The great Italian writer and semiotician Umberto Eco once said “The person who doesn’t read lives only one life. The reader lives 5,000. Reading is immortality backwards.” And among those thousands of lives, at least one can really shake you to the core or make you realize something about life that will change how you live it.
If you haven’t read such a book yet, maybe reading something that made a huge impact on others can help with that. People on Reddit shared the books that left the biggest impression on them when VAMPCLAW asked, “What is that one book that absolutely changed your life?” Redditors shared both fiction and non-fiction books that made them think differently, inspired them to reach for more or helped them to get through a difficult time in their lives.
We are curious to hear whether you agree that the books mentioned in the list are worth reading and will leave you in deep thought afterwards. Also, if there is a book that you think everybody else needs to read, leave it in the comments and share why it was so life-changing for you.
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The Bible. It made me an atheist.
Yes. Me too. Do what I do with Gideon Bibles in Hotels. Dedicate the book to the reader.. Ross Noble, comedian, was once stuck in a hotel on a dreary day when everything was closed, picked up the Bible, thought why not read it to pass the time. Opened it to find the dedication, "All the best, God.".
I saw an article that claims in the Netherlands, instead of Bibles in hotel rooms, they offer copies of The Universal Rights of Man.
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It's interesting that people in these comments mention how awful religious people are. I love the Bible and am a Christian. According to some comments in this section, that would make me mentally disturbed, guilty of not reading it honestly but cherry picking, and being narrow-minded. You can disagree with my religious beliefs and that's okay. I still respect you as a person and wish all the best for you. I know some Christians can be obnoxious but so can some people who don't like Christianity. I guess what I'm saying is maybe treating others the way we'd want to be treated isn't too bad an idea.
Made me an atheist too. They're just stories written by men. Cautionary tales. Not law not factual. Opinion pieces written by "ghosts"about "ghosts". That's what I took from it also my opinion
I don't think that reading the Bible can make you an atheist - it only depends on where you are on a spiritual scale in life. When I had a deep faith phase I read a lot of it and nothing I read was making me disbelieve God. I saw signs in it and my faith grew stronger. Now I'm in my Agnostic/less believer phase I actually find certain parts that throw me off. So I would say you were an atheist/doubtful sitting down to it and it simply "convinced" you to your attitude.
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I think we all know why so many loud, opinionated "Christians" have never read it at all.
Me, too. I studied many religious texts to try to change my mind at one point. I was wondering why I was not seeing what others see.
Same! Thanks to the bible I was able to break free from that religion and start living a normal happy life!
Nice. I mean, the opposite happened with me reading the bible, but good that you've thought through these issues!
Are we the only ones that didn't read the Bible upside down? Lol
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Old Testament is non stop rape, sex, kidnapping, genocide, and a "vengeful god" who destroys people who don't worship grovelingly enough.
Visiting other places of worship with my church youth group in hs made me an atheist...how could we all be right...so I knew none of us were right.
That always puzzles me. If you think your religion is right then you also have to think that everybody else's is wrong, including every other flavor of your main religion. If you're not familiar with the Emo Philips joke about it, have a look: https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2005/sep/29/comedy.religion
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As it is often said: what's the difference between a Christian and an atheist? The atheist actually read the bible.
Why is it "Bash Christians" time here but no one said the Quran is a draft copy of LOTR? One second the Bible is all stories or rape, sex, etc. Everyone's "bible" is. Sorry - I get tired of the bashing and labeling here. Believe what you want. Don't diss and mock someone else's beliefs tho.
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I was raised to be a Christian. When you live in the south, you don't question it. It's just a way of life. I even worked in the ministry, and played in a Christian band for years. I finally stood back and took a long hard honest look at the whole thing, and stopped denying that what I had been taught was BS. If anyone can read the OT, and still believe that the deity that supposedly led the Jews was a good just God, then they are mentally disturbed. The whole entire premise of religion is based on discrimination, and rejection of anyone or anything that doesn't fit into the narrow belief system. Individuals are cast out, and called blasphemous for thinking for themselves. I made a decision not to indoctrinate my kids. I don't want them walking through life with the millstone of religion around their necks.
Same here. That god is a real piece of work - genocide, murder, misogyny, adultery, talking asses, kids getting slaughtered by bears because they called a prophet "old baldy." Quite a piece of work indeed.
I have a buddy who used to be an atheist, then read the bible as one of many personal studies (he enjoys knowing things), and became a follower of Christ. Not in the Christian way we know, but he thinks biblical Jesus had the right idea, which totally includes violence and hanging out with sinners.
Sorry to hear that. The Bible is the best selling book of all time and has sold 5 billion copies. Most people don't become atheists after reading it.
There's a difference between God and the people who claim to follow him. God is not man. Man is not God. There's a difference between "religion" or "organized religion" and having a personal individual relationship with your Creator. And there's a difference between what man says about the Bible/God and what God and the Bible say about themselves. Separate. Distinct entities. They deserve to be judged on their own separate merits and not lumped together with things that are not truly them or representative of them. And the other thing is. You have to be humble enough to admit where you're wrong. And be willing to change. If you're not, you're going to reject the Bible because you don't like what it says or what it requires of you. Because you don't want to change. But that doesn't make it objectively or factually wrong. That's a separate and bigger issue from whether or not you individually like it or not. Look into Lee strobel, Josh McDowell, abd CS Lewis for evidence.
"You have to be humble enough to admit where you're wrong. And be willing to change." Why is this not applicable to you? Why is it only ever applicable to those who don't believe? God doesn't say anything about the bible because god isn't a real entity. Believing what the bible says about itself is a weak circular argument that falls flat. Your apologetic, escape hatch, arguments go nowhere.
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Actually reading the thing, rather than just selected sections, was an eye-opener for me as a kid. However, the waves of s**t I got at Sunday school for asking "awkward, distracting or silly" questions soon taught me that there were no answers there. Also, I was reading a lot of mythology (Greek, Norse, Egyptian) and the God of the Bible began to look a rather vicious cruel s**t compared to any of the others.
Bibles are almost no longer in Hotel rooms or Hospital rooms. It was offensive to other religions. I'm a Christian that hates religion. They are not the same thing. I believe in God because of the Bible but also because of the way this Earth works. Everything about it points to an Omnipotent being. You can not tell me the universe had a big bang and it all just fell into place. " I am that I am" works for me.
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No. All the other books could have been written and could have been printed. The only claim the bible has on the impact of the greater world of literature is that it was the document that helped spur the invention printing press which made it easier to print books in greater volumes and the reason for the invention had nothing at all to do with religion and everything to do with oppression of the ignorant by the learned. At the time of the invention of the Gutenberg press all of the knowledge was held by the church and nobility. Gutenberg made it possible to wrench that away from them and give it to the populace. Amazing what the truth actually looks like, isn't it?
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Love kindness and charity is how most of us atheists live our lives wo a book telling us to.
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the girl with the dragon tattoo when I was 18. I didn't go to highschool for reasons and this book made me go get my highschool degree and go to college because I wanted to become a journalist because of that book. I graduated college last month.
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy got me into reading
Nathaniel66 said:
1984- Orwell
DT-Archer added:
Just finished this one last week. Such a great book that still manages to be relevant 70 years later. Makes me worried about some of the trends we see today and how we need to put more value in privacy. It also made me really value the simple things that are so easily taken for granted like having your own place with your SO and the ability to lead a life of your choosing.
There is a Monster at the End of this Book. It really led me on a journey to overcome my fears and deeply examine what it means to be a monster. Also, pulling really hard against Grover to turn the pages helped me get buff. Really I was helping Grover face fears he was not ready to face. But we faced them together.
The Hobbit.
As a young child, I had always found reading to be pretty dull. This changed when I was 7 and got my hands on The Hobbit- I realised that it wasn't reading that was boring - I just wasn't reading the right books!
The Hobbit started my life-long love of reading, particularly fantasy and sci-fi- A passion that I am now following as a writer!
Maus; the first and only graphic novel to win a pulitzer price
It is a book about a second generation survivor of the Holocaust retelling his father memoirs of the event. This semi-biographic book puts into perspective the whole feeling of absolute terror and give us an insight on the before-after situation. The jews are portrayed as mouses and the nazis as cats, elaborating on the whole cat and mouse chase premise which demonstrates the horrors the jewish felt. Although it is a graphic novel, its images do really say more than words.
It is to this day, the only book which has made me cry and feel hurt; it makes the whole subject feel very personal.
charxc2222 said:
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
ronearc responded:
That's my answer as well. A book that legitimately changed my view of the world and the people in it.
Flowers for Algernon. I read it as a teenager, and it made me realize that my intelligence was a privilege, and that it didn’t make me better than people who are less intelligent than me.
Love this one. The way the writing style changes as Charlie's IQ changes is brilliant.
The Easy way to stop smoking by Allen Carr.
I had zero intention to stop smoking when I started reading that book. To say I was sceptical about it would be an understatement. I was a heavy chain smoker. Smoked more than anyone I knew. But I went cold turkey after I read it. 3 years strong. I have not had a single puff since finishing that book.
If you smoke. You want to read this book now. I wish I read it earlier.
The Outsiders. Beautiful story that opened me up to the wonders of the 50's and 60's in the western U.S. absolutely loved it. Please read it, who ever reads this.
A Brief History Of Time. The insanity and complexity of the universe was explained in understandable terms, bonkers.
Agreed, to a certain extent. I understood and comprehended as I read it and for a few days later. For some reason I couldn't retain it and now am clueless as ever.It's just to mind boggling. Or maybe it's just me.
I remember when I read Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel. I was about 10 years old and I had seen the movie a dozen times before I found out it was a book. I devoured it in 2 days. I was hooked on the whole series for decades and it started my obsession with books. I will read anything but historical fiction is my favorite and it started with the Earth's Children series.
The Kite Runner
Completely eye-opening, and an emotional roller coaster.
The Long Walk by Stephen King. Greatly shows the variety of lives and some lessons about the life itself.
I thought I was the only one who was amazed by this story. I wish someone would produce a film based on this story.
Probably Redwall because it got me into reading as a child, and later writing.
I’m embarrassingly basic but the hunger games. It got me into reading in grade school/high school which really benefited my comprehension, vocabulary and writing.
It's not embarrassingly basic. If it strikes a chord or changes your view on reading, it is a good book.
The Giver
I remember reading that book in 6th or 7th grade and just being blown away. I had never experienced a book like that before and it really had a huge impact on me.
I'd also say The Harry Potter series because as a young kind reading those books I really felt like I was escaping into this magical world.
The Harry Potter series is nice :). I get in so much trouble for defending it against those who believe it's demonic, though XD.
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut.
"The things other people have put into my head, at any rate, do not fit together nicely, are often useless and ugly, are out of proportion with one another, are out of proportion with life as it really is outside my head."
juicebox647replied:
Vonnegut is so profound and yet can say absolutely nothing at the same time. I love the way he writes so much. I've been reading this textbook sized book full of all of his short stories recently and they're amazing. Reading about the Tralfamadorians when I was a younger me totally changed my outlook on life and how I think about the time we have here. It really did transform my life.
The Body Keeps The Score: Mind, Brain and Body in the Transformation of Trauma
If only more mental health care specialists read this book. If only more doctors read it. If only more people understood the ripples of intergenerational trauma and abuse.
The Phantom Tollbooth.
I reread it after hearing that Norton Juster passed. It may have resonated more with me at 32 years old than reading it as a child.
This is, without a doubt, one of my favorite books. It is filled with nonsense, elaborate wordplay, amazing characters, a beautiful storyline, and it's just so, so awesome.
My side of the mountain. I was young and have always camped and loved the outdoors (still do) but this book had such an exciting story!
Its about a boy who runs away from home and plans to live in the wild on his own. He goes to a library and checks out a bunch of books on survival and lives in the forest. He even burns the base of a large tree and hollows it out and makes a living space inside. its a super easy read but I loved every page.
pretty-ok-username said:
The stinky cheese man and other fairly stupid tales
ZweiEnte added:
This book basically set my sense of humour. I can trace my affinity for shaggy dog stories and deadpan humour straight back to the princess & the bowling ball and the other frog prince.
Thinking Fast and Slow. I had no idea how my overreliance on my intuition was impacting my ability to think through tough problems. It has forever changed the way I look at the world.
Depressive Illness: The Curse of The Strong by Tim Cantopher.
Whenever someone tells me they are struggling with their mental health, I immediately point them to this book. It is the first one I have read by a health professional where I got the impression they actually get what it means to be depressed, and unlike most books by professionals, it's pretty easy to read at about 100 pages.
It doesn't offer any cure-all remedies, but it does help you understand why this is happening to you, so you can start to do something about it.
There is a character in a game called Doki Doki Literature Club who broke my heart while recounting their story. They were confused and scared as to why they felt this way, why they were depressed. For all those who are experiencing the same, I hope you find out why :).
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. Got me back into reading after 5 years without picking up a book and then later inspired me to become a self-published author
This is the same author that finished the Wheel of Time series. Robert Jordan and his family respected Sanderson’s way of writing so much that they gave him Jordan’s notes so he could finish the series. I love everything he’s written. One of the few male writers that can write great, strong, believable female characters.
The Road. I read it before and after becoming a father. Drastically different experiences. And the world according to garp. I read it when I was a kid and it was the first novel that made me laugh outloud and come close to crying in the same book.
Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler; an incredible sci-fi book that was written in the 80s and is a mix of apocalypse fiction, socio-political critique & resilience.
Completely changed my world view & put me on the path to sustainable off-grid living, which I'm really grateful for.
I also equally love the sequel Parable of the Talents and there's an amazing podcast called Octavia's Parables that came out last year which goes through each chapter of the book. I recommend it for anyone thinking about starting the book or re-reading it, it's like being in a book club that goes at your own pace :)
The End of Mr Y.
My ex partner threw it at my face during an argument and knocked down and burst my forehead. So I left her and totally changed my ambitions in life. Kinda funny. Sometimes I see that book and scowl, and wonder what people think is going on.
LOL! Not the way I'd have thought a book would change one's life, but OK.
Note: this post originally had 40 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
I'd recommend Machiavelli's The Prince. I was disappointed when I didn't take over the world after reading it, but it was still a very interesting read.
On the Road by Jack Kerouac when I was 19. Read it straight in one night, packed my backpack , left a note to my mom and left for three months on french roads with the equivalent of 30€. Not every experiences were easy and fun, by learnt me a lot on how to do and live with very few. Met a lot of different people, left my confort zone, and most important : I'm still the most free person of my toxic family
I read it in Italian and let's just say it doesn't translate well. I need to put it on my reading list again, in English this time.
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I've never had the experience of ANYTHING that has "absolutely changed my life". I always find it odd, hearing how this happens to people. Be it a book, or a show, or a TED talk, or an experience that they had. Nothing has been a "life changing moment" for me. Not to say that nothing is life changing... the opposite is true, everything I have experienced is life changing. Every book I read, every person I talk to, every thing I do is life changing... it is just lots of little changes that add up. Never anything sudden or dramatic.
There could be a bit of exaggeration in those claims. Joining the military surely changed my life, but it took years. Leaving it also changed my life, as did having a family, a child, seeing that child become an adult....
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Books are friends I grew up with them and still keep reading. I can't say the ones that impacted my life. More authors, CS Lewis, Clive Cussler, Martin Luther, ,,, Genres, biographies, science fiction. I love reading.
My life-changing books were "I wish you all the best" by Mason Deaver and "Felix Ever After" by Kacen Callender, because they really made me question and explore my gender identity. I now know that I'm a trans guy, and those two books helped a lot.
That book was a lot of fun! Got me into essential oils (this was before all the MLM nonsense that is today's essential oils market)
Load More Replies... A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. This took me on a roller coaster of emotions! I actually let out an audible gasp toward the end. Got some strange looks on the bus for that.
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. Mom read it to me when I was 3 or 4, and thinking of Ginger STILL makes me cry at 42.
One of my favourites as a child! So very sad, so much cruelty ...
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if anyone wants to read any of my books id really appreciate it, The Riveters about the ship builders in Northern Ireland building Titanic and the prejudice they suffered and Searching For Santa about what would happen if Santa quit his job both by Helen Murphy. The latter is a kids book but I mean adults will read it too ive had good reviews on both, the first is historical fiction that took me two years to write and research. no one has ever written about the Titanic ship builders, nor the tragedies that they suffered, many died building that ship and no one seems to care
I can't believe there's not a single PTerry Pratchett in here!
I was about to post about that! Those are definitely books that changed my life - if nothing else, to give me a better place for my escapism.
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I have cried at the end of many books. I, too cried at the end of Maus, but The Color Purple, and Bastard Out of Carolina came to mind immediately. I think every book you read changes you some. Lewis Nordan makes me laugh out loud no matter where I am. I reread my favorites over and over. Cormac McCarthy, Margaret Atwood, Anthony Burgess an so on. When I need a little focus, I read M. Scott Peck. I also happen to be a short story junkie.
How do you pick one? I could make a list of 10 and then change it tomorrow.
I was surprised that no one mentioned "Stranger In A Strange Land" by Robert Heinlein. Read that when I was 16 and it formed a lot of my adult thinking. Also one I didn't expect to see here but was mind altering was "Peace Is Every Step" by Thich Nhat Hang,a book about mindfulness and meditation and its benefits.
Illusions By Richard Bach. It saved me and made me look at the world in a whole new way!
Scrolling the comments to see if someone said it. Illusions and Pet Sematary as a 13 year old in the 90's definitely set the tone for my jr.high years.
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Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo by Christiane Vera Felscherinow German original, read it in translation. Not sure how they trnaslateded to English. Biography story about a 13 YO girl geting in and out of the hell of drugs and prostitution. Read it as a teen, never ever did any drugs or cigaretes because of it
I don't know about "life changing", but a book that really stuck with me is Star's Reach, by John Michael Greer. It's a post-post apocalyptic story set in the U.S. 500 years after an economic and environmental collapse. I can't imagine a bright immediate future awaiting us. How could anyone? But this book imagines a light at the end of the tunnel, even if it's only science fiction.
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. It's a beautifully illustrated comic book autobiography about growing up in revolutionary-era Iran :). Definitely not for kids, though, as I had to scream at my dad when he told my 11 year old brother to read it XD. My dad realized his mistake immediately after, and my brother hasn't read it. Phew.
Smart home A to Z https://comfortablelife4u.blogspot.com/2023/02/building-smart-home-a-to-z-guide.html
I would say The perks of being a wallflower, I read it in the mental hospital and it has stuck with me since. The way it's written and formatted is amazing and the story sucks you in. Going through freshman year with an awkward teenager trying to navigate life, it's honestly one of my favorite books. I was really happy that they had it considering they didn't have many books
The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe; changed my son's life. My oldest hated reading so when my 2nd child hated reading too, I said no, pulled him out of school, the first year of homeschooling we did nothing but read all types of books. This was the very first one we read and he LOVED it. Changed his outlook on reading. At 30 is still an avid reader, college educated, successful, happy.
The Book of the Dun Cow. I read it in high school and loved it so much that I had to get a copy, even though it's out of print. I still have it 45 years later.
'Joirney of the Soul' by Gene Wright. Very interesting book based on true recordings of patients who'd been hypnotized by Dr. Wright, which explores what happens when we die, where we go what we do & see, & how they felt between lives on earth. Definitely changed my outlook on living & dying.
Johnathan Livingston Seagull. Great book. Also, Anasi the spider man. Oooo! And the complete book of robot stories by Issac Asimov!
I'd say Wraeththu by Storm Constantine. It totally changed my perspective on sex and sexual identity
Acceptable Risk is a great one about perspectives and scientific advancements.
As a heavy duty science fiction and fantasy reader and writer, I love that 12 of these are solidly on my camp (I left out the two or three kid's books which are arguably SF/F). I think there is so much to be learned about the world, life, and being human by moving outside the real world to better illustrate these themes.
All of Judy Bloom. Her book opened up wonderful worlds as a child and helped me deal with tragedy as a teen.
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. Blew my mind. I re-read it every few years.
For me it was Go Ask Alice I would have been in 6th grade I tended to read above my grade level and this was definitely not ment for sixth graders it delt with incredibly heavy subjects like drug use r**e and selling themselves ext the book was amazingly heart braking it’s about a 15 year old girl that moves dosent fit in goes developed a drug addiction and ran away from home with a new bad friend and her tragic string of misfortune and other girls she meets that are in just as bad situations it’s presented in diary format and I think this was better then any D.A.R.E and drug prevention methods parents and teachers where starting to shove down our throats. This book definitely kept me scared from ever trying drugs due to what happened to her. spoilers Evan once she finally got clean and was doing well other then bullies at school her last entry is so positive for the future the epilogue was what was really did me in it stated that she died shortly after her last entry due to
Spoilers continued Due to drug overdose Evan worse it’s left up in the air if she relapsed and did it to herself or if she was purposely overdosed by another schoolmate I’m still convinced it was murder but maybie I was just hoping so much that after all that she wouldn’t go back
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I found a copy of Geralds Game on my back porch when I was 11. I hated reading until I found that book, I have had a book in hand ever since and Stephen King will always have a special place in my heart and library.
The books that changed my life were The Nancy Drew Mysteries books, I remember devouring them as soon as I could get them. I was raised in a family of readers, it was (gently) encouraged, and these books fueled the fire.
My addition would be Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. Not for any particularly profound reason, I just liked it.
The Invisible Man about a black man who moves north with a letter of "recommendation" by his white boss, but the book shows how systems overlapped to further oppress him. While he is being trained at a paint facility that makes white paint the trainer instructs him to add a little bit of black paint to get the perfect white. That metaphor hit me hard. And this was in public school in TX. I hope TX hasn't effed up education too much since, but the current state of affairs has me worried!
The book that has impacted my life the most is a book that I found incredibly boring and took forever to read, but in retrospect the key message of it stuck. Independent People by Halldor Laxness, which is basically the national book of Iceland because he won the Nobel Prize. In Iceland, even the tour guide said he thought it was super boring, but slow, drawn out stories is kind of what Iceland's books are like. Slow literature. But the main point is that an independent person is someone who owes nothing to anybody. It's made me realize I would rather a simple, modest life than trying to keep up with what others are doing, because debt is to be chained. This pandemic should have shown people especially that you can't rely on things to stay the same.
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. Probably not the best book I've ever read, but definitely my favourite.
Down vote me if you want but Anthem by Ayn Rand. The importance of the Sense of Self, Individualism, and Pride really struck a cord with me in high school. At the time I was just the youngest of 5 sisters trying to make it through life but that book taught me the importance of "I". I am my father's youngest daughter and not just a part of the collective. I play the clarinet, not just another band member. It really helped me blossom into an indivisible instead just a crowd member.
The Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward. It's a paranormal romance series that not just love and romance. This series has helped me escape my mind on more than one occasion.
I'd recommend Machiavelli's The Prince. I was disappointed when I didn't take over the world after reading it, but it was still a very interesting read.
On the Road by Jack Kerouac when I was 19. Read it straight in one night, packed my backpack , left a note to my mom and left for three months on french roads with the equivalent of 30€. Not every experiences were easy and fun, by learnt me a lot on how to do and live with very few. Met a lot of different people, left my confort zone, and most important : I'm still the most free person of my toxic family
I read it in Italian and let's just say it doesn't translate well. I need to put it on my reading list again, in English this time.
Load More Replies... I've never had the experience of ANYTHING that has "absolutely changed my life". I always find it odd, hearing how this happens to people. Be it a book, or a show, or a TED talk, or an experience that they had. Nothing has been a "life changing moment" for me. Not to say that nothing is life changing... the opposite is true, everything I have experienced is life changing. Every book I read, every person I talk to, every thing I do is life changing... it is just lots of little changes that add up. Never anything sudden or dramatic.
There could be a bit of exaggeration in those claims. Joining the military surely changed my life, but it took years. Leaving it also changed my life, as did having a family, a child, seeing that child become an adult....
Load More Replies... Books are friends I grew up with them and still keep reading. I can't say the ones that impacted my life. More authors, CS Lewis, Clive Cussler, Martin Luther, ,,, Genres, biographies, science fiction. I love reading.
My life-changing books were "I wish you all the best" by Mason Deaver and "Felix Ever After" by Kacen Callender, because they really made me question and explore my gender identity. I now know that I'm a trans guy, and those two books helped a lot.
That book was a lot of fun! Got me into essential oils (this was before all the MLM nonsense that is today's essential oils market)
Load More Replies... A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. This took me on a roller coaster of emotions! I actually let out an audible gasp toward the end. Got some strange looks on the bus for that.
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. Mom read it to me when I was 3 or 4, and thinking of Ginger STILL makes me cry at 42.
One of my favourites as a child! So very sad, so much cruelty ...
Load More Replies... if anyone wants to read any of my books id really appreciate it, The Riveters about the ship builders in Northern Ireland building Titanic and the prejudice they suffered and Searching For Santa about what would happen if Santa quit his job both by Helen Murphy. The latter is a kids book but I mean adults will read it too ive had good reviews on both, the first is historical fiction that took me two years to write and research. no one has ever written about the Titanic ship builders, nor the tragedies that they suffered, many died building that ship and no one seems to care
I can't believe there's not a single PTerry Pratchett in here!
I was about to post about that! Those are definitely books that changed my life - if nothing else, to give me a better place for my escapism.
Load More Replies... I have cried at the end of many books. I, too cried at the end of Maus, but The Color Purple, and Bastard Out of Carolina came to mind immediately. I think every book you read changes you some. Lewis Nordan makes me laugh out loud no matter where I am. I reread my favorites over and over. Cormac McCarthy, Margaret Atwood, Anthony Burgess an so on. When I need a little focus, I read M. Scott Peck. I also happen to be a short story junkie.
How do you pick one? I could make a list of 10 and then change it tomorrow.
I was surprised that no one mentioned "Stranger In A Strange Land" by Robert Heinlein. Read that when I was 16 and it formed a lot of my adult thinking. Also one I didn't expect to see here but was mind altering was "Peace Is Every Step" by Thich Nhat Hang,a book about mindfulness and meditation and its benefits.
Illusions By Richard Bach. It saved me and made me look at the world in a whole new way!
Scrolling the comments to see if someone said it. Illusions and Pet Sematary as a 13 year old in the 90's definitely set the tone for my jr.high years.
Load More Replies... Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo by Christiane Vera Felscherinow German original, read it in translation. Not sure how they trnaslateded to English. Biography story about a 13 YO girl geting in and out of the hell of drugs and prostitution. Read it as a teen, never ever did any drugs or cigaretes because of it
I don't know about "life changing", but a book that really stuck with me is Star's Reach, by John Michael Greer. It's a post-post apocalyptic story set in the U.S. 500 years after an economic and environmental collapse. I can't imagine a bright immediate future awaiting us. How could anyone? But this book imagines a light at the end of the tunnel, even if it's only science fiction.
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. It's a beautifully illustrated comic book autobiography about growing up in revolutionary-era Iran :). Definitely not for kids, though, as I had to scream at my dad when he told my 11 year old brother to read it XD. My dad realized his mistake immediately after, and my brother hasn't read it. Phew.
Smart home A to Z https://comfortablelife4u.blogspot.com/2023/02/building-smart-home-a-to-z-guide.html
I would say The perks of being a wallflower, I read it in the mental hospital and it has stuck with me since. The way it's written and formatted is amazing and the story sucks you in. Going through freshman year with an awkward teenager trying to navigate life, it's honestly one of my favorite books. I was really happy that they had it considering they didn't have many books
The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe; changed my son's life. My oldest hated reading so when my 2nd child hated reading too, I said no, pulled him out of school, the first year of homeschooling we did nothing but read all types of books. This was the very first one we read and he LOVED it. Changed his outlook on reading. At 30 is still an avid reader, college educated, successful, happy.
The Book of the Dun Cow. I read it in high school and loved it so much that I had to get a copy, even though it's out of print. I still have it 45 years later.
'Joirney of the Soul' by Gene Wright. Very interesting book based on true recordings of patients who'd been hypnotized by Dr. Wright, which explores what happens when we die, where we go what we do & see, & how they felt between lives on earth. Definitely changed my outlook on living & dying.
Johnathan Livingston Seagull. Great book. Also, Anasi the spider man. Oooo! And the complete book of robot stories by Issac Asimov!
I'd say Wraeththu by Storm Constantine. It totally changed my perspective on sex and sexual identity
Acceptable Risk is a great one about perspectives and scientific advancements.
As a heavy duty science fiction and fantasy reader and writer, I love that 12 of these are solidly on my camp (I left out the two or three kid's books which are arguably SF/F). I think there is so much to be learned about the world, life, and being human by moving outside the real world to better illustrate these themes.
All of Judy Bloom. Her book opened up wonderful worlds as a child and helped me deal with tragedy as a teen.
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski. Blew my mind. I re-read it every few years.
For me it was Go Ask Alice I would have been in 6th grade I tended to read above my grade level and this was definitely not ment for sixth graders it delt with incredibly heavy subjects like drug use r**e and selling themselves ext the book was amazingly heart braking it’s about a 15 year old girl that moves dosent fit in goes developed a drug addiction and ran away from home with a new bad friend and her tragic string of misfortune and other girls she meets that are in just as bad situations it’s presented in diary format and I think this was better then any D.A.R.E and drug prevention methods parents and teachers where starting to shove down our throats. This book definitely kept me scared from ever trying drugs due to what happened to her. spoilers Evan once she finally got clean and was doing well other then bullies at school her last entry is so positive for the future the epilogue was what was really did me in it stated that she died shortly after her last entry due to
Spoilers continued Due to drug overdose Evan worse it’s left up in the air if she relapsed and did it to herself or if she was purposely overdosed by another schoolmate I’m still convinced it was murder but maybie I was just hoping so much that after all that she wouldn’t go back
Load More Replies... I found a copy of Geralds Game on my back porch when I was 11. I hated reading until I found that book, I have had a book in hand ever since and Stephen King will always have a special place in my heart and library.
The books that changed my life were The Nancy Drew Mysteries books, I remember devouring them as soon as I could get them. I was raised in a family of readers, it was (gently) encouraged, and these books fueled the fire.
My addition would be Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. Not for any particularly profound reason, I just liked it.
The Invisible Man about a black man who moves north with a letter of "recommendation" by his white boss, but the book shows how systems overlapped to further oppress him. While he is being trained at a paint facility that makes white paint the trainer instructs him to add a little bit of black paint to get the perfect white. That metaphor hit me hard. And this was in public school in TX. I hope TX hasn't effed up education too much since, but the current state of affairs has me worried!
The book that has impacted my life the most is a book that I found incredibly boring and took forever to read, but in retrospect the key message of it stuck. Independent People by Halldor Laxness, which is basically the national book of Iceland because he won the Nobel Prize. In Iceland, even the tour guide said he thought it was super boring, but slow, drawn out stories is kind of what Iceland's books are like. Slow literature. But the main point is that an independent person is someone who owes nothing to anybody. It's made me realize I would rather a simple, modest life than trying to keep up with what others are doing, because debt is to be chained. This pandemic should have shown people especially that you can't rely on things to stay the same.
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. Probably not the best book I've ever read, but definitely my favourite.
Down vote me if you want but Anthem by Ayn Rand. The importance of the Sense of Self, Individualism, and Pride really struck a cord with me in high school. At the time I was just the youngest of 5 sisters trying to make it through life but that book taught me the importance of "I". I am my father's youngest daughter and not just a part of the collective. I play the clarinet, not just another band member. It really helped me blossom into an indivisible instead just a crowd member.
The Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward. It's a paranormal romance series that not just love and romance. This series has helped me escape my mind on more than one occasion.
