Would anyone care to list the FIVE......

[Spinoza]

Go ahead and start it off with your five.

For my own reasons......
I often opt to relax patiently for 5 days as I watch a thread I have authored weave its own fabric.

So......
After 5 days and sufficient "views" (412) to date......
I shall now "Go ahead" and allow you (if that is your wish/preference) to follow.

*Flatland...... But you already knew that one.
*The Dove Flies South...... Hyland.
(3rd grade, I did not read To Kill a Mockingbird until highschool)
*Story of the Good Brahman...... A short story by Voltaire.
*Sidhartha...... Hesse.
*The Sirens of Titan...... Vonnegut.

And since I have declared no RULES......
I'll add an essay.
Self Reliance...... Emerson.

Cheers.

[Spinoza]

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Screwtape Letters
East of Eden
The Pokey Little Puppy
The Brothers Karamazov

Maybe. I think there should probably be more "children's books" on a list that impacted my life. The Jungle Books maybe. Possibly Arabian Nights or some Jack London. I could maybe make a case for The Sun Also Rises or The Life of Pi.

I have not read your 1, 2 and 4......
But I am intrigued by your East of Eden and The Brothers Karamazov selections.

If you happen to read this and have nothing better to do......
I would truly enjoy learning your take on how these 2 novels have significantly impacted you.

Cheers.

[Spinoza]

Atlas Shrugged
The Fountainhead
To Kill A Mockingbird

WOW......
You have definitely selected 3 straight lines that I am unable to imagine as sharing the same philosophical triangle.
Would you care to elaborate?

And if you have a 4 and 5......
What could they possibly be?

Thank you for your very interesting contribution to this tiny thread.

Cheers.

[saltydawg]

#2 The "Horatio Hornblower" series of novels by C.S. Forester.

#3 "Hondo" by Louis L'Amour

[hoppinmad]

For my own reasons......
I often opt to relax patiently for 5 days as I watch a thread I have authored weave its own fabric.

So......
After 5 days and sufficient "views" (412) to date......
I shall now "Go ahead" and allow you (if that is your wish/preference) to follow.

*Flatland...... But you already knew that one.
*The Dove Flies South...... Hyland.
(3rd grade, I did not read To Kill a Mockingbird until highschool)
*Story of the Good Brahman...... A short story by Voltaire.
*Sidhartha...... Hesse.
*The Sirens of Titan...... Vonnegut.

And since I have declared no RULES......
I'll add an essay.
Self Reliance...... Emerson.

Cheers.

Something about Sidhartha tells me it may be more than a novel.

[JuBru]

1) Shakespeare
2) Chaucer
3) Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
4) C.S. Lewis
5) C.S. Forester

there are several of each series. It wa hard picking 5 though, because there have been a lot of books, series, essays, and authors.

[inudesu]

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Screwtape Letters
East of Eden
The Pokey Little Puppy
The Brothers Karamazov

Maybe. I think there should probably be more "children's books" on a list that impacted my life. The Jungle Books maybe. Possibly Arabian Nights or some Jack London. I could maybe make a case for The Sun Also Rises or The Life of Pi.

I have not read your 1, 2 and 4......
But I am intrigued by your East of Eden and The Brothers Karamazov selections.

If you happen to read this and have nothing better to do......
I would truly enjoy learning your take on how these 2 novels have significantly impacted you.

Cheers.

I'm not sure any of the books I listed impacted me in a tangible, measurable way. At least not in the sense that I'd be such a terribly different person if I hadn't read them. But I'll give it a shot.

I had probably read/heard the Cain and Abel story hundreds of times when I first read East of Eden (in high school, I think). I had never really stopped to think about verse 4:7, though. I really embraced the idea that "thou mayest" master sin. Free will gives us the chance to choose evil, but it also gives us the chance to choose good. I love that idea. I don't think this contradicts some idea of total depravity or Romans chapter 3 (I'm not a Pelagian), but it reinforces ability (and responsibility) to choose.

I already believed this, but for years after I read East of Eden I framed it in Steinbeck's words (timshel as "you may") whenever I thought about it.

I also think it's a good story told in an interesting way with a lot of humor and pathos that manages to convey its central meaning in a compelling manner.

The Dostoevsky is even more vague in terms of direct changes in my life. I think it echoes some of the free will discussion from EoE, but mostly I'd say it serves as a perfect example of a work of fiction that provokes serious religious reflection. It's the kind of book I'd like to write if I could write that well (although my book would be much shorter and wouldn't use that frustrating Russian practice of giving every character 15 nicknames, patronymics, and titles).

I guess it was also a good look at a branch of Christian practice pretty far removed from my own (Eastern Orthodox vs. SBC).

I'm sure you'd be interested to know that I had typed a response to this that was lost when I accidently used the wrong tab to double-check my spelling and had to re-type everything. Let's all just imagine that the earlier response was much more insightful, easier to understand, and more elegantly phrased than the redo.

[inudesu]

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Screwtape Letters
East of Eden
The Pokey Little Puppy
The Brothers Karamazov

Maybe. I think there should probably be more "children's books" on a list that impacted my life. The Jungle Books maybe. Possibly Arabian Nights or some Jack London. I could maybe make a case for The Sun Also Rises or The Life of Pi.

I have not read your 1, 2 and 4......
But I am intrigued by your East of Eden and The Brothers Karamazov selections.


Cheers.

I would have expected you to be more interested in the books you hadn't read.

A quick summary:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a semi-allegorical account of what the Christian salvation story could have looked like in another world. I mostly included it because of its devotional nature for a Christian. It didn't play a major role in my life other than the reinforcement of ideas like "safe ≠ good."

The Screwtape Letters are meant to be instructive. I have tried to incorporate several of these lessons into my life (although most of them I've been taught elsewhere in one form or another).

The Pokey Little Puppy learned that while you can get away with being late sometimes, eventually you aren't going to get any dessert. As someone who has occasionally been less than punctual, I can't say that it taught me to show up on time - but it did establish the idea that tardiness often comes with consequences. This is something we all have to accept.

As I said, you'd probably do better to substitute some combination of Kipling, London, Arabian Nights, C.S. Lewis, and all the other "far away places" books I read as a kid for developing a strong curiousity about other lands to find a tangible result from my fictional background.

[Yarfunkle]

The Road
To Kill a Mockingbird
Dark Tower Series (Stephen King)
Clockwork Orange
The Running Man

[Brian96]

I'm still trying to come up with my list. ADHD has prevented me from becoming much of a reader (which has, in turn, made this whole grad school thing an interesting ride).

I'm going to tentatively start out with Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing." It may not make the final cut, but for some reason it stands out today.

[Spinoza]

I'm not sure any of the books I listed impacted me in a tangible, measurable way. At least not in the sense that I'd be such a terribly different person if I hadn't read them. But I'll give it a shot.

I had probably read/heard the Cain and Abel story hundreds of times when I first read East of Eden (in high school, I think). I had never really stopped to think about verse 4:7, though. I really embraced the idea that "thou mayest" master sin. Free will gives us the chance to choose evil, but it also gives us the chance to choose good. I love that idea. I don't think this contradicts some idea of total depravity or Romans chapter 3 (I'm not a Pelagian), but it reinforces ability (and responsibility) to choose.

I already believed this, but for years after I read East of Eden I framed it in Steinbeck's words (timshel as "you may") whenever I thought about it.

I also think it's a good story told in an interesting way with a lot of humor and pathos that manages to convey its central meaning in a compelling manner.

The Dostoevsky is even more vague in terms of direct changes in my life. I think it echoes some of the free will discussion from EoE, but mostly I'd say it serves as a perfect example of a work of fiction that provokes serious religious reflection. It's the kind of book I'd like to write if I could write that well (although my book would be much shorter and wouldn't use that frustrating Russian practice of giving every character 15 nicknames, patronymics, and titles).

I guess it was also a good look at a branch of Christian practice pretty far removed from my own (Eastern Orthodox vs. SBC).

I'm sure you'd be interested to know that I had typed a response to this that was lost when I accidently used the wrong tab to double-check my spelling and had to re-type everything. Let's all just imagine that the earlier response was much more insightful, easy to understand, and elegantly phrased than the redo.

I truly appreciate your above reply......
Your comments have made me realize the obvious myopia of my initial thread query.
I never would have imagined either East of Eden or The Brothers Karamazov drawing the dots they sketched for you...... Until you explained what I previously
failed to notice.

Clearly, in retrospect......
I should have requested the "reasons" that ripened each list...... To give this thread meat, rather than mere bone.

Hell......
Even the seemingly obvious list proffered by Gus may have more connected dots than Horatio could dream!

Thank you once again......

Cheers.

[Spinoza]

The 5 works of fiction you have read......
That you feel have had the most profound impact on YOUR path through YOUR life to date?

And BTW......
There's nothing magic or even remotely important about my arbitrary choice of FIVE.
Fewer or more matters not.

Anyone care to consider my query and play?


Cheers and good night.

MY MISTAKE/POOR JUDGEMENT......
I now have good reason to believe that I have lit a fire without providing either significant warmth or light for anyone.

ERGO......
I shall attempt to salvage something on this mostly naked thread by requesting that each lady and gentleman who has penned their LIST, now cloth it with any array of attire they feel it appropriately deserves.

I apologize for my prior stupidity......
While hoping that OTHERS will save something of what I may have foolishly squandered.

Cheers.

[Spinoza]

I'm still trying to come up with my list. ADHD has prevented me from becoming much of a reader (which has, in turn, made this whole grad school thing an interesting ride).

I'm going to tentatively start out with Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing." It may not make the final cut, but for some reason it stands out today.

I'll take you at your word......
As a gentleman and a scholar.

But DAMN, Brian......
From my read of your MANY contributions to this message board......
I CANNOT believe that your little grey cells are anything but up to any task a man needs to live through life, and beyond death.

Cheers and good night.

[inudesu]

The Road

This one directly impacted the path of my heating bill. Reading that is like reading "To Build a Fire," but with cannibals thrown in for good measure. :icon_wink:

Leave it to Cormac McCarthy to write such a lighthearted romp.

Seriously, it is an incredible book. Well deserving of its Pulitzer.

[johnnylightnin]

To Kill a Mockingbird
Catcher in the Rye
A Prayer for Owen Meany
The Great Divorce

I'm having to think too much to get to 5, so it must not have had that great of an impact.

To Kill a Mockingbird: This one taught me to view my dad in what I view as a more accurate light. My dad was a lawyer and I never really thought much of what he did. I knew he provided well, but I never really thought of him making a tangible impact on people's lives. Because of this book, I came to see lawyers as people who can defend those who can't defend themselves. Ever since then, I grew to love to talk to my dad about his cases and watch him get fired up when he thought some great injustice was taking place.

Catcher in the Rye: I was supposed to hate this book. My sister was a huge John Lennon fan and she refused to read it when she was in high school and afterward(I guess she was afraid it would lead her to attack Ringo or something). I credit this book for helping me to look beyond my current situation and understand that there are lots of people in drastically different situations that I find myself in. I think it helped me develop an empathy for people I knew who had done some stupid things (like run away from home).

A Prayer for Owen Meany: This was should probably be lower on the list, but I would say it really helped me learn to enjoy reading. I'm an incredibly slow reader and this was a big book by my standards. I didn't finish it on time, but I still wanted to finish it even though it no longer had any impact on my grade. I enjoyed the story and I think that's why this book always pops into my head when I think of my favorite books.

The Great Divorce: I think this book led me to try and understand the nature of sin as a condition rather than as an act. It also is a helpful reminder that many who are "lost" don't consider themselves lost and don't, necessarily, feel as though they need salvation. It's also just a wonderfully written book (though I think it misses several theological marks). When they move from hell/pergatory to see heaven, it's just amazing.

Anyway, those are my reasons as best as I can explain them.