"When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves." - Viktor Frankl, A Man's Search for meaning. One of my favorite quotes from that life-changing book!
Don Quixote is a marvelous book. We could do a lecture on practically every page. After I read it, I found a biography of Cervantes and read that and wondered "How could a man who suffered through that life have written this book?" And then I got old and realized only a man who had been a soldier and a noble and a slave and managed to reach old age (I'm 72) could have written that work. Adventure is moments of terror remembered twenty five years later. On a personal note...I remember my wars and my ups and downs and delusions of being a hero...had a few. And now I'm old and I love this book even more.
He's why I started to love reading. I was moved by how passionate he speaks about reading and how much he thought his life changed that I wanted to drop the stigma that reading is a chore. The key is finding a good book that you enjoy reading, if it feels like a chore for too long just drop it. So I looked up recommended books and luckily, my first book that I bought from a recommendation was one that I enjoyed very much. The book is called The Ride of a Lifetime by Bob Iger. It's an autobiography of the CEO of Disney and even though I have no intention whatsoever of becoming a CEO of anything, the storytelling is so magnetic and inspiring that I developed a love of biographies. It's like, read 100 biographies and you'll live 101 lives instead of just 1 in your lifetime.
Books that did something to my soul, heart and brain: 1. "The life of Arseniev" by Ivan Bunin 2. "The Gift" by Nabokov 3. "Anna Karenina" by Tolstoy 4. "Petersburg" by Andrei Bely
For those of you don’t have much time watching: (not in any particular order) 1. Don Quixote 2. The Count of Monte Cristo 3. Dune 4. Beloved 5. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings 6. The Autobiography of Malcolm X 7. Just Mercy 8. Man’s Search for Meaning 9. Flow 10. New and Selected Poems, Vol.1
The count of Monte Cristo is my favorite novel of all time with the "voyage au bout de la nuit" from Louis Ferdinand Céline. Besides, I wanted to thank you for having encouraged me to read, thanks to you I read 50 books in 1 year and without you it would not be possible.
@@swann357 If you talk about Celine's "voyage, it's a masterpiece, I haven't read her pamphlets. There is good and bad in each author even if Celine was very controversial but it was more out of pacifism (due to the trauma of the First World War) than a deep conviction. He was fed up with the war.
@@swann357 No I haven't read it but I'll buy it soon, yes Celine really has a special sense of humor. I bought almost all of his novels, can't wait to read them. Céline is a bit of a Cartman of writers in her character with extraordinary and innovative writing.
Don Quixote is also one of my favorite books! It's considered the first modern novel. Cervantes invented so many literary techniques that are commonplace today. The humor of course is amazing but the book has many levels. I hope you get a chance to read it again!
Don Quixote set the basis ofthe modern novel, all the story telling techniques that we see nowadays (movies, TV shows...) are indirectly inspired in Cervantes' master piece
Loved this. Some of my favourite books; -Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari (NF) -The New Odyssey by Patrick Kingsley (NF) -Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell (NF) -Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari (NF) -Leonardo Da Vinci by Walter Isaacson (NF) -11/22/63 by Stephen King (F) -The Master and the Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (F) -The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (F) -The Devil all the Time by Donald Ray Pollock (F) -Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (F) I literally could go on and on but let me stop myself now
If you haven't read them yet, I recommend... 1. "Our Twisted Hero" by Yi Monyol. I used to tell people that it's a good idea to know something about South Korean politics of the 70s and 80s before reading it but at this point, the last 6 years of American politics is preparation enough. 2. "Solaris" by Stanislaw Lem. Again, it used to be helpful to understand something about how Soviet control and propaganda worked in its satellite states but at this point, recent American politics is a good enough background for connecting with this novel.
My favorites: Queen Margot by Alexandre Dumas The count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas The Broters karamazov by Dostoevsky Demons by Dostoevsky Notes from Underground by Dostoevsky Crime and Punishiment by Dostoevsky war and peace by Tolstoy The man who laughs by Victor Hugo Toilers of the Sea by Victor Hugo The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo The Red and the Black by Stendhall Madame Bovary by Fleubert
Geriminal - Emelie Zola A chess story - Stefan Zweig The picture of dorian Grey - Oscar wilde 1984 - George Orewell Inkheart - cornelia funke THE HUNDRED-YEAR-OLD MAN WHO CLIMBED OUT OF THE WINDOW AND DISAPPEARED - Jonas Jonasson The Castle - Franz Kafka ...........
Some book recommendations: - House of Leaves (probably the most unique experience you'll ever have) - The song of Achilles - A Little Life (content warning: it's pretty heavy on trauma) - Homo Deus (non fiction)
I listened Just Mercy audiobook on my way to internship at the time and every morning I was either shocked, fist-wrenched, or just disappointed of the injustice there is. Does stir hope in me because there's someone like Bryan Stevenson who is fighting for the odds of those falsely accused. Also pity those who suffered in the process of waiting for their trial.
I recommend Wild Swans by Jung Chang. This book opens up the inside of China through three generations through the Cultural Revolution. It will change the way you see the world. Another which you will love is 'I bury my heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown.
@@meghanakankara2883 Yeah, its an insane novel. Best to read as an adolescent since it has a certain tragic, doomed vibe that teenagers could indulge in but again you could give it a try.
@@meghanakankara2883 I read The Brothers Karamazov for the first time this year - Ignat Avsey translation. I can honestly say that I have never read a book that has made me think so deeply. I completely reconsidered my stance on God. It's a fantastic book, but you need to really pay attention to it. It's easy to miss a nugget of profundity because there are so many.
*If you have a dream, you don't just sit there. Gather courage to believe that you can succeed and leave no stone unturned to make it reality.* I believe in you. 🚀
I'm sure you've already read it, but in case someone hasn't, Parable of The Sower by Octavia Butler is a superb science fiction. It's different from a lot of sci-fi books that explicitly state or imply that some cataclysmic change is required to make society inhumanly dystopian. In Butler's mind, the absence of change is what will bring about the apocalypse.
Don Quixote, Candide, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, A Farewell to Arms, Moby Dick, The Scarlet Letter, Great Expectations, Gone with the Wind, Ivanhoe, War and Peace.
I used to be like that up until last year and it made me realize how much social media or just media in general messed up my attention span lol. I started by reading for an hour before going to sleep, then switched to 2, then 100 pages a day, and now I actually just enjoy reading and look forward to just going through books
read books you like. don't be afraid of stopping a book that bores you. The idea about reading is not to torture yourself to finish a book that bores you. if you don't like what you are reading, just stop take another book from another genre or medium... don't do the mistake many people do while reading and force yourself to finish
An abridged version of Monte Cristo is a good choice. At this time, great authors’ works were syndicated and they were paid by the word or sentence. Dumas abused this system so regularly, by writing far more words than necessary, that the system itself was abandoned.
Checkout “The Cairo Trilogy” by Naguib Mahfouz which consists of 3 books: “Palace Walk”, “Palace of Desire”, “Sugar Street”. He’s the only Arabic writer to win the Nobel Prize for literature.
I recommend "If This is A Man" and "The Truce" by Primo Levi as a counterpoint to "Man's Search For Meaning". They're his autobiographical accounts of survival in a concentration camp and his journey home after it was liberated. Levi's novel "If Not Now, When?" is excellent too. It's a fictionalised account of a group of partisans fighting behind German lines over the final years of the war. All three books are incredible examinations of the extremes of human nature, from the unutterably evil to the incalculably brave.
I love this list because it consists of books I've been curious to read and have already read. Just Mercy, in particular, has been the book that has moved me the most... so much because it was different and more fulfilling than the movie (but also an important movie)
I wholeheartedly recommend Siddhartha by Herrmann Hesse It's a fictional re-telling of the story of Buddha and is around.. 100 pages? long. Yet every single word in those pages is needed, and you can come back to it in later stages of life and learn something completely new and different
I read this book in 10th grade and I’m so sorry but I hated it. Probably because it’s not my type of book... I normally read fantasy or sci-fi (dystopian) so Siddhartha definitely wasn’t my favorite. I liked how short it was though! Maybe if I gave it a reread (I read it two years ago) I’d appreciate it more.
- Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brönte - Man’s search for meaning, Viktor Frankl - Anna Karenina and War & Peace, Lev Tolstói - Meditations, Marco Aurelio - Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier - 1984, George Orwell
My faves so far: 1. 1984 by George Orwell 2. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov 3. The Secret History by Donna Tartt 4. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn 5. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Nice! I bought Man's Search for Meaning because of your videos. It's a really enjoyable read, hope to get my next book from this video. Please keep it up John!
Fiction books that I can never get tired of reading again and again are: The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma (Discusses family dynamics and mental health in an African setting) The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Jenkins Reid (A look into the life of a former Hollywood sex symbol and a forbidden love) Kafka on The Shore by Haruki Murakami (An almost psychedelic take on finding yourself) The Martian by Andy Weir (A man gets left behind after a mission to Mars) Also really loving the Saga graphic novels
Just wanted to point out that it must be very different to read Don Quixot (Don Quijote de la Mancha) in English compared to reading it in “ancient” Spanish since its a rather heavy reading in Spanish. Perhaps I should read it in English…
No way! Me and friends who met because of YOU made a book club to read all the books in the show!!! We started with Monte cristo and were reading the you series next
Thank you, great, eclectic list!! -many I’ve ‘not’ read so, I have several good books to look forward to reading! Dune I read back in the 70s (the trilogy, at that time), and absolutely love the books. Beloved - hands down, one of the scariest books (to me) I’ve ever read!
I’ve read a number of philosophy books. Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, and Arthur Schopenhauer. When you talked about flow, a mans search for meaning, and sapiens in a previous video I bought them on Amazon immediately. The first two seemed like a good branch off of philosophy into somewhat similar topics, and for sapiens, I just love learning about human history.
In no particular order: The Iliad - Homer The Odyssey - Homer Canterbury Tales - Chaucer The Divine Comedy - Dante The Brothers Karamazov - Dostoevsky Moby Dick - Melville The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien Leaves of Grass - Walt Whitman Le Morte d'Arthur - Malory A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
My top 10, in no certain order and subject to change at any time is: 1. The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien 2. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini 3. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown 4. Alas Babylon by Pat Frank 5. The Outsiders by SE Hinton 6. King of the Hill by AE Hotchner 7. The Chosen by Chaim Potok 8. A Seperate Peace by John Knowles 9. Street Boys by Lorenzo Carcaterra 10. Sphere by Michael Crichton
THE single best book I have ever read. It is one of those rare, terrible yet beautiful pieces of writing which should be compulsory reading for every human being.
Hey man! loved listening to "Project Hail Mary" it was awesome just like you said, I'm a young reader and it is really hard for me to find time to read. It will be awesome if you make a video on how you manage your time and make room for reading in your busiest days.
First of all is that this work itself is certainly a milestone in the progression of literature, especially book 5 "The Grand Inquisitor" (a very uneasy read about some existential concerns) I love the structure and the sense of polyphony you get from the characters...reconciling many opposing truths of humanity. I think during my time with this book, reading and pondering about a lot of questions of my personal life, the author's dissections of human motives basically guide my thinking with good clarity. I appreciate the author's solid life experiences. Initially, it was recommended by a friend of mine, so I picked it up. On the other hand, I think why I enjoyed this book so much as a journey for enlightenment is that I am still interested in absolute truth. Religious teachings sometimes do no good to provide a full picture. Anyway a very very great book. All the criticisms and reviews cannot sufficiently tell you the essence of it.
@@saudaarakkal8506 I read “brothers” in college and am reading for 3rd time now as a much older guy. With years of live experience I am able to see the novel is brilliant. Dostoevsky accurately describes facial expressions and a character’s posture when speaking. As a young person I missed all that. Plus the religious tensions contrasted with atheistic and socialist stuff is worth reading. Young folks go through these inquiries deeply.
Thanks for sharing your book list! Those books must be great! I will definitely read them! :D I would like to recommend the book “The Story of My Life” and the essay “Three Days To See” both by Helen Keller. Helen Keller was blind and deaf, yet she could get the most of her life. She found happiness and light even in the darkest hour; she felt life with her heart even though she could not see with her eyes and hear with her ears. The first book is a memoir that talks about the life of Helen Keller, a brave and inspiring historical figure of all time. The essay talks about what Helen Keller would like to see in three days, but there is something much deeper than that, which I don’t want to spoil it lol. The movie “The Miracle Worker” is produced based on Helen Keller’s story. Overall, I hope her words could bring you some enlightenment and appreciation of the world we live in, as well as I hope these stories could light up your life even in the darkest time. :)
Hi John, You have not included one of the great eastern books into your list. Take some time and read Rumi. His book of Mathnavi is a great mystical piece and I am sure you will enjoy it a lot.
The Books that changed my life and inspired me to become a writer 1. A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara 2. Dune - Frank Herbert 3. Lord of the Rings Trilogy - J. R. R. Tolkien 4. The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien 5. Carrie - Stephen King 6. Watchmen - Alan Moore 7. Death Note - Tsugumi Obha 8. The Watership Down - Richard Adams 9. The Princess Bride - William Goldman
Your video just popped up into my feed so I'm very late in here. Love your selections so I'm going to add a few of the top post WW2 novels that have moved me deeply. (And in no particular order). "Earthly Powers" by Anthony Burgess-- Probably one of the most unappreciated 20th century novels--definitely in my top 10. A huge, sprawling, door- stop of a book that will keep you turning all 607 pages (hardcover). "Infinite Jest" by David Foster Wallace--Everyone knows about this one so I won't try to contribute anything else here except to say a "must read". "Gravity's Rainbow" by Thomas Pynchon-- I'm old enough to have read it when it was first published and saw how so many people lost their minds over this book that conflates love/war, sex/death in absolutely hilarious and bizarre ways. "The Time Of Our Singing" by Richard Powers. Powers is my favorite current writer (along with Barbara Kingsolver ) and almost any of his works should be on a "best of" list. I would also put his "The Overstory" next to "The Time Of Our Singing" in greatness although I might give a slight edge to "Time..." because of the subject matter. I'm looking forward to enjoying all your videos now that I've found you!
If you haven't read The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, I definitely recommend it. It is O'Brien's account of his experience in the Vietnam War, I believe(excuse my memory). It gave me a lot of perspective on how I view life and death in general.
i stopped reading Don Quixote because there was this part that was hard to get through but now I will start again! thanks for making reading exciting again
I am nearly ready to start that book. I have the Maude translation and I pray I can get through it. It's the most intimidating book on shelves. Yikes! I am excited, though. I love Russian literature and have read many books, but War and Peace just seems overwhelming.
I feel the same exact way about Don Quijote! Such a beautiful book which lightened my heart while reading. I think you would love "Siddhartha" by Hermann Hesse. It's quite short with around 120 pages, but don't underestimate the impact those pages can have on your perspective on life! It's about a young boy named Siddhartha who is being raised in a highly religious hinduistic context. Even though he is very young, everybody around him looks up to him and is faithful of him, believing that he is somewhat special and different than any other around them. Then he decides one day, to redirect his life and take his own path, even though it is not an easy and well accepted path, he takes it anyway, reaches highs and lows and tries to find Nirvana. This book literally feels like symbolism for your own life, your own struggles, your own decisions and your own acceptance of everything life has offered you. Great book, changed my life like no other.
![[[OFFICIAL MV]] เอิ้นขวัญให้อ้าย- อ๊ะอาย สกุณาพร | ค่ายเพลงเป็นหนึ่ง](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/83x6L3X3qh0/mqdefault.jpg)
"When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves." - Viktor Frankl, A Man's Search for meaning. One of my favorite quotes from that life-changing book!
Don Quixote is a marvelous book. We could do a lecture on practically every page. After I read it, I found a biography of Cervantes and read that and wondered "How could a man who suffered through that life have written this book?" And then I got old and realized only a man who had been a soldier and a noble and a slave and managed to reach old age (I'm 72) could have written that work. Adventure is moments of terror remembered twenty five years later. On a personal note...I remember my wars and my ups and downs and delusions of being a hero...had a few. And now I'm old and I love this book even more.
This guy is brilliant in his literary criticism. Fresh, youthful and charming. Makes me interested in reading lol.
He's why I started to love reading. I was moved by how passionate he speaks about reading and how much he thought his life changed that I wanted to drop the stigma that reading is a chore. The key is finding a good book that you enjoy reading, if it feels like a chore for too long just drop it. So I looked up recommended books and luckily, my first book that I bought from a recommendation was one that I enjoyed very much. The book is called The Ride of a Lifetime by Bob Iger. It's an autobiography of the CEO of Disney and even though I have no intention whatsoever of becoming a CEO of anything, the storytelling is so magnetic and inspiring that I developed a love of biographies. It's like, read 100 biographies and you'll live 101 lives instead of just 1 in your lifetime.
he is a jerk
Books that did something to my soul, heart and brain:
1. "The life of Arseniev" by Ivan Bunin
2. "The Gift" by Nabokov
3. "Anna Karenina" by Tolstoy
4. "Petersburg" by Andrei Bely
Are you a Russian? Most of your literary choices are russian. Dostoyevsky was my introduction to Russian literature.
@@nishantjoshi5174 I am not Russian, but live here. Did you like Dostoevsky?
@@nishantjoshi5174 and all of these books are russian, yes)
@@prumpom Yes, indeed. Dostoyevsky was truly otherworldly. Apart from Pushkin, Chekhov, Tolstoy, searching for more..
@@prumpom What else do you recommend? Apart from your first 4 choices?
I recommend you "One hundred years of solitude" (Cien años de soledad) from Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a classic of latin america literature.
Hundred*
Yassss it's such a great book!
I couldn’t recommend it more, you’re 100% right, it opens so much about Latin American literature but at the same time gives you one great story
ooh, i actually have this book bcs of my dad, i will def read it
❤️
For those of you don’t have much time watching: (not in any particular order)
1. Don Quixote
2. The Count of Monte Cristo
3. Dune
4. Beloved
5. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
6. The Autobiography of Malcolm X
7. Just Mercy
8. Man’s Search for Meaning
9. Flow
10. New and Selected Poems, Vol.1
I've recently acquired The Count of Monte Cristo, seeing you talk about it just made me even more excited to read it!! Wonderful video, John!
I read it this year and i think you will enjoy it. great story
Also read Queen Margot by Alexandre Dumas
This is one of the few books that's made me cry reading it
Mans Search For Meaning was life changing for me. My favorite of all time is The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky.
yesyesyesyesyesyesy
so happy they're not all just self help books, you're the best. definitely picking up Maya Angelou again!! much love from Vancouver Canada (:
What's wrong with reading self help books most of the time? :)
@@chronos5457 everything
@@chronos5457 No real improvement happens
@@amrit5679 the secret is to take action, not just reading books
@@mihaiteodorescu9548 exactly, just do it. -nike
mary oliver is my favorite poet of all time, because it feels like she’s not writing what she sees; she’s living in the world through her poems.
That's moving, and her poems are beyond words!
I recommend Flowers for Algernon. Such a good book! The ending broke my heart.
That book elevated Malcolm X to my top human being of all time. What a story
The count of Monte Cristo is my favorite novel of all time with the "voyage au bout de la nuit" from Louis Ferdinand Céline.
Besides, I wanted to thank you for having encouraged me to read, thanks to you I read 50 books in 1 year and without you it would not be possible.
Oof you woke up and chose controversy lmao
@@swann357 If you talk about Celine's "voyage, it's a masterpiece, I haven't read her pamphlets.
There is good and bad in each author even if Celine was very controversial but it was more out of pacifism (due to the trauma of the First World War) than a deep conviction. He was fed up with the war.
@@halamadrid9704 good points. Have you ever read Céline's letter to Sartre ? I think it's one of the most hilarious things I've ever read
@@swann357 No I haven't read it but I'll buy it soon, yes Celine really has a special sense of humor. I bought almost all of his novels, can't wait to read them. Céline is a bit of a Cartman of writers in her character with extraordinary and innovative writing.
@@swann357 His style is pleasant. What I like about him is that we love him or hate him, there is rarely a happy medium.
Man's search for meaning really changed the way I thought of the pursuing of happiness. Really is a fantastic book.
I really need to read this!
Don Quixote is also one of my favorite books! It's considered the first modern novel. Cervantes invented so many literary techniques that are commonplace today. The humor of course is amazing but the book has many levels. I hope you get a chance to read it again!
Don Quixote set the basis ofthe modern novel, all the story telling techniques that we see nowadays (movies, TV shows...) are indirectly inspired in Cervantes' master piece
i’ve read half of it and maybe it’s my dyslexia or something i didn’t find it enjoyable
Loved this. Some of my favourite books;
-Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari (NF)
-The New Odyssey by Patrick Kingsley (NF)
-Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell (NF)
-Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari (NF)
-Leonardo Da Vinci by Walter Isaacson (NF)
-11/22/63 by Stephen King (F)
-The Master and the Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (F)
-The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (F)
-The Devil all the Time by Donald Ray Pollock (F)
-Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (F)
I literally could go on and on but let me stop myself now
AHAHAHAAHAAHAH READY PLAYER ONE
11/22/63 is one of my favorite books. Craig Wasson's narration of it is absolutely marvelous.
Master and Margarita is great
Everything Gladwell does is gold, especially since he narrates.
@@arturobelano6243 relax….that really isn’t that funny
If you haven't read them yet, I recommend...
1. "Our Twisted Hero" by Yi Monyol. I used to tell people that it's a good idea to know something about South Korean politics of the 70s and 80s before reading it but at this point, the last 6 years of American politics is preparation enough.
2. "Solaris" by Stanislaw Lem. Again, it used to be helpful to understand something about how Soviet control and propaganda worked in its satellite states but at this point, recent American politics is a good enough background for connecting with this novel.
My favorites:
Queen Margot by Alexandre Dumas
The count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
The Broters karamazov by Dostoevsky
Demons by Dostoevsky
Notes from Underground by Dostoevsky
Crime and Punishiment by Dostoevsky
war and peace by Tolstoy
The man who laughs by Victor Hugo
Toilers of the Sea by Victor Hugo
The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
The Red and the Black by Stendhall
Madame Bovary by Fleubert
Love Dostoyevsky work, especially The Brother Karamazov, Crime and Punishment, the Idiot, thank you
Great recommendations! I still have to get to War and Peace but I couldn't agree more. There are just SO MANY great books out there...
Geriminal - Emelie Zola
A chess story - Stefan Zweig
The picture of dorian Grey - Oscar wilde
1984 - George Orewell
Inkheart - cornelia funke
THE HUNDRED-YEAR-OLD MAN WHO CLIMBED OUT OF THE WINDOW AND DISAPPEARED - Jonas Jonasson
The Castle - Franz Kafka
...........
1984 is an extraordinary masterpiece, Orwell really saw the future.
Bro did you know Einstein’s favortie relaxing read was Donquixote
and his favorite non-relaxing book was the brothers karamozov
Some book recommendations:
- House of Leaves (probably the most unique experience you'll ever have)
- The song of Achilles
- A Little Life (content warning: it's pretty heavy on trauma)
- Homo Deus (non fiction)
A Little Life is one of the greatest books I've read.
Yesss house of leaves
@@skylercrane6307 Exactly ‼️
a little life is the worst book recommendation ever
-fight club
-the stranger- Albert camus
-Notes from underground!
Your voice and physicue changed so much since the day in the life of a Harvard computer science student, keep it up!
I listened Just Mercy audiobook on my way to internship at the time and every morning I was either shocked, fist-wrenched, or just disappointed of the injustice there is. Does stir hope in me because there's someone like Bryan Stevenson who is fighting for the odds of those falsely accused. Also pity those who suffered in the process of waiting for their trial.
The Catcher in the Rye takes first place for me. Haven’t read it maybe 18-20 years, but I still remember how damn good that book was.
Not!!. On The Road by Jack K fit the “damn good” rating.
The description and reasoning you provided was just beautiful and refreshing. Great video, John!!
I recommend Wild Swans by Jung Chang. This book opens up the inside of China through three generations through the Cultural Revolution. It will change the way you see the world. Another which you will love is 'I bury my heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown.
Nice username xD
Awesome book!
Completely agree! Amazing recommendations mate! You've got some great taste for sure 🙂
The fact that there isn't a single Russian novel on this list is a little sus
Anna Karenina and The Karamazov Brothers must be part of every goddamned list on this planet and elsewhere :P
@@noorsvlogs1456 is Karamazov Brothers really good? i wanna read it but i am sure about it
@@meghanakankara2883 Yeah, its an insane novel. Best to read as an adolescent since it has a certain tragic, doomed vibe that teenagers could indulge in but again you could give it a try.
@@noorsvlogs1456 True!! A 16 y old here and love the Brothers Karamazov!
@@meghanakankara2883 I read The Brothers Karamazov for the first time this year - Ignat Avsey translation. I can honestly say that I have never read a book that has made me think so deeply. I completely reconsidered my stance on God. It's a fantastic book, but you need to really pay attention to it. It's easy to miss a nugget of profundity because there are so many.
You inspired me to start reading. Many thanks!
Watching you talk about anything soothes me. Thank you for making videos.
*If you have a dream, you don't just sit there. Gather courage to believe that you can succeed and leave no stone unturned to make it reality.*
I believe in you. 🚀
I’m impressed with your selections you are alright with me John Fish.
Never though I would see beloved on another guys top list who wasn’t a literature major. Great list and v diverse 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽
I'm sure you've already read it, but in case someone hasn't, Parable of The Sower by Octavia Butler is a superb science fiction. It's different from a lot of sci-fi books that explicitly state or imply that some cataclysmic change is required to make society inhumanly dystopian. In Butler's mind, the absence of change is what will bring about the apocalypse.
Don Quixote, Candide, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, A Farewell to Arms, Moby Dick, The Scarlet Letter, Great Expectations, Gone with the Wind, Ivanhoe, War and Peace.
great expectations ♥totally obsessed with it
I wanna challenge myself inattentiveness by reading but I don't just know how lmao
Read in the morning 1 hour and also on the bus.
And be patient this is the key
I used to be like that up until last year and it made me realize how much social media or just media in general messed up my attention span lol. I started by reading for an hour before going to sleep, then switched to 2, then 100 pages a day, and now I actually just enjoy reading and look forward to just going through books
I find audiobooks on 2x - 3x speed while going for a walk, hand sewing (generally doing something mindless) are really helpful
try audiobooks...
read books you like. don't be afraid of stopping a book that bores you. The idea about reading is not to torture yourself to finish a book that bores you. if you don't like what you are reading, just stop take another book from another genre or medium... don't do the mistake many people do while reading and force yourself to finish
Just Mercy was an incredible book! It forever changed the way I think about the penitentiary and death sentence of prisoners in the US justice system.
The thumbnail is cursed and I love it
“You don’t need to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”
Have a good day, cheering you.
I think his change on the pronunciation of Don Quijote it´s not a casual thing.
(ps; it was better this time)
The count of monte cristo is also my favoriteee!
Dude, your voice is so soothing
My very favorite book ever is Flaubert's "The Sentimental Education". So beautiful, layered, and so frickin well-written
Thanks for reference. I have read so little of French lit even though three musketeers is my favorite novel of all time.
My favorite book ever read is THE PILLARS OF THE EARTH by Ken Follett. Over the years, I have read it many times.
Yes man. Ken Follet's books are amazing (in my opinion).
That was mundane
I was looking for this comment!!
never heard of this- im gonna check it out :)
T
The thumbnail deserves an award of its own🤩
An abridged version of Monte Cristo is a good choice. At this time, great authors’ works were syndicated and they were paid by the word or sentence. Dumas abused this system so regularly, by writing far more words than necessary, that the system itself was abandoned.
Interesting, would Les Misérables be among those?
How about the enriched version?
Glad to see a recommendation of abridged books, I often feel pretty ashamed about reading abridged works, so it’s cool to see it recommended! :]
Most authors did at the time. Poverty was very frequent in the literary world
war and peace?
The Brotjers karamazov?
- The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
-Of Human Bondage
-The Remains of the Day
-The Stranger
Checkout “The Cairo Trilogy” by Naguib Mahfouz which consists of 3 books: “Palace Walk”, “Palace of Desire”, “Sugar Street”.
He’s the only Arabic writer to win the Nobel Prize for literature.
I recommend "If This is A Man" and "The Truce" by Primo Levi as a counterpoint to "Man's Search For Meaning". They're his autobiographical accounts of survival in a concentration camp and his journey home after it was liberated. Levi's novel "If Not Now, When?" is excellent too. It's a fictionalised account of a group of partisans fighting behind German lines over the final years of the war. All three books are incredible examinations of the extremes of human nature, from the unutterably evil to the incalculably brave.
I just started The count of Monte Cristo and I'm pretty excited!!!
I love this list because it consists of books I've been curious to read and have already read. Just Mercy, in particular, has been the book that has moved me the most... so much because it was different and more fulfilling than the movie (but also an important movie)
My god yes, there's magic between those pages!
I wholeheartedly recommend Siddhartha by Herrmann Hesse
It's a fictional re-telling of the story of Buddha and is around.. 100 pages? long. Yet every single word in those pages is needed, and you can come back to it in later stages of life and learn something completely new and different
Totally agree, great book!
I read this book in 10th grade and I’m so sorry but I hated it. Probably because it’s not my type of book... I normally read fantasy or sci-fi (dystopian) so Siddhartha definitely wasn’t my favorite. I liked how short it was though! Maybe if I gave it a reread (I read it two years ago) I’d appreciate it more.
@@kaitlyng7850 Try re- reading it, maybe you did not like it because it was part of the school syllabus lol.
@@kaitlyng7850 siddhartha is soo good wym
@@2107camilo alright I'll give it another try sometime!
Had to click because I saw beloved. Toni is one of my favorite authors
The 3 of these I have read are in my top 10 as well! Man's search for meaning, flow and dune are all incredible for taking control of your life!
Just subscribed. You seem like such an articulate, intelligent and charismatic person, and I'm looking forward to watching more of your videos!
- Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brönte
- Man’s search for meaning, Viktor Frankl
- Anna Karenina and War & Peace, Lev Tolstói
- Meditations, Marco Aurelio
- Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
- 1984, George Orwell
Marcus Aurelius
@@callumfisher8101 Yes, I wrote the name in Spanish 😉
Yeah 1984 is a highly recommended book ngl
My faves so far:
1. 1984 by George Orwell
2. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
3. The Secret History by Donna Tartt
4. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
5. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Nice! I bought Man's Search for Meaning because of your videos. It's a really enjoyable read, hope to get my next book from this video. Please keep it up John!
I did a double-take when I saw that thumbnail lmao that was so good 10/10 would click again
I would like to recommend you "The Unberable lightness of mean" by Milan Kundera
So bad I thought
heyy bro. you're a big inspiration to me. encouraging me to read and everything. big fan.
I love that one of my favorite book of all times is on his list Autobiography of Malcolm X as told by Alex Haley.
I read Green Eggs and Ham and it changed my life for the better in a way Tolstoy could only dream.
Fiction books that I can never get tired of reading again and again are:
The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma (Discusses family dynamics and mental health in an African setting)
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Jenkins Reid (A look into the life of a former Hollywood sex symbol and a forbidden love)
Kafka on The Shore by Haruki Murakami (An almost psychedelic take on finding yourself)
The Martian by Andy Weir (A man gets left behind after a mission to Mars)
Also really loving the Saga graphic novels
Just wanted to point out that it must be very different to read Don Quixot (Don Quijote de la Mancha) in English compared to reading it in “ancient” Spanish since its a rather heavy reading in Spanish. Perhaps I should read it in English…
Don Quixote is also in my top 10 books of all time. The humor worked really well for me
No way! Me and friends who met because of YOU made a book club to read all the books in the show!!! We started with Monte cristo and were reading the you series next
Thank you, great, eclectic list!! -many I’ve ‘not’ read so, I have several good books to look forward to reading! Dune I read back in the 70s (the trilogy, at that time), and absolutely love the books. Beloved - hands down, one of the scariest books (to me) I’ve ever read!
Hats off to you how flawlessly you were able to pronounce that long Hungarian name! 👏👏👏
I’ve read a number of philosophy books. Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, and Arthur Schopenhauer. When you talked about flow, a mans search for meaning, and sapiens in a previous video I bought them on Amazon immediately. The first two seemed like a good branch off of philosophy into somewhat similar topics, and for sapiens, I just love learning about human history.
In no particular order:
The Iliad - Homer
The Odyssey - Homer
Canterbury Tales - Chaucer
The Divine Comedy - Dante
The Brothers Karamazov - Dostoevsky
Moby Dick - Melville
The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
Leaves of Grass - Walt Whitman
Le Morte d'Arthur - Malory
A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
Thank you for your inspiration. I'm reading Just Mercy right now and hopefully my next book will be The Autobiography of Malcolm X.
I really love “The Picture of Dorian Gray”!
I started it, but I didn’t end up finishing it, I’ll have to pick it back up!
10/10 thumbnail John 😂
Mary Oliver is the quintessential poet. I had the honor of seeing her read poetry in person twice. She was an amazing person.
I've read majority of the books mentioned here, but I appreciate your video and the comments.
I tried reading A tale for the time being by Ruth Ozeki. The earliest story has made me turn the pages over and over. It's a good read I can assure
My top 10, in no certain order and subject to change at any time is:
1. The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
2. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
3. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
4. Alas Babylon by Pat Frank
5. The Outsiders by SE Hinton
6. King of the Hill by AE Hotchner
7. The Chosen by Chaim Potok
8. A Seperate Peace by John Knowles
9. Street Boys by Lorenzo Carcaterra
10. Sphere by Michael Crichton
Man's Search for Meaning is a classic I've never read--definitely plan to soon
THE single best book I have ever read. It is one of those rare, terrible yet beautiful pieces of writing which should be compulsory reading for every human being.
Its also only about 200 pages of A5!!!
I read Dune in my mid-twenties. I'm 70 now, and it's a novel that's never left me.
Hey man! loved listening to "Project Hail Mary" it was awesome just like you said, I'm a young reader and it is really hard for me to find time to read. It will be awesome if you make a video on how you manage your time and make room for reading in your busiest days.
I recommend Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. It is a terrific epic novel that depicts the whole depth of human psychology.
True! Great pick.
If u don’t mind,tell me why.pls
I have read it and liked it.but I want to why someone else would find it worth reading
@@saudaarakkal8506
It is a profound question. Thank you for asking. Let me think about that...
First of all is that this work itself is certainly a milestone in the progression of literature, especially book 5 "The Grand Inquisitor" (a very uneasy read about some existential concerns)
I love the structure and the sense of polyphony you get from the characters...reconciling many opposing truths of humanity.
I think during my time with this book, reading and pondering about a lot of questions of my personal life, the author's dissections of human motives basically guide my thinking with good clarity. I appreciate the author's solid life experiences.
Initially, it was recommended by a friend of mine, so I picked it up.
On the other hand, I think why I enjoyed this book so much as a journey for enlightenment is that I am still interested in absolute truth. Religious teachings sometimes do no good to provide a full picture.
Anyway a very very great book. All the criticisms and reviews cannot sufficiently tell you the essence of it.
@@saudaarakkal8506 I read “brothers” in college and am reading for 3rd time now as a much older guy. With years of live experience I am able to see the novel is brilliant. Dostoevsky accurately describes facial expressions and a character’s posture when speaking. As a young person I missed all that. Plus the religious tensions contrasted with atheistic and socialist stuff is worth reading. Young folks go through these inquiries deeply.
Hearing you talking about science fiction made me realise why I loved "The Ice People" from Barjavel. I hope you read it
Love Don Quixote and The Count of Monte Cristo, totally agree these are the best
Thanks for sharing your book list! Those books must be great! I will definitely read them! :D
I would like to recommend the book “The Story of My Life” and the essay “Three Days To See” both by Helen Keller.
Helen Keller was blind and deaf, yet she could get the most of her life. She found happiness and light even in the darkest hour; she felt life with her heart even though she could not see with her eyes and hear with her ears. The first book is a memoir that talks about the life of Helen Keller, a brave and inspiring historical figure of all time. The essay talks about what Helen Keller would like to see in three days, but there is something much deeper than that, which I don’t want to spoil it lol. The movie “The Miracle Worker” is produced based on Helen Keller’s story. Overall, I hope her words could bring you some enlightenment and appreciation of the world we live in, as well as I hope these stories could light up your life even in the darkest time. :)
I need all of these books on my bookshelf immediately! 💫 Keep rising to be who you want to be! 💫 #keeprising #risingtobe #aswerise #riser
Always love top tens! Great choices John!
I need to improve myself and really Fucking focus on my own life now.
Hi John,
You have not included one of the great eastern books into your list. Take some time and read Rumi. His book of Mathnavi is a great mystical piece and I am sure you will enjoy it a lot.
Great video. I’ve read a few of those. I’m looking forward to reading The Count of Monte Cristo, which I bought a few weeks ago.
Thanks for adding “Beloved”.
The Books that changed my life and inspired me to become a writer
1. A Little Life - Hanya Yanagihara
2. Dune - Frank Herbert
3. Lord of the Rings Trilogy - J. R. R. Tolkien
4. The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
5. Carrie - Stephen King
6. Watchmen - Alan Moore
7. Death Note - Tsugumi Obha
8. The Watership Down - Richard Adams
9. The Princess Bride - William Goldman
Your video just popped up into my feed so I'm very late in here. Love your selections so I'm going to add a few of the top post WW2 novels that have moved me deeply. (And in no particular order).
"Earthly Powers" by Anthony Burgess-- Probably one of the most unappreciated 20th century novels--definitely in my top 10. A huge, sprawling, door- stop of a book that will keep you turning all 607 pages (hardcover).
"Infinite Jest" by David Foster Wallace--Everyone knows about this one so I won't try to contribute anything else here except to say a "must read".
"Gravity's Rainbow" by Thomas Pynchon-- I'm old enough to have read it when it was first published and saw how so many people lost their minds over this book that conflates love/war, sex/death in absolutely hilarious and bizarre ways.
"The Time Of Our Singing" by Richard Powers. Powers is my favorite current writer (along with Barbara Kingsolver ) and almost any of his works should be on a "best of" list. I would also put his "The Overstory" next to "The Time Of Our Singing" in greatness although I might give a slight edge to "Time..." because of the subject matter.
I'm looking forward to enjoying all your videos now that I've found you!
If you haven't read The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, I definitely recommend it. It is O'Brien's account of his experience in the Vietnam War, I believe(excuse my memory). It gave me a lot of perspective on how I view life and death in general.
👏👍👏
Solid recommendations, some are favorites, some I really want to read. I am definitely picking up Cervantes and Toni Morrison after this !
i stopped reading Don Quixote because there was this part that was hard to get through but now I will start again! thanks for making reading exciting again
Read war and peace it will become ur all time favorite
I am nearly ready to start that book. I have the Maude translation and I pray I can get through it. It's the most intimidating book on shelves. Yikes! I am excited, though. I love Russian literature and have read many books, but War and Peace just seems overwhelming.
A lot of titles I want to get to at some point. Nice variety, thanks!
Im reading Don Quixote because of your video.
I feel the same exact way about Don Quijote! Such a beautiful book which lightened my heart while reading.
I think you would love "Siddhartha" by Hermann Hesse. It's quite short with around 120 pages, but don't underestimate the impact those pages can have on your perspective on life! It's about a young boy named Siddhartha who is being raised in a highly religious hinduistic context. Even though he is very young, everybody around him looks up to him and is faithful of him, believing that he is somewhat special and different than any other around them. Then he decides one day, to redirect his life and take his own path, even though it is not an easy and well accepted path, he takes it anyway, reaches highs and lows and tries to find Nirvana.
This book literally feels like symbolism for your own life, your own struggles, your own decisions and your own acceptance of everything life has offered you.
Great book, changed my life like no other.
That sounds like an interesting book, I’ll pick it up! :)