The Books That Changed Your Life - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

jewels · 08-14-2009, 10:51 AM

What book or books have you read, at any time in your life, that had the most influence on who you are and how you perceive things? Don't forget to explain how it changed things. These aren't necessarily your favorites, just the most important.

I've narrowed my list down to four.

1.

Karen: A true story told by her mother: Marie Killilea

I was reading at a very young age and my mother used to bring me home books every day. I must've been about six when I read this and was very touched. I often credit this true story with my empathic nature.

2.

: To Kill a Mockingbird (9780445083769): Harper Lee

I was probably 6 or 7 when I read this. Instilled in me the passion to fight for the underdog. Bless you, Atticus!

3.

: Therese Raquin: Emile Zola

I read this as a sophomore in high school and it awakened my sensuality on a whole new level, especially since I was reading this at the same time:

4.

: Delta of Venus (9780156029032): Anais Nin

Please share.

Moyaboy · 08-14-2009, 08:43 PM

The Boomer Bible and Homecoming by Orson Scott Card.

The Boomer Bible because it is probably a more accurate version of history than is told today. Sarcastic yes, but more accurate.

Homecoming is a wonderful retelling of the first book of Mormon. I myself am not a Mormon but I love reading this story.

CinnamonGirl · 08-14-2009, 08:50 PM

jewels, this is a GREAT thread idea... but I need to think about it for a bit. I'll come back and post once I do

jewels · 08-15-2009, 04:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moyaboy

Homecoming is a wonderful retelling of the first book of Mormon. I myself am not a Mormon but I love reading this story.

Very cool

but in what way has it helped form you into the person you've become? That's what I'm hoping to hear.

dlish · 08-15-2009, 04:37 AM

The Autobiography of Malcolm X - By Alex Haley

Malcolm Life went though numerous changes from the husler gangster known as Malcolm Little, to prisoner, to racist preacher Malcolm X, to Pilgrim El Hajj Malik El Shabbaz. Malcolms ability to critique his own beliefs made me question my own is what makes this man so great and why this book made such an impact on me.

rahl · 08-15-2009, 08:26 AM

The entire Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind.

Started reading this around age 21 and finished at 25. Before reading this series I was a stubborn, narrowminded fool. After reading this series I am a totally different person.

Sher-E-Punjab · 08-15-2009, 08:33 AM

First i read Godfather by Mario Puzo, when i was 14. After that i went around dishing out "favours" and saying "when the time comes i will ask you for a favour" etc etc.

Then a year or so later i read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. After that, i didn't wash my dad's scooter without getting paid

he was nice enough to indulge me.

And then i read The Prophet by Khalil Gibran. That book is my guide. Whenever i feel lost or uneasy, i just pick that one up and start reading it.

amonkie · 08-15-2009, 08:39 AM

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupéry

I was in my senior year of high school when my math teacher read us this story for the first ten minutes of every class. It came at a time in my life where its simplicity and subtle story just really hit home, combined with the context of the class setting and the person who was reading this to us. It made this professor one I will remember for the rest of my life, and the class became a sharing of life experiences, not just equations.

LordEden · 08-15-2009, 09:13 AM

Fight Club by Chuck Palaniuck: Opened my eyes and spun my mind around. When I first got to read the book I read the front to back 3 times in a row. I can not express in words how much this book changed my thought process.

The Giver by Lois Lowry: A book I read in middle school, was one of those first books that really made me thing about human nature even when I couldn't grasp the concept of why we are.

Dhammapada: One of those random buys that really got to me, said all the things I've been thinking and showed me that you could live a good life in an evil world.

Art of War by Sun Tzu: Military warfare and life lessons all rolled up in one good book.

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain: When I was a struggling line cook in my first real kitchen, I read this book. I fell in love with Bourdain's writing and cooking. He made me want to cook and do it right.

thespian86 · 08-15-2009, 10:59 AM

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (discovered being a loser is okay when you wear sweaters and are tapped into what's hip)

Hamlet by William Shakespeare (made me realize life is worth more then just words)

Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger (came to terms with myself and who I'd eventually become)

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess (discovered faith and a concept of good)

A Man Without A Country by Kurt Vonnegut (realized loyalty is more then a word; trust is not to be thrown around)

An Actors Work by Konstantin Stanislavski (made me.)

Bear Cub · 08-15-2009, 11:05 AM

I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell by Tucker Max.

Strange Famous · 08-15-2009, 12:11 PM

I am very impressionable, and a number of books have affected me a great deal.

Politically - although Id say I was still a communist "The leviathan" had the biggest effect on th way I think

In terms of novels, the Brother Karamazov and of course the Cather in the Rye (given that I have this big old red horse tattoo'd on my arm)

Esoteric · 08-15-2009, 12:31 PM

1984 by George Orwell

I wouldn't say it changed my life though, because it didn't. It just opened my eyes wider...

Kaliena · 08-16-2009, 11:53 AM

The Wheel of Time- Robert Jordan (mainly the first six novels but special emphasis on the first). Served as a link to my dad, got me into online gaming, met a friend online gaming and went to NZ...overall, it just had a huge role in my life and my path.

1984-- can definitely agree with you there Esoteric, have you read the Handmaiden's Tale? It made me think along the same lines to a degree

Willravel · 08-16-2009, 12:44 PM

The Catcher in the Rye: forced my perspective to grow up.
The Sun Also Rises: the perfect book. This book taught me more about my grandfather's generation than anything else in my life.
Dune: While I still believed in god when I first read this book, it more than anything else I think contributed to me questioning religion's roll in my life. The uncertainty of the Golden Path just seemed, at the time, so relevant to my own pious and dogmatic religious path that I couldn't ignore it.
Ender's Game: This book taught me that children can be just as exceptional as adults, and communicated that message in a wonderfully entertaining way. I can't remember how old I was when I read this, but I remember the feeling of limitations being lifted off me.

CinnamonGirl · 08-16-2009, 12:54 PM

The more I think about it, the longer my list gets. Everything I've read seems to change me, if only in tiny, insignificant ways.

One thing that I can point out specifically, though it isn't a book: my sophomore year of high school, I was very cynical and negative-- hey, it was the 90s. Everyone was all about the angst. A friend of mine wrote a piece for the lit mag, about how everyone falls into negativity because it's easy, and if you make the effort to see the positive aspects of a situation, you're much better off, and less annoying.

For whatever reason, it hit me. Hard. And I've tried to be like that ever since.

Walt · 08-16-2009, 01:10 PM

Starship Troopers and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Heinlein.

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.

Slaughterhouse Five by Vonnegut.

Lord of the Flies by Golding

The God Delusion by Dawkins

Plan9 · 08-16-2009, 04:31 PM

The Bachman Books - Richard Bachman (Stephen King)

All Quiet on the Western Front - E.M. Remarque

Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein

Hatchet - Gary Paulsen

1984 - George Orwell

noodle · 08-16-2009, 04:48 PM

Where the Red Fern Grows and Bridge to Terebithia.... both in middle school, both introduced me to death and betrayal.

The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood... I was in high school. I needed to believe that there was more out there than conformity.

The Alchemist - Paolo Coelho... I don't believe in a God, but some of the statements in here got me and made me more interested in opening up my mind towards things again when I'd totally shut down.

Veronika Decides to Die - Coehlo... a difficult time in my life, I got up the courage to kill a friendship after this one.

Jane Eyre - Bronte... 7th grade. I always knew I would fall for a tormented man. And I did.

thespian86 · 08-16-2009, 09:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by noodle

The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood

When I lived in Toronto, I went to a fairly hip and spectacular school. One of the many great things about The Young Center was the endless number of cool people that would be wandering around, or drinking a tea, or shaking hands. Margaret Atwood used to hang out and read/drink tea in the mid-day sometimes.

jewels · 08-17-2009, 01:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crompsin

The Bachman Books - Richard Bachman (Stephen King)

I've got to ask, Cromps. How? (The only Bachman book I read was Thinner, sorry.)

Quote:

Originally Posted by noodle

Jane Eyre - Bronte... 7th grade. I always knew I would fall for a tormented man. And I did.

How could I forget? That's definitely in my Top 10 influential for the same damned reason.

Plan9 · 08-17-2009, 07:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jewels

I've got to ask, Cromps. How? (The only Bachman book I read was Thinner, sorry.)

Read the rest.

Example:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richard Bachman

Sanity: You can go through your whole life telling yourself that life is logical, life is prosaic, life is sane. Above all, sane. And I think it is. I've had a lot of time to think about it. And what I keep coming back to is Mrs. Underwood's dying declaration: So you understand that when we increase the number of variables, the axioms themselves never change.

I really believe that.

I think; therefore I am. There are hairs on my face; therefore I shave. My wife and child have been critically injured in a car crash; therefore I pray. It's all logical, it's all sane. We live in the best of all possible worlds, so hand me a Kent for my left, a Bud for my right, turn on Starsky and Hutch, and listen to that soft, harmonious note that is the universe turning smoothly on it's celestial gyros. Logic and sanity. Like Coca-Cola, it's the real thing.

But as Warner Brothers, John D. MacDonald, and Long Island Dragway know so well, there's a Mr. Hyde for every happy Jekyll face, a dark face on the other side of the mirror. The brain behind that face never heard of razors, prayers, or logic of the universe. You turn the mirror sideways and you see your face reflected with a sinister left-hand twist, half mad and half sane. The astronomers call that line between light and dark the terminator.

The other side says that the universe has all the logic of a little kid in a Halloween cowboy suit with his guts and his trick-or-treat candy spread all over a mile of Interstate 95. This is the logic of napalm, paranoia, suitcase bombs carried by happy Arabs, random carcinoma. This logic eats itself. It says life is like a monkey on a stick, it says life spins as hysterically and erratically as the penny you flick to see who buys lunch.

No one looks at that side unless they have to, and I can understand that. You look at it if you hitch a ride of with drunk in a GTO who puts it up to one-ten and starts blubbering about how his wife turned him out; you look at it if some guy decides to drive across Indiana shooting kids on bicycles; you look at it if your sister says, "I'm going down to the store for a minute, big guy" and then gets killed in a stick-up. You look at it when you hear your dad talking about slitting your mom's nose.

It's a roulette wheel, but anybody who says the game is rigged is whining. No matter how many numbers there are, the principle of the little white jittering ball never changes. Don't say it's crazy. It's all so cool and sane.

And all that weirdness isn't just going on outside. It's in you too, right now, growing in the dark like magic mushrooms. Call it the Thing in the Cellar. Call it the Blow Lunch Factor. Call it the Loony Tunes File. I think of it as my private dinosaur, huge, slimy, and mindless, stumbling around in the stinking swamp of my subconscious, never finding a tarpit big enough to hold it.

thirdsun · 09-04-2009, 02:13 PM

The book that most changed my life is by Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning.

I ran across this book during a particularly stressful and lonely part of my life. It was truly a godsend. The book recounts the author's experiences as a prisoner in the Nazi concentration camps and how he learned to transcend his suffering and mental anquish and survive, despite his circumstances. It's a wonderful (and practical) book of hope and encouragement and overcoming personal adversity, written by a psychologist with first-hand experience of personal tragedy and how to win over it.

08-14-2009, 10:51 AM	#1 (permalink)
jewels Eponymous Location: Central Central Florida	The Books That Changed Your Life What book or books have you read, at any time in your life, that had the most influence on who you are and how you perceive things? Don't forget to explain how it changed things. These aren't necessarily your favorites, just the most important. I've narrowed my list down to four. 1. Karen: A true story told by her mother: Marie Killilea Karen: A true story told by her mother: Marie Killilea I was reading at a very young age and my mother used to bring me home books every day. I must've been about six when I read this and was very touched. I often credit this true story with my empathic nature. 2. : To Kill a Mockingbird (9780445083769): Harper Lee : To Kill a Mockingbird (9780445083769): Harper Lee I was probably 6 or 7 when I read this. Instilled in me the passion to fight for the underdog. Bless you, Atticus! 3. : Therese Raquin: Emile Zola : Therese Raquin: Emile Zola I read this as a sophomore in high school and it awakened my sensuality on a whole new level, especially since I was reading this at the same time: 4. : Delta of Venus (9780156029032): Anais Nin : Delta of Venus (9780156029032): Anais Nin Please share. __________________ We are always more anxious to be distinguished for a talent which we do not possess, than to be praised for the fifteen which we do possess. Mark Twain Last edited by jewels; 08-14-2009 at 10:57 AM.. Reason: link weirdness

08-14-2009, 08:43 PM	#2 (permalink)
Moyaboy Crazy Location: Charlotte, NC	The Boomer Bible and Homecoming by Orson Scott Card. The Boomer Bible because it is probably a more accurate version of history than is told today. Sarcastic yes, but more accurate. Homecoming is a wonderful retelling of the first book of Mormon. I myself am not a Mormon but I love reading this story. __________________ "With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion." - Steven Weinberg

08-14-2009, 08:50 PM	#3 (permalink)
CinnamonGirl She's Actual Size Location: Central Republic of Where-in-the-Hell	jewels, this is a GREAT thread idea... but I need to think about it for a bit. I'll come back and post once I do __________________ "...for though she was ordinary, she possessed health, wit, courage, charm, and cheerfulness. But because she was not beautiful, no one ever seemed to notice these other qualities, which is so often the way of the world." "Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"

08-15-2009, 04:37 AM	#5 (permalink)
dlish Currently sour but formerly Dlishs Super Moderator Location: Australia/UAE	The Autobiography of Malcolm X - By Alex Haley Malcolm Life went though numerous changes from the husler gangster known as Malcolm Little, to prisoner, to racist preacher Malcolm X, to Pilgrim El Hajj Malik El Shabbaz. Malcolms ability to critique his own beliefs made me question my own is what makes this man so great and why this book made such an impact on me. __________________ An injustice anywhere, is an injustice everywhere I always sign my facebook comments with ()()===========(}. Does that make me gay? - Filthy

08-15-2009, 08:39 AM	#8 (permalink)
amonkie Drifting Administrator Location: Windy City	The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupéry I was in my senior year of high school when my math teacher read us this story for the first ten minutes of every class. It came at a time in my life where its simplicity and subtle story just really hit home, combined with the context of the class setting and the person who was reading this to us. It made this professor one I will remember for the rest of my life, and the class became a sharing of life experiences, not just equations. __________________ Calling from deep in the heart, from where the eyes can't see and the ears can't hear, from where the mountain trails end and only love can go... ~~~ Three Rivers Hare Krishna

08-15-2009, 08:26 AM	#6 (permalink)
rahl Junkie Location: Ohio	The entire Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind. Started reading this around age 21 and finished at 25. Before reading this series I was a stubborn, narrowminded fool. After reading this series I am a totally different person.

08-15-2009, 08:33 AM	#7 (permalink)
Sher-E-Punjab Upright	First i read Godfather by Mario Puzo, when i was 14. After that i went around dishing out "favours" and saying "when the time comes i will ask you for a favour" etc etc. Then a year or so later i read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. After that, i didn't wash my dad's scooter without getting paid he was nice enough to indulge me. And then i read The Prophet by Khalil Gibran. That book is my guide. Whenever i feel lost or uneasy, i just pick that one up and start reading it.

08-15-2009, 10:59 AM	#10 (permalink)
thespian86 change is hard. Location: the green room.	High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (discovered being a loser is okay when you wear sweaters and are tapped into what's hip) Hamlet by William Shakespeare (made me realize life is worth more then just words) Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger (came to terms with myself and who I'd eventually become) A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess (discovered faith and a concept of good) A Man Without A Country by Kurt Vonnegut (realized loyalty is more then a word; trust is not to be thrown around) An Actors Work by Konstantin Stanislavski (made me.) __________________ EX: Whats new? ME: I officially love coffee more then you now. EX: uh... ME: So, not much. Last edited by thespian86; 08-15-2009 at 11:03 AM..

08-15-2009, 11:05 AM	#11 (permalink)
Bear Cub The Reverend Side Boob Location: Nofe Curolina	I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell by Tucker Max. __________________ Living in the United Socialist States of America.

08-15-2009, 12:11 PM	#12 (permalink)
Strange Famous follower of the child's crusade?	I am very impressionable, and a number of books have affected me a great deal. Politically - although Id say I was still a communist "The leviathan" had the biggest effect on th way I think In terms of novels, the Brother Karamazov and of course the Cather in the Rye (given that I have this big old red horse tattoo'd on my arm) __________________ "Do not tell lies, and do not do what you hate, for all things are plain in the sight of Heaven. For nothing hidden will not become manifest, and nothing covered will remain without being uncovered." The Gospel of Thomas

08-15-2009, 12:31 PM	#13 (permalink)
Esoteric Tired Location: Florida	1984 by George Orwell I wouldn't say it changed my life though, because it didn't. It just opened my eyes wider... __________________ From a head full of pressure rests the senses that I clutch Made a date with Divinity, but she wouldn't let me fuck I got touched by a hazy shaded, God help me change Caught a rush on the floor from the life in my veins

08-16-2009, 11:53 AM	#14 (permalink)
Kaliena Crazy Location: Pennsylvania, USA	The Wheel of Time- Robert Jordan (mainly the first six novels but special emphasis on the first). Served as a link to my dad, got me into online gaming, met a friend online gaming and went to NZ...overall, it just had a huge role in my life and my path. 1984-- can definitely agree with you there Esoteric, have you read the Handmaiden's Tale? It made me think along the same lines to a degree __________________ ~Beware the waffle~

08-16-2009, 12:44 PM	#15 (permalink)
Willravel ... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.	The Catcher in the Rye: forced my perspective to grow up. The Sun Also Rises: the perfect book. This book taught me more about my grandfather's generation than anything else in my life. Dune: While I still believed in god when I first read this book, it more than anything else I think contributed to me questioning religion's roll in my life. The uncertainty of the Golden Path just seemed, at the time, so relevant to my own pious and dogmatic religious path that I couldn't ignore it. Ender's Game: This book taught me that children can be just as exceptional as adults, and communicated that message in a wonderfully entertaining way. I can't remember how old I was when I read this, but I remember the feeling of limitations being lifted off me.

08-16-2009, 12:54 PM	#16 (permalink)
CinnamonGirl She's Actual Size Location: Central Republic of Where-in-the-Hell	The more I think about it, the longer my list gets. Everything I've read seems to change me, if only in tiny, insignificant ways. One thing that I can point out specifically, though it isn't a book: my sophomore year of high school, I was very cynical and negative-- hey, it was the 90s. Everyone was all about the angst. A friend of mine wrote a piece for the lit mag, about how everyone falls into negativity because it's easy, and if you make the effort to see the positive aspects of a situation, you're much better off, and less annoying. For whatever reason, it hit me. Hard. And I've tried to be like that ever since. __________________ "...for though she was ordinary, she possessed health, wit, courage, charm, and cheerfulness. But because she was not beautiful, no one ever seemed to notice these other qualities, which is so often the way of the world." "Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"

08-16-2009, 01:10 PM	#17 (permalink)
Walt I'm calmer than you are, dude Location: North Carolina	Starship Troopers and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Heinlein. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. Slaughterhouse Five by Vonnegut. Lord of the Flies by Golding The God Delusion by Dawkins __________________ Calmer than you are...

08-16-2009, 04:31 PM	#18 (permalink)
Plan9 I Confess a Shiver	The Bachman Books - Richard Bachman (Stephen King) All Quiet on the Western Front - E.M. Remarque Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein Hatchet - Gary Paulsen 1984 - George Orwell __________________ *Whatever you can carry.* "You should not drink... and bake."

09-04-2009, 02:13 PM	#23 (permalink)
thirdsun rolls good	The book that most changed my life is by Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning. I ran across this book during a particularly stressful and lonely part of my life. It was truly a godsend. The book recounts the author's experiences as a prisoner in the Nazi concentration camps and how he learned to transcend his suffering and mental anquish and survive, despite his circumstances. It's a wonderful (and practical) book of hope and encouragement and overcoming personal adversity, written by a psychologist with first-hand experience of personal tragedy and how to win over it.