Books so good they changed your life.
Discussion
There is a River, by Richard Vaughan. I'd been visiting the same milltir sgwâr/square mile in Wales for 35 years, and this was a book packed full of its history, in a captivating, child's-eye, autobiography. I wanted to turn each page, but at the same time didn't want to reach the end. Brilliant, unknown, and out of print.
Walden by Henry David Thoreau. I don't usually recommend it because of its eccentric qualities but what really resonated with me was this idea of finding happiness and contentment in a simpler life. The book draws on philosophical underpinnings both from German idealism and Eastern mysticism. Thoreau wrote it after the death of his brother, so inevitably it's deeply reflective in parts but there isn't a sense of sadness about it.
It's a book I've returned to repeatedly and has influenced a number of subsequent works with similar themes (Desert Solitaire, Sand County Almanac, Pilgrims At Tinkers Creek etc.) because it speaks to yearnings so many carry innately within us.
It's a book I've returned to repeatedly and has influenced a number of subsequent works with similar themes (Desert Solitaire, Sand County Almanac, Pilgrims At Tinkers Creek etc.) because it speaks to yearnings so many carry innately within us.
Slaughterhouse Five: Kurt Vonnegut
It’s one I’ve come back to as I’ve grown older and my personal philosophy moves more towards absurdism.
It manages to create a better sense of that than anything Camus himself wrote, with more humour and style. Also brings in other concepts such as pre-destiny and the allusion of time. And of course it’s a very powerful anti war book rooted in Vonnegut’s personal experience in Dresden.
It’s one I’ve come back to as I’ve grown older and my personal philosophy moves more towards absurdism.
It manages to create a better sense of that than anything Camus himself wrote, with more humour and style. Also brings in other concepts such as pre-destiny and the allusion of time. And of course it’s a very powerful anti war book rooted in Vonnegut’s personal experience in Dresden.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
Veronica Decides To Die, also by Paulo Coelho.
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Veronica Decides To Die, also by Paulo Coelho.
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Martin350 said:
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
I have got this in my pile, I haven’t read it yet. Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Auto Artisan said:
Or were so good you wished that you could read it again for the first time.
In Cold Blood: Truman Capote Best to read the wiki page if you want a summary, but better if you don’t and read it without knowing the backstory. It’s a masterpiece.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Cold_Blood
Martin350 said:
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
Veronica Decides To Die, also by Paulo Coelho.
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Veronica Decides To Die, also by Paulo Coelho.
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
1984 and Animal Farm both make you stand back and look how society has so called progressed , or not (sighs).
keo said:
I have got this in my pile, I haven t read it yet.
You can get a cream for that! On topic, I can recommend Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse, I wouldn’t suggest its life changing but it has a lot to offer to those of us trying to make some sense of it all, it’s beautifully written.
I think the early 20th century produced some of the best literature.
As a young man, reading Richard Bach's Illusions, the Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah gave me the ability, with a lot of practice, to vaporise clouds by concentrating on them. It's a cool way to spend a warm summer afternoon.
James Redfield's The Celestine Prophecy, for the 4 control dramas and the meaning of coincidences. It's a book of new age philosophies and deeply flawed but it was fun in the early 90s.
But then seriously, this.
James Redfield's The Celestine Prophecy, for the 4 control dramas and the meaning of coincidences. It's a book of new age philosophies and deeply flawed but it was fun in the early 90s.
But then seriously, this.
toasty said:
The Easy Way to Stop Smoking by Allen Carr
15 years for me. I loved smoking, I was very good at it and worried that I'd always crave tobacco but never have.keo said:
Martin350 said:
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
I have got this in my pile, I haven t read it yet. Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Other books of note were Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World, Animal Farm, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. All of which are fantastic books that have the potential to change the way you view power, control and censorship.
Martin350 said:
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.
Veronica Decides To Die, also by Paulo Coelho.
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Good list! I must read the Paulo Coelho ones again, it's been too long - I'm not inclined to read 1984 againVeronica Decides To Die, also by Paulo Coelho.
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Happy by Derren Brown
Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman
Xenoous said:
keo said:
Martin350 said:
1984 by George Orwell.
Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
I have got this in my pile, I haven t read it yet. Not a particularly pleasant read, I read it for the second time about eight years ago, and it makes you think about some things which are going on today.
Quite remarkable considering it was published in 1949.
Other books of note were Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World, Animal Farm, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep. All of which are fantastic books that have the potential to change the way you view power, control and censorship.
Animal Farm did nothing for me though. I was very disappointed.
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