Five books that changed Richelle Mead

Richelle Mead is the author of the Vampire Academy series. One of five books that changed her, as shared with the Sydney Morning Herald:

The Clan of the Cave Bear - Jean M. Auel

I think what was most extraordinary about this book was that my mother let me read it (and its increasingly graphic sequels) when I was nine years old. That might have been a bit too young for some of the sex and violence, but it was the perfect age to be reading a tale of a young girl surviving in the wilderness. All the other books of that nature I'd found had male heroes, so it was empowering to see a girl battling the elements and taming cave lions.

Read about the other books on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue