Books Signed By Authors

Do you own any books autographed by the author in your permanent collection? Which autographed books do you cherish the most? How did you obtain the book(s) and what's the special meaning this particular book(s) has to you?

I have several autographed books from various authors. Some of the books I've purchased from author signing events and others from bookstores where an author has recently signed their book.  The following is a short list of some of my most cherished autographed books in my collection.

I have three hardback novels, The Silver Lotus, In the Shadow of the Cypress, and Down to a Soundless Sea, signed by author Thomas Steinbeck, son of Nobel Laureate John Steinbeck, that I have in my permanent collection. I had the opportunity to briefly meet Mr. Steinbeck at two different events that my husband & I attended in Santa Barbara, California. On each occasion, we had Mr. Steinbeck sign a copy of his book. Mr. Steinbeck spent quite a bit of time talking to each person who came to see him, including us. He is a really interesting person and had a lot of great stories to share as well as simply being a delightful person to meet. My husband took a picture of me standing next Thomas Steinbeck, which is really cool!

I also have an autographed copy of Buzz Aldrin's novel Encounter With Tibur. I am not a science fiction genre fan, nor have I read this novel. I merely purchased this book back in 1997, so that I could have Buzz Aldrin autograph his novel for me as he was the second human being to set foot on the moon in 1969. I've tried reading Encounter With Tibur a few times, but I just couldn't get into it. The cool part was meeting Buzz Aldrin briefly at a book signing event and having my picture taken with him.

I have an autographed copy of Diana Gabaldon's novel Lord John and the Private Matter, which I purchased from a bookstore in Scottsdale, Arizona called The Poisoned Pen. Unfortunately, I've never had the opportunity to meet Ms. Gabaldon, but hopefully one day I will! My maternal grandmother was the person responsible for me becoming an avid Diana Gabaldon fan as she had read and recommended the Outlander series to me in the late 1990s. Some years ago now, I sent Ms. Gabaldon a letter in the mail to express that I was a huge fan of her novels. In return, she sent me a couple of autographed bookplates, which I've placed inside two other books she has written in the Lord John Series.

Last but not least, I have an autographed copy of Brain and Belief: An Exploration of the Human Soul by John J. McGraw. This book is a work of nonfiction, fabulously well written, and definitely well worth the read if you enjoy books that include such genres as religion, psychology, and neuroscience! I first met John several years ago now through my mom, as he was a neighbor of my parents, and we've been acquainted ever since. John is a really cool person. I'm glad we met.