QUOTE(Caveman @ Dec 28 2004, 04:40 PM) I read Animal Farm in 6th grade. Unfortunately, I was FAR too young to grasp any of the underlying concepts. Maybe I should pick it up again...hehe Same here, I'm thinking about reading it when school's over. I read Lord of the Flies in 6th grade too, didn't really get it, and read it again the summer after 8th, which was better. I wouldn't say it totally changed my life but it was important. Also Plato's Republic, I didn't agree with most of it but the allegory of the cave really did change how I looked at things.

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I like-->
~Paramahansa's Autobiography of A Yogi~
~Kitchen Confidential - Anthony Bourdain~
~London - Edward Rutherford~
~Anne Frank's Diary~
~Thiaoouba Prophecy - Michel Desmarquet~
~Messages From Water - Masuru Emoto~
~Sunfood Diet Success System - David Wolfe~
~Law of One - Carla Rueckert, Don Elkins, Jim McCarty~
These books are all very different but
they have all helped me in different areas, oh,
and of course, anything by ~Shakespeare~ &
~Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet~
I like reading.

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For me, it'd be Masters of Doom. It's about the people who made, you guessed it, Doom. I mean, I always wanted to do game development, but once I read that book I was like Holy crap, I can do that!

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the only books that i have ever read and that have "changed my life" were The Harry Potter series. It all started out with my parents getting mad at me and sending me to my room..pft buttholes *rofl* neways, my grandpa had given me the books earlyer that day and so i decided to pick up the first book and start to read it and i liked it ...i didn't go to sleep until late that night because i was getting so far into the book..

I never read before that..never..not unless i was forced..andd they encouraged me to read..but i only read those other books dont appeal to me..but iw also changed my life because it made me want to make a harry potter fan site which is what i am working on now...so you could say that is the reason i am so kean to the internet and making websites and i owe it all to my parents :-D hehe

it has also made me such a harry potter freak! i have like 10 posters in my room that are harry potter related!! and i love it!! sometimes im ashamed to admit it but ive had dreams i was in the sequal...

it has also changed my life by encouraging me to write..J.K. Rownling is so excelent at this stuff that i thought maybe i can write like her some day and encourage others haha yeah right..but i am in the process of writing my own fan-fiction story some-what close to her books..so you can say i am a HUGE HARRY POTTER FREAK and that i am a HUGE HARRY POTTER FREAK oo yeah and that i am a HUGE HARRY POTTER FREAK..and it has changed my life quite a bit

 

 

 

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@DeM0nFiRe: I haven't specifically read Masters of Doom just yet, but I know exactly what you're talking about. Every single time I read a story-behind-something-big book, my faith in my current interest begins to dwindle, and I want to switch careers Actually - this happens with television too, I should really stop watching inspiring interviews of actors I admire, I end up with this very non-trivial desire to stop-hacking-and-start-acting... {grin}

Coming back to books, The Man Who Loved Numbers, The Man Who Knew Infinity, Genius, Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman, and others are similarly inspiring. Anyone read those encyclopedia type (i.e., popular-science-ish, nothing technical) books that explain what goes into the making of special effects in movies? Or glossy reference books that enumerate dance cultures around the world? I have been subjected to the library for many hours on end (for reasons beyond my control, and not worth going into ), and I ended up browsing the reference section for a good deal. Wasn't life changing, but there were some interesting eye openers.

Particularly memorable was the a book which was, erm, a comprehensive archive of crimes during a certain period of time in western Europe, if I am not mistaken - I stopped reading when it got gruesome, but the thing about reading non-fiction is that it's a distinctly unpleasant feeling to realize the nasty stuff happens outside Doyle's imagination too. (Yeah, yeah... I don't watch too much reality TV and steer clear of news channels ) I am usually affected more easily by non fiction than fiction as far as the written word goes, although writers like Orwell make for (important) exceptions.

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The book that changed my life would defintely be The Art of Happiness by Howard Cutler. Its an amazing books. Its a combination of discussions with H.H. The 14th Dali Lama. Its got methods or relieving stress, coping with death, and just finding yourselve the brighter side of life. Theres not a day that goes by that I don't use on of the methods.

Buddhism in general to me is such a beautiful way and peaceful way to live.

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Some of my favorites in no particular order.

Religious Sense - attempts to explain the reasons behind thing specifically our need for religion and begins to teach you a method to judge reality.
Why the Church- helps to look at the reality of the church in everday life.
The Journey to Truth is an Experience- how to experience truth
Dante's Divine Comedy - beautiful italian series of books about one mans decent into hell, purgatory and finally heaven
At the origin of the christian claim - what christianity is really all about
a generative thought- an introduction to the movements history that is Communion and Liberation
God at the Ritz - Lorenzo Albacete's outlook on life at the Ritz hotel
Ender's Game (series) - military training book, interesting views on life though too.

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I actually have two that really have changed/inspired me.

A Child Called "It" - Dave Pelzer
The Paths we Choose - Sully Erna

For some reason, I can relate to them, especially A Child Called It. Another good one would have to be the autobiography of Ric Flair--I forgot the title of it though. They all have a great deal of meaning to them, and I enjoyed reading them.

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Brilliant thread...

"Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by Robert Kiyosaki, inspired me to drop out of school to start my business career.
"Awaken the Giant Within" by Anthony Robbins, made me believed anything was possible.

Those are really the first two books I've read, and it made me a lover of reading. Def. a must read for anyone.

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Undoubtedly the Bible has greatly changed my life. Also John Piper's Don't Waste Your Life. You will never be able to look at your life the same after reading it.

Other HIGHLY recommended reading would be:
All of Andrew Murray's writing especially Absolute Surrender
Don Richardson's Eternity in their Hearts, Peace Child and Lords of the Earth
Amy Carmichael's If and A Chance to Die
K.P. Yohannan's Revolution in World Missions
All of John Eldredge's writings are phenomenal!
David Shibley's The Missions Addiction

I could go on and on because there are many life-changing books out there but I have to stop somewhere.

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