Writers are voracious readers. Once I unlocked the mystery of the alphabet that led to words, a multitude of words connecting me to the world, there was no stopping me. Everything was fair game: from Louisa May Alcott to my older cousin's True Romance magazines, from Lewis Carroll to the backs of cereal boxes. All of this fed me, but it took certain books to make me grow. These books helped to shape me as a writer, and I hope as I go on, a better writer. I don't want to write without a sense of drama, without passion, or without both eyes open to the world around me.

What's on Gloria Naylor's Bookshelf? Read more!