What's your favourite book and how would you persuade me to read it?

Choose a favourite book and write in 50 words to describe what it means to you.

My book is The History of Mr Polly by H. G. Wells

Read at 14, this is one of the books that introduced me to the joys of language and storytelling. An Edwardian shop assistant who failed at school but learned through his own efforts to love the English language while misusing many words. It encouraged me to use language with gusto.