This week’s edition of Inspired By is dedicated to Jackie Bouchard, author of House Trained. Here, she shares the five books that have inspired her as a writer and why.

 Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

This is the first novel-length book I remember reading as a kid that gave me a reading-headache. (You know… where you’re so sucked into the book that you can’t even get up for food or water?) The can’t-put-it-down quality of this book inspires me. And I’m a sucker for a good orphan story.

Enduring Love by Ian McEwan

I think Ian McEwan is brilliant, and this book has one of the best, most memorable opening chapters ever. The way he sucks you in to the story is incredible. I also love the title, which is deceptively simple at first, but as you read you begin to wonder if “enduring” is meant as the adjective or the verb.

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

I’m not usually one to read westerns, but oh, how I love this book. McMurtry’s character development is amazing and you care so much about what happens to these people! I think Gus is one of my all-time favorite characters.

A Dog’s Life by Peter Mayle

I love a good dog book, but I don’t want to be a sobbing, sniffling mess by the end of one. I like my dog books to be funny, and this is one of my favorites. “Boy” makes a great narrator. This book inspires me to someday write a book where the dog narrates.

Good Grief by Lolly Winston

I think GOOD GRIEF is the bar that all humorous women’s fiction should be measured against. It’s funny, touching and has some really great imagery. Even though I read it years ago, I still remember the image early on in the book of an old man at the main character’s grief meeting; she describes his hands as “pink and spotted like luncheon meat.” You can see that old man’s hands in your mind! Wonderful stuff.