The Beginning of Something Significant
As some of my readers will no doubt remember I am attempting (in my own singular and no doubt peculiar way) to read a number of significant books (definition to be finalised) as part of my ongoing lifelong quest to become ‘well read’. Over 10 years I had managed a rather disappointing (AKA paltry) 17 books – less than 2 per year! – and some of those ‘significant’ books are of somewhat limited or specialist significance. I had promised to ‘up my game’ in 2016 and I believe I’ve managed to just about do that with the addition of 2 further books to the list making a grand total of 19. But progress is progress and no progress however slight should be sniffed at. So, as of today the early nucleus of a significant booklist looks like this:
The Autobiography of Malcolm X with the assistance of Alex Haley
Achtung Panzer! – The Development of Tank Warfare by Heinz Guderian
Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell
The Medium is the Massage by Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore
About Looking by John Berger
A Vindication of The Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft
War on Wheels – The Evolution of an Idea by C R Kutz
Ways of Seeing by John Berger
Design as Art by Bruno Munari
The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
Why I am not a Christian by Bertrand Russell
The Captive Mind by Czeslaw Milosz
The Future of an Illusion by Sigmund Freud
The Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus
The Rebel by Albert Camus
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
A Discourse on the Origins and Foundations of Inequality among Men by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Guerrilla Warfare by Che Guevara
I think that finally it’s starting to get somewhere. If I can get this to around 50 before I die I’ll be pleased and will actually think that I might just have achieved something. I only have 1 significant book planned so far this year (with 2 more possible) so will see what else I can dig up. I think I should aim for 3 this year. I think that’s achievable. Maybe.
4 comments:
I think I've read two from the list, and about seven of the authors' other works.
Yours is an interesting mix -- politics, philosophy, and Achtung, Panzer!
;)
This is such an interesting list.
When I was younger I read a lot of military history so Achtung Panzer! looks to be like it would be a guilty pleasure.
I always say that reading is not a race. Worthy books tend to go slow and take a long time.
I also think that other things that you have read are lily significant. In my opinion wisdom can be found in all sorts of places.
@ V V: It's a very off the wall and practically random list ATM. Part historical, part what I had available, part what I'm actually managed to get into my read next pile. Much more to come... and they should (mostly) be ones most people will have at least heard of...
@ Stephen: I think most of them will be in the politics/philosophy area - that being my focus and also a place where you should find quite a few 'significant' books (for obvious reasons). The Guderian book was a bit of an odd-ball discovery but definitely an interesting one - to me at least!
@ Brian: So true. Wisdom can be found in many places and ultimately everything is connected so you can start discovering about the Universe anywhere and just see where it leads you. Hopefully I'll be on the trail for many years yet. That's certainly my intention [lol]
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