5 Most Influential Books
By Kristen on Jul 22, 2008 in Future Classics...?, Life - a little bit better
photo credit: Georgieporge
Last week, while playing cards with my girlfriends (the game was 500 — a cross between Bridge and Euchre), Eve mentioned a feature in Newsweek that asks people what 5 books they believe have been most influential in their lives so far. Notice the category is not “favorite” or “best” books, but “influential.” So, while we were shuffling between hands, we decided to give it a whirl.
Now that I’m home again, I thought this might be an interesting question to throw out into the lit blogosphere!
My picks were:
- A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle since it has reformed and continues to shape my thoughts and relationships.
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen because it was the first “chick lit” that really made me think about compatibility in marriage and the idea that it is more important to be smart and independent than to find a man (and that it is possible to accomplish both…)
- Shakespeare (especially King Lear, Much Ado About Nothing, and Romeo and Juliet) demonstrated how it is indeed possible to express the inexpressible.
- Beloved by Toni Morrison was such a painful journey that I thereafter had a visceral experience of injustice, rather than a merely intellectual one.
- Emily Dickinson and Rumi taught me the power of a single word and of silence, and reminded me of what Shakespeare had already taught me, but later in life (and with much fewer words).
Now my three friends each went in very different directions, although agreed upon The Bible (and Shakespeare, too, for the most part). Donna has a deep and abiding curiosity for science, and specifically for physics; she chose:
- Chaos by James Gleick
- The Quantum Self by Danah Zohar
- Future Shockby Alvin Toffler
- The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James
Nancy’s passion for social justice was apparent in her selections:
- March of Folly by Barbara Tuchman
- Food First
- Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton
- Canterbury Tales by Chaucer
And as the conversation continued into the night, other choices that were suggested were To Kill A Mockingbird, Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, Medea and Oedipus, The Ugly American, All the Kings Men, and Freakonomics.
So, what 5 books have been most influential thus far in your life? Drop me a comment or link to your post! And if you love lists, check out this new site: pollthepeople.com
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You do NOT seriously play 500! I am quite sure that you are the only person I’ve ever heard mention this game.
Check out this post (scroll down to about the 4th pic): http://smallworldathome.blogspot.com/2007/11/thanksgiving-traditions.html
On another note, I have a challenge going right now that is right along the lines of your post. Check out my Life Books Challenge here: http://smallworldreads.blogspot.com/2008/06/life-books.html
SmallWorld Reads | Jul 22, 2008 | Reply
There are lots, but I’d have to add “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston. A woman can be independent, make her own decisions, and make her way in the world … regardless of what people/society expect her to do/be - THAT’S what I learned from the character of Janie.
Heather Johnson | Jul 22, 2008 | Reply
@Small World — I loved both posts! Thank you! I would love to join the challenge — I’ve been holding off on new challenges until I get a bit caught up on my TBR pile, but that one might be too tempting…
I love 500! My family tends to play hearts at holidays — which is fun, but I prefer 500
Kristen | Jul 22, 2008 | Reply
Great! Come on over and join! I have a funny story to tell about 500. When my Dad was first courting my mom in 1947, her father asked my Dad if he could play 500. My Dad said, “Sure” and sat down to play. It wasn’t until after the game that my father admitted that he thought he was playing 500 gin rummy and didn’t realize until the first hand that this was something completely new and different. Apparently he bluffed quite well. The story goes that after he left, my grandfather turned to my mother and said, “Now THAT’S the man you’re going to marry.”
They’ll celebrate 60 years on 8/8/08.
SmallWorld Reads | Jul 22, 2008 | Reply
Wonderful story!! And what a blessed anniversary coming soon… Thank you so much for sharing this memory…
Kristen | Jul 22, 2008 | Reply
Great question.
A Bully on Barkham Street and A Dog on Barkham Street. Two kids books, for 4th graders, that I found and loved. They tell the same story from two opposite points of view, the good boy who wants a dog and the “bully” next door who has his taken away. This was the first time it ever occured to me that there could be two such different ways to see the same events. When the “bully” lost his dog I cried my eyes out I was so angry at his parents and I had hated him when I read the other book because he was so mean to the other boy.
I’m not even sure if they’re still in print.
C.B.JAmes | Jul 23, 2008 | Reply