We had a good discussion on the music that moves our souls, so I wondered if there were any books that did the same. I was also interested to see if we had the same attachment of memories to the books.

A couple that really have stuck with me are:

My Sister’s Keeper - Jodi Piccoult
The Poisonwood Bible - Barbara Kingsolver

Both of these novels left a mark and they are my favourites when recommending books to anyone. I don’t have any special memories attached to them, they were just really good stories.

Great topic!!! Well to start off, I would have to say Conversations with God - Book 1 by Neale Donald Walsh. I know I keep bringing this book up but it has had such a wonderful impact on my life. It just has such a simple, uplifting message that speaks volumes. As for novels that have had an impact, I would have to say:

1984 by George Orwell for its message on influence and control
The Belgariad by David Eddings for its message on achieving your potential
Dolce Agonia by Nancy Huston for its message of not limiting yourself, not judging and not regretting your choices
Volkwagen Blues by Jacques Poulin for following your heart

These are some of my most favorite books...can’t wait to see what everyone else has on their shelf.

Cheers,

Dave

My goodness, where to start?  I’ve been an avid reader as long as I can remember, so this might be a bit challenging!

Okay, let’s divide this into to sections, favourite fiction books, and influential non-fiction books.

Favourite Fiction Books:
- anything by Neil Gaiman, but especially the Sandman graphic novel series; Good Omens; Stardust; Smoke and Mirrors; and Fragile Things
- The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien (my dad read this to me as a bedtime story when I was little—it took us a half-dozen restarts before I let him go past the giant spiders *grin*)
- The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
- Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll
- The Giver, by Lois Lowry
- The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Influential Non-Fiction Books: (mostly read in the last year or so)
- anything by Jay Ingram—great “science for laymen” books
- Made to Stick, by Chip Heath & Dan Heath (about how to communicate your ideas so people remember them)
- Teach Like Your Hair’s On Fire, by Rafe Esquith (about teaching so students want to learn)
- The Success Principles, by Jack Canfield (about living the life you want)
- In Praise of Slow, by Carl Honore (about slowing down our busy lives)
- Freakonomics, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner (about the counterintuitive interconnectness of unlikely things)

That should get you started, I think!  I look forward to seeing other people’s lists.  I’m always on the lookout for great books!

Cheers,
Julie

Great thread, Fi!  I’m also always on the lookout for book recommendations!

The fiction I read tends to be of the “cozy mystery” variety (think Miss Marple!), so even though they do feed my soul in a way, I won’t bother listing any of them.  Non-fiction, however, roams all over the board, but here are some of my favorite treats for my soul (in no particular order):

How to Live in the World and Still Be Happy by Hugh Prather
A Path With Heart by Jack Kornfield
Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach
A Heart As Wide as the World by Sharon Salzberg
Happiness is a Choice by Barry Neil Kaufman
Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
The Prophet by Khalil Gibran

Natural Cures-Kevin Trudeau(really inspiring book about a lot of things, such as good and bad energy and it’s effects on our health. And never giving up, never letting anyone keep you down!)

Self Matters-Phil McGraw(I’ve been reading this one off and on and I think it has a lot of sound ideas and key truths about self betterment)

That’s a great list to get started.

Interesting how much variety there is too. I also like how we have fiction and non-fiction to inspire us on our journey.

Leo Buscaglia’s books and lectures have had an enormous foundational impact on my life.  As a University professor he was struck by the relative anonymity of students on campus – no one really knowing anyone else.  One of his students, who he’d met in one of his ‘voluntarily mandatory’ student-professor chats, didn’t show up for his classes after a while.  He’d asked around and none of the students knew her or what had happened.  Eventually, the University registrar was able to tell him she had thrown herself off the Palisades’ cliffs … a suicide. Leo Buscaglia was struck by her death and by the fact that no one seemed to know her and that no one seemed to care for her.  In response, Leo Buscaglia ran a course at the University entitled Love 101 and the class explored what Love and Loving are.  The research and the insights of these classes spawned several books, lectures and talks.

Here are some titles @ http://www.buscaglia.com/resources.htm

Living, Loving, Learning
Loving Each Other
Love
The Fall of Freddie the Leaf
The Way of the Bull

The books are excellent.  And, if you ever have the chance to see or hear one of his talks, it will leave you inspired, outfitted with ideas, insights, facts and history. You’ll take each principle and apply it … with success. http://www.kviestore.org/leobuscaglia.html

Speaking of Love
The Politics of Love
The Art of Being Fully Human
Born for Love
Together with Leo
Loving Relationships

“The easiest thing to be in the world is you. The most difficult thing to be is what other people want you to be. Don’t let them put you in that position.” – Leo Buscaglia

“If I don’t have wisdom, I can teach you only ignorance.” – Leo Buscaglia

“Change is the end result of all true learning.” – Leo Buscaglia

“Death is a challenge. It tells us not to waste time… It tells us to tell each other right now that we love each other.” – Leo Buscaglia

“Don’t smother each other. No one can grow in shade.” – Leo Buscaglia

“Find the person who will love you because of your differences and not in spite of them and you have found a lover for life.” – Leo Buscaglia

“I believe that you control your destiny, that you can be what you want to be. You can also stop and say, No, I won’t do it, I won’t behave his way anymore. I’m lonely and I need people around me, maybe I have to change my methods of behaving and then you do it.” – Leo Buscaglia

Wow, those are really great quotes, Ross.

I will check Leo out.

I know this is slightly off topic, but as I am ending my career as a student, I can very much so relate to your post Ross. I will explore more of his work as soon as I possibly can. Thanks for the link.

Cheers,

I agree with you, Dave,

That link is most definately worth checking out. I think sometimes we can put so much effort into our work or studies that we forget our humanity...until something horrible happens. It is good to have such wonderful reminders to keep it in the forefront of our minds. Can only make for a better future.

dave1981 - 09 May 2007 02:52 AM

I know this is slightly off topic, but as I am ending my career as a student, I can very much so relate to your post Ross. I will explore more of his work as soon as I possibly can. Thanks for the link.

Cheers,

Hey Dave:

You’re now becoming alumni at the University of Alberta - good stuff.  In truth, I sought out Leo Buscaglia while in University as a way to make sense of the world.  On the other hand, I did enjoy a few folks round the campus.  Anyway ... now school’s done, did, done!  Congratulations!  And, then you’ve got the wedding this summer.  You’re on your way.  Will you stay in Edmonton?

delirium trigger - 08 May 2007 05:37 PM

Natural Cures-Kevin Trudeau

I debated about whether to comment about this book because this thread has some really great suggestions, but all I can say is “buyer beware.” You might want to read this article about Kevin Trudeau.

That’s alright, I knew it was comin’!:P

Thanks for the link, Judy. Yeah I’ve read that article and all the negative reviews and warnings about Trudeau. I won’t debate it here. Ultimately I can just recommend that people read the book and decide for themselves. Or don’t, I’m just recommending what worked for me.

Stuart McLean is a Canadian author who hosts a weekly radio variety show on Canada’s CBC. The show, the Vinyl Café, features music, essays, current and intriguing personalities and always humour. Stuart McLean also reads one of his stories on each episode, one he’s crafted, one he reads before the studio audience, often inviting/relying on their response to catch humourous implication and extrapolation. Usually, the story is about Dave and Morley, about different, quirky, challenging circumstances surrounding Dave’s record store … or it’s about the interior home life shared by Morley and Dave (The Vinyl Cafe Christmas Concert is a favourite). The stories are warm. They expose us to ourselves. They expose the absurdity of our thought life to great peels of laughter. There’s always connection to the heart. Often the stories bring a tear to your eye – especially, when they reveal what’s really important in life.

For stories to warm your heart … or to help you re-calibrate towards what’s important in this life we’re living, may I recommend the Vinyl Café series.

Canadian Editions

Stories from the Vinyl Cafe ( Penguin Books Canada, 1995, updated and revised edition, 2005)
Home from the Vinyl Cafe (Penguin Books, 1998)
Vinyl Cafe Unplugged (Penguin Books, 2001)
Vinyl Cafe Diaries (Penguin Books, 2003)
Secrets from the Vinyl Cafe (Penguin Books, 2006)

U.S. Editions

Home from the Vinyl Cafe (Simon & Schuster, 2005) *

UK Editions

Home from the Vinyl Cafe (Granta, 2005) * Vinyl Cafe Unplugged (Granta, 2006)

The Radio Show http://www.cbc.ca/vinylcafe/ .

Yeah I listen to CBC a lot and sometimes I’ll catch that show. Really interesting.

Hi all:

In CBC Radio’s Tapestry pod cast from 22 April 2007 – The Power and the Glory Pt. II (an Interview with Clara Hughes, Canadian Olympian winning medals in summer and winter Olympics), there is such good, good information about the heroic quest that is a part of change and a part of being an athlete.  I’ve listened to the pod cast two or three times now and am still gleaning good, good schtuff.  Anyways, because the reading material mentioned seems related to us in our quest – spiritual and physical – I include it here. I will be looking into it at first opportunity.

Clara Hughes’ Reading List

* Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis.
* The Hero with a Thousand Faces, and The Power of Myth (the companion book to the PBS series, The Power of Myth, prepared in collaboration with Bill Moyers), by Joseph Campbell.
* Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind by Shunryu Suzuki.
* Books by Thich Nhat Hanh: Living Buddha, Living Christ, Peace Is Every Step, and No Death, No Fear.
* The Tao of Jeet Kune Do, by Bruce Lee.

http://www.cbc.ca/tapestry/archives/2007/042207.html
http://www.clara-hughes.com/