Moby Dick, Children of Men, Goodnight Mr Tom, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, The Harry Potter series, Bud not Buddy, Lord of the Rings trilogy, Captain Underpants, Dr Zhivago, Huckleberry Finn, The Da Vinci code.
Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts.
It teaches of pain, suffering, freedom, equality…
Its also a story of a man’s life which makes it all that more real and touching. Although I read alot, I am still only 16 and have not been exposed to all the books in the world. I still believe, however, that if I could chose the only book my child would ever read, it would be Shantaram…
What would you say..?
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo because it tells a story of a man going from the lowest possible point in his life to becoming successful in several different endeavors. It’s not just his status transformation that is compelling, but also how he changes inside. He goes from being a cruel thief to a man full of selfless love for others, risking his life on several occassions for people he bears no real responsibility to, but gives of himself anyway, showing the difference of what the world could be like if everyone chose to stand up to tyranny and do what’s right instead of what’s easy or most profitable.
There’s a huge list of books that have made significant contributions to culture, knowledge and our understanding of the world in which we live, but I don’t think the idea of ”forcing” individuals to read them is a good idea. That’s usually the quickest way to turn people off reading altogether – you only need to look at how most people view Shakespeare to see the result! For what it’s worth, this is a list of the books I think people should read:
1. The Authorised Version – because the bible is so fundamental to Western culture and is drawn upon so heavily in Western literature and it is one of the most poetic works in the English language.
2. The Magna Carta – because it lays down the fundamental principles of Western democracy
3. On the Origin of the Species – because it is the most revolutionary formulation of our understanding of ourselves and our world
4. Shakespeare’s First Folio – the most influential dramatist and poet in the English speaking world
5. Bleak House – because it is one of Dickens’ most cleverly written works and was influential in developing popular pressure for the reform of the Courts of Chancellory.
6. Beowulf – it is one of the few complete sagas left from Old English and is a powerful piece of poetry.
7.The Analects of Confucius – for its formative influences on Chinese culture and its impact on the West
8. The Crying of Lot 49 – Pynchon is one of the most influential and clever contemporary writers.
9. Live from Golgotha – Gore Vidal is one of the best contemporary satirists and novelists.
10. The Iliad and Odyssey – both fundamental in every respect to the continued development of Western literature.
11. Caesar’s On the Gaelic Wars – a classic formulation of great Latin writing and military strategy
12.Capricornia – a great masterpiece of Australian writing that brought that nation’s sense of self into a classic literary response.
Wuthering Heights-Emily bronte… real love that transcends race,sex…how pple shouldnt judge others -pple gain an understanding of what real love is eg Catherine and Heaths love
So long a Letter by Mariama Ba- the trials faced by women, the importance of education, how binding and unfair religion and culture can be, and the analysis of feminism and modernity, whether freedom from oppression means ingaging in sin and lower moral standards
it applies to our lives, qning feminism, if female to female relationships are the way out…
The Colour Purple by Alice Walker-also dealing with same issues as well as racism, gender inequality and stereotyping
I think it opens up pple minds to various opinions,qning the routes mankind has taken
though i dont seek anyone to be brainwashed by them cos they also have flaws
And well, the Bible-good moral substance and truth,
hope u dont find me biased
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
It is a timeless tale of unconditional love that is not constrained by religion. It is easy enough for a child to read, yet relevant enough to hold an adult’s attention.
the diary of anne frank – i read it when i was younger and it gave me such a fright, knowing that the world was like that…and could be again.
as clichéd as it is – romeo and juliet – i was forced to read it at school and hated every second of it..
but when you think back, it is an amazing piece of work!
Also, the time-travellers wife…its an amazing story. gets you thinking – a definate must
I don’t think that any book should be ‘mandatory’: being too prescriptive creates dominant canons of taste… No one should be forced to read anything. But if you want a recommendation, I would suggest ‘The Atrocity Exhibition’ by J G Ballard. Or if you want something easier to read, try ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ by Stevenson for a bit of fun and insight into 19thC London…
All of JRR Tolkien’s books are well worth the read. It’s amazing how he managed to create such details and facts and puzzle them together. One thing that is important in a book is that the characters, the environment and the things that surround the story sounds credible. All the work that Tolkien put into the surroundings are well worth it. I wouldn’t force anyone to read them though, if you don’t have the taste for that kind of literature you’ll be bored senseless quite soon.
Moby Dick, Children of Men, Goodnight Mr Tom, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, The Harry Potter series, Bud not Buddy, Lord of the Rings trilogy, Captain Underpants, Dr Zhivago, Huckleberry Finn, The Da Vinci code.
Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts.
It teaches of pain, suffering, freedom, equality…
Its also a story of a man’s life which makes it all that more real and touching. Although I read alot, I am still only 16 and have not been exposed to all the books in the world. I still believe, however, that if I could chose the only book my child would ever read, it would be Shantaram…
What would you say..?
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo because it tells a story of a man going from the lowest possible point in his life to becoming successful in several different endeavors. It’s not just his status transformation that is compelling, but also how he changes inside. He goes from being a cruel thief to a man full of selfless love for others, risking his life on several occassions for people he bears no real responsibility to, but gives of himself anyway, showing the difference of what the world could be like if everyone chose to stand up to tyranny and do what’s right instead of what’s easy or most profitable.
Love the story. Everyone should read it.
Animal Farm
Wind in the Willows
Julius Caesar
The Tempest
A Christmas Carol
Oliver Twist
and many many many more Classics!!!
There’s a huge list of books that have made significant contributions to culture, knowledge and our understanding of the world in which we live, but I don’t think the idea of ”forcing” individuals to read them is a good idea. That’s usually the quickest way to turn people off reading altogether – you only need to look at how most people view Shakespeare to see the result! For what it’s worth, this is a list of the books I think people should read:
1. The Authorised Version – because the bible is so fundamental to Western culture and is drawn upon so heavily in Western literature and it is one of the most poetic works in the English language.
2. The Magna Carta – because it lays down the fundamental principles of Western democracy
3. On the Origin of the Species – because it is the most revolutionary formulation of our understanding of ourselves and our world
4. Shakespeare’s First Folio – the most influential dramatist and poet in the English speaking world
5. Bleak House – because it is one of Dickens’ most cleverly written works and was influential in developing popular pressure for the reform of the Courts of Chancellory.
6. Beowulf – it is one of the few complete sagas left from Old English and is a powerful piece of poetry.
7.The Analects of Confucius – for its formative influences on Chinese culture and its impact on the West
8. The Crying of Lot 49 – Pynchon is one of the most influential and clever contemporary writers.
9. Live from Golgotha – Gore Vidal is one of the best contemporary satirists and novelists.
10. The Iliad and Odyssey – both fundamental in every respect to the continued development of Western literature.
11. Caesar’s On the Gaelic Wars – a classic formulation of great Latin writing and military strategy
12.Capricornia – a great masterpiece of Australian writing that brought that nation’s sense of self into a classic literary response.
Wuthering Heights-Emily bronte… real love that transcends race,sex…how pple shouldnt judge others -pple gain an understanding of what real love is eg Catherine and Heaths love
So long a Letter by Mariama Ba- the trials faced by women, the importance of education, how binding and unfair religion and culture can be, and the analysis of feminism and modernity, whether freedom from oppression means ingaging in sin and lower moral standards
it applies to our lives, qning feminism, if female to female relationships are the way out…
The Colour Purple by Alice Walker-also dealing with same issues as well as racism, gender inequality and stereotyping
I think it opens up pple minds to various opinions,qning the routes mankind has taken
though i dont seek anyone to be brainwashed by them cos they also have flaws
And well, the Bible-good moral substance and truth,
hope u dont find me biased
for chldn-the Hardy boys would be just fine!
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
It is a timeless tale of unconditional love that is not constrained by religion. It is easy enough for a child to read, yet relevant enough to hold an adult’s attention.
Their bank/check book.
Nothing worse than learning you’re out of money.
the diary of anne frank – i read it when i was younger and it gave me such a fright, knowing that the world was like that…and could be again.
as clichéd as it is – romeo and juliet – i was forced to read it at school and hated every second of it..
but when you think back, it is an amazing piece of work!
Also, the time-travellers wife…its an amazing story. gets you thinking – a definate must
I don’t think that any book should be ‘mandatory’: being too prescriptive creates dominant canons of taste… No one should be forced to read anything. But if you want a recommendation, I would suggest ‘The Atrocity Exhibition’ by J G Ballard. Or if you want something easier to read, try ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ by Stevenson for a bit of fun and insight into 19thC London…
All of JRR Tolkien’s books are well worth the read. It’s amazing how he managed to create such details and facts and puzzle them together. One thing that is important in a book is that the characters, the environment and the things that surround the story sounds credible. All the work that Tolkien put into the surroundings are well worth it. I wouldn’t force anyone to read them though, if you don’t have the taste for that kind of literature you’ll be bored senseless quite soon.