Things That Shape Us - Books

I am an avid reader. I developed the habit as a child starting with the small 92 page biographies of famous people that I found in my school library. (I remember they all were in blue bindings and the first one I read was about Davy Crockett). 


I have read thousands of books in my life, perhaps more, that is no exaggeration. At first I found escape in books, they took me to far away to exotic places I wanted to visit and see for myself. Later, they opened my mind up to new ideas and thoughts on life, death, religion, philosophy.  They entertained me. They made me think beyond the boundaries of my own experiences. 


I love books. Fiction, non-fiction, science fiction, mystery, biographies, inspirational books, each one opens my mind and my senses to a world of adventure. Many of the books I have read made such an impression on me that I have gone back and reread them in whole or part time and time again. A return them to them is like the comfort in seeing an old friend. 


Many friends and associates have asked me "What are your favorite books?" or "what books do you think I should be reading?".  My answer is usually "read anything that interests you". I have found that reading one book will raise questions for me that will lead me to other books and so on.


Many years ago I started making a list of those particular books that I felt (when I was through reading them), had changed or impacted my world view. Clearly, this list is reflective of my particular interests and biases.


That list today has over 150 titles. There is no rhyme or reason to the order in which they appear on my list. Being 5th of my list does not mean I think it is the 5th most important or influential book I have read. 


My list does not have all the great classics of Western literature with authors such as Dickens, or Bronte and et. al. Obviously if you read the classics your "intellectual well" will be broadened and deepened.


My list is simply a reflection of those works and tales that have shaped my views and perspectives of life and existence in the areas where I have the most questions and interest. 


Below is the first 25 titles from my list. Many you have probably already read but perhaps a few you have not. Each had an enormous impact on me. 


1) Art of War by Sun Tzu

2) The Prince by Machiavelli
3) The Gift Of the Jews by Thomas Cahill
4) The Tao of pooh by Benjamin Hoff
5) God, The Evidence by Patrick Glynn
6) Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
7) The Old Man and The Sea by Hemingway

8) The Complete Works of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
9) The Lord of The Rings by Tolkien
10) Call of the Wild by Jack London
11) Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
12) Leviathan by Thomas Hobbs
13) The Apology by Plato
14) Jungle book by Ruyard Kipling
15) Sailing the Wine Dark Sea by Thomas Cahill
16) The Honey Badger by Robert Ruark
17) The Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
18) Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
19) The Once and Future King by T.H. White
20) Cod-The Biography of the Fish that Changed the World by Mark Kurlansky

21) The Travels of Marco Polo by Marco Polo
22) Animal Liberation by Peter Singer 
23) The Last Lion by William Manchester
24) Out of My Life and Thought by Albert Schweitzer
25) Moby Dick by Herman Melville


These are just the first 25 titles from my list of over 150 books on my list that I feel greatly influenced by thoughts and views as I have traveled through life. They all have greatly influenced my thoughts and views and as such, are some of the things that have shaped me.