The Book That Changed My Life Seeks to Change the Lives of Many

A year and a half ago, Roxanne Coady set out to brainstorm ideas for celebrating the 15th anniversary of her bookstore, R.J. Julia Booksellers, in Madison, Connecticut. No mere birthday cake would do; instead, she came up with an idea for a book: The Book That Changed My Life: Discover the Must-Read Books That Transformed 71 Remarkable Authors.

Coady joined creative forces with co-editor Joy Johannessen and publisher William Shinker of Gotham Books to produce a volume filled with the musings of 71 contributors: authors (such as Elizabeth Berg, Frank McCourt, and Harold Bloom), poets (including Billy Collins and Jack Prelutsky), plus chef Jacques Pepin, Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman, Publishers Weekly editor-in-chief Sara Nelson, and many more.

The list of books deemed life-changing is just as varied and interesting as the roster of contributors. It's fascinating, too, to get a peek at the early life -- or inner life -- of so many household names, whose own gift for language shines through their reminiscences about their literary turning points.

For example, Frank McCourt said of his first experience reading Shakespeare (Henry VIII), "It's like having jewels in my mouth when I say the words," and Lisa Scottoline said of McCourt's Angela's Ashes, "It will break your heart and put it back together again, but better."

In a more exclamatory entry, Laura Numeroff declared that Eloise helped her realize that she "was rawther mad about creative writing and wanted to become an author just like Mrs. [Kay] Thompson, for Lord's sake!" And Michael Stern, who with his wife Jane Stern is most recently known for Roadfood, declared that the Sears Catalogue "is 20th-century America's ideal image of itself."

Of the breadth of The Book That Changed My Life, Coady noted, "It's pretty extraordinary that 71 very busy writers donated their time and work. I loved the diversity of the choices -- that's what I found very compelling."

Also appealing to her is the way in which the book serves as testament to the power and value of reading: "The book takes a view to bookselling that is about the non-precious part of reading ... by talking about what a book does for you. Are you learning, entertained, transformed, enlightened about other people's lives? Do you develop compassion? Those qualities are what attract many of us to reading, and I feel that when I read these essays."

Also key for Coady: profits from The Book That Changed My Life go to Read to Grow, the nonprofit organization she founded after a conversation that altered her own worldview.

It's been 10 years, but Coady still remembers how surprised and disturbed she felt after talking with a pediatrician from a clinic in nearby New Haven, Connecticut. The doctor approached Coady about doing a book drive, she recalled, and "we collected 12,000 books -- enough to fill two school buses. When the pediatrician came to thank me, she said, 'You can't believe what the face of an nine-year-old looks like when they get to keep their first book.'"

Coady, taken aback at the thought of a nine-year-old child never having owned a single book, was inspired to launch the non-profit organization. In its early years, Read to Grow gave a book to every baby born at Yale New Haven Hospital. Today, it delivers books to 45 percent of the babies born in Connecticut.

The group's initial funding came from author luncheons held at R.J. Julia (the very first one, where Peter Jennings spoke about his book, raised $35,000). Then a bank became a founding sponsor, and Read to Grow became a $1 million endeavor -- complete with an office, staff, warehouse, van, and 100 volunteers.

Although Read to Grow and R.J. Julia are entirely separate enterprises, Coady said, "It's so inextricably linked, this and being a bookseller.... I think that when you work in a bookstore and wait on customers, you accretively understand the impact of books on people's lives. Even if you know it for yourself, I don't think you quite grasp it until you're a bookseller."

Coady said she thinks she is far from alone in her dual role as business-owner and philanthropist. "One of the things about the community of bookselling that's compelling is that most booksellers are straddling some sort of nonprofit objective. They are passionate about what they do, while trying to be profitable. I do think an astonishing number of stores in the country are doing all sorts of grassroots things like this."

She explained, "Bookstores are at the leading edge of being philanthropic with their stores, their time, and their whole ethos. I don't know that we are unique that way [as individual business-owners], but collectively we are somewhat unique. I've been struck during my years in the book industry at the extent to which that's done."

After a The Book That Changed My Life launch party at R.J. Julia (for which C-SPAN is on the guest-list) on October 18, Coady will embark on a book tour, including visits to independent bookstores and libraries, radio stations, and the Today Show. She said she is "happy to go to any bookstore that's keen on doing" an event, and noted that she is trying to partner with authors in the communities she visits.

As for marketing ideas, Coady said, "What I picture happening is that booksellers will pick their favorite authors or titles from the book and bundle it, sell it with other books. I could also imagine bookstores having author luncheons. We did that at R.J. Julia when the New York Times came out with its list of top fiction; we held roundtables and asked participants about their favorite fiction. Stores could hold luncheons with customers about the books that changed their lives."

In fact, she said, roundtable events have been among R.J. Julia's most successful: "I've had the most fun with our customers at these events ... they get people excited about reading."

The Book That Changed My Life certainly promotes literary enthusiasm -- bibliophiles should take note that, after finishing this engaging essay collection, their Must-Read lists will be even longer, their bedside-table book-stacks even higher. -- Linda M. Castellitto