Thought-Provoking Books

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

Summer is coming up, and in just a couple of weeks I'll be free of exams and school and all that nonsense and properly graduated from high school. Summer, of course, means lots of spare time that can be well-used without feeling guilty about not studying, and I intend to use it well.

 

Part of my time I intend to spend reading. I've been on a book deficit lately, since I've exhausted most of the books I've found by glancing at the covers at Borders. (I also read very quickly. 1984 took me a day.) What I'd like to do this summer is survey some of the more thought-provoking and interesting literature (fiction and non-fiction) available, in hopes of, you know, expanding my mind and all that jazz.

 

By thought-provoking I mean anything from Nineteen Eighty-Four (O'Brien makes you think a surprising amount about the nature of reality) to The Fabric of the Cosmos (cool physics).

 

My current reading list is just three books long:

• Island, by Aldous Huxley, since I liked Brave New World and find Huxley's ideas on society to be interesting.
  
• The Web of Belief, by W. V. Quine, since blike told me to read it and because it touches on an area of philosophy I find very interesting.
  
• The rest of the New Testament, since I haven't finished it yet.
  

So what books would you recommend as the most interesting, most thought-provoking, and most stimulating for someone scientifically and philosophically inclined?

Edited May 3, 2009 by Cap'n Refsmmat

[Lan(r)12]

If you haven't read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand yet, do so this summer. Talk about a crazy book.

 

The Thief of Always by Clive Barker is another good, is somewhat elementary, book.

 

This may sound odd, but you could play Bioshock for the PS3 or Xbox 360. Its an incredibly stark portrayal of what our world could become with regards to both Orwellian and Rand outcomes.

[Tsuyoiko]

Anything by Dostoevsky; my personal favourite is Crime and Punishment

[Theophrastus]

Philosophically inclined? Well, were you in such a predisposition, try Power, by Bertrand Russel (I've read it quite recently; quite an interesting book), or The Prince, by Niccolo Machiavelli. I haven't quite gotten to reading it yet, but from several excerpts, I've discerned to be a very realist- based approach to politics and governance. However, these books are not, like the stories of Brave New World and 1984, in that there is no plot, there are no characters, and the book serves more as a representation of particular ideas, and make for a bit of a difficult read, if you dislike the style. But... hell. Who am I to make such disclaimers? Give it a go, and (hopefully) enjoy!

If you liked George Orwell, and are familiar with the revolution in Russia, (The Communistic one!) in 1917 (or 18, can't quite remember...) try reading Animal Farm. Absolutely brilliant satire and metaphors.

Edited June 23, 2009 by Theophrastus
addition of content

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

I actually had to read Animal Farm for school back in 9th grade and enjoyed it (unlike many other things I had to read for school). I'll go digging around on our shelves for some of the other books you mentioned; I'm fairly sure we might have some of them.

[ydoaPs]

I actually had to read Animal Farm for school back in 9th grade and enjoyed it (unlike many other things I had to read for school).

 

Try "Rethinking Life and Death" by Peter Singer, then. It's a good read.

 

 

I'd also recommend "Freedom Evolves" and "Darwin's Dangerous Idea" by Dennett. "On Intelligence" by Jeff Hawkins is pretty thought-provoking as well.

[Tsuyoiko]

I'm reading Ulysses by James Joyce at the moment. It's insanely intellectually stimulating. I need two study guides to help me understand it (Gifford's Ulysses Annotated and Thornton's Allusions in Ulysses). The underlying storyline is easy enough to follow, and although the writing style is difficult at first, you do get used to it. Although I can spot some of the allusions, I need the study guides to help me understand most of them. You could read it without worrying about the allusions, but I think it's worth attempting to understand them to get the most out of the book. Plus, you learn a lot about mythology, literature and early 20th century Ireland, which has given me a few ideas about what to read next.

 

Only recommended if you want to spend the whole summer reading a single book