Books that have changed your view on the world...

[BrownTown]

well, no single book has had any huge influence. Really my views have been formed and then I go and find the book that is most similar and read it. If I had to pick one book though I would sayBeyond Good and Evil although at this point in life I disagree with more in that book than I probably agree with, but as a high school kid VERY closely resembled my beliefs on a great many things, and it was nice to see I wasnt the first one to think the same way. I am a utilitarian though from an ethical standpoint So the book Utilitarianism would probably be applicable if it werent for the fact that I didn't learn anything from the book I hadn't already coem to believe on my own.

Personally I think you must have pretty weak beliefs if reading any single book will cause any major change to the way you view life.

 

[heyheybooboo]

Breakfast of Champions

 

[Newfie]

The Selfish Gene - Dawkins
1984 - Orwell

 

[Oceandevi]

Ishmael

 

[Fear No Evil]

Obama's two books.. :roll:

 

[Schadenfroh]

Job
Ecclesiastes
The Gospels
1984
All Quiet on the Western Front

 

[Brigandier]

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky
In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Family Happiness by Leo Tolstoy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Keep the Aspidistra Flying by George Orwell
Paradise Lost by F. Scott Fritzgerald

That's all I can think of now, but I'm sure many more of the books I've read have altered my perception on what the "real" world is.

 

[brownzilla786]

Animal Farm

 

[smokeyjoe]

War is a Racket - General Smedley Butler

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

The Bible
Art of War by Sun Tsu
Principles of War by Carl von Clausewitz
The Prince by Machiavelli
The Cat in the Hat by Dr Seus

 

[microbial]

With regard to writings on politics and governance...

Thomas Paine's Rights of Man and Common Sense.
The United States Constitution
All the President's Men

 

[dphantom]

The Bible
Atlas Shrugged
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
Time Enough for Love

Just a representative sample.

 

[Oceandevi]

Originally posted by: BrownTown
well, no single book has had any huge influence. Really my views have been formed and then I go and find the book that is most similar and read it. If I had to pick one book though I would sayBeyond Good and Evil although at this point in life I disagree with more in that book than I probably agree with, but as a high school kid VERY closely resembled my beliefs on a great many things, and it was nice to see I wasnt the first one to think the same way. I am a utilitarian though from an ethical standpoint So the book Utilitarianism would probably be applicable if it werent for the fact that I didn't learn anything from the book I hadn't already coem to believe on my own.

Personally I think you must have pretty weak beliefs if reading any single book will cause any major change to the way you view life.

As opposed to forming an opinion and then searching for a book to validate it?
That is laughable....

 

[rpanic]

1984
Brave New World
Dune
Night
Bible

 

[Ozoned]

qur'an

 

[WhipperSnapper]

Originally posted by: masteryoda34
Atlas Shrugged

http://www.amazon.com/Library-...Books/lm/133GLJVXVIBLN

Seconded along with The Fountainhead.

 

[chrisho]

Atlas Shrugged, more appropriate now than ever.

 

[BrownTown]

Originally posted by: Oceandevi

Originally posted by: BrownTown
well, no single book has had any huge influence. Really my views have been formed and then I go and find the book that is most similar and read it. If I had to pick one book though I would sayBeyond Good and Evil although at this point in life I disagree with more in that book than I probably agree with, but as a high school kid VERY closely resembled my beliefs on a great many things, and it was nice to see I wasnt the first one to think the same way. I am a utilitarian though from an ethical standpoint So the book Utilitarianism would probably be applicable if it werent for the fact that I didn't learn anything from the book I hadn't already coem to believe on my own.

Personally I think you must have pretty weak beliefs if reading any single book will cause any major change to the way you view life.

As opposed to forming an opinion and then searching for a book to validate it?
That is laughable....

its laughable to come up with your own opinions in life instead of just copying others ?

 

[Oceandevi]

Originally posted by: BrownTown

Originally posted by: Oceandevi

Originally posted by: BrownTown
well, no single book has had any huge influence. Really my views have been formed and then I go and find the book that is most similar and read it. If I had to pick one book though I would sayBeyond Good and Evil although at this point in life I disagree with more in that book than I probably agree with, but as a high school kid VERY closely resembled my beliefs on a great many things, and it was nice to see I wasnt the first one to think the same way. I am a utilitarian though from an ethical standpoint So the book Utilitarianism would probably be applicable if it werent for the fact that I didn't learn anything from the book I hadn't already coem to believe on my own.

Personally I think you must have pretty weak beliefs if reading any single book will cause any major change to the way you view life.

As opposed to forming an opinion and then searching for a book to validate it?
That is laughable....

its laughable to come up with your own opinions in life instead of just copying others ?

So being receptive to ideas from the 5.9 billion other people in the world is "copying"??

 

[ModerateRepZero]

1984 - George Orwell
Intelligent Investor - Benjamin Graham
Art of War - Sun Tzu
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand
Law and the Long War - Benjamin Wittes
The Best and the Brightest - David Halberstam

 

[QuantumPion]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned The Skeptical Environmentalist by Bjorn Lomborg yet.

 

[wwswimming]

Jim Garrison, On the Trail of the Assassins. written by New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison.


the Warren Commission Report (official US government report on the JFK assassination.)


George Bush, the Un-authorized Biography. by Webster Tarpley and Anton Chaitkin
http://www.tarpley.net/bushb.htm


Lost History, by Robert Parry
http://www.consortiumnews.com/

R. Parry was and is an investigative journalist. he sunk his teeth into Iran-Contra
before his employer knew what Iran-Contra was. when they told him to let go,
he said, "no."


Crossing the Rubicon, by Michael Ruppert. About 9-11 and oil.


For Those I Loved, by Martin Gray.

Martin Gray was a 15 year old Jewish kid in Warsaw when the German troops walled it off like the Gaza strip. He lost his family & survived Auschwitz by hiding in the latrine, among other tactics. When he moved to New York he started out selling pencils door to door, which was ridiculously easy compared to what he had been through.

 

[RichardE]

Awesome list of things I already made two orders on amazon

 

[Trente]

http://www.amazon.com/Letters-...Entebbe/dp/9652292672/

http://www.amazon.com/RISE-FAL...-History/dp/B000EA3XL4

http://www.amazon.com/Hitler-1...Kershaw/dp/0393320359/

http://www.amazon.com/Hitler-1...Kershaw/dp/0393322521/

 

[Lawlcaeks]

I've read alot of books, and Atlas Shrugged is the only one that really changed my perspective on anything.