Name the 3 most compelling books you've ever read

[Ukrainia]

I don't want to limit this to a particulary catagory. For instance you could name something that made you overhaul a longstanding opinion, or just a ripping good yarn, a historical biography or poetry. Any 3 books that made you go "wow!" Personally I'm not putting the Bible here because that book is always at the top of my list without saying.

After thinking about this for awhile I came up with 3. On a different day I might have chosen a different 3.

Relic (Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child): A monster is on the loose in the New York Museum of Natural History. These authors are my favorite and I believe this was there first book as co-authors and their best. Recently I had started to think either the author's talents had started to wane, or my taste in books had started to change, since I hadn't really loved their last two novels. But after reading their recent Fever Dream, I was reminded of the kind of compelling storytelling these guys can come up with. Awesome stuff!

Dune (Frank Herbert): From my experience, the most imaginative science fiction book of all time. There is everything here. It's not your normal sci-fi tale. It's got philosophical musings, murderous intrigue, sword fights, the development of a savior and much much more, all blended together seemlessly on an imaginary world.

The Hammer of God (Bo Giertz): A fictional book about pastors in Sweden written by a pastor himself. I put this book on here because it does a fantastic job of explaining the grace of God for his people and gives you some understanding of the challenges pastors have to deal with. Its ending moved me to tears.

Honorable Mention:
Timeline: Michael Chricton
Rainbow Seven: Tom Clancy
The Seventh Scroll: Wilbur Smith
1491: Charles C. Mann
Enders Game: Orson Scott Card
Speaker for the Dead: Orson Scott Card
Surprised by Hope: NT Wright
The Prometheus Deception: Robert Ludlum
The Brain that Changes Itself: Norman Doidge
Harry Potter Series

 

[MacFall]

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis - I was already a Christian when I read it, but it helped shape the way I view God and led me to the beliefs I now hold on Christian ethics, especially those pertaining to relationships between people and their importance to God.

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A Heinlein - In a lunar civilization of banished criminals and outcasts, a cadre of individualists plot to overthrow the Earth-government supported Warden and his totalitarian regime. This book made me decide I wanted to become a science fiction author, but its philosophical content also cemented my belief in methodological individualism.

The Ethics of Liberty by Murray N. Rothbard - Basically responsible for all the radically anti-political rhetoric you've probably seen from me since I came here, this book argues from the axiom of self-ownership for the morality of private property, and the immorality of all aggressive (non-defensive) uses of force - including those committed by the state.

 

[Ukrainia]

The Ethics of Liberty by Murray N. Rothbard - Basically responsible for all the radically anti-political rhetoric you've probably seen from me since I came here, this book argues from the axiom of self-ownership for the morality of private property, and the immorality of all aggressive (non-defensive) uses of force - including those committed by the state.

I'm thinking of increasing my knowledge of economics. I read a blog whose author thinks Mises is a genius, however he has a intense dislike for Rothbard although Mises and Rothbard seem to be from the same economic mindset - he doesn't really go into details as to why he likes one and hates the other. So I was thinking of reading something from Mises. What are your thoughts on this?

 

[Marycita]

The first three that come to my mind right now...

East of Eden - John Steinbeck
Adam - Ted Dekker
Screwtape Letters - CS Lewis

 

[ProAntiRevolution]

Crime & Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Starship Troopers by Heinlein

The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allen Poe
(Well actually his complete works, but I picked a favorite as not to be accused of cheating)

 

[MacFall]

In fact, Rothbard was one of Mises' students. Both are excellent economists with little difference between them. He may dislike Rothbard's political theories, though. Whereas Mises was a classical liberal (albeit a particularly radical one), Rothbard took the last step in libertarian theory to free market anarchism. But even if one is not an anarchist, to dislike Rothbard's economics because of that doesn't make much sense.

Political philosophies aside, their only really major difference was their theory of monopolies: Mises believed that in a free market a temporary monopoly could develop in the provision of natural resources as long as its prices were low and its quality high; Rothbard countered that it is impossible for a monopoly to have low prices and high quality for the same reason that a socialist government cannot provide those things, and that only government enforcement keeps monopolies and cartel agreements in existence.

Their writing is different too. Mises wrote for academics, in academic style. He assumes a lot of knowledge on the part of the reader of the history of economic thought, philosophy, the social sciences and the terminologies associated with those disciplines.

Rothbard, on the other hand, assumed nothing but intelligence on the part of his readers. He starts from scratch, and writes in a very down-to-earth and easily digestible style. If you're new to economics, I definitely recommend Rothbard's Man, Economy, and State with Power and Market. It is available online for free at that link, in whole at the website or as a PDF download. Mises' treatise, Human Action, is available here.

Unless you really like very heady academic writing, I can only recommend Human Action over Man, Economy and State for the fact that the former is rather the source material for the latter. Also, they have an audio version of Human Action if you like audiobooks. They can do that because it is completely free of graphics and charts, which is not true of Rothbard's work. This shouldn't be taken to say that Mises wasn't a good writer or not worth reading. I especially must recommend his work on the problem of socialist calculation. But for beginners, it's a long dive into a deep pool so to speak.

The best thing about MES, in my opinion, is that after you read the first few chapters and get the basics down, you can pretty much open the book to any chapter and understand it without having to reference back to earlier chapters.

I would also recommend Henry Hazlitt's Economics in One Lesson, and Frederic Bastiat's Economic Fallacies and Economic Harmonies. Also, Hazlitt's The Failure of the New Economics is an interesting counter-rebuttal to many of the criticisms of Misesian/Rothbardian economics.

 

[Trashionista]

And the Band Played On: People, Politics and the AIDS Epidemic. If you ever needed another reason to be soured on Reagonomics, read this book. Even if you've/had never been in the risk groups of developing/contracting GRID (gay men, hemophiliacs, IV drug user) or AIDS (increasingly, a black or Latina female, complacement young person), it's still worth a read. Your sexual health is too important to play around with.

A Tale of Two Cities. Because I probably wouldn't be the Franco/Gallophile I am, and I wouldn't have the foggiest idea what to pursue in school.

Honestly, it's hard to pick a third. One that really changed me and I just didn't enjoy? I don't want to go the easy route and pick something like The Velveteen Rabbit or The Little Prince/Le Petit Prince, but I can't really say a palette cleanser I enjoyed like Kitchen Confidential is really life-changing. Maybe The Things They Carried, but I've never been close to going to war or supporting a war (chickenhawk), so to call it life-changing for me would be a bit of a misnomer. Maybe Fight Club?

 

[Rhye]

Great thread
Rise the Euphrates by Carol Edgarian –Being raised in one culture and acculturating in another, somehow I felt I lost something of myself. There is so much tenderness in this book, so much of, “I know what you are saying Edgarian, you don’t have to continue. I understand. I know. I have felt it. I have seen. I have experienced it.” Ether that or I take culture way too seriously, sometimes.

Hokevarki ev huysi chaher (Torches of Spiritual Behavior) by Siamanto- His works are graphic but truth. When my father first read this to me, I could not sleep for days. And we see the deep ugliness of humanity.

Noric Chen Sirum (Not love again) and Ban Zxjum Em (Beg Something) by Paruyr Sevak – I think I can list ten others of his. He is brilliant, moving, and powerful to say the least.

Sayat Nova-Anything from him is GOLD! I personally love Kamancha

^ These are the men (and woman) that make me love who I am

 

[soccerdad66]

The Seduction of Christianity - Dave Hunt
Seven Men Who Rule the World from the Grave - Dave Breese

Tough to say on the third, read many books on different religions by people who used to be part of that religion, so I really enjoy their perspective: The Scarlett Lady (about abortion actually, not religion, but she ran a highly successfull clinic), The Beautiful Side of Evil, Satan's Underground, Death of a Guru (some incredibly powerful books based on the person's own life).

 

[Blank123]

Pilgrim's Progress - I honestly think all Christians should read this book. So simple, yet so rich and deep.

Dayuma: Life Under Waorani Spears - this book is what first opened my eyes to the need for missionaries and Bible translation around the world. Something that still holds a special place in my heart though it doesn't look like God is leading me to the field itself.

And of course the Bible, though I probably sound very cliched in adding it to my list. oh well. like I care

 

[ProAntiRevolution]

Great thread
Rise the Euphrates by Carol Edgarian –Being raised in one culture and acculturating in another, somehow I felt I lost something of myself. There is so much tenderness in this book, so much of, “I know what you are saying Edgarian, you don’t have to continue. I understand. I know. I have felt it. I have seen. I have experienced it.” Ether that or I take culture way too seriously, sometimes.

I think it's pretty normal to feel that way for people that move to the US from a country with a very clearly defined culture. We just have an amalgamation of everything various generations of immigrants brought with them and arranged regionally. It's why so many Americans are obsessed with genealogy; you have to go backwards to link up with a culture with which you can identify.

 

[Allen1901]

Anything by Noam Chomsky!

 

[metherion]

I'm going to second Dune, that was an AMAZING book, and it pretty much the style I'm trying to shoot for when I finally get back to my book... whenever that is... But it's an amazing tale of culture, intrigue, power, and just... wow.

I would also say Wuthering Heights. I just... loved that back, and hated it at the same time. It took a LOT to wade through it, but it was quite worth it. I need to find my copy and reread it.

And next... Master and Commander. The book that started the series, which was like... 22 or 23 books long when he died. It's amazing, it's very deep, and despite having so much naval jargon and 'dead time' it's still compelling to read.

Metherion

 

[Themistocles]

Excluding The Bible:

Middlemarch- After I read it some months ago I attempted to write a short review, something I've done for most books I've read over the last year: I couldn't get anywhere. It's just...so much and if I'm forced to say something about it- something substantial- I'll leave off with something very brief, for fear of not doing it justice: the characters live. I laughed, I wept bitterly, I stared serenely at my ceiling at the end. A few re-reads and maybe I'll have something better to say.

Orthodoxy- It has all of Chesterton's gorgeous, lively, prose without wearing itself out as some of his other works do. And it gives a great heroic picture of Christianity. What more can we ask for?

David Copperfield- I love it intensely. I've read better works of literature in the twelve years since I first picked this up and devoured it in a single day (though not many, not many) but none more personally powerful. Every story of a boy growing from the folly of youth to solidity of adulthood stems from and is eclipsed by this.

 

[ceh85]

Ooh I like this thread. Hmm compelling is not the same as favourite. So I'm just going to put down books I couldn't stop reading.

Testament of Youth

Memoirs of a Geisha

The Sacred Romance

 

[Amber.ly]

Pride and Prejudice- I have no idea why this book has fascinated me since I was 11 but it does. The language, the story line and the subtle life lessons all go into making a fabulous book.

Savage Damsel and the Dwarf- funniest, most sarcastic and witty book ever written. Love it. I don't care if it's trivial fiction with no purpose but entertainment. I like it

Selfless Joy in a Me First World- spiritually kicks my butt and gave me a whole new perspective about really basic things about myself and others.

 

[tsylatac]

Hinds Feet on High Places
The Robe
The Last Battle

 

[Wren]

The Time Traveler's Wife was amazing. Between Friends and Eve's Daughters are excellent as well.

Honorable mentions include Anne of Green Gables (the entire series), The Historian, and Welcome to the World, Baby Girl.

 

[mina]

Hinds Feet on High Places
Charlotte's Web
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or anything by Mark Twain
A tree Grows in Brooklyn


*I had a hard time choosing. I'm a reader.

 

[TwistTim]

Robinson Crusoe - Daniel De(of) Foe (Defoe) - one man against the elements learns to survive and relay only on God, his parting gift to those he saves from savages? The Bible and then he has more adventures
picking just three is hard.... arg
1984 - George Orwell - He wrote the first Dark Utopia I read(Animal Farm) and the third (Fahrenheit 451 being the second) lead me to my political views.... Libertarian, the bigger the government, the easier this would be to happen and we see some of the NewSpeak today
Pilgrim's Progress - John Bunyan - the definitive allegory of the Christian life and what it is like...

ask me another day and the list will change i am sure.... but these three are some of the greatest three I can think of....