Most thought-provoking books you ever read besides the Bible?

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Descent into Hell by Charles Williams. Has the most horrifying image of hell I’ve ever encountered.

Walden Two (and the book, title long ago forgotten, about a commune actually set up on those principles). And hadn’t thought about it until now, but it dovetails into Huxley’s Brave New World, too.

Lord of the Rings - not that it’s led to much real-world thoughts, but I had a lot of thought and discussion about it when I was young.

Tom A.
There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs. - John Rogers
 
The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jane Jacobs

I was still something close to a democratic socialist, politics-wise, before I read that book. It made me aware of both of the injustice of (1) trying to plan people’s lives for them and (2) the futility of trying to micromanage complex things like cities or economies. I’ve been a ‘conservatarian’ ever since.

If I had to make a list of top five life-changing books, it would be behind the Bible, of course, but fighting for #2 with The Meditations{/i] of Marcus Aurelius.
 
Non-fiction:

IG Farben by Richard Sasuly (1947).
T-Force by Sean Longden (2009, UK, hardcover).

It gave me a totally different perspective on World War II and a company (global cartel) that no one’s ever heard of. Well, almost no one. Similar reasons for T-Force (a specialized intelligence group that operated during and right after the end of WW II).

I’ve read a lot of philosophy but nothing beats the Bible.

Ed
 
meteoric said:
Descent into Hell by Charles Williams. Has the most horrifying image of hell I’ve ever encountered.

Walden Two (and the book, title long ago forgotten, about a commune actually set up on those principles). And hadn’t thought about it until now, but it dovetails into Huxley’s Brave New World, too.

Lord of the Rings - not that it’s led to much real-world thoughts, but I had a lot of thought and discussion about it when I was young.

Tom A.
There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs. - John Rogers
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“…emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world.” 🙂

I’ve known people who used to say things like “I’ve read Lord of the Rings 14 times!” For some reason, even though I was prodded, I could just not read Ayn Rand.

Ed

“The real world isn’t as much fun as the fictional worlds I’ve visited.” Me

“Plus, girls think you’re weird if you tell them you’re into that sort of thing.” Me

Or worse – comic books (until the mid-1980s).
 
The only book that had impact on me comparable to the Bible, would be
‘‘Labyrinth of the World and Paradise of the Heart’’ by John Amos Comenius.

He was pretty much inspired by the book of ecclesiastes. The story is an allegory which shows the vanity and transience of the world, and in the end the writer finds peace and meaning only in Christ.

Comenius was a 17th century czech protestant bishop, so the book contains some harsh opinions about the Catholic church. But if you can get over that, I think the book offers spiritual insight for any christian. 👍
 
meteoric said:
Descent into Hell by Charles Williams. Has the most horrifying image of hell I’ve ever encountered.

Walden Two (and the book, title long ago forgotten, about a commune actually set up on those principles). And hadn’t thought about it until now, but it dovetails into Huxley’s Brave New World, too.

Lord of the Rings - not that it’s led to much real-world thoughts, but I had a lot of thought and discussion about it when I was young.

Tom A.
There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs. - John Rogers
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Unfortunately, ‘Atlas Shrugged’ seemed to be a quite accurate predictor of the days we’re living through. Pretty good for a childish fantasy. Which isn’t surprising since Randy was simply applying what she’d witnessed in Russia/Soviet Union to the future. The thought policing, crony capitalism, virtue signaling, desire of leftist to control every aspect of life and shame folks into line were all dead on.

Roger Zelazny’s ‘Lord of Light’
Albert Speer’s ‘Inside the Third Reich’
D’Souza’s ‘Life After Death: The Evidence’

The ‘Foundation’ series by Asimov

I read widely on WWII history, and I can’t remember the names of all the books. Which did provoke a lot of thinking about why men are always at odds, motivating people towards a course of action, strife, heroism, sacrifice, trends of mobs, duty, how to avoid conflict, peaceful resolution, legitimate defense and adventurism…
 
edwest2 said:
I’ve known people who used to say things like “I’ve read Lord of the Rings 14 times!” For some reason, even though I was prodded, I could just not read Ayn Rand.
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My daughter read some of the newer dystopian novels. She then found a copy of Rand’s ‘Anthem’ and thought it did a much better job in a much shorter book and was more thoughtful.

I read ‘Atlas Shrugged’ but it’s not something I would re-read, even though I’m big on re-reading books I’ve enjoyed. It’s about as tedious in parts as some the Russian writers and Tolkein.

Read ‘Lord of the Rings’ and I never understood the hype. Best thing about reading them was understanding the parody when I found and read National Lampoon’s “Bored of the Rings”.
 
styrgwillidar said:
Unfortunately, ‘Atlas Shrugged’ seemed to be a quite accurate predictor of the days we’re living through. Pretty good for a childish fantasy. Which isn’t surprising since Randy was simply applying what she’d witnessed in Russia/Soviet Union to the future. The thought policing, crony capitalism, virtue signaling, desire of leftist to control every aspect of life and shame folks into line were all dead on.

Roger Zelazny’s ‘Lord of Light’
Albert Speer’s ‘Inside the Third Reich’
D’Souza’s ‘Life After Death: The Evidence’

The ‘Foundation’ series by Asimov

I read widely on WWII history, and I can’t remember the names of all the books. Which did provoke a lot of thinking about why men are always at odds, motivating people towards a course of action, strife, heroism, sacrifice, trends of mobs, duty, how to avoid conflict, peaceful resolution, legitimate defense and adventurism…
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There was an interview with Ayn Rand and Mike Wallace (late 1950s?) which I watched on youtube. As I took it, her take on human life was “If you screw up, it’s on you and only you. And if it puts you in a bad spot on a personal level, and ruins even part of your life. Oh well.” Mike Wallace’s response was: “Ayn. Aren’t we our brother’s keeper?” And she basically said no, as if we’re these independent units of beings. If we make it, fine. If not. Oh well. The concept of “brotherly love” did not seem to be part of her worldview.

I could not understand the cultish following that developed around her philosophy/worldview. Which further confirmed that reading her books would not appeal to me.

Ed
 
edwest2 said:
There was an interview with Ayn Rand and Mike Wallace (late 1950s?) which I watched on youtube. As I took it, her take on human life was “If you screw up, it’s on you and only you. And if it puts you in a bad spot on a personal level, and ruins even part of your life. Oh well.” Mike Wallace’s response was: “Ayn. Aren’t we our brother’s keeper?” And she basically said no, as if we’re these independent units of beings. If we make it, fine. If not. Oh well. The concept of “brotherly love” did not seem to be part of her worldview.

I could not understand the cultish following that developed around her philosophy/worldview. Which further confirmed that reading her books would not appeal to me.

Ed
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I won’t defend her as a human being, or all her views. I think the book is worth reading because it does provoke thought on to what extent are we our brothers keeper? And, at what point does the government, which consists of fallible men controlling force over the people, have too much power over day to day activities. The old- give a man a fish vice teach a man to fish. How much authority should the government have to take money/resources from one group to give to another? Under what rationale? A lot of ‘Atlas Shrugged’ is directed at cronyism. Men in government abusing power to enrich their cronies, or impede their opponents. IRS targeting conservative groups to impede/prevent their participation in the election cycle reminded me of Atlas Shrugged. The attempts at shaming folks and making them feel bad for not supporting various positions reminds me of Atlas Shrugged. The way our government grants subsidies or protections to various companies reminds me of Atlas as well. The more we turn to government and entrust it with power to resolve issues in our lives, the more risk it will be abused.

How much right do you and I when we get together and say we’re the government have to take things away from others? The fruit of their labors, effort, sweat, risk taking… What’s the reasonable limit? (Not just on taking things away from folks today in our own era, but taking them away from folks in the future- our expenditures that we are saddling them with? Always justified with— well, it’s for the public good. Public good always as defined by the folks in power, in government).

I wouldn’t say I like ‘Atlas Shrugged’, but it is the one that comes to mind a lot when reading the various headlines. Like Venezuela.

Another non-fiction book that was thought provoking:

“The Federalist Papers”

ETA: “The concept of “brotherly love” did not seem to be part of her worldview.” Well, in ‘Atlas Shrugged’ she made a point I ponder- a sacrifice you choose to make is a gift. To say we sacrifice for our kids or our neighbors, is an acknowledgment that we do and should make choices to do things for others. But a choice willingly made like charity, is different than something that is forced from us, like taxes taken and given to someone else. We always have the right to make our own sacrifices/gifts but what right to we have to demand sacrifices/gifts from others?
 
Graceful_Lamb said:
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
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Agree… plus CS Lewis’s “Great Divorce” and “Mere Christianity”, Chesterton’s “Orthodoxy” and “Heretics”, “Call of the Wild” and White Fang" by Jack London, and… in my liberal, baseball-crazed teens and twenties… “Ball Four” by Jim Bouton.
 
Charles Dickens - “Little Dorritt”

George Weigel - “Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II”
 
Another book that just came to mind is Silverlock by John Myers Myers published in 1949. It doesn’t encourage deep thoughts, but does cause you to try to puzzle out what books the characters are passing through as they journey in the Commonwealth of Literature.

Tom A.
Wonder where my copy is…
 
I read The Silver Chair as a teen, and Puddleglum’s speech to the queen of the Underworld has kept me a Christian when forces seemed to conspire to push me away, It’s one of the best arguments for keeping the faith that I’ve seen.

He said, "Suppose we have only dreamed, or made up, all those things-trees and grass and sun and moon and stars and Aslan himself. Suppose we have. Then all I can say is that, in that case, the made-up things seem a good deal more important than the real ones. Suppose this black pit of a kingdom of yours is the only world. Well, it strikes me as a pretty poor one. And that’s a funny thing, when you come to think of it. We’re just babies making up a game, if you’re right. But four babies playing a game can make a play-world which licks your real world hollow.
“That’s why I’m going to stand by the play world. I’m on Aslan’s side even if there isn’t any Aslan to lead it. I’m going to live as like a Narnian as I can even if there isn’t any Narnia.”

.
 
The Screwtape Letters, Pilgrim’s Progress and the Bhagavad Gita. I like the Screwtape Letters because it very vividly shows how subtle Satan is and the fact that he never gives up. I like Pilgrim’s Progress because it accurately portrays the things you encounter on your spiritual walk (like the man in the iron cage, a former professor). I like the Bhagavad Gita because it has a lot of wisdom in it. It teaches a simple life of renunciation of worldly pursuits.
 
Viki63 said:
I read The Silver Chair as a teen, and Puddleglum’s speech to the queen of the Underworld has kept me a Christian when forces seemed to conspire to push me away, It’s one of the best arguments for keeping the faith that I’ve seen.

He said, "Suppose we have only dreamed, or made up, all those things-trees and grass and sun and moon and stars and Aslan himself. Suppose we have. Then all I can say is that, in that case, the made-up things seem a good deal more important than the real ones. Suppose this black pit of a kingdom of yours is the only world. Well, it strikes me as a pretty poor one. And that’s a funny thing, when you come to think of it. We’re just babies making up a game, if you’re right. But four babies playing a game can make a play-world which licks your real world hollow.
“That’s why I’m going to stand by the play world. I’m on Aslan’s side even if there isn’t any Aslan to lead it. I’m going to live as like a Narnian as I can even if there isn’t any Narnia.”

.
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I thought the same about that whole scene in The Silver Chair.
 
Don’t laugh (or shoot) but The Celestine Prophecy was a big one for me back in college. A friend of mine was extremely into it and swore that it held all sorts of metaphysical and spiritual answers. I read it during the peak (or pit) of my fallen away phase. It made me think a lot about spirituality, etc. The more I thought and read about it, though, the more I came to see it as a load of garbage. Although I’d moved past it by the time The Tenth Insight came out, that cemented my negative opinion of the book.

On a more positive note, St. Therese’s Story of a Soul is one of my favorite books ever. It’s one that should be part of every Catholic school’s curriculum.
 
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