fable which would later become Jim's family parish in the small town of Jeffersonville, NY.
Chomsky, Noam
Who Rules the World?
A polarizing book for many but a great read for those traveling in former US territories. Jim read it while traveling around East Asia with Natasha in 2018.
Christie, Agatha
And Then There Were None
The only book to make both Jim and Natasha's all-time favorite book lists. This particular hardcover was a special order!
Dweck, Carol
The Mindset
One of the few psychology texts on this list, Jim first read this book in college while looking for a little inspiration around exam time. He happened to leave it at his parent's house where his sister Kristin found it, read it, and subsequently landed her first job.
Franklin, Ben
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin
No reading list would be complete in Jim's mind without Ben Franklin - the ultimate renaissance man. Franklin was a scholar, inventor, statesman…the list goes on…and the man's accomplishments represent a range of life pursuits that Jim will try to emulate (he's just focused on being a good husband at the moment).
Frost, Robert
Selected Poems of Robert Frost
While "Mending Wall" should spur deep contemplation (especially if you find the YouTube recording of Robert Frost reading it), the poem instead brings Jim back to that boulder boundary in his grandparents' enormous backyard. Within the yard, once used as a pen for horses, the cousins (Jackie, Jim, Kristin, Derek, Ashley, Bryan, Mike, Chris, Tim, and Kevin) would attach a chain of sleds to the backs of ATVs and attempt to stay upright for as long as possible as they were hauled around in a circular path. This activity usually ended in tears but it was always great fun.
Hall, Donald
A Carnival of Losses: Notes Nearing Ninety
Donald Hall was a national treasure - the 14th Nobel Laureate of the United States in fact - and a resident of a small town not far from Jim's alma mater in New Hampshire. Jim first read A Carnival of Losses while in business school and Hall's loving vignettes of his wife Jane Kenyon instantly reminded Jim of his grandfather, Eugene Hahn, and the amazing connection he and his wife Phyllis enjoyed throughout their lives.
Hemingway, Earnest
The Short Stories of Earnest Hemingway
Jim, the Brothers Danford (Nick and Jeff), and Andrew Dete (when not in Ibiza) have always been intrigued by finding redemption in nature. They have even traveled to Yellowstone National Park together twice (once in search of bears and the other time in search of wolves) to capture a small piece of the outdoor adventure depicted in Hemingway's stories. Dete unfortunately could not attend either trip (probably because he was in Ibiza).
Jackson, Shirley
The Lottery and Other Short Stories
Jim has always been captivated by Jackson's horror work, of course (The Haunting of Hill House, The Lottery, etc), but Jim's favorite short story is actually one of Jackson's short humorous pieces, "Charles."
Kennedy, John F.
Profiles in Courage
Questions about JFK's true authorship of this book aside, the heroism of Edmund Ross (a hero you probably never heard of) has been one that Jim and his father have talked about since Jim was a teenager.
Lahiri, Jhumpa
The Namesake
If Jim's late great-aunt Mary Shymansky were to write a book, this would be it. Though she never had children of her own, she instilled in the three Guba children the same appreciation of family, heritage, and unwavering loyalty to loved ones found in the pages of this novel.
L'Engle, Madeleine
A Wrinkle In Time
Somewhere in the Peter and Susan Guba household sits a VHS Wrinkle video book report from circa 1996 featuring Jim as a narrator, his older sister Jackie as Meg, and younger sister Kristin assuming the role of L'Engle's Charles Wallace. Kristin forgot pretty much all her lines except, surprisingly, a rough definition of the "tesseract." Kristin responds to every question in the video, regardless of context, with: "It's traveling by space!"
Lewis, Michael
Moneyball
The book that started it all for Jim and sports analytics. 15 years after reading it, Jim was trying to make sense of numbers and sports for the Phoenix Suns.
Mamet, David
Glengarry Glen Ross
Natasha calls Jim "a boy scout" because he always wants to follow the rules. Well, Jim's getting a little "wild" here with the selection of this (sometimes) vulgar play about sleazy real estate salesmen. Natasha and Jim were fortunate enough to catch Al Pacino playing 'ol Shelley on Broadway in 2012 (20 years after he played the young and vibrant Ricky Roma in the film adaptation).
Morgan, C.E.
The Sport of Kings
Though Natasha doesn't share Jim's love of horse racing, she indulges him from time to time. Natasha gave this book to Jim a few years ago and he read it in 3 days. Natasha hasn't read it yet but she does finally know what a $2 Exacta is. Or does she?
O'Connor, Flannery
The Complete Stories
Jim and Natasha both love traveling in the South (mostly for the fried food and whiskey). Jim's love of the short story and the South come together in this Catholic writer's grotesque tales.
O'Connor, Frank
The Best of Frank O'Connor
Perhaps due to his love of watching professional sports drafts, Jim is a big fan of overlooked talent. O'Connor will always unfortunately sit in the shadow of his fellow countryman W.B. Yeats, but O'Connor's "First Confession" remains one of the funniest short stories Jim has ever read.
Rawls, Wilson
Where the Red Fern Grows
Jim's family has raised two litters of puppies (collies and Cavalier King Charles spaniels). Thus, it's only natural that every member of the Guba family has read this classic about a boy and his dogs.
Sacks, Oliver
Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain
Jim did not inherit his parents' talent for musical performance. (His former piano teacher, Karen Amedio (in attendance today), may not openly agree with this statement but keep in mind she's very nice). Jim also played the French horn throughout high school and benefited from the fact that there was little competition in the wind ensemble for this instrument. In any case, Jim loves reading about music and this book is one of his favorite music/science titles.
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Shakespeare, William
Titus Andronicus
A relic from Jim's mediocre Shakespeare competition past. He thought he was going to finally grab the coveted Shaker High School championship his senior of high school but mistakenly switched in the word "corn" for "barns" in Aaron's speech in Act 1: "Ay, that I had not done a thousand more…" Second place three years in a row - a tragedy.
Warren, Robert Penn
All the King's Men
Jim's all-time favorite book. His wifi network at his house is even called "Jack Burden" after the bookish student of history in the novel. Jim still frequently refers to the famous line spoken by Willie Stark in Chapter 6: "[Y]ou have to make the good out of the bad because that is all you have to make it out of."
Williams, Tennessee
The Glass Menagerie
While Jim likes to think of himself as much more self-aware than the Jim in this legendary Tennessee Williams play, Menagerie Jim's superfluous line "Well, well, well, well. Look how big my shadow is when I stretch!" always cracked real Jim up . The character Tom also spends a lot of time at the movies which is significant because that is also Natasha and Jim's typical date-night activity.
Wooden, John
Wooden
Jim's business school friends are probably tired of hearing his favorite Coach Wooden phrase: "We start on time we end on time." In truth, Jim is coming around to Natasha's mantra: "Let's start an hour or two later..."