Author Topic: What books have changed your life?  (Read 207360 times)

justinhurt

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #300 on: September 05, 2019, 01:11:07 AM »
The book that changed my life was Jonathan Livingston Seagull written by Richard Bach. It's about a seagull who is trying to learn about life and flight, and a homily about self-perfection. I strongly advise reading this book. It's appropriate for people who want to find the right way to go further and the right place in life.

Custom Concern

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #301 on: September 12, 2019, 04:28:12 PM »
Richard Dawkin's "The Selfish Gene" interested me in evolution, ultimately leading to a PhD and my current career path

Stephen King's "Misery" got me thinking about becoming a writer (oddly enough, if you know the story you'd expect the opposite to happen)

John Steinbeck's "Winter of Discontent" main-lined me into American literature


vand

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #302 on: September 13, 2019, 01:13:13 AM »
I have just finished the audiobook "Drive" by Daniel Pink.
It's a look into advanced social science.

Mind absolutely blown.

5/5.

freedomfightergal

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #303 on: September 16, 2019, 08:58:16 AM »
"The War on Normal People", by Andrew Yang, I literally walked around in a daze for a couple of days, as the constant light bulb moments pinged my brain.  I'm so excited such a brilliant intellectual like him is running for President.  I hope more people read his book and understand the need for his cutting edge policies.

2Birds1Stone

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #304 on: September 16, 2019, 01:46:59 PM »
"The War on Normal People", by Andrew Yang, I literally walked around in a daze for a couple of days, as the constant light bulb moments pinged my brain.  I'm so excited such a brilliant intellectual like him is running for President.  I hope more people read his book and understand the need for his cutting edge policies.

Too bad he doesn't have a chance =(

Epor

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #305 on: September 16, 2019, 03:48:17 PM »

"An Edible History of Humanity" and "A History of the World in 6 Glasses" (by Tom Standage)
Not really life changing, but I found the insight on how food supply (or its disruption) shaped civilizations very interesting.

I also just finished the recommended "To Kill a Mocking Bird" - I lived it very much!

Next up: Walden and Cat's Cradle.

ericbonabike

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #306 on: September 17, 2019, 09:57:53 AM »
In chronological order:

Voltaire's Candide
Huxley's Brave New World
Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land
Heller's Catch-22
Those 4 books made me into the anti-authoritarian, independent, absurdist thinker I am today.

Coyne's Why evolution is true.
A very excellent read as to why evolution is true.


Collin's Simple Path to Wealth
An elegant and simple description on how to accumulate money.  Started me down the path of FI and minimalism ( I want to be the monk).



savetheeffort

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #307 on: September 22, 2019, 04:09:49 PM »
I've enjoyed:

"What got you here won't get you there."  - Marshall Goodwin
"Deep Work"" - Cal Newport
"Start with Why" - Simon Sinek

johnchanceradio

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #308 on: September 28, 2019, 01:33:11 PM »
A Wrinkle in Time.  The first book read as a child that made me realize,  WOW books can be cool.

2Birds1Stone

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #309 on: September 29, 2019, 06:06:32 AM »
Most recently, Atomic Habits by James Clear.

Very actionable, and mind blowing in how quickly you can make changes in your own life.

2sk22

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #310 on: October 08, 2019, 02:48:15 PM »
  • Pebble in the sky by Isaac Asimov. The first science fiction book I ever read. I now have a collection of over 1000 classic SF books from the 50s to the 70s.
  • Having fun in electronics by Leo G. Sands. Thanks to this book, I became an electronics hacker and then that led to computers. I have been working on computers ever since.
  • The moon is a harsh mistress by Robert Heinlein. This classic science fiction novel was my first introduction to AI and intelligent computers. This motivated me to get into the AI field in the 1980s and get my PhD.
  • The soul of a new machine by Tracy Kidder. Absolutely captivating account of the computer industry in the 70s and 80s.
  • Jonathan Livingston Seagull The idea of striving for perfection resonated strongly in me.
  • Men at arms by Terry Pratchett. My introduction to Discworld.

EscapedApe

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #311 on: October 10, 2019, 01:09:26 PM »
Anything written by Thomas Sowell. I'm convinced he's the smartest person in America. But especially his book Basic Economics, which breaks economics down very plainly. No charts, graphs, or formulas - just historical examples and statistical evidence.

lisabobisa

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #312 on: October 11, 2019, 06:37:07 AM »
I read The Food Revolution by John Robbins, decided to eat vegetarian and never looked back.

I first read To Kill a Mockingbird in 7th grade because my sister had it assigned, and my mom showed us the movie.  I reread it again in 9th grade, and then again (more than once) as an adult.  It's amazing how much more I got out of it as an adult, but it resounded with me as a 7th grader too.

1984 scared the poop out of me, but I couldn't put it down!  It still blows my mind that this guy wrote this book in the past about the future, and I was reading about his futuristic-past in his own future.  Still scary re-reading it today because it could still happen! (But he should have titled it 2084).

BeanCounter

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #313 on: October 11, 2019, 06:51:26 AM »
I recently read The Road by Cormac McCarthy and it left me with a book hangover. I had avoided it because I thought it was just a post-apocalyptic story, but it's so much more.

Maverick1

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #314 on: October 11, 2019, 11:26:38 PM »
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

abbuyt

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #315 on: November 05, 2019, 08:45:39 PM »
7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

MoneyQuirk

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #316 on: December 02, 2019, 12:25:47 AM »
4-hour work week.

It gets some criticism for being unethical, perhaps warranted.

What I really got out of it was the sheer drive. The burning desire to make something happen and MAKING IT HAPPEN. I felt that years of bureaucracy at a large company numbed this out of my brain. I picked up the book and I felt like I was back in college - dreaming up ideas and making them happen.

Linea_Norway

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #317 on: December 02, 2019, 12:58:12 AM »
4-hour work week.

It gets some criticism for being unethical, perhaps warranted.

What I really got out of it was the sheer drive. The burning desire to make something happen and MAKING IT HAPPEN. I felt that years of bureaucracy at a large company numbed this out of my brain. I picked up the book and I felt like I was back in college - dreaming up ideas and making them happen.

Indeed, many companies make their employees numb by their endless bureaucracy and their not listening to good ideas from employees.

afreeman85

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #318 on: December 31, 2019, 06:10:56 PM »
A lot of the books mentioned are awesome and written as guides for self improvement, but The Autobiography of Malcolm X changed my life. What a shirt and profound life he had. An amazing character arc that taught me about a struggle, a people, a and a world outside of the bubble I grew up in. It taught me that people can change, people can stay the same and ultimately that most people want to do right, but often don’t have the courage, confidence, or capacity to do right if it means breaking from the status quo.

John Galt incarnate!

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #319 on: January 01, 2020, 11:40:15 AM »
Atlas Shrugged   Rand

The Fountainhead   Rand

The Virtue of Selfishness   Rand

For the New Intellectual   Rand

Language, Truth, and Logic   A. J. Ayer

The language of Morals   R. M. Hare

The Republic   Plato

Constitutional Law   Gunther

The Bell Curve   Murray/Hernnstein

Losing Ground
   Murray

Of all these books Language, Truth, and Logic has been the most instructive.
« Last Edit: January 01, 2020, 12:11:26 PM by John Galt incarnate! »

The Stoic

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #320 on: January 13, 2020, 05:02:04 PM »
Great thread, lots of excellent recommendations in here to add to my list. Thanks to all of you who posted!
 
A recent book I’ve read that made a tremendous impact on me is “The Courage to be Disliked” by Ichiro Kishimi. 

Model96

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #321 on: January 13, 2020, 05:17:17 PM »
There's a lot of good books that have influenced me, but the first ones that come to mind are...
'Zorba the Greek' by Nikos Kazantzakis
'Catch 22’ by Joseph Heller
'The Road to Wigan Pier' by George Orwell
'The Unknown Industrial Prisoner' by David Ireland

SimpleLifer

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #322 on: January 13, 2020, 09:09:30 PM »
1.  Millionaire Next Door - I read this at an impressionable young age.  I grew up in severe poverty, so I was not used to having a lot of stuff.  This book gave me permission to continue living beneath my means.

2.  The China Study (which inspired the documentary "Forks Over Knives") - This book changed how I think about food, and health.  I didn't realize how much of my health is within my control.

3.  Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats - This book changed how I think about my pet's food, and health.  I didn't realize how much of my pet's health was within my control.
« Last Edit: January 13, 2020, 10:12:42 PM by SimpleLifer »

Dicey

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #323 on: January 14, 2020, 09:57:50 AM »
^^Please don't feed or quote the troll, folks.^^

le-weekend

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #324 on: January 28, 2020, 12:34:36 PM »
A bit late to the party but I would like to acknowledge two financial books that helped me a lot:

1) You're Broke Because You Want to Be (Larry Winget)
2) The Debt-Free Spending Plan (JoAnneh Nagler)

They both address the psychological obstacles to getting ahead financially, and also provide actionable steps.

Eilonwy

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #325 on: January 28, 2020, 01:19:53 PM »
The Tightwad Gazette, volume 2 IIRC. My husband picked it up at a garage sale. We probably would've been priced out of our area long ago if we hadn't discovered frugality and saved enough to afford a house.

1967mama

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #326 on: February 14, 2020, 10:54:54 AM »
I found my copy of The Complete Tightwad Gazette at a thrift store. Before that, I had the three individual volumes which I found on a clearance table at a book store. Before that, I had taken them out of the library 10-20x each. These books were my frugal enlightenment. I fail over and over but I always come back to the TWG! ❤️❤️❤️

grantmeaname

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #327 on: February 14, 2020, 11:08:26 AM »
My wife just got that for her birthday. I've stolen it to read a few times already.

Mrbeardedbigbucks

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #328 on: March 01, 2020, 02:56:26 PM »
Lonely Planet - Europe on a Shoestring
Thomas Cook Eurorail Time Table

Both were given to me as a gift by my college roommate in the late 90's. I was two years into my first job out of college. He dared me to quit my job and travel Europe with him for six months. He kept bugging me for months about it. One day he walked into where I worked (skipped security, no badge, he was escorted out) and gave me those books, wrapped like a Christmas present, it was March 8th. I quit on April 7th. Six months in Europe turned into a year. Those books were our bible. No much internet then. The books helped us travel. And the travel changed the way I looked at my own country and myself.

markram

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #329 on: March 12, 2020, 05:44:10 PM »
Not specifically Personal Finance based, but The Drunkard's Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives by Leonard Mlodinow is a fantastic and fun overview of all sorts of important statistical concepts everyone should know.

Can't recommend it highly enough.

Roots&Wings

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #330 on: April 20, 2020, 06:43:35 AM »
Great summary @jordan452254. Perhaps along similar lines, "The Art of Living" by Thich Nhat Hanh. "The art of living is knowing how to generate happiness at any time. No one else can create happiness for us; we have to create it ourselves." Indeed, life is what you make it.

Dicey

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #331 on: April 20, 2020, 07:14:56 AM »
Lonely Planet - Europe on a Shoestring
Thomas Cook Eurorail Time Table

Both were given to me as a gift by my college roommate in the late 90's. I was two years into my first job out of college. He dared me to quit my job and travel Europe with him for six months. He kept bugging me for months about it. One day he walked into where I worked (skipped security, no badge, he was escorted out) and gave me those books, wrapped like a Christmas present, it was March 8th. I quit on April 7th. Six months in Europe turned into a year. Those books were our bible. No much internet then. The books helped us travel. And the travel changed the way I looked at my own country and myself.
I love this story! I hope you are still friends.

lost_in_the_endless_aisle

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #332 on: April 20, 2020, 09:03:25 PM »
The Stranger by Albert Camus. Upon first reading when I was a senior in high school, I did not fully grasp the concept of absurdism that the book presents. After doing some research and re-reading important passages, however, I now count it as one of the most important books I have ever read. The Stranger follows Meursault, a Frenchman living in North Africa who on the surface appears to be rather cold, emotionless, and aloof. The book opens (mangazuki raws) with Meursault attending his mother’s funeral. Notably, he does not shed a single tear. Nor does he seem to show any overt emotion later in the novel when he murders a man who attacked his friend. Meursault shoots the man to death, and cannot seem to offer any real explanation to the police as to why he did it, besides the fact that the stifling heat was getting to him. He is predictably sentenced to death, and given a chance to confess his sins to a priest prior to his execution. It is at this time that Meursault’s true nature is revealed: he does not see a point to this life, a reason for existence, or any kind of purpose in the world. He sees life for what it is: an endless cycle of suffering, pain and unexplainable phenomena. Meursault lashes out at the priest, stating that no human has the right to judge another as we all must find a way to deal with the lack of inherent meaning in our existence. At this point, the reader is able to begin to understand why Meursault has done the things he has done. He didn’t cry at his mother’s funeral because he was cold-hearted, he didn’t cry because he did not understand why it was expected of him to cry. Meursault himself realizes that the murder he committed was a senseless act. It was merely the culmination of a life spent without purpose. Meursault accepts his fate, and calmly awaits his turn for the guillotine. The Stranger taught me that I have to make my own purpose in this world. The world is not going to be kind to you merely because you believe you deserve it or because of your religious faith. You have to go out and make something of this life.
Camus has remained highly relevant and I'm guessing The Plague is selling well these days. If you liked The Stranger, I would actually recommend The Fall which is my favorite from him (although I surely hold a minority opinion!).

woopwoop

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #333 on: July 24, 2020, 10:56:02 AM »
I recently read Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari and it was fantastic. I didn't know much about prehistory and it was so fascinating as a different look at human culture and its development. Definitely a good broad look at history in the same vein as Guns, Germs, and Steel.

Alchemisst

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #334 on: July 27, 2020, 06:06:21 AM »
Has anyone read: How Not to Be Wrong: The Power of Mathematical Thinking? Recently came across it and seems interesting wondering if its worth a read.

STEMorbust

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #335 on: August 07, 2020, 11:13:54 PM »
This Land by Christopher Ketcham

Ranchers are a-holes


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

mamabear18

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #336 on: August 24, 2020, 10:33:50 PM »
Great recommendations! Can't believe I've read many of them, but I guess that is why we are all here!

I'm surprised I didn't see Suze Orman's 9 steps to financial freedom.  This was one of the first books I read in my twenties that changed my relationship with money. I liked her tough love approach.  It was exactly what I needed.  Any of David Bach's books also simplified things for me especially The Automatic Millionaire. I did exactly what he said and boom. it worked.

I also recommend Awaken the Giant within by Anthony Robbins. Also read it in my 20s and made me realize that I truly am in control of my life. I think the eye opener for me at that time was how he started with nothing and look at him now. It really motivated me take action and I credit this book for having a huge influence on my life.

There are so many other books - you can't go wrong with any of the recommendations here. I am so very thankful that I had the desire to learn about how to manage my money b/c I certainly didn't learn anything from my parents. And I am also very thankful that no one gave me any handouts b/c that is what drove me to learn how to take care of my financial life.

A couple of simple reads that I couldn't let go when I downsized my library:
Superfoods RX (tons of books out there about the same subject) by Steven Pratt. I read this a long time ago and its like my bible.
LIfe's greatest lessons - 20 things that Matter by Hal Urban - short quick read - I use it as my reference guide to life when I'm struggling. helps me focus.

MasterStache

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #337 on: August 28, 2020, 11:42:36 AM »
The Power of Now - Eckhart Tolle

Probably already mentioned. I'm reading it for the 3rd time. My high functioning autistic son has told me about his use of mindfulness at times in stressful situations.

4tify

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #338 on: August 28, 2020, 06:28:28 PM »
Disgraced by JM Cotze. Amazing post apartheid novel.

Narcissus & Goldman by Herman Hesse. Classic Buddhist exploration of life philosophy.

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard. Natural wonder & "what the hell is life about?"

Tao De Ching. Chinese classic on non-being.

cool7hand

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #339 on: August 31, 2020, 05:56:00 AM »
If you tell stories, read The Secrets of Story by Matt Bird. It's dense and at times over-produced, but it has the best advice on turning good stories into great that I've come across and I've listened to or read everyone from McKee to Field to Clark to Pressfield to Sanderson to Weiland to Arndt to Bell to Bradbury.

FrugalShrew

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #340 on: April 05, 2022, 10:06:48 AM »
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy had a profound effect on my philosophy and understanding of life.

I would love your analysis. I have learned a lot from both books and movies alike. Anytime I have listed my insights a different but equality valuable interpretation was listed by someone else.

It's all there in the book!  It covers every sort of topic:

Intelligence
Quote
For instance, on the planet Earth, man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much—the wheel, New York, wars and so on—whilst all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man—for precisely the same reasons.


Religion
Quote
“Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”


The Value of Money
Quote
This planet has - or rather had - a problem, which was this: most of the people living on it were unhappy for pretty much of the time. Many solutions were suggested for this problem, but most of these were largely concerned with the movement of small green pieces of paper, which was odd because on the whole it wasn't the small green pieces of paper that were unhappy.


The Value of Attentiveness
Quote
"You know," said Arthur, "it's at times like this, when I'm trapped in a Vogon airlock with a man from Betelgeuse, and about to die of asphyxiation in deep space that I really wish I'd listened to what my mother told me when I was young."
"Why, what did she tell you?"
"I don't know, I didn't listen."


Politics
Quote
Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.

Quote
The President of the Universe holds no real power. His sole purpose is to take attention away from where the power truly exists...


Philosophical study
Quote
“Perhaps I'm old and tired, but I always think that the chances of finding out what really is going on are so absurdly remote that the only thing to do is to say hang the sense of it and just keep yourself occupied.”

Quote
“Well, I mean, yes idealism, yes the dignity of pure research, yes the pursuit of truth in all its forms, but there comes a point I'm afraid where you begin to suspect that the entire multidimensional infinity of the Universe is almost certainly being run by a bunch of maniacs. And if it comes to a choice between spending yet another ten million years finding that out, and on the other hand just taking the money and running, then I for one could do with the exercise.”


Communication
Quote
“One of the things Ford Prefect had always found hardest to understand about human beings was their habit of continually stating and repeating the very very obvious, as in It's a nice day, or You're very tall, or Oh dear you seem to have fallen down a thirty-foot well, are you all right? At first Ford had formed a theory to account for this strange behaviour. If human beings don't keep exercising their lips, he thought, their mouths probably seize up. After a few months' consideration and observation he abandoned this theory in favour of a new one. If they don't keep on exercising their lips, he thought, their brains start working.”


The Value of Knowledge
Quote
“What does it matter? Science has achieved some wonderful things, of course, but I'd far rather be happy than right any day.”


True Evil
Quote
"But Mr. Dent, the plans have been available in the local planning office for the last nine months."

"Oh yes, well, as soon as I heard I went straight round to see them, yesterday afternoon. You hadn't exactly gone out of your way to call attention to them, had you? I mean, like actually telling anybody or anything."

"But the plans were on display..."

"On display? I eventually had to go down to the cellar to find them."

"That's the display department."

"With a flashlight."

"Ah, well, the lights had probably gone."

"So had the stairs."

"But look, you found the notice didn't you?"

"Yes," said Arthur, "yes I did. It was on display in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying 'Beware of the Leopard.”

I think I enjoyed this analysis even more than the book itself! (And the book is very good).

cool7hand

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #341 on: April 05, 2022, 11:59:26 AM »
Dune. It changed what I thought I was capable of--all because of the power of the hero's journey.

Taran Wanderer

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #342 on: April 05, 2022, 10:25:44 PM »
The Dude and the Zen Master.

The Dude abides, man, the Dude abides.

lollylegs

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #343 on: July 26, 2022, 03:19:13 PM »
I've read heaps of books but the three that made me really take action to change things were:

The Millionaire Next Door - showed me that building wealth is not just for rich people and that it is possible to change your 'lot' in life. After reading it I started saving money and investing. It made me start learning about finance.

The Women's Room - showed me that going to university was a possibility for someone like me - before this it felt as realistic as saying I would go to the moon.   I held onto that idea and a few years later went to university as an older student - happiest days of my life and changed my life for the better in so many ways.

What do you really want for your children? - read it and knew thats what I wanted for myself - got me into therapy and that has changed my life for the better.


lutorm

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #344 on: July 26, 2022, 07:31:59 PM »
Many of my choices have already been mentioned here (like "Guns, Germs & Steel" and "The Good Life"), but I think these have not:

"The Black Swan" (Taleb) - Read this as I was working on my PhD dissertation involving Monte Carlo simulations, so it was super pertinent and really made me question the things we think we know and how we know them.

"Failed States" (Chomsky) - An interesting perspective on the double standard that is the United States' foreign policy.

"Tiny Habits" (Fogg) - This finally made me start exercising again! (You can get most of the idea from his TED talk on youtube.)

"The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook" (Davies) - This was the key to overcoming my RSI and managing chronic pain from  an injury.

"Steel My Soldiers Hearts" (Hackworth) - The story of commanding a batallion in Vietnam. Not exactly life-changing, but it made a lasting impression on me about the value of "train as you fight" and honestly evaluating whether what you're doing is working or not.

Archipelago

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #345 on: July 27, 2022, 09:34:59 AM »
I've seen most of these books mentioned in this thread, but I'm going to explain more on 'why' they might be considered life changing.

7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen Covey
I experienced a paradigm shift after reading the first chapter alone. I read this when I was stuck in a pretty bad rut of depression & depersonalization. This book helped me understand that my mental turmoil and circumstances were the result of my choice in the matter.
"We must look at the lens through which we see the world, as well as the world we see, and that the lens itself shapes how we interpret the world."

Man's Search for Meaning - Viktor Frankl
Frankl presents material that could only be achieved when people are pitted into the darkest hours of human existence. This is not your typical modern self-help book. This is a deep exploration into the psychology of purpose and meaning. As a bonus, the book provides tons of references on the subject for further reading. Frankl is a renowned psychologist, and this text is significant in the field of psychology.

The Alchemist - Paul Coelho
It's a fantastic fiction book. I listened to it on Audible. It delves into the idea of a 'personal legend' which I thought was applicable when thinking about my own life. I came away from it feeling inspired to forge direction in life.

Book of Five Rings - Miyamoto Musashi (translations by Alexander Bennett)
This is a book about strategy that was written sometime in the 1600s. The book itself is about the strategy of swordsmanship, but can easily be applied to learning something new, honing a skill, building a business, playing a sport competitively, etc. Tons of value and wisdom in this book.

One book that I'm a bit surprised hasn't been mentioned, so I'll mention it:

12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos - Jordan B. Peterson
I'm putting up a major asterisk* when suggesting this one. JBP has become somewhat of a controversial public and political figure. Seems to me he got tangled up in the media, then the pressure of fame got into his head and caused him to regress as a person. I recommend reading this book at its surface without digging into the author's political and public influence. It's a book about the relationship between responsibility and meaning. If getting serious about putting your life together and becoming the best version of yourself are ideas that resonate with you, you will enjoy this book.

nlsantamaria25

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #346 on: August 21, 2022, 08:17:00 PM »
Book The Alchemist by Paulo Cohelo

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MustacheAndaHalf

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #347 on: September 11, 2022, 02:13:57 AM »
Some of mine overlap prior posts, but not:
* "The Handicap Principle", referring to signaling in animals.  When deer see a predator, their first action isn't running away, but "stotting", or jumping high into the air.  Fit deer can jump high and afford this use of energy before running away.  A predator chasing them will probably fail, leaving both predator and prey drained and vulnerable.  A weaker older deer can't fake this: if it jumps, it will be much weaker jump.  And worse, that jump uses much more of its remaining energy, making it easier to catch.  So the weaker deer flee immediately while the fit deer jump in the air to prove their fitness.
https://www.amazon.com/Handicap-Principle-Missing-Darwins-Puzzle-ebook/dp/B000UG5U5E/

Sometimes I wonder if buying a Lambrogini reflects the same idea - someone can prove they're rich by buying something very expensive.

lifeandlimb

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #348 on: September 12, 2022, 09:30:06 AM »
The Art of Negotiating by Maggie Neale for changing my perspective on how creative and collaborative you can be when approaching dialogues where parties want different things. It taught me to dig deep about what I want, not just live on the surface level.

Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien and Dune by Frank Herbert for building vast, rich, and completely engrossing worlds for an imaginative youth who just wanted a way out.

Sure it sounds generic, but The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo, for truly teaching me to clean/organize and Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism by Sasaki Fumio for breaking me out of my years-long shopaholic/materialistic ways.

Thanks @Archipelago and @nlsantamaria25 for mentioning the Alchemist. I have been hearing good things about it for years but keep forgetting to read. I'll add it to my list.

stclurker

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Re: What books have changed your life?
« Reply #349 on: September 25, 2022, 10:04:24 PM »
One Second After by William Foreschten (pretty sure I spelled that wrong) and Lights Out by David Crawford

Similar books that make you realize just how delicately society is balanced. They are similar in that an EMP disables every electronic device in most of the world

IMO, definitely worth the read