Has reading a book ever changed your life? If yes. Which book and why?

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   THarman7posted 10 years ago

   Has reading a book ever changed your life? If yes. Which book and why?
   
   

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   Meisjunkposted 10 years ago

   Several! Not so much my entire LIFE as much as it changed my OUTLOOK on life.
   
   The Big Picture by Douglas Kennedy. The book was such a big thing for me when I read it in high school. Someone just picked up and changed their life in a complete opposite direction. Yes, there's so much more to the book, of course. But it was a huge "There's never an end unless you give up" lesson for me.
   
   Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. This series taught me so much while growing up. It taught me about being a good friend, about fighting for what's right no matter how hard that is, and it taught me to always love as hard and as strong as you can!
   
   Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz. This book taught me to NEVER trust the author!!!!! It taught me that I can also be that author/narrator who is untrustworthy and that there is actually a huge genre for unreliable narrators! It broadened my horizons for reading and writing so much that I just keep it in mind every time I pick up a book or a pen.
   
   You haven't answered your own question! What about you?

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      THarman7posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Great comment thank you for sharing the books that had an impact on your life. You are right, I need to write about books that have Changed my life.

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   Dee aka Nonnaposted 10 years ago

   Such a great question.  Made me think, and brought back so many memories.  The answer is YES....and for me, the list is long, but I will narrow it to just a few books that came into my life at pivotal moments when I was either at a crossroad, or was searching for an answer of some sort.
   
   Many years ago I discovered the writings of Og Mandino.  He wrote such books as The Greatest Miracle in the World,The Greatest Secret in the World, The Return of the Ragpicker, The Christ Commission, and many others.....I read them all.  His books brought inspiration, peace, and motivation to me when I was struggling through so many difficult things.
   
   At another crossroad---I read the book God on a Harley by Joan Brady.  It helped me make a decision I was desperately trying to make.....and not make a mistake.  This book is not for everyone, but I still remember the day I found it in a Target store.....it fell on the floor in front of me as I was passing through the book shelf aisle.....think about that for a moment....LOL
   
   Then there was a book I was reading for pure entertainment.  The book titled Mama was written by Terry McMillan (How Stella Got Her Groove Back).  It was one of her earlier books that went unheard of until the "Stella" book became famous.  I read it way back before.....the book is about a struggling poverty stricken mother, Mildred Peacock, who was on welfare.  Two scenes from the book that stayed with me (1) Mildred talking about her love for her children as she was combing her oldest daughter's hair (2) a conversation she had with God when stranded in the snow (it was not a nice conversation, but honest).  This book changed what I thought I knew about women on welfare. Mildred did not want to be, but life just kept kicking her down....but she loved and protected her children.
   
   And most recently.....A Course in Miracles. It's message was what I needed to get me to my personal "next level".
   
   Thanks for asking this one.  I think it is time for great lesson....I am seeking.

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      THarman7posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Wow great comment! Thank you for sharing your books that have inspired you. I will have to make a list of these books that everyone is sharing and get to reading!

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   Bk42authorposted 10 years ago

   I'm sure there's more than one that has had that affect on me but the very first one that comes to mind in She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb. I read it for the first time in my 20's then again in my 30's and both time resonated with me in a different way. If you haven't read the book, it is a coming of age story of a girl names Delores and it is written in the 1st person charting her life from preshool-age to 40 years old. In the first part of the book she goes through the trauma of her parents divorcing, then moving with her mother into her very religious grandmother's house and suffering from a horrific crime by a supposedly trusted neighbor. Due to severe depression she gains an enormous amount of weight and goes through the ordeal of feeling even more of an outcast than she already felt. The second part deals with her life after losing her mother, dropping out of college and being institutionalized. After losing weight and feeling confident enough to leave the institution before she's ready she begins her life in the real world where she faces inevitiable challenges that she's not quite ready to face.
   
   Although Wally Lamb is, obviously, male he captures the raw emotion of a young girl, teenager and woman trying to find their place in the world. As I mentioned I read this in my 20's and again in my 30's and both times I was connected with Delores in a very intimate, both times in different ways. Somehow he is able to capture exactly what Delores was feeling during those challenging moments in her life and translate them in a way that only a woman could indentify with. It really is hard for me to explain, but however he did that, he's a genius...in my humble opinoin. It's very hard for me to put it into words.
   
   In any case, both times I read this book I was completely blown away when I was done and really had no desire to pick another book for a couple of days. Almost like a book hangover! Lol

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      THarman7posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you for sharing. I think that I too would enjoy this book and I'm going to see if I can find a copy.

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   THarman7posted 10 years ago

   I have been an avid reading since I was a little girl, following the foot steps of my mother as she was a reading junkie. I have to say that I have read so many books over the years It took a lot of thinking to remember any one or two books that had an impact on my life. Honestly there have been so many it really is difficult to pin one down but after much thought I have to say Catcher in the Rye was one of my favorites. The book brought out the teenage years of experiance and alienation with teachers and the phonie people in his life. The first time I read this was in Jr. High School and our reading teacher had us do a book report on it. I believe that it still carries some controversy to this day. The next, a more recent one is the Hunger Games. I have to say as far fetched as the book and movie seems it has a sense of reality to it and it really has made me think that there is a more complexed truth as to the reality of life.

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      THarman7posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I liked the book a lot better then the movie but they were both very good!

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