Life-changing...

[Kell]

(Pinched from Booking Through Thursday)

 

Which Book Changed Your Life?

 

I can only think of one that had a significant effect on my life and that was an encyclopedia.

 

It was because of a random search in an encyclopedia whilst in the school library that I became Pagan.

 

Bizarre really – I was looking up vampires and was surprised to discover that Dracula was a real historical figure (I was about 14 at the time) and fascinated by the real story behind the famous novel and movies. I figured if he was real, witches might be real too. I looked them up and found that modern witches were nature worshippers. From there I searched Wicca and Paganism and found myself growing more and more interested. I started buying books on the subject, but to me, many of the Wiccan books seemed a little wishy-washy (no offence to Wiccans, but it just wasn’t for me and it was more to do with the style of the writing than the beliefs).

 

After a few years of reading about it, I decided to live it.

 

Eventually, I worked out my own Path and went on from there. I’ve now spent more than half my life as a Pagan, and all because I was bored one rainy afternoon in the school library!

[funrun]

dare to fly by janime shephard and her other books

she was in accident and left in a wheelchair but she refused to quit and learned to fly an plane

It has taught me togo out there and try things and have a go

[vinay87]

Hmm there are a few.

The first is a short story by H H Munro "Saki" called "The Storyteller". Reading it I realised how much fun a non-conventional story could be and I began writing around the same time so it was a huge inspiration that dictated what I'd be writing in my life.

 

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. I was in a bad state when reading this book and it helped me get through it and it made me realise that there's some truth to being able to achieve a dream, no matter how radical it may be.

[Talisman]

There are quite a few books which have influenced the way I look at things, msot notably the Conversations with God books, A Course in Miracles and the works of Eckhart Tolle - in particular A New Earth. If I had to choose one of these books as being the most life changing it would be this one, as when I read it, which was maybe 2 - 2 1/2 years ago now I was in a particularly dark place, really struggling to juggle being a writer with my everyday job and blaming the job for my lack of success. That book helped me to realise that writing was actually just one of many different paths that I could follow, and it was not my purpose in life - our purpose is to live in the moment, let go and let God - I did know a lot of this before, but this book helped me to not just know it, but to start living it. All the knowledge and insights in the world do you no good whatsoever unless you put them into practise in everyday life.

[Echo]

For me, it would have to be And the Band Played On by Randy Shilts. Shilts was an investigative journalist for the San Francisco Chronicle, and he covered the AIDS epidemic from its earliest years until it finally gained national attention. Having grown up fairly sheltered and believing in the basic goodness and fairness of the world, it was a total shock to read the truth about the callous way AIDS was ignored by the government for so long, simply because it seemed to affect only people that Reagan didn't care about. I couldn't understand how people could be so uncaring and evil. Randy Shilts has since died of AIDS, I believe.

[BookJumper]

a short story by H H Munro "Saki" called "The Storyteller". Reading it I realised how much fun a non-conventional story could be and I began writing around the same time so it was a huge inspiration that dictated what I'd be writing in my life.

 

What did that for me was Bianca Pitzorno's Ascolta il Mio Cuore (Listen to My Heart). It was about three best friends rebelling against the reign of a tyrannical new teacher, and one of them - Prisca Puntoni - was a crazily creative little thing who would always fill up diaries and school essays with short stories. She wanted to be a writer when she grew up, and I realised as I read about her that 'writer' was what I wanted to be when I grew up also. I wouldn't say that it changed my life though, because it just gave me a name for something I knew already was inside me.

 

No, the book that actually changed my life is Victor Hugo's Les Miserablés - I read it between the ages of 14 and 15 and it's instilled in me most of the ideas I still hold about justice, friendship and love. I always say it's the book that turned me from a child into a young adult, as nothing I've read before or since has influenced my way of thinking or feeling more.

[Nollaig]

For me it was probably Gene Roddenberry: The Last Conversation by Yvonne Fern.

 

Think 'Tuesdays With Morrie', but replace Morrie with the mind behind the creation of Star Trek.

 

I'm pretty sure a lot of my ideas about how the world should work came from that book.

 

Not from the book, but something by Roddenberry - when Patrick Stewart was on Parkinson years ago, Parkinson commented on the 'bald captain', and Stewart said that Roddenberry himself had been asked the question, 'won't there be a cure for male pattern baldness by the 24th century?' and Roddenberry replied, 'no, by the 24th century, nobody will care.'

 

That man, through that book and other things I've read about him, have been a massive influence on my life.

 

Also, on a lesser scale, classic novels. Like, The Female Quixote as a good example. I'd loved to have lived in those times and my obsession with the late 1800's to mid 1900's influences my tastes in literature, art, clothes, humor and historical interest.

[Brida]

The first thing that comes to mind is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (though most of his books had the same effect on me).

It helped me feel better when I wasn't feeling very happy, and helped me become more open minded and just more positive I guess

 

A similar thing happened with Life of Pi - it influenced my opinion about religion, and certain religions in particular, and also, gave me hope, to put it simply.

 

And, even though this is not the main topic here perhaps, obviously Uni books change my life, because they inform me about life and human beings and how we function So I guess they might change my life the most.

[Raven]

For me it was probably Gene Roddenberry: The Last Conversation by Yvonne Fern.

 

Think 'Tuesdays With Morrie', but replace Morrie with the mind behind the creation of Star Trek.

 

I'm pretty sure a lot of my ideas about how the world should work came from that book.

 

Not from the book, but something by Roddenberry - when Patrick Stewart was on Parkinson years ago, Parkinson commented on the 'bald captain', and Stewart said that Roddenberry himself had been asked the question, 'won't there be a cure for male pattern baldness by the 24th century?' and Roddenberry replied, 'no, by the 24th century, nobody will care.'

 

That man, through that book and other things I've read about him, have been a massive influence on my life.

 

I must say that Star Trek had a strong influence on my moral compass when I was growing up, but I've found Roddenberry quite often didn't live up to the ideals of the society he created.

 

There are a lot of people who will tell you what a great man he was, and I'm not really trying to knock him here, but they tend to leave out the womanising and gloss over how difficult he was to work with.

 

He did though, create a series with a unique and positive view of the future, and it is one that has inspired and entertained a great many people down the years.

 

 

 

 

[AbielleRose]

For me it was Night by Elie Wiesel. I read it for the first time when I was 15 and it opened my eyes to the horrors of the world. I decided, after reading that, to set certain goals in my life such as sponsoring a little boy in India and eventually going on several mission trips to try and do my best to love and help others. His story made me want to become a human rights attorney throughout high school. Even though that has changed, my ultimate goal is still to work with charities that focus on situations like Darfur and people living in opression.

[BookJumper]

For me it was probably Gene Roddenberry: The Last Conversation by Yvonne Fern... Also, on a lesser scale, classic novels. Like, The Female Quixote as a good example.

 

The Last Conversation has been shortlisted subitaneously - you're bad for my wallet, girl. The Female Quixote is already on my wishlist, so it's good to have it authoritatively backed.

 

I must say that Star Trek had a strong influence on my moral compass when I was growing up, but I've found Roddenberry quite often didn't live up to the ideals of the society he created. There are a lot of people who will tell you what a great man he was, and I'm not really trying to knock him here, but they tend to leave out the womanising and gloss over how difficult he was to work with. He did though, create a series with a unique and positive view of the future, and it is one that has inspired and entertained a great many people down the years.[/quote

 

]At the end of the day, it's an artist's creative legacy that truly matters I think. Greats from Marlowe to Johnny Cash have led... interesting lives, yet what they've meant to people over the years ultimately exceeds any lifestyle choice.

[Books do furnish a room]

I'm not sure any books have completely changed my life, but several that influenced me;

The Age of Reason by Sartre

The Making of the English Working Class by E P Thompson

The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky

Hiroshima by John Hersey

Far From the Madding Crowd by Hardy

The Bible

Markings by Dag Hammerskjold

There's a story behind each one!

[Peacefield]

For me, not so much life-changing but more like life-influencing:

 

The Art Spirit by Robert Henri - I read this one in college and is kind of a guide book on how to live and work as an artist.

 

The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom - An autobiography of a christian Holocaust survivor who helped Jewish people escape Nazi Germany that touched me very deeply.

 

The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand - I read this the first time along with my dad just after I got out of high school. It was a re-read for him as it was his fave book, but getting to read it and knowing how much it inspired his love of architecture, made it very special to me.

[Raven]

At the end of the day, it's an artist's creative legacy that truly matters I think.

 

I think it's a little different in Roddenberry's case, as he was suggesting a better way to live and ultimately he didn't seem to be able to live up to the standards he was advocating. For me, that kind of taints his lagacy.

[ethan]

I read Henry James' The Ambassadors last year and although difficult, the book had a profound effect on me - in the way I perceive myself and the world around me, and in expressing how infinitely mysterious is our existence. I'm currently reading Colm Toibin's The Master, a novel about Henry James. In it, I discovered that the famous quote in The Ambassadors was actually spoken by William Dean Howells to a friend of James' in Paris, Howells regretting he was now too old to truly appreciate all that the city had to offer.

 

"Oh, you are young, be glad of it and live, live all you can, it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter what you do -- but live."

Edited January 22, 2011 by ethan

[Kasei]

I was just thinking: with all the marvelous books out there it would be impossible to read even a small portion of them in a lifetime, even if one devoted their entire life to reading. I sometimes feel that by spending my time on books that are not so great that I lose a chance to read another fantastic book that could've really impacted me.

 

So my question is this; is there a book out there that has really stayed with you? One that has changed the way you see the world, even if in a small way? A great book that you think it a crime to go through life without ever having read? Or maybe one that you think made you into a different person than you would've been if you hadn't read it. Whatever the case, I'd love to hear what those books are.

 

I'm not necessarily looking for self-help books or anything, but definitely don't leave out a non-fiction book that opened your eyes to something if that's the case. I know there are so many brilliantly written classics out there, but if you had to chose a few that were crucial to read, what would they be?

[page turner]

One of the books that changed the way I looked at things was April Fool's Day by Bryce Courtenay. I read this when I was still in high school and it still brings a tear to my eye when I think about it. It is such a touching book one that had me wishing I had had the chance to meet Damon, to talk to him and be inspired by him. Eventhough most of Courtenay's recent books to me are lack lustre I would urge others to pick this one up, it truly is a touching story.

from fantastic fiction

The author of THE POWER OF ONE celebrates the life of his son Damon, a haemophiliac, who died from medically acquired AIDS at the age of 24. He also condemns the medical approach taken towards AIDS and describes how he and his family coped with Damon's haemophilia and early death. Originally published in 1995 by Heinemann.

 

This is a tear jerker,and will be a book I remember as long as I live.

[ladymacbeth]

Oh page turner I agree April Fool's Day is a wonderful book. What I found really inspiring was how when Damon was dying with AIDS his girlfriend Celeste cared for him the whole time. So sad. I think this was published at a time when there was still alot of fear around AIDS and definitely when Damon lived there was alot of stigma. So in this way I think it was quite influential.

[AbielleRose]

One of the books that really shaped my passion for human rights issues was Angel of Mercy by Lurlene McDaniel. I read it for the first time when I was about 13 and it was the first time I still realized the situation in Africa with war (particularly in the Sudan/Rwanda/Uganda area) and slavery. Since then I've always dreamed of going on a mission trip there through Mercy Ships like the character in the book did. Since that never seemed like a good option for my life I sponsered a child in Africa for a while and would like to start doing it again.

Edited April 22, 2011 by AbielleRose

[Hyzenthlay]

Probably a book called "The perks of being a wallflower".. it isn't anything spectacular, it's just about this kid who writes letters about his life to a stranger. In the book he's very messed up, and very quiet (a wallflower).

 

But I was a young teen when I read it, and I was shy and impressionable and I looked to that book for strength when it came to being social and taking social risks, ie befriending people and learning to pull attention to myself without feeling horrible.

[emelee]

Tom Sharpe's "Riotous assembly" along with Dan Brown's "da Vinci code".

And only because they made me realize that not all books are horrible. That was my belief before, which is why I hated books. Turned out I had just read "bad" books before that (books that was not for me).

 

However, I have not read a book that has changed me as a person (yet).

[Kasei]

One of the books that really shaped my passion for human rights issues was Angel of Mercy by Lurlene McDaniel. I read it for the first time when I was about 13 and it was the first time I still realized the situation in Africa with war (particularly in the Sudan/Rwanda/Uganda area) and slavery. Since then I've always dreamed of going on a mission trip there through Mercy Ships like the character in the book did. Since that never seemed like a good option for my life I sponsered a child in Africa for a while and would like to start doing it again.

 

I actually went to Rwanda in January and, I've gotta say, it was an eye-opening experience. Seeing people living life in such a different way at the same time as I'm sitting here in my air-conditioned, well-furnished home in the states typing on my laptop without a thought to the electricity usage is a very humbling and horizon-widening experience. I mean, I knew and "was aware" beforehand on a superficial level, but it is entirely another thing to go there and live it firsthand. And the history of that country and what the people are trying to come back from culturally and socio-economically...simply staggering. Not to mention the physical beauty of the nation...yeah, you should definitely go if the opportunity every presents itself.

 

/end ramble