I’m a reader. It’s been a fundamental part of me for as long as I can remember. I’ve become slightly more selective of what I’ll read in recent years because I have limited time, but I’m pretty willing to read just about any subject.
Anyway, I just finished a pretty intriguing book call Incognito, The Secret Lives of the Brain by David Eagleman. That may sound dry or boring, but it really isn’t. It is definitely good brain food. It’s very thought provoking and filled with fascinating information. Even if you're not generally a non-fiction reader, I think it’s worth a look.
This is the first really good book I’ve read in a while and it made me start thinking about the best books I’ve ever read. I define “really good read” as a book that I think about long after I finish it. One that sticks in your mind. The kind of book that changes the way you look at the world and forces you out of your comfort zone.
Here are some of my favorites-
The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (and pretty much anything she writes)
I’ve always loved the silliness of Douglas Adam’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy
I still find Brave New World and 1984 to be thought provoking
I haven’t read it since high school, but Z for Zachariah still haunts me
My favorite recent fiction read is The Hunger Games trilogy. I read it last spring and I still chew it over in my mind regularly. Recent non-fiction favorites are Freakonomics and Outliers.
And it might sound strange, but I think Shel Silverstein’s The Missing Piece Meets the Big O is a profound, if simple work. I love Shel Silverstein’s work in general. I also think Dr. Suess slipped some very insightful children’s books into his career.
So now that I’ve rediscovered the power of a really great read, I need more. What are the best, most thought provoking books you have ever read?
10 comments:
Hitchikers may be silly but it is still full of very thought provoking things and stuff that makes you "hmmm".
You've convinced me. I need to give "Hitchhiker's Guide" a shot.
I don't go for thought provoking books. I look for entertainment. Reading is a passion for me, but it has to be entertaining. It's my escape from all the other pressing issues in my life. I love a good mystery, crime novels and books like that.
Have a terrific day. :)
"Alias Grace" is my favorite book by Margaret Atwood.
The Hunger Games gave me disturbing dreams for a while, but I liked it.
I don't remember the name of this book, but I read a book about a man who accused another man of abusing his child. You didn't learn until the end of the story that the accuser actually made the story up! I still think about that. It just made me rethink my perceptions.
The Handmaid's Tale is my all-time favorite, and I love 1984 and The Hunger Games trilogy as well. I'm a big fan of the whole dystopian genre. Have you ever read Charlotte Perkins Gilman's Herland? Very interesting novella!
You have a definite sci-fi/fantasy tilt don't you? I read Z for Zachariah last year and thought it was so well done. Very realistic -- unlike so many of these other dystopia tales.
If you haven't read them yet, I'd try Patric Ness's Chaos Walking trilogy. Based on what you posted about, I'd bet you'd really like it.
And I'm a huge non-fiction reader. Have you ever tried A.J. Jacobs? He's got interesting non-fiction that is really funny too -- he does "life" experiments and write about them.
I just finished The Hunger Games while on vacay! I finished it in less than week since it was so good!
I'm not sure what's wrong with me lately, but I have fallen off of the reading train. I was doing so good and now? I'd rather sleep.
I think this means I'm getting old.
Interesting list; some I've read, some will go on my TBR list. I was an early reader and don't know how you could NOT like to read. But I have become a more selective reader for the same reasons you cite.
Some books with an impact:
Night by Elie Weisel
Widow’s War by Sally Gunning
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
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