Most infuential book(s) you have read

Diuretics.

Found it in a maserati in Beverly Hills.

Change your life man.

"A People's History" by Howard Zinn- I hated this book when I was made to read it, but it is an absolute must read, no matter what you think of the author.

"1984"- amazing read, scary thought

"Lord of the Flies"- basically all of Hobbes and Locke's ideas in a story

"One Bullet Away" by Nathaniel Fick- amazing story about joining the marines during the war on terror

"The Prince" by Machiavelli- set the standards for ruling for many centuries

"The Odyssey" by Homer-classic

"Gates of Fire"- gives real insight into the warrior mentality

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee- classic novel, very important read

"Julius Caesar" by Shakespeare- famous and incredible story that all should know about Rome

"On Liberty" by Jon Stuart Mill- philosophical difficult read, but incredibly important to reason and freedom

"Leviathan" by Thomas Hobbes- another hard read but critical for any politician

"The Lord of the Rings/ The Hobbit" by JRR Tolkien- greatest trilogy of all time

"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald- most accurate novel portraying the roaring 20s, one of America's best times

"The Crucible"- incredible play about the the Salem witch trials, but really a reference to the red scare.

"The Diary of Anne Frank" by Anne Frank

"Night" by Ellie Weisel- 2 most important books on the holocaust

"Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck- just a classic

"The Wizard of Oz"- has more political references than you could possibly imagine, but the author swore to his grave against it.

"Pride and Prejudice"- hated it when I first read it, but really important book about social interaction.

"Canterbury Tales"- interesting book about medieval Europe.

Lite wrote:

Diuretics.

Is that that Sociology stuff and shit?

reading runner wrote:

most influential:

mysterious island (jules verne)

into the wild (jon krakeaur)

on the road (jack kerouac)

catcher in the rye (j.d. salinger)

walden (henry david thoreau)

they are in the order i read them. the single most influential book was probably into the wild.

You are under 22, correct?

4foot wrote:

Movie was called Never Give an Inch. It was classic blue collar vs white collar.. give it a read. Also he wrote Electric Koolaid Acid Test..a biography of the time (60's).

Tom Wolfe wrote 'acid test'

Yeah, Kesey is the main character in "Acid Test" but Tom Wolfe wrote it

Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner

Dean Karnazes

The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins

Player Piano

capitalism and freedom by milton friedman

The Brothers Karamazov - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

A Lost Lady - Willa Cather

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - Robert Pirsig

You are correct, though it was about Kesey. Have you heard of the Merry Pranksters?

Thank you Dusty. It has been a while since I read it though I think you'll agree it is worthy of reading.

Orville wrote:

I agree with the above poster. 1984 is a must read for everybody. Kind of scary when you relate it to today's world.

I respectfully disagree. Great idea, but much more potent is the combination of Huxley's Brave New World and Neil Postman's Amusing Ourselves to Death.

Read It wrote:

Ishmael

There is a lot of good books listed in here, but I have to say I enjoyed Ishmael the most.

Was I the only one whom after finishing slaughterhouse V, just sat there and said,"meh"?

- How to Make Money off the Mentally Ill

- Renegade Nuns on Wheels

- Mind Gone Haywire

- How I turned A Million in Real Estate into $25 in Cash

- Howdy Doody - Man or Myth?

- Dykes on Fire

- Trouble in Doggyland

- Ceremony for a Fat Lip

It's not about the bike - Lance Armstrong

Training With Cerutty - Larry Myers

Why Die? - Graem Sims

In younger days:

Old Yeller

Charlotte's Web

(No idea who wrote them)

I actually read "The World According to Garp" (John Irving) recently (saw the movie WAY back in the 80's and couldn't really remember it) and it had a pretty profound impact on me. As an overly-protective (of my family), routine oriented guy who likes to write on occasion (and thus, having an active imagination) I found myself relating to Garp's character immensely and it made me appreciate a lot of things about my life and I'm trying to not be quite so neurotic and worried now. It was also kind of funny how he and his wife chose their house b/c it was close to a park so that he could have a place to run. I highly recommend the book.

This book also led me to another of John Irving's works, "The 158-Pound Marriage" which is a very depressing look into the world of couple-swapping. I wasn't really aware this was as en vogue in the early 70's as it is now (crazy how many people I know who know couples that do this). For once it made me extremely grateful to be a faithful husband!

"The Best of Calvin and Hobbes"

So much wisdom from such a little guy.