News: Author Michael Crichton dies at 66.

I was shocked less than an hour ago to hear that author Michael Crichton had died at the age of 66 after battling cancer. At such a young age, it is sad to hear of such an amazing writer’s life ending. I can only think what we as readers could be missing out on in the future.

Crichton was a talented writer and individual who accomplished so much in his life. He was an author, film producer, film director, medical doctor and television producer of well known science fiction and thriller stories, films and TV shows.

Some of his most well known works are The Andromeda Strain, Congo, Disclosure, Timeline, State of Fear, Prey, Jurrasic Park, and Next. He created the popular televisions show ER, currently in it’s 15th and final season.

Many of his books went on to become major motion pictures, including: Jurassic Park, The Lost World, Coma, Congo, Disclosure, Sphere, and Timeline.

Crichton has won many awards in his time, including but not limited to: Edgar Allan Poe Award, an Emmy, a Peabody, a Writers Guild of America, and was listed in People’s Most Beautiful People list in 1992.

The world of readers will surely miss him.

USA Today’s Top Selling Books – meme

So here’s the deal: bold what you’ve read, italicize what you own, star books on your TBR list*!

1 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – J.K. Rowling
2 Dr. Atkins’ New Diet Revolution – Robert C. Atkins
3 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown
4 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – J.K. Rowling *
5 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – J.K. Rowling *
6 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J.K. Rowling *
7 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – J.K. Rowling,
8 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – J.K. Rowling
9 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J.K. Rowling
10 Who Moved My Cheese? – Spencer Johnson
11 The South Beach Diet – Arthur Agatston
12 Tuesdays With Morrie – Mitch Albom *
13 Angels & Demons – Dan Brown
14 What to Expect When You’re Expecting – Heidi Murkoff, Arlene Eisenberg, Sandee Hathaway
15 The Purpose-Driven Life – Rick Warren
16 The Five People You Meet in Heaven – Mitch Albom
17 The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Stephen R. Covey
18 The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
19 Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus – John Gray *
20 The Secret – Rhonda Byrne
21 Rich Dad, Poor Dad – Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter
22 To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
23 Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff … And It’s All Small Stuff – Richard Carlson
24 The Secret Life of Bees – Sue Monk Kidd *
25 Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert
26 Twilight – Stephenie Meyer
27 The Notebook – Nicholas Sparks *
28 The Memory Keeper’s Daughter – Kim Edwards
29 The Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger *
30 Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden *
31 A New Earth – Eckhart Tolle
32 Oh, the Places You’ll Go! – Dr. Seuss
33 The Four Agreements – Don Miguel Ruiz
34 Angela’s Ashes – Frank McCourt
35 The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold
36 Body-for-Life – Bill Phillips, Michael D’Orso
37 New Moon – Stephenie Meyer
38 Night – Elie Wiesel, translations by Marion Wiesel and Stella Rodway
39 Chicken Soup for the Soul – Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen
40 The Greatest Generation – Tom Brokaw
41 Breaking Dawn – Stephenie Meyer
42 The Celestine Prophecy – James Redfield
43 Wicked – Gregory Maguire
44 Good to Great – Jim Collins
45 Eclipse – Stephenie Meyer
46 Eragon – Christopher Paolini
47 Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood – Rebecca Wells *
48 Your Best Life Now – Joel Osteen
49 In the Kitchen With Rosie – Rosie Daley
50 Simple Abundance – Sarah Ban Breathnach
51 A Child Called It – Dave Pelzer
52 A Million Little Pieces – James Frey
53 The Testament – John Grisham *
54 Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul – Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Kimberly Kirberger
55 Deception Point – Dan Brown *
56 The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho
57 Marley & Me – John Grogan
58 Dr. Atkins’ New Carbohydrate Gram Counter – Robert C. Atkins
59 Life of Pi – Yann Martel *
60 The Brethren – John Grisham *
61 The South Beach Diet Good Fats Good Carbs Guide – Arthur Agatston
62 The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town – John Grisham *
63 For One More Day – Mitch Albom
64 The Polar Express – Chris Van Allsburg
65 The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald
66 The Last Lecture – Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow
67 What to Expect the First Year – Arlene Eisenberg, Heidi Murkoff, Sandee Hathaway
68 Love You Forever – Robert Munsch, art by Sheila McGraw
69 Green Eggs and Ham – Dr. Seuss
70 A Painted House – John Grisham *
71 The Rainmaker – John Grisham *
72 Skipping Christmas – John Grisham *
73 Cold Mountain – Charles Frazier *
74 The Curious Incident of the Dog In the Night-Time – Mark Haddon
75 Life Strategies – Phillip C. McGraw
76 Seabiscuit: An American Legend – Laura Hillenbrand
77 The Summons – John Grisham *
78 Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil – John Berendt
79 The Hobbit – J.R.R. Tolkien *
80 The Runaway Jury – John Grisham *
81 Goodnight Moon Board Book – Margaret Wise Brown, art by Clement Hurd
82 The Perfect Storm – Sebastian Junger
83 Snow Falling on Cedars – David Guterson
84 The Giver – Lois Lowry
85 Embraced by the Light – Betty J. Eadie
86 The Chamber – John Grisham *
87 You: On A Diet – Michael F. Roizen, Mehmet C. Oz
88 The Prayer of Jabez – Bruce Wilkinson
89 Holes – Louis Sachar
90 Digital Fortress – Dan Brown *
91 The Shack – William P. Young
92 The Devil Wears Prada – Lauren Weisberger
93 Water for Elephants – Sara Gruen
94 A Thousand Splendid Suns – Khaled Hosseini
95 The Seat of the Soul – Gary Zukav
96 Chicken Soup for the Woman’s Soul – Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne, Marci Shimoff
97 The Partner – John Grisham *
98 Lord of the Flies – William Golding
99 Eldest: Inheritance, Book II – Christopher Paolini
100 The Broker – John Grisham *
101 The Street Lawyer – John Grisham *
102 A Series of Unfortunate Events No. 1: The Bad Beginning – Lemony Snicket
103 The Poisonwood Bible – Barbara Kingsolver *
104 Into the Wild – Jon Krakauer
105 The King of Torts – John Grisham *
106 The Tipping Point – Malcolm Gladwell
107 The Horse Whisperer – Nicholas Evans *
108 Hannibal – Thomas Harris
109 The Audacity of Hope – Barack Obama
110 Running With Scissors – Augusten Burroughs
111 The Glass Castle: A Memoir – Jeannette Walls
112 My Sister’s Keeper – Jodi Picoult
113 The Last Juror – John Grisham *
114 The Devil in the White City – Erik Larson
115 Left Behind – Tim LaHaye, Jerry B. Jenkins
116 America (The Book) – Jon Stewart and The Writers of The Daily Show
117 The Red Tent – Anita Diamant
118 John Adams – David McCullough
119 The Christmas Box – Richard Paul Evans
120 The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants – Ann Brashares
121 Sugar Busters! – H. Leighton Steward, Sam S. Andrews, Morrison C. Bethea, Luis A. Balart
122 Blink – Malcolm Gladwell
123 The Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle
124 90 Minutes in Heaven: A True Story of Death and Life – Don Piper, Cecil Murphey
125 The Fellowship of the Ring – J.R.R. Tolkien *
126 1776 – David McCullough
127 The Bridges of Madison County – Robert James Waller
128 Where the Heart Is – Billie Letts
129 The Ultimate Weight Solution – Phillip C. McGraw
130 Protein Power – Michael R. Eades, Mary Dan Eades
131 Chicken Soup for the Mother’s Soul – Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Jennifer Read Hawthorne, Marci Shimoff
132 Into Thin Air – Jon Krakauer
133 Middlesex – Jeffrey Eugenides
134 Three Cups of Tea – Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin
135 You: The Owner’s Manual – Michael F. Roizen, Mehmet C. Oz
136 1,000 Places to See Before You Die: A Traveler’s Life List – Patricia Schultz
137 Self Matters – Phillip C. McGraw
138 She’s Come Undone – Wally Lamb
139 1984 – George Orwell
140 The Chronicles of Narnia – C.S. Lewis
141 The Millionaire Next Door – Thomas J. Stanley, William D. Danko
142 The Other Boleyn Girl – Philippa Gregory
143 The Zone – Barry Sears, Bill Lawren
144 The Pilot’s Wife – Anita Shreve
145 The Lost World Michael Crichton
146 Atonement – Ian McEwan *
147 He’s Just Not That Into You – Greg Behrendt, Liz Tuccillo
148 Fahrenheit 451 – Ray Bradbury *
149 The World Is Flat – Thomas L. Friedman
150 Cross – James Patterson *