What is the best book you ever read and why?

For me, the defining characteristic would be either how deeply it moved me or how inspiring and mind expanding I found the content. Something that did both would nab the top spot. Hm.. maybe Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins. Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami was amazing, it ached me to the depths of my soul. You can expect that from the Japanese though, I think. Amazing culture.