I believe that the books we read influence what we think, and in effect what we do. Hence, I have put together a list of books I have read, and would like to read.
Here they are, in no particular order. I will also try to briefly describe why the book made this list:
Atlas Shrugged – Ayn Rand
This book is a classic. It describes beautifully why men(or women) of the mind revolt, and what happens when they do.
The Fountainhead – Ayn Rand
Another classic from Ayn Rand. Clearly drawn out characters, with characters also having shades of grey (not the usual either they are good or they are bad).
Godel, Escher and Bach: An eternal Golden Braid – Douglas R. Hofstadter
I havent finished reading this book yet. I have read parts of it, but I am pretty sure that this book will open up new dimensions in my thought. Most interestingly, ardent fans say that the book intertwines the topics of mathematics, art and music in a beautiful way. The author of the book differs from this view. He says his intention was to show how life/intelligence evolves from seemingly random non-living things. I havent gotten around to that point, but I sure would like to find out.
Vehicles: Experiments in Synthetic Psychology – Valentino Braitenberg
This is a beautiful book which shows exactly the same thing I talked about above. It mainly involves robots, and how they become lifelike from seemingly simple things that we control. Very interesting!
1984 – George Orwell
Described in the previous post!
Sherlock Holmes series
I got my basis in logical thinking from this book. All short stories, very interesting reads!
Hyperspace : A Scientific Odyssey Through Parallel Universes, Time Warps, and the 10th Dimension
by Michio Kaku
A very nice book after which I felt I understood what relativity was all about. Though, all I can remember is that it involved something to do with blankets and stuff!
Creative Commons
It’s interesting that three of the books you like, two of Ayn Rand and Orwell’s 1984, have capitalistic inclinations, more than inclinations actually…
Partha
Yeah…you guessed it..I am a freaking capitalist (the laze faire type)
robotgeek
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1984 was the basis for the famous Apple Super Bowl ad
hybrid
“It’s interesting that three of the books you like, two of Ayn Rand and Orwell’s 1984, have capitalistic inclinations, more than inclinations actually…”
One correction: “1984″ was based on Zamyatin’s “We” and similar to Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World” and all the three books actually mention the scenarios associated with absolute power not socialistic nor capitalistic philosophy. In fact, Orwell and Zamyatin were openly advocating Socialism and Trotsky’s form of Marxism. It is notable that Ayn Rand who had openly denounced “collectivistic thought” was actually a strong supporter of Trotsky and in fact advocated objectivism which is a strong basis for minarchy (as opposed to anarchy or capitalism).
rocketboy
Forgot to mention an important non-fiction book. Read Milton Friedman’s “Capitalism and Freedom” on laissez-faire thought.
rocketboy