15 Books
RationalJenn has asked, “Which 15 books that you have read will always stick with you?” The rules specify that you think about the issue for no more than 15 minutes and that you list the first 15 that come to mind.
My answer is below, with a video citing features of each. I added a condition that I would not repeat authors.
What are your 15? Answer in comments.
** My 15 Books **
- For the New Intellectual: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand (Signet)
by Ayn Rand.
- The Federalist Papers (Signet Classics) by Hamilton, Madison, and Jay.
- The Autobiography and Other Writings
by Benjamin Franklin.
- Washington
by Douglas Southall Freeman.
- Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t
by Jim Collins.
- First Things First by Covey, Merrill, and Merrill.
- John Adams and the Spirit of Liberty
by C. Bradley Thompson.
- The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement
by Goldratt and Cox.
- Sparrowhawk One: Jack Frake
by Edward Cline.
- The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else
by Hernando de Soto.
- Discourses
by Machiavelli.
- A History of Warfare
by John Keegan.
- A Turn for DeWurst
by Sydney Kendall.
- Tecumseh: A Life
by John Sugden.
- Macbeth (Folger Shakespeare Library)
by Shakespeare.
Wow! I consider myself to be a well-read person, but, if I also restrict myself to one book per author, I could not come up with 15 that will always stick with me. I do tend to read relatively few authors I like, and, since I’m at work now, there are some books whose author I can’t remember (I have a library at home, so I know I can just look at the book to see the author – I often don’t retain it in memory). Also, books that stay with me are almost always fiction. Here’s my list, in no particular order:
Dune – Frank Herbert. The first three are classics
1) Atlas Shrugged – Ayn Rand
2) Time Enough For Love – Robert Heinlein. Somewhere in that book is list of “everything a man should know how to do.” That inspired me as a youngster, and I even check against that list from time to time.
3) Retief’s War – Keith Laumer. My first sci-fi novel as a kid. It opened up the whole genre for me.
4) It – Stephen King. He’s a good storyteller, and I think this is his best.
5) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J.D. Rowling. I love all the books, but this is my favorite.
6) Economics In One Lesson – Henry hazlitt
7) Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand – Leonard Peikoff
9) Lucifer’s Hammer – Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
10) Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkein. My daughter bought me the single volume, so I can include it here as one book.
That’s all I can come up with in 15 minutes.