Celebrities reading ‘esoteric’ works

Celebrities leaned toward specialized, somewhat abstruse subjects -- and Huck Finn -- as they listed their favorite books for 2005 in the annual “Who Reads What List?”

“Very esoteric this year,” said Glenna Nowell, who started the celebrity reading list in 1988 when she was librarian in Gardiner, Maine. “There is such a diversity of books, and not well-known, not bestsellers.” Nowell also noticed a lot of nonfiction this year.

One bestseller that did turn up on the list was “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini. It’s a book listed by bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark. Sci-fi master Ray Bradbury, meanwhile, turned to a classic, “The Friendly Persuasion” by Jessamyn West.

The list, which Nowell compiles to invigorate people’s interest in reading, has drawn responses in past years from several U.S. presidents and other world leaders, athletes, actors and authors.

This year’s list, released to coincide with National Library Week, runs the gamut from consumer activist Ralph Nader to Oakland Athletics pitcher Barry Zito. It’s available online at www.gpl.lib.me.us/.