Books that have shaped you

[Lozzer]

What books have influenced and shaped you the greatest? Give the title and what you learnt from the book. I'll do mine later, I can't be arsd right now.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Stranger in a Strange Land

Religion is just humans kidding themselves. People can be different from the ones you've known. Life should be fun.

Starship Troopers

The guy next to you is the most important person on the battlefield. Keep your word. Earn your privileges.

[obscured by clouds]

Lord Of the Rings, and Hitchhikers Guide, Amusing Ourselves to Death are the ones that have influenced me the most.

== obscured by clouds ==

[Pappa]

One that had a real effect on me back when I was a student was this:



It made me think differently about my creative processes and the nature of creativity and art in general (not that it is about these subjects). It also shaped my political and personal views, helping me along the path to my armchair anarchism.

[Chinaski]

Excellent thread.

Being 18, I haven't had much shaping yet, and the books I may cite could be seen as signs of immaturity. However, even books that could only speak to a 15 year old were important to me when I read them at age 15, so here goes.

Anton LaVey - "The Satanic Bible" Taught me to be arrogant about my abilities and protectively open about my disabilities, and that there is no being I can rely upon, trust, or find strength in greater than myself.
Richard Dawkins - "The God Delusion" Gave me a philosophical orientation, my first concrete position.
Marquis De Sade - "120 Days of Sodom" Exposed the relativity of personal morals and taste, as well as the value of hedonism and one's own happiness and pleasure, and the connections that has with philosophy and ideologies.

[Lozzer]

Excellent thread.

Being 18, I haven't had much shaping yet, and the books I may cite could be seen as signs of immaturity. However, even books that could only speak to a 15 year old were important to me when I read them at age 15, so here goes.

Anton LaVey - "The Satanic Bible" Taught me to be arrogant about my abilities and protectively open about my disabilities, and that there is no being I can rely upon, trust, or find strength in greater than myself.
Richard Dawkins - "The God Delusion" Gave me a philosophical orientation, my first concrete position.
Marquis De Sade - "120 Days of Sodom" Exposed the relativity of personal morals and taste, as well as the value of hedonism and one's own happiness and pleasure, and the connections that has with philosophy and ideologies.

I can much appreciate the latter, thought the second piece of literature are good, I wanted to know what actually changed you completely--such as behaviour, how you approach situations etc.

I can never get tired of reading:


This is the sole reason that I can justify acting like a twat. It's one of the greatest allegories I've ever read. In order to avoid immorality you must become indifferent. He taught me the truth about mankind and humanity through the character of Satan, consider this verse for example--"There has never been a just one, never an honorable one — on the part of the instigator of the war. I can see a million years ahead, and this rule will never change in so many as half a dozen instances. The loud little handful — as usual — will shout for the war. The pulpit will — warily and cautiously — object — at first; the great, big, dull bulk of the nation will rub its sleepy eyes and try to make out why there should be a war, and will say, earnestly and indignantly, "It is unjust and dishonorable, and there is no necessity for it." Then the handful will shout louder. A few fair men on the other side will argue and reason against the war with speech and pen, and at first will have a hearing and be applauded; but it will not last long; those others will outshout them, and presently the anti-war audiences will thin out and lose popularity. Before long you will see this curious thing: the speakers stoned from the platform, and free speech strangled by hordes of furious men who in their secret hearts are still at one with those stoned speakers — as earlier — but do not dare to say so. And now the whole nation — pulpit and all — will take up the war-cry, and shout itself hoarse, and mob any honest man who ventures to open his mouth; and presently such mouths will cease to open. Next the statesmen will invent cheap lies, putting the blame upon the nation that is attacked, and every man will be glad of those conscience-soothing falsities, and will diligently study them, and refuse to examine any refutations of them; and thus he will by and by convince himself that the war is just, and will thank God for the better sleep he enjoys after this process of grotesque self-deception. "

Humans can only be immoral when they choose to be, the fault is there own. Satan could never intervene when they acted like monsters because they never were monsters--they were human, it was in their nature. If an Angel acted like a human he would be obliged to put a stop to it. But no human could act like an Angel, as Angels cannot differentiate good from bad and thus they were neither good nor bad--but indifferent.

Though impossible, and as contradictory as it is, since reading that book I've tried my best to act indifferently and its pretty much worked. Once upon a time I would have felt a twinge of guilt at making jokes about cancer patients etc but no more do I feel that.

I also learned of my own insignificance from the book, and I learned to accept it. On the grand scheme of things I'm not existent--like everything else in this Universe. I can do what I want, whatever I want. And whether I live or die, I will always be but a thought--a unsubstantial thought when government decides to issue a new policy, and a vagrant thought in the minds of others when my breathing ceases--"There is no God, no universe, no human race, no earthly life, no heaven, no hell. It is all a Dream, a grotesque and foolish dream. Nothing exists but you. And You are but a Thought — a vagrant Thought, a useless Thought, a homeless Thought, wandering forlorn among the empty eternities."

[Chinaski]

Excellent thread.

Being 18, I haven't had much shaping yet, and the books I may cite could be seen as signs of immaturity. However, even books that could only speak to a 15 year old were important to me when I read them at age 15, so here goes.

Anton LaVey - "The Satanic Bible" Taught me to be arrogant about my abilities and protectively open about my disabilities, and that there is no being I can rely upon, trust, or find strength in greater than myself.
Richard Dawkins - "The God Delusion" Gave me a philosophical orientation, my first concrete position.
Marquis De Sade - "120 Days of Sodom" Exposed the relativity of personal morals and taste, as well as the value of hedonism and one's own happiness and pleasure, and the connections that has with philosophy and ideologies.

I can much appreciate the latter, thought the second piece of literature are good, I wanted to know what actually changed you completely--such as behaviour, how you approach situations etc.

Well, it gave me a moral and philosophical position to support, stand for, argue or, etc. I was really very vague before, and didn't have strong opinions about anything. I was probably a lot nicer as a result. I guess you could say it helped me find a sort of purpose.

[Lozzer]

Excellent thread.

Being 18, I haven't had much shaping yet, and the books I may cite could be seen as signs of immaturity. However, even books that could only speak to a 15 year old were important to me when I read them at age 15, so here goes.

Anton LaVey - "The Satanic Bible" Taught me to be arrogant about my abilities and protectively open about my disabilities, and that there is no being I can rely upon, trust, or find strength in greater than myself.
Richard Dawkins - "The God Delusion" Gave me a philosophical orientation, my first concrete position.
Marquis De Sade - "120 Days of Sodom" Exposed the relativity of personal morals and taste, as well as the value of hedonism and one's own happiness and pleasure, and the connections that has with philosophy and ideologies.

I can much appreciate the latter, thought the second piece of literature are good, I wanted to know what actually changed you completely--such as behaviour, how you approach situations etc.

Well, it gave me a moral and philosophical position to support, stand for, argue or, etc. I was really very vague before, and didn't have strong opinions about anything. I was probably a lot nicer as a result. I guess you could say it helped me find a sort of purpose.

I understand, The God Delusion was just another book I've read on the subject of atheism and religion. I have no intention to go through life just arguing with religionists but I can concede that the dispute entailed me becoming incredibly fascinated with academia and other such things.

[Chinaski]

In addition, while not being the best book proposing the atheist position, TGD was the first one I read, and its impact therefore was the greatest. It took Harris for me to realize that cultural relativism was bullshit, though.

[Trolldor]

The Redemption of Althalus -
Gods can be killed... or fucked.

[Transgirlofnofaith]

The only one I can think of is:



It changed my views on the value of serendipity and finding one's own path.

[Lozzer]

The only one I can think of is:



It changed my views on the value of serendipity and finding one's own path.

I have that book, it made me incredibly happy the other. I've never read it of course, but once upon a time I must have used it as a piggy bank. I took a quick look through the book the other day, and £40 fell out

[AshtonBlack]

Early "Reading" Life: (about 10-13yrs old)

"Bill the Galactic Hero On The Planet of the Bottled Brains" by Harry Harrison.
This was my 1st Sci-fi book (albeit a kid's comedy book) and sparked a life long interest in sci-fi becoming more and more "hardcore" with each book/author .... (and science/technology in general.)

The Angst Years: (15-19yrs old)

"Cosmos" by Carl Sagan. A mind blowing book/TV series, which pointed me to attain a rational view of the world and so not accept anything anyone says without at least thinking about it.
"Dune" Frank Herbert. An insight into what it means to be human.
"Neuromancer" Gary Gibson. The first cyberpunk novel that drove my search for knowledge about everything computer related.

Since then: (19-Present)

"The God Delusion" : Got me interested in religion and spurred me to join in debates.


There are many other books and authors that have an influence on what it means to be me. The vast majority, I would suggest, in a positive way. Apart from Dan Brown. He's a twat.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

"Bill the Galactic Hero On The Planet of the Bottled Brains" by Harry Harrison.
This was my 1st Sci-fi book (albeit a kid's comedy book) and sparked a life long interest in sci-fi becoming more and more "hardcore" with each book/author .... (and science/technology in general.)

Great satire of the military. Especially the last scene.

"Cosmos" by Carl Sagan. A mind blowing book/TV series, which pointed me to attain a rational view of the world and so not accept anything anyone says without at least thinking about it.
"Dune" Frank Herbert. An insight into what it means to be human.
"Neuromancer" Gary Gibson. The first cyberpunk novel that drove my search for knowledge about everything computer related.

Read all three.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

"Neuromancer" Gary Gibson. The first cyberpunk novel that drove my search for knowledge about everything computer related.

I prefer the book of the same title written by his brother William...