Books that changed your life

[Chris Weimer]

Books don't really change my life, just influence it. Oh my, and there are so many of them too. You have the Dystopian novels - 1984 & The Giver take the cake on that one; Poetry - Donne & Crane; the Western classics of Plato and various stoics including Marcus Aurelius made the skeptic and the stoic; the Dao De Jing, Lun Yu, Siddhartha (by Hesse) and various biblical books gave me my necessary appreciation of the Orient and allowed me to view the world without Eurocentricity; the Constitution & Common Sense are canonical for me - very high regard; GEB: EGB and various books on physics including Einstein's own letters really helped put this world into perspective, and coupled with Dao De Jing gave me my mystical view of the universe(s); and to top it off, 19th century revolutionary writings such as Darwin and Nietzsche have so heavily influenced me as I went from a Christian believer (albeit liberal) to a anti-religion nihilist. Today, I am a balance of all I just mentioned - every single bit. In fact, I can point to every single action I do and tell what influenced it.

 

[mad pierrot]

I really loved The Art of Happiness by Dalai Lama.

I did, too. I've read most of his books but that was, by far, his best work. Nothing like reading something that makes you want to be a better person.

 

[stalky]

i have the same opinion as chris weimer - books don't change my life, just influenced it
when i was younger (like 16-17) most important books for me were those written by virginia woolf and maybe 1984 by george orwell
now i prefer herman hesse (especially "narcissus and goldmouth" and "the glass bead game", the second one made me think if there any values in my life) and heinrich boll (it's german writer, in early 60's he wrote "clown confessions" - it's about people who batrayed their compatriots during ww2, ok maybe it's not the best description but it's hard to describe that book in few words)
also "castle" by kafka which talks about humans existence and helped me look at some problems in different (and i think better) way
and another books : "henry IV" and "it is just like you think it is" (i don't know if i translate it correctly...) by luigi pirandello - i always think highly of books that talk about human's roles and our desire of illusion

 

[Ma Cherie]

I would have to agree with Chris's point as well. Books in my opinion are supposed to help give you a different perspective of the world. Provide enlightment, people certainly need it.

 

[Satorian]

Books don't really change my life, just influence it.

How is influence not change?

 

[stalky]

it means that books doesn't change life drastically, they are sth like signpost - can change our point of view, our life philosophy, made us think of many problems but not turn our life upside down
i think that one book can't change my life because it's long process and that what i read can only make this process faster

 

[duff_o_josh]

the bible gave me guilt....

 

[andorin]

my friend has that book on his coffee table, so i read it a lil every time i go over.