Sarah Palin's Reading List: Former Alaska Governor Shares Her Favorites

Sarah Palin has detailed her reading list... and it's not just newspapers.

In an interview with Barbara Walters of ABC News set to air Thursday as part of a "10 Most Fascinating People of 2010" series, Palin responds to the question, first posed to her by Katie Couric during the 2008 campaign, that she once appeared notoriously unable to answer.

"I read anything and everything that I can get my hands on as I have since I was a little girl," Palin told Walters, before providing some specifics. "I'm reading the best book right now -- Dean Karnazes's book about being an ultra-marathoner. I read a lot of C.S. Lewis when I want some divine inspiration...I read Newsmax and the Wall Street Journal. I read all of our local papers of course in Alaska because that's where my heart is."

Sarah Palin also expressed a certain degree of bitterness over the original Couric interview -- which she has since called "a waste of time" -- and the lasting effect that it has had on the belief held by some that she is ignorant or uninformed.

"Because of that one episode, that one episode, that would turn an issue into what it has become over the last two years. I think that's ridiculous," Palin told Walters. "That's one of those things, where that issue...that I don't read, or that I'm not informed, it's one of those questions where I like to turn that around and ask the reporters, 'Why would it be that there is that perception that I don't read?'"

In 2008, when Couric asked her to name a few sources that she read consistently, Palin responded, "I've read most of them, again with a great appreciation for the press, for the media."

Pressed further, Palin continued, "Um, all of them, any of them that have been in front of me all these years."

After one final nudge, Palin said, "I have a vast variety of source where we get our news. Alaska isn't a foreign country, where it's kind of suggested, 'wow, how could you keep in touch with what the rest of Washington, D.C., may be thinking when you live up there in Alaska?' Believe me, Alaska is like a microcosm of America."

Now is not the first time, however, that Palin has discussed her reading habits since her infamous 2008 interview. In 2009, she told Sean Hannity what newspapers she reads.

Comments

[Ortho Stice]

08:06 PM on 12/19/2010

Newsmax...what a surprise.

[Shogun1x]

12:14 AM on 12/13/2010

Interviewer-"what do you like to read, Sarah?"

Palin-"my hand."

Interviewer- *facepalm*

[interlude]

10:50 PM on 12/12/2010

She most definitely is proudly ignorant and uninformed and tries to divert from this easily observed fact with her ridiculous word salad. The only ones more ignorant and uninformed are her supporters.

[LilyMaskew]

11:33 PM on 12/12/2010

She shows she is ignorant and uninformed by many of her answers to questions she is asked. When asked by Charles Gibson about her view regarding the Bush Doctrine, she tried to fudge her answer and asked "In what respect, Charlie." She clearly didn't know the answer, but she tried to wing it. This dame would try to talk her way out of anything, never giving a clear, concise answer, but always thinking she was fooling the American people. She wrote crib notes on her hand, which any student in school knows is cheating, yet she subsequently proudly held up her hand to show that she is not ashamed. She has no integrity, no real answers to solve our problems, but she thinks she can talk her way into office by not sounding like the typical politician. Some people admire her and enjoy her sarcastic remarks. I think she is disgusting and shows her ignorance of civil public discourse. She herself will become the instrument of her own undoing, when one day her remarks will go too far.

[AppleJuiceJunkie316]

08:42 PM on 12/12/2010

Sarah's real reading list:

The Little Engine that Could
A Very Hungry Caterpillar
My Pet Goat (Supposedly on the Republican President's required reading list)
The Three Bears
Aesop's Fables (for advanced readers).

[pogo]

06:36 PM on 12/12/2010

...and I like to read those paper placemats at Denny's, and some of them you can color too, and of course I've read all of the Twilight series, and...

[dutchgirl55]

07:11 PM on 12/12/2010

...and the cover on the boxes of bullets, and road signs, and...

[paulabflat]

11:02 PM on 12/20/2010

and the cups down at starbuck's. very inspirational, those cups. the quotes are so short, they're easy to memorize. also, too, as well.

[Ninotchka KS]

03:10 PM on 12/12/2010

You'd think that the Bible would be at the top of her list... Hmmmm ?

[nongrata]

05:41 PM on 12/12/2010

She's smart enough to read the bible?

[Bj Goode]

02:51 PM on 12/12/2010

Will Sarah start a 'Book Club' to challenge Oprah for the mom demographic?

[Susan Bosworth]

09:16 PM on 12/14/2010

Sure; the first books would be by her: "Low Expectations", followed by "A Tale of Two Quitters".

[kareemachan]

12:59 PM on 12/12/2010

So she reads C. S. Lewis (whom I definitely love reading - try 'Surprised by Joy' or 'Screwtape Letters'), a book on running, and a couple of newspapers. Wow.

$arah, I'm definitely underwhelmed.

[Susan Bosworth]

09:17 PM on 12/14/2010

Please. Her idea of reading CS Lewis is she probably went on a photo op to see the new Narnia movie.

[onecrazyprogressive]

07:42 AM on 12/12/2010

Turns out Sarah, it "Toys for Tots" not "Tot's As Ploy's"

Waiting to match you at any of the following:
http://foodbankccs.org/
http://www.toysfortots.org/
http://www.uso.org/

Come on sweetie man up (wink wink) or since you are there
http://www.unicefusa.org/work/emergencies/Haiti/?gclid=CKa-xfWD5qUCFSBugwodVmdv1g

We need more than cookies this time.

Louie

[kareemachan]

12:55 PM on 12/12/2010

Fanned.

I noticed that she said nothing about any donations or supplies in Haiti, just that the people there are "full of joy."

[onecrazyprogressive]

07:28 AM on 12/12/2010

Nothing says Presidential like waiting a year to show up in Haiti — a year spent trying to destroy your own country’s democratically elected president no less. But no worries, Palin is in Haiti now, getting her picture taken by Fox News to sell herself in 2012 as Someone Who Has Been to Other Countries, also, too. Now, the real question is will the prolific tweeter find time to at least tweet out a call to help the Haitians, or will the miser in her overwhelm any urge of Christmas spirit, knowing as any teabagger does that there’s only so much to go around and she’s still got loads of books to sell?

http://www.politicususa.com/en/community-organizer-sarah-palin-calls-ravaged-haiti-joyful

[Howard53545]

06:42 AM on 12/12/2010

I dislike as most of you do, but give the gal some credit. She is now a multimillionaire, so how many of you get 60,000 per speech?

[senseandnonsense]

09:34 AM on 12/12/2010

Let's not forget what P.T.Barnum said!

[Brian Stoltz]

06:41 AM on 12/12/2010

Wow! Sarah Palin is amazing! In just a few short months she has managed to memorize a list that included "5" publications! What will her razor-sharp mind tackle next?

[Susan Bosworth]

09:17 PM on 12/14/2010

Mad Libs.

[onecrazyprogressive]

11:15 PM on 12/11/2010

Sarah please read Matthew 6:1-4

1 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.
3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly

h/t Palingater

[inkongirl]

11:55 AM on 12/12/2010

I think she's too busy to read the Bible. She's using it as a weapon.

[onecrazyprogressive]

11:10 PM on 12/11/2010

Almost 4000 comments on the Yahoo article and most of them are very negative

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101212/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/cb_haiti_palin_6

[AlPal3]

10:43 PM on 12/11/2010

As a true conservative, I nominate Sarah Palin to be Bambi in the Easter Parade in Lafayette, Louisiana.

[Grabit]

06:04 PM on 12/12/2010

Will Godzilla be there too?