Which book has truly changed your life and why?

[poodlepusher]

Mine was probably non-fiction; Rhian Malan's MY TRAITOR'S HEART. Set in South Africa's Apartheid and written by a white SA journalist. It was an utter revelation about the country and its people as well as the human propensity to judge and be fearful and forgive and eventually find a way out of racism.

I'd be interested to know what books, fiction or otherwise had changed others lives, perspectives, ways of living?

OOh good question, will have a think!

nectar in a sieve by Karmala Markandala. a very simple tale of an indian couple, you keep hoping life will get better for them. the ending is so full of hope you want to weep with joy. i am not at all an emotional person, and i also usually fall asleep reading novels

I don;t think I've ever read a book that changed my life. I keep that side of myself separate. But I suspect it's the books you read early on that influence you the most. So....Black Beauty, then. I just don't think it change my life.

can think of several which have had a big impact, but if I had to pick one it's be Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye. I guess for the usual reasons, it marked the point where I felt I was becoming an adult, realising that life can be tough and that essentially all we're all looking for in life is to love and be loved. Have to say, it's a handy book to re-read when your own kids hit the teenage years too! Reminds me that all the crap is totally normal!

i suppose i could say wild swans as it sort of opened up alot of interest for me in china and japan, so watched alot of chinese films and read books about china as a consequence. just gave me a whole other interest.

which is nice .

'My Dream of You' by Nuala O'Faolain.

I stopped living my life around finding a man to have a family with and started living it for me, for my friends and my family after reading this somewhat auto-biographical novel.

That not being married or having children doesn't mean unfulfilled and unloved.

Nuala learned to take the best and to live, just live, and this came through in her character's story.

A truly courageous and remarkable woman.

ooh. I'd forgotten about Nuala O'Faolain. I read her ARE YOU SOMEBODY (totally autobiographical) after hearing her read a segment at a charity event. It was an amazing book, and very inspiring.

cat's cradle by kurt vonnegut made me politically active, and made me a humanist

I was going to say Wild Swans too SEA, and for the same reasons.

In fact, am currently reading Colin Thubron's 'Behind the Wall' - v well written account of his travels in China from early 80s.

Haven't made as much headway with Jung Chang's Mao biog though. Must...try...harder...

oh, and reading regeneration gave me a near obsessive interest in the first world war.

Roots by Alex Haley changed the way I thought about a lot of things. I could never read it again though. Too upsetting.

I don't know if it changed my life but reading The Diary of Anne Frank really affected me,

also The Wretched of the Earth and Orientalism - I think they changed a lot of peoples' persepectives though.

sorry - just realised it's supposed to be fiction .

mine wasn't really fiction- it was history / autobiography.

but I thought it might be fiction for a lot of people so I posted it here.

yes poodlepusher I realised when I read OP again - brain is very woozy for some reason.

i have it but am the same as you midnightexp. just read the private papers of eastern jewel which was another book that led to lots of googling.

it's an intersting culture isn't it.

Not to get all spiritual on you but Mere Christianity by C.S Lewis changed my life completely.

and the Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks. I started reading it for fun but after about 50 pages I started stockpiling bottled water and planning the quickest way to demolish my staircase.

Oh and Primo Levi's 'If This is a Man' and 'The Truce'. For obvious reasons.

DP suggests (on a similar theme) 'This Way for the Gas Ladies and Gentlemen' by Tadeusz Borowski, by a Jew who had to gas other Jews during the war.

It is SEA, yes. Have visited Beijing v briefly for work a couple of years ago and 'twas fascinating. Changing so fast though.

Definitely all the books by Carlos Castaneda.

I read them all in my twenties and my view of life was never the same.

I am now revisiting them all plus a lot of other similar texts and the possibilities they offer is really mind blowing. It also helps me to deal with my life on a day to day basis.

This one. Couldn't get it out of my head for weeks.

Oh crap. You got me that time Banality (who are you btw? Namechanger?)

Got to be this one for me

My brother is different - Nancy Parris.

I gave it to my son's class teacher to read to his peers.
It helped them to understand some fo the things he did at school.
they tried to help him play with them...he became calmer at home.

It really did change my life.

The Secret by Rhons Byrne...turns a pesimist into an optimist and give you hope.

ooh! wine strong tonight! should have read by Rhonda Byrne...He he he!