You can tell quite a lot about a person...

You can tell quite a lot about a person by the books she is reading or has hopes to read or at least has stacked nearby. As an introduction to Life as Art, here is my current (abbreviated) stack.

From the Top:

1. Ignore Everybody and 39 Other Keys to Creativity by Hugh MacLeod. Far and away one of the more delightful books I have read on creativity-he tells it like it is.

2. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingslover. Learn to grow your own food and buy only local. A good look at the industrial food pipeline.

3. Egyptian Language: Easy Lessons in Egyptian Hieroglyphics by Sir E. A. Wallis Budge. As a lover of symbols and marks I can't resist a good read in hieroglyphics.

4.The Art of Japanese Calligraphy by Yujiro Nakata. Having recently revived my interest in pen and ink drawing I am inspired by this work.

5. The Truth About Organic Gardening, Benefits, Drawbacks and the Bottom line by Jeff Gillman. Mixed reviews on this as he rides the line between organic and chemicals. There's not a line for me-I'm all about organic.

6. The Know-It-All by A.J. Jacobs. As a huge fan of unimaginable, over the top projects, dictionaries and reference books, I couldn't pass up this book where the author reads the Encyclopedia Britannica from A-Z and lives to tell the story.

7. Gardening with Heirloom Seeds by Lynn Coulter. I'll read anything that features "Rat's tail Radishes" and"Zipper Cream Southern Peas" with a dash of "Little Spooky Eggplants".

8.Creative Paint Workshop by Ann Baldwin. Even though our artistic styles are different I love her use of color and texture and innovative techniques with paint. She also has the same name as my mom's best friend-a real qualifier in my book.