# Great Books, which are yours? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 7, 2000, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730 "2000-01-07T19:41:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Phaedrus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@Phaedrus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phaedrus)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/1 "2000-01-07T19:41:00Z")
I have thought of creating this for a long time. Thomas Carlyle said, “The person you will be five years from now will be the books you have read and the people you have met”. I have never seen that axiom to be wrong, therefore, books are very important to our lives. I am creating this because many people here read and I have been turned on to books by other members here that have reshaped my thought since I first posted. We can use this thread to REALLY increase each other’s knowledge and even give us new topics for debate from the books posted. Books on logical disputation can help us sharpen our ability to argue effectively. Etc, etc, etc,. The book that have changed my life the most? The Bible Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance ---
**Author:** ![Christian897](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Christian897](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Christian897)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/2 "2000-01-07T19:46:00Z")
I can’t help it, I like the Left Behind series, wether someone is religious or not, it is very entertaining, and makes just want to jump right into the next book as soon as you finish each one. Just a thought, I am really into Buffy the Vampire Slayer, yes…I’m 26, and pathetically can’t wait for each new episode evry week. Does that mean when I’m 31, I’ll be a little butt kicking vampire slayer…oh, I can’t bare to think of it ;). Just kidding. * * * Jesus said… John 14:1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.” John 14:11 “Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.”🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Navigator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/4af34b/32.png) [@Navigator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Navigator)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/3 "2000-01-07T19:59:00Z")
Books… can I cop out and go with authors… Fiction: James Mitschner (i know I spelt that wrong) Tom Clancy Jerry B. Jenkins (yes the series is FICTION) W.E.B. Griffin Non-Fiction: C.S. Lewis Max Lucado Phillip Yancey Best Book: (okay I tried to keep this out of it) The Bible. ## other than that. ‘The Covenant’ Mitschner † Jon † Phillipians 4:13 ---
**Author:** ![Rabbi\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecc23a/32.png) [@Rabbi\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rabbi_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/4 "2000-01-07T20:07:00Z")
Books: 1. Jewish Scriptures 2. All Quiet On The Western Front 3. The DUNE Trilogy 4. For Whom The Bells Toll Authors: 1. Arthur C. Clarke 2. Stephen Caldwell * * * shema yisrael adonai eloheynu adonai echad ---
**Author:** ![Eutychus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Eutychus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eutychus)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/5 "2000-01-07T20:07:00Z")
“The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain “Catch-22” by Joseph Heller “Les Miserables” by Victor Hugo “Moby Dick” by Herman Melville “Ancient Lights” by Davis Grubb “Riders of the Purple Sage” by Zane Grey * * * Saint Eutychus [www.disneyshorts.org](http://www.disneyshorts.org) ---
**Author:** ![Rabbi\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecc23a/32.png) [@Rabbi\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rabbi_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/6 "2000-01-07T20:09:00Z")
Slip of the ole keyboard fingers: For Whom the Bell Tolls ---
**Author:** ![Glitch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/0ea827/32.png) [@Glitch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glitch)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/7 "2000-01-07T20:20:00Z")
I predict MPSIMS in the near future. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Zambezi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7cd45c/32.png) [@Mr.Zambezi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Zambezi)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/8 "2000-01-07T20:32:00Z")
THis should be in MPISMS: but what the heck: Hotel New Hamphsire by John Irving Animal Dream by Kingsolver East of Eden by Steinbeck [inset word] Jeeves! by P G Wodehouse The Straight Dope (well, duh!)By Cecil All the trouble in the World By PJ O’Rourke ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/9 "2000-01-07T20:47:00Z")
1. _John_ by John 2. _Human Action_ by Ludwig von Mises 3. “The Declaration of Independence” by Thomas Jefferson [okay, so sue me] 4. _Atlas Shrugged_ by Ayn Rand * * * “It is lucky for rulers that men do not think.” — Adolf Hitler ---
**Author:** ![David\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/51bf81/32.png) [@David\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_B)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/10 "2000-01-07T21:57:00Z")
[Moderator Hat: ON] Glitch wins the “Psychic of the Day” award. Off to MPSIMS. Have fun! [Moderator Hat: Handed off to Eut.] ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/11 "2000-01-07T22:20:00Z")
Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand A Fool’s Progress - Edward Abbey Snowcrash - Neil Stephenson Belinda - Anne Rampling (Rice) The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand * * * She caught your eye like one of those pointy hook latches that used to dangle from screen doors and would fly up whenever you banged the door open again. ---
**Author:** ![Studi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Studi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Studi)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/12 "2000-01-07T22:49:00Z")
Paradise Lost, Dante’s Inferno, and A Thief in the Night * * * “What contemptible scoundrel has stolen the cork to my lunch?” --W.C. Fields ---
**Author:** ![MrKnowItAll](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrknowitall/32/87_2.png) [@MrKnowItAll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrKnowItAll)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/13 "2000-01-07T22:55:00Z")
_Dandelion Wine_ - Ray Bradbury _The Bible_ - God (right.) _Angry Candy_ - Harlan Ellison _Without Feathers_ - Woody Allen _The Straight Dope_ - The Great One * * * Mr. K’s Link of the Month: [Why Plastic Grocery Bags Are Better Than God](http://www.flud.com/ass/bag.html) “Nobody ever lends money to a man with a sense of humor.” - Peter Tork ---
**Author:** ![sixseatport](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@sixseatport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sixseatport)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/14 "2000-01-07T22:56:00Z")
I always liked Godel, Escher Bach by Douglas Hofstadter. I’ve read it a couple times, but I still get headaches following it sometimes. I would also add Tolkien’s works to the list. Wasn’t Lord of the Rings voted as ‘Book of the Century’ by someone a while ago? ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/15 "2000-01-07T23:17:00Z")
_Absalom, Absalom_, William Faulkner _The Phantom Tollbooth_, Norton Juster “The Dead,” James Joyce _Pilgrim at Tinker Creek_, Annie Dillard This kind of question always makes my brain short-circuit. There are many more, but I’m blanking. * * * All the best people have bad chests and bone diseases. It’s all frightfully romantic. _Heavenly Creatures_, scr. Walsh & Jackson ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/16 "2000-01-07T23:19:00Z")
Wow, well read AND from Seattle, a pleasure to meet you Ja! * * * She caught your eye like one of those pointy hook latches that used to dangle from screen doors and would fly up whenever you banged the door open again. ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/17 "2000-01-07T23:23:00Z")
Oh, and _Catch-22_. One of the first books I had to start over with three or four times before getting through – which sets a pattern. I got stuck halfway through almost all of my favorite books the first time I read them. And _Little Big Man_. Genius. * * * All the best people have bad chests and bone diseases. It’s all frightfully romantic. _Heavenly Creatures_, scr. Walsh & Jackson ---
**Author:** ![OfficeGirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/97f17d/32.png) [@OfficeGirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OfficeGirl)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2000, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/18 "2000-01-07T23:52:00Z")
Anything by James Michener, particularly The Drifters. Anything by John Irving (ESPECIALLY 🙂 - The World According to Garp - A Prayer for Owen Meany - Cider House Rules - Hotel New Hampshire Wally Lamb: - I Know This Much is True - She’s Come Undone (should be my title) Richard Bach: - Illusions - Running from Safety and others * * * [OfficeGirl’s Cubicle Farm](http://www.homestead.com/allusions/allusions.html) “Argue for your limitations; sure enough, they’re yours.” ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2000, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/19 "2000-01-08T00:18:00Z")
Many books have helped open my mind, but one book really did change my life – “Lonesome Dove” by Larry McMurtry. Couldn’t stomach big city living after reading it – sold the house in Seattle and moved back to Iowa, after 25 years. Lots of sky, sunshine, real weather, room. And cheese balls. ---
**Author:** ![Oblio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c4cdca/32.png) [@Oblio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oblio)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2000, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730/20 "2000-01-08T01:00:00Z")
sixseatport sez … > [@](#): > > I always liked Godel, Escher Bach by Douglas Hofstadter. I’ve read it a couple times, but I still get headaches following it sometimes. Whenever I try to finish that book 'pop … I get stuck in a groove 🙂 ’ Headaches for me too. Just finished Dune for the first time. Ordered more today to continue the saga. * * * A point in every direction is like no point at all [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/great-books-which-are-yours/12730.md?page=2)