What are some books that have changed your life?

[Astronuc]

If it was paperback it was probably a Penguin Book .

That was the one I read.

I've given link above where you can find one.

Thanks. That may be it, but the cover is different. The published dates seem to be correct for the one I read in the early 1970s.

 

[AhmedEzz]

The Elements of Style (Strunk and White)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Elements_of_Style
Since I've read it I can't write a thing without being influenced by it's rules . It's truly amazing that such a short book can contain so much valuable information.

Looked it up, seems like a good book. Will try and get, if I'm done with my current read(s).

Alot of the books suggested here are very good and I would like to add to the list:

- Discourse on Method... by Descartes

 

[MissSilvy]

I wouldn't put it up there with the 'great books' of our time, but Taleb's 'Fooled by Randomness' certainly gave me a greater understanding of chance and how it affects our lives. There are some hokey bits but the premise is quite good.

 

[Jame]

Into The Wild about the man who made reality of what so many people wish they did. After reading it I bought Thoreau's Walden, whose ideas are now a big part of my life philosophy. Reading the final chapter I was overwhelmed, never before had I come upon thoughts that I agreed so much with.

A living dog is better than a dead lion. Shall a man go and hang himself because he belongs to the race of pygmies, and not be the biggest pygmy that he can? Let every one mind his own business, and endeavor to be what he was made. Why should we be in such desperate haste to succeed and in such desperate enterprises? If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.

The Feynman Lectures has really fueled my interest in physics.

Crime and Punishment made a deep impression on me. My experience is that many of the "heavy classics" are outside one's horizon and don't really touch upon things that are relevant for a young person living in the world of today. But Crime and Punishment was so real, and Raskolnikovs thoughts and feelings made so much sense to me.

The Immigrants is a book written by Swedish historian Vilhelm Moberg portraying a farming family migrating to Massachusetts in the 1850's. I was fascinated by how these people just took a piece of land, worked really hard, and became a part of founding one of the world's most powerful and influential nations.

 

[epenguin]

Thanks. That may be it, but the cover is different. The published dates seem to be correct for the one I read in the early 1970s.

Traditional Penguin or Pelican Books design are like those seen here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penguin_Books especially 4th photo.

 

[Wellesley]

The book that has opened my eyes the most is The Last Lecture by Professor Randy Pausch from Carnegie Mellon. It really changed how I viewed things.
Site:
www.thelastlecture.com/[/URL]

Or you can watch it here:
[url]www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo[/url]

 

[DukeofDuke]

The Razor's Edge, by Somerset Maugham. It made me think, about a lot of things that are very important.

Resurrection, by Tolstoy. I thought it was a really boring read but there are about 10 pages that are simply revolutionary.

And Harry Potter ;)

 

[robertm]

The writings of Henry David Thoreau.

One of the most under appreciated men of the last 200 years.

To listen to him describe his baking of home made bread, his night in jail, how birds would eat from his hand on call, watching massive battles between ant armies, or his own battle against a pesky critter that kept eating his bean plants; and then to hear the clear and flowing logic of "A Plea for Captain John Brown" or "Resistance to Civil Government" will show the true depth of this great enlightenment thinker.

His words are worth far more to me than any of Emerson's, Thoreau's long time and much more celebrated friend.

I am currently saving up to purchase his complete two million words life long journal.

 

[GeekGuru]

Plato and A Platypus Walk Into A Bar: Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes by Thomas Cathcart & Daniel Klein

Good Omens by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Along with a bunch of other books that others have named.

 

[LBloom]

I would have to say Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien really changed me (I used to be a huge LOR fan when i was 13). The book was challenging with the imagery and vocabulary, and i got used to always having a dictionary beside me while reading. It made more of a reader, while reading Crime and Punishment when I was 15 made me into a reader of classics and works that were challenging in the sense of philosophy and concepts.

Also:
Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer (loved it)
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
Short Stories of Anton Chekhov
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett (Funny, sad, and interesting)
Dubliners and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce

I am currently reading Ulysses by James Joyce, but I have no idea when or if i'll finish it (I'm an aspiring Joycean as well as theoretical physicist. Somehow I feel those two go together well). Personally, I would recommend anyone to make an attempt to read at least
one book, or at least short story by Joyce, but that's just me.

 

[davidrit]

With the Old Breed At Peleliu and Okinawa, E. B. Sledge

I recommend not reading reviews of it, just read the book and see what you think. It is a nonfiction book that contains truth in a manner that can be hard to come by. It caused me to reflect on my duty to myself and my country and also on how I would live my life.

 

[drankin]

There is a Western World number one best-seller that no one has mentioned. But it has such a stigma nowadays no one will read it anymore but everyone talks about it as if they know what it's all about...

I had to point it out

 

[daniel_i_l]

To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee.
It explains discrimination on many different levels. And the story itself is written so well that it just pulls you in. I'm not sure if this is a plus or a minus, but the court scene and the passionate description of the rural south reminded me of Grisham.

 

[MissSilvy]

There is a Western World number one best-seller that no one has mentioned. But it has such a stigma nowadays no one will read it anymore but everyone talks about it as if they know what it's all about...

I had to point it out

Mein Kampf!? It is a very stigma-heavy book. Good luck trying to find a surviving copy though~

The Bible's boring and preachy. If it titillates someone to read through such a doorstop, be my guest but I rarely meet people who consider it a 'book' in the modern sense these days. It's rather like the dictionary in that people rip the bits they like out of it without going through the whole thing and it seems to work for them.

To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee.
It explains discrimination on many different levels. And the story itself is written so well that it just pulls you in. I'm not sure if this is a plus or a minus, but the court scene and the passionate description of the rural south reminded me of Grisham.

Agreed! Actually, in freshman year of high school we were assigned to read To Kill a Mockingbird and A Time to Kill at the same time and I got the two mixed up because I found the themes/settings very similar. Both are good books and I recommend them without hesitation.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

Mein Kampf!? It is a very stigma-heavy book. Good luck trying to find a surviving copy though~

The Bible's boring and preachy. If it titillates someone to read through such a doorstop, be my guest but I rarely meet people who consider it a 'book' in the modern sense these days. It's rather like the dictionary in that people rip the bits they like out of it without going through the whole thing and it seems to work for them.

I'm pretty sure you can still get Mein Kampf though perhaps not in European countries where Nazi propaganda is banned.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/817224164X/?tag=pfamazon01-20

And Ivan I believe mentioned the bible though Drankin may have missed that if that is the book he is referring to.

Agreed! Actually, in freshman year of high school we were assigned to read To Kill a Mockingbird and A Time to Kill at the same time and I got the two mixed up because I found the themes/settings very similar. Both are good books and I recommend them without hesitation.

When I read A Time to Kill it reminded me very much of To Kill a Mockingbird.

 

[ideasrule]

I'm pretty sure you can still get Mein Kampf though perhaps not in European countries where Nazi propaganda is banned.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/817224164X/?tag=pfamazon01-20

You can also easily get it online: http://www.crusader.net/texts/mk/

It's a very good book for anybody who doesn't mind reading authors with different points of view.

 

[maverick_starstrider]

Mein Kampf!? It is a very stigma-heavy book. Good luck trying to find a surviving copy though~

The Bible's boring and preachy. If it titillates someone to read through such a doorstop, be my guest but I rarely meet people who consider it a 'book' in the modern sense these days. It's rather like the dictionary in that people rip the bits they like out of it without going through the whole thing and it seems to work for them.



Agreed! Actually, in freshman year of high school we were assigned to read To Kill a Mockingbird and A Time to Kill at the same time and I got the two mixed up because I found the themes/settings very similar. Both are good books and I recommend them without hesitation.

Mein Kampf is freely available in north america. In fact I know a friend who had to read it for class once. From my understanding (i've never read it) it's really a crappy book. Like not offensive so much as just poorly written and meandering.

 

[phyzmatix]

The Bible's boring and preachy. If it titillates someone to read through such a doorstop, be my guest but I rarely meet people who consider it a 'book' in the modern sense these days. It's rather like the dictionary in that people rip the bits they like out of it without going through the whole thing and it seems to work for them.

I tried it once (in an attempt to combat ignorance) but couldn't even get through Genesis...perhaps if there was a version out there without the "this dude was the son of so and such twice removed from...yaddayaddayadda" it would go easier.

 

[Sorry!]

@phyzmatix, you can skip the geneology parts lol the are extremely boring important if you STUDY it but not necessary for you to understand the stories in the bible, mots of the stories tell you who the people they are speaking of are anyways.

@OP
I never knew other ppl had read through encyclopedias because they were bored. I received a set of Britanica encyclopedias, a pretty huge set like 20 someodd books, it was quite outdated though. I read it whenever I was sick or bored. I also had a medical encyclopedia, THAT was really interesting stuff.

As for regular books I've read that I would suggest to other people here's my list:
To kill a mockingbird
The Handmaid's Tale
Oryx and Crake
1984
The God Delusion
Harry Potter < i read the first one when i was in grade 5 nd idk i read every single one whenever i was feeling down... it's weird it allowed me to like remove myself from this world which I needed pretty much everyday.
Lord of the Rings
The Fabric of the Cosmos < I think brian greene is really good at explaining things to normal people.
Taming of the Shrew/Hamlet/Macbeth
Lord of the Flies

the list could go on and on but i feel I'm putting too many books now haha

 

[Sorry!]

To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee.
It explains discrimination on many different levels. And the story itself is written so well that it just pulls you in. I'm not sure if this is a plus or a minus, but the court scene and the passionate description of the rural south reminded me of Grisham.

I remember reading this book in grade 10 for English class. The teacher didn't think we were all doing our reading so we read some parts out loud as a class. It just happened that I was the reader who had to say the N***** word first. So instead of saying it I decided to say the big tall black person. Since I was relatively new to the school and I always grew up being told to NEVER say that word. Needless to say my English teacher FREAKED out on me.

 

[mheslep]

Atlas Shrugged

(and its surprisingly relevant for our current time)

The Fountain Head is better written I believe, though I haven't read either one all the way through.

 

[qspeechc]

The one book that's changed me the most is Stephen Fry's autobiography "Moab is my Washpot". Not only is it very funny, it's incredibly honest, sinsible, clever, emotional... This book totally changed me. I definitely recommend it to anyone having a hard time with their life.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

You can also easily get it online: http://www.crusader.net/texts/mk/

It's a very good book for anybody who doesn't mind reading authors with different points of view.

I've considered reading it. Like Mav though I have heard that it is dense and not very good. For similar reasons I have yet to read Rand. I'm sure though that some day I will be fiending and find a copy of Mein Kampf or The Fountainhead lying around.

 

[GeorginaS]

I'd be interested to hear the answer to the second part of the original question that was asked. Not just hear a list of book recommendations, but how did they affect your life? And simply saying, "It changed my life" isn't sufficient. That wouldn't pass in Grade 2 English class. Remember how they always said, "What do you think? Explain your answer."

I'd truly like to hear how people were affected by the stuff they've read. And was it a lasting effect?

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

I'd truly like to hear how people were affected by the stuff they've read. And was it a lasting effect?

Most of what I have read has had more of a subtle effect than one I can really pinpoint.

Being an aspiring writer the greatest effect really has been inspiration and making me want to write though I still get the feeling often that I can not possibly write so well as my favourite authors.

Dumas helped affirm my romantic ideals and sense of loyalty.

Robert Anton Wilson affirmed a lot of my personal questioning of the way which we view our world, has led me to take myself less seriously, and has left me with a rather open mind.

 

[QGravity]

Hi;
Shopenhauer, Nietzsche & Heidegger Complete Works.

 

[WhoWee]

A lot of good books have already been mentioned, but one that I would have to add is the Bible.

Best line: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

I'm with Ivan.

On the other hand, politically speaking, I read The 10,000 Day War cover to cover twice. I also spent a lot of time with World Book and always read the annual upon arrival. I also enjoy historical accounts - too many titles to recall.

I'm probably the only one here to have read SPIN Selling, the One Minute Manager, How To Win Friends and Influence People, (several books about franchising), Liar's Poker, Swimming With the Sharks, and Fleecing of the Lambs.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Just read "A Small Place" by Jamaica Kincaid. It was stunning and full of a new perspective on how a nation saw another parent nation along with it's tourists.

 

[DanP]

Touching the Void by Joe Simpson

An account of a true story of survival and pushing the physical limits, I found the book great.

 

[Integral]

I read https://www.amazon.com/dp/0192862189/?tag=pfamazon01-20 by James Lovelock in the late 70's. This should be required reading for everyone.

Unless of course you already know everything and do not care to broaden your views.


After you finish the bible, wait this is short and well written so before you tackle the bible read
"[URL[/URL]
Herman Hesse's [u]Sidharatha[/u][/URL]

 

[Jasongreat]

As a kid I loved:
Where the wild things are, probably started my love of reading since my mom has told me I rarely left it alone.

As a teen I liked:
Go ask Alice which is about a teen girls trials with drug abuse.
The Richest Man in Babylon, about the value of money and its proper use.
How to Think and Grow Rich, basically a biography of the titans of industry and what they had in common.

During my twenties I pretty much gave up reading until I happened to read A Time to Kill, which re awakened my love of reading.

In my thirties:
Patriots by A.J. Languth, has a few historical inaccuracies,imo, but is a very good story about the founding of the USA.
And then I discovered that I trusted words out of someones own mouth more than having someone tell me what another person said(meant). It makes it far easier to see a biased opinion, imo. You can count on an autobiography being biased as far as the author is concerned, with biographies or history books I have to always be on my gaurd. Which leads me to
Benjiman Franklins autobiography as well as all his writings from the library of america. He had a wonderful sense of humor, like a letter he wrote to the french people explaining how much they would save in a year if they only woke with the sun and went to bed shortly after sunset, instead of staying up all night by candle light then sleeping all day. It started out with him saying, I have made a wonderful discovery today when lifting the blinds it is not lifting the blinds that allow the darkness out but it let's the light in. Poor richards almanac was great I could barely put it down.
Thomas Jeffersons autobiography and writings also from the LOA. Philosophers are referenced often in his writings which got me curious about what they had to say leading me to read some.
Calvin Coolidge's autobiography, has a lot of political morals within. I wish the leaders of today would read and live them.
Nikola Tesla's autobiography, I loved his stories about how he came to the conclusion that he was meant to be an inventor.
Booker T. Washingtons autobiography, a look at the lifes of the newly freed slaves in america and the struggles in their education.
I really liked Thomas Paines writings from the Library of America, especially the Age of Reason.
The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazarath or better known as the Thomas Jefferson Bible, by TJ.
A New View of the Constitution by John Taylor of Caroline, kind of a misleading title because it shows what the founders meant in the first place. Written right after the notes of the constitutional convention became public.

When I got into philosophy:
The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant was a very good book about the history of western philosophy a good introduction to the subject of philosophy. I liked his writing so much I bought his The Story of Civilization but have yet to dive into them, they look like they might take me a year or two to get through(11 big volumes).
My favorite was probably Mediatations by Marcus Aurelius and also Epiceticus(?) which were in the same volume of the harvard classics I bought.
John Lockes' Two Treatise's but I liked the 2nd one the most and also his look at human understanding.
Voltaire's writings were great as was Nietzche, but I wondered if the later might have been better if I could read him in german, the translated version doesn't flow too well, imo.
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.

Actually I can't think of a philosophy text that I've read that I didnt enjoy and get something out of.

A recent book, with a good look at a failed US special forces mission in afganistan, The Lone Survivor by Marcus Lattrell, I couldn't put it down.

 

[jgens]

Not sure if this has already been recommended but Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison is a fantastic novel. Morrison (a nobel and pulitzer prize winning author) gives a detailed account about racism in the United States during the 1930-1970s among other things. Here's a review from amazon (it doesn't quite do the novel justice):

Raised among the sour hatreds of the richest black family in a Michigan town, Milkman learns not to love or make commitments, learns to turn away from his father's hard, tight greed, his mother's unloved passivity, his sisters' sterile virginity. He stands apart from his outcast aunt Pilate (a figure reminiscent of Sula, living beyond all reason), a "raggedy bootlegger" who keeps her name in a box threaded to one ear. And he stands above the wild untidy adoration of his cousin Hagar, above the atrocities against blacks in the 1950s, even while his friend organizes a black execution squad. However, when Milkman's father opens the door to a family past of murder and flight, Milkman - in order to steal what he believes is gold - begins the cleansing Odyssean journey.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/140003342X/?tag=pfamazon01-20

 

[dreiter]

Ishmael
The Omnivore's Dilemma
The Bottomless Well
Animal Liberation
The Elegant Universe

 

[Jimmy]

The Demon Haunted World by Carl Sagan

 

[Critical]

Williams' HematologyNow THAT's how you write a textbook.