Books that inspired you

[Mr.D]

Here is a book that everyone should read. It is titled: "The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century" by Thomas L. Friedman.

Please note the following reviews:

Reviews
"Before 9/11, New York Times columnist Friedman was best known as the author of The Lexus and the Olive Tree, one of the major popular accounts of globalization and its discontents. Having devoted most of the last four years of his column to the latter as embodied by the Middle East, Friedman picks up where he left off, saving al-Qaeda et al. for the close. For Friedman, cheap, ubiquitous telecommunications have finally obliterated all impediments to international competition, and the dawning 'flat world' is a jungle pitting 'lions' and 'gazelles,' where 'economic stability is not going to be a feature' and 'the weak will fall farther behind.' Rugged, adaptable entrepreneurs, by contrast, will be empowered. The service sector (telemarketing, accounting, computer programming, engineering and scientific research, etc.), will be further outsourced to the English-spoken abroad; manufacturing, meanwhile, will continue to be off-shored to China. As anyone who reads his column knows, Friedman agrees with the transnational business executives who are his main sources that these developments are desirable and unstoppable, and that American workers should be preparing to 'create value through leadership' and 'sell personality.' This is all familiar stuff by now, but the last 100 pages on the economic and political roots of global Islamism are filled with the kind of close reporting and intimate yet accessible analysis that have been hard to come by. Add in Friedman's winning first-person interjections and masterful use of strategic wonksterisms, and this book should end up on the front seats of quite a few Lexuses and SUVs of all stripes." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Library Journal
Look around: this Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist claims that the most significant events of the 21st century are happening now. The globe is "flattening," with technology binding more and more countries together. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.




http://www.thomaslfriedman.com/worldisflat.htm

This book is an "eye opener". Check it out.

[Conor Delaney]

Villa Incognito is a funny and Risqué book by the same author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Building.

Another good book series is Broken sky ( the third book is hard to find)

[RoboMom]

It's summertime! Time to step away from the keyboard and screens more often. Time to revive this thread.

Currently reading:

Kluge-the Haphazard Construction of the Human Mind. Gary Marcus. [Kluge is a slang word for a clumsy or inelegant solution to a problem- wouldn't it be great to have a FIRST Kluge award added for "the power of imperfection?"]

Just started Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine-The Rise of Disaster Capitalism. wow. wow. wow.

How Doctors Think. Jerome Groopman. For anyone interested in the health fields.

[Carlee10]

I'm SOOO glad I found this thread. I could read since I was three, and books are about as important as air to me. Some titles I've heard of, some I haven't. Here's some of my list; more will probably come later.


The Dune series- Frank Herbert/ others. Amazingly modern for the 60's, and he wound so many themes and ideas into them that I had to read them much slower than normal to get everything out of them. I still use the Litany Against Fear, too.

Dreamer of Dune; A Biography of Frank Herbert- Brian Herbert. I loved reading how this great man's mind worked; plus it was also a great love story about him and his wife. I did this for an english project and got extra points for enthusiam about the material.

Jodi Piccoult books- Most of her books are formula stories, but I love how each one has a theme, and they teach you a little about the human heart.

Harry Potter series- Taught me the power of love, and its redeeming qualities. Also the importance of being surrounded by people who love and suport you no matter who you are, what you are, or who you choose to be.

The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns- Khaled Hosseini. Interesting books suggested to me by another english teacher. Gives something to be said about loyalty.

The Uglies, Pretties, Specials, and Extras books- Scott Westerfield.- Shows that you can think your way out of anything, and how your connections with other people are stronger than whats been done to your head.

Tamora Pierce books- I just read ALL of her book in the span of a week. That's 16 books. They all had an underlying thread of preserverance(sp), and how being determined can produce great things from a person.

Dante's Inferno- Its weird, but read it.

Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar- Shakespeare. So dramatic, and life changing. Love and power can make you do janked up crap, including murder/suicide.

A Face First-Priscilla Cummings. A really easy book for preteens, but one I've read many times. I love how its written, and the point of showing who you are inside, not a face first.

Wicked and Son of a Witch- Gregory Maguire. Taught me that what is perceived is not always true (kind of a don't judge a book by its cover thing.). That "evil" may not have always been so, and that being "wicked" to one person isn't to another, and you don't have to be what everybody thinks, and you don't have to follow in the footsteps of your parents.

The Great Gatsby- F. Scott Fitzgerald. Read in english; I actually liked it. I didn't think I would like, but I did. It said alot about the times and the author. The characters were in-depth, and I could see why they did the things they did.

Well, that's it for now. I'll have some more for later. My english teacher made me a booklist (at my request), one of the books was Atlas Shrugged, and I have it on hold at the library. I hope I get it soon!

[AndyB]

Velvet Elvis - Rob Bell

It's largely a Christian book but as many have pointed out, there are much broader themes. It's really about taking the status quo and instead of mindlessly following it, constantly reanalyze it to create a more perfect or relevant "status quo".

[1527Michiru]

The combination of two books has inspired me most.
"Escape From Slavery" by Francis Boch

and "The Power of One" I don't remember the Author

Both were deeply involved with racism and independence, and although "The Power of One" is not listed as an autobiography, the Author has commented that very few things have been changed from his original life.

Another book that has Inspired me was "They Things They Carried"
I will always and forever love this book, and admire the man who wrote it for his bravery.

]]
~Casey

[MrForbes]

Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) by Richard Feynman, the physicist

[basicxman]

Enders Game
Robot Builders Bonanza 3rd edt

[artdutra04]

I just finished The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama; it was definitely one of the more inspiring books I've read this year.

Land of Desire: Merchants, Power and the Rise of a New American Culture by William Leach was another.

[XXShadowXX]

Series of Unforunate Events: taught me that life is more then it seams

Catcher in the Rye: taught me to stop complaining and get a life

The Klingon Dictionary: I'm a geek sry

Starwings: war will destroy humanity

StarTrek books in general: make want to build stuff

12 hours to ship: my book still being wrote

[Kim Masi]

On My Own Two Feet-Although this book to teach young women about personal finance, I think it is important for EVERY YOUNG ADULT to read. Its about how to manage your money, assets, prioritize, and learn how to save, and make the most of your money. After reading this book, you'll know more about personal finance than 80% of the country.

A Case for Christ-A atheist journalist searches for evidence of Jesus' life, death and resurrection. Even if you're not a Christian, it is a fantastic book.

And Mending a Broken Heart- I heard the author is a really cool person

[Cory]

It's Not About the Bike.

Most inspirational book I've ever read.

[JaneYoung]

I am a little bit shy about posting this. Books can be very personal and can become dear friends. I have this info on my Facebook profile and copy/pasted. I may add a couple later, as well:


Beautiful Joe by Margaret Marshall Saunders (who felt she would not be taken seriously as a woman writer, so she wrote it under Marshall Saunders)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beautiful_Joe

I read this book as a young child and still have it. The cover is stained and the pages smell old just the way I like them. This book helped set me on a path to help abused and neglected animals to the best of my ability and to my family's long suffering credit.

Another book that helped shape my life was a book by Irving Stone, The Agony and The Ecstasy. A novel based on the life of Michelangelo. I found the book at eye level in my school library when I was 12 and it basically remained checked out in my name for the rest of junior high, every 10 days. I understood the concept of a Renaissance man - very clearly.

Another book was by Louisa May Alcott - Little Women. I read her other books as well, but Little Women was the one that taught me that women can do many things, have many diverse interests, and can be adventurous, spontaneous, roll with life's punches, and laugh.

There are many other books I've read that have inspired me over time but those 3 are pretty much at the core of who I am today.

Jane

[Richard Wallace]

^ reported

[Chris Fultz]

Team of Rivals - the Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
Doris Kearns Goodwin
* story of how Lincoln rose to political power and the presidency and how he created his cabinet, comprised of many political rivals, to succeed as president.


Path Between the Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal
David McCullough
* exceptional story of the building of the Panama Canal, from the very early years of ideas through the actual completion of the canal.