A Top 10 Books Post

Top 10 Books I read this post concerning Bill Gates' Top 10 books. The question was presented in the format of - if you were stranded on a desert island, what ten books would you like to have? While I am a proverbial sucker for any of these lists, from any source, just to get an idea about possible new and different books to read, there's an understanding I have of the difficulty of the question. 10 favorite books is not the same as 10 most meaningful or impactful books. Also, asking the question as posed above, means a book you're willing to re-read (because, hello, desert island), which, in my opinion, favors nonfiction over fiction, because one might get tired of the same story before running out of new things to glean from a good nonfiction text. I also think its impossible to avoid a recency bias, putting certain books above others simply because you remember it better.

All that said, since I'm an avid reader, I thought it would be fun to reflect and think what books I would put in my top 10...I don't know if I would call these my 10 favorite books, though I obviously think highly of them; of if they qualify as books I think others should read as opposed to just an expression of my interests; or if I would really have them on a desert island. But here's what I would consider, to date, my list of the Top 10 book's I've read (5 fiction and 5 nonfiction) (in no particular order)

1. The Stranger by Albert Camus

This book, maybe more than any other book I've read, profoundly impacted how I think and my resultant worldview. Mersault, the exhaustingly, maddening existentialist hero, with the constant thrumming of how "nothing really matters," is the perfect character to repeatedly hammer home a particular worldview. In the process, it makes you think about how you view things, and what really matters.

2. The River Why by David James Duncan

I first read this in high school, and it has remained one of my favorites through several readings since then. A book about coming of age, learning how to think, and finding meaning, I've found this book to be a powerful metaphor for seeking meaning in life. Add in a bunch of memorable characters and funny scenes, and its always a good read.

3. Alexander Hamilton Ron Chernow

Alexander Hamilton has long been one of my favorite historical figures (yes, I'm the "dork" who has favorite historical figures). This book is expansive and comprehensive, as well as fair to its subject. Its impossible to read this book and not become much more educated on an often under-appreciated "founding father," whose story is the real life combination of the American Dream myth and a Greek tragedy.

4. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Possible recency bias here, by Mandel's book of a dystopian future following a virus that wipes out much of humanity, speaks to what it means to be human, and what it means to seek hope in the darkest of time. (Probably the perfect book to keep perspective on a desert island ;)). Despite the darkness in the book, its ultimately uplifting, and Mandel's writing is truly beautiful.

5. The Universe in a Single Atom by The Dalai Lama

Many of the Dalai Lama's books are worthwhile, but I this book is excellent for its willingness to engage in discussion with science with passion and energy, as opposed to simply denying science, or claiming that it has no role in understanding "spiritual matters." Instead, the Dalai Lama presents a convincing case that the new discoveries of science about the nature of our reality and existence, instead of hindering spirituality, can greatly increase our sense of whatever we call "divine."

6. A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn.

I love history (one of my majors in college), and this book, as a survey book, is, in my opinion, the best. Simplistically, it tells the history of the "discovery" of the New World to the founding of the United States and beyond from the bottom up, as opposed to the top down approach most often used in textbooks. Both approaches provide knowledge, but Zinn's work dramatically changes how you approach and view and think about all other history

7. Night by Elie Wiesel

Another book that I've read several times, first in high school and then several times in college, and at least once since. Short, but beyond words powerful narrative of a concentration camp during World War II. There's not much hope offered in the book, but it serves to remind us of what we are unfortunately capable of as a species. It's a history that should not be forgotten, and reading Wiesel's work will make sure that you don't.

8. Nichomachean Ethics by Aristotle

Many philosophers, particularly Kant and Mills, have driven my particular thought on my favorite branch of philosophy, Axiology or Ethics. But my love for that particular branch started with Aristotle and this work. His seeking, without the guidance of many prior philosophers, of trying to understand a better way to live, and coming up with a system that could be applied to daily living, was insightful and encouraging. I no longer ascribe to many of Aristotle's particular ethics of "everything in the right moderation," but it started my path into critical thinking on Ethics.

9. The Martian by Andy Weir

This is the pure entertainment book of the group - though its discussions of science are accurate, and showing how scientific knowledge and application can help a person overcome difficult odds is meaningful by itself. But this book I found myself just simply enjoying, wanting to know what happened, even laughing out loud at certain times, more than any other in quite awhile. For that, it makes my list.

10. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway

I've never been one for many of the "classics," be it Dickens or Austen or Nabokov. I've always enjoyed literature from the 20th century on more, and in particularly, since high school, there's been some affinity with the so-called "Lost Generation." Whether its Fitzgerald's renowned The Great Gatsby, or Stein or Kafka or the poetry of T.S. Eliot ("The Waste Land" is remarkable), I've simply liked it better. The top reading experience among this group was this Hemingway work. The writing is crisp, and I think it perfectly captures the sense of feeling adrift among a life that's flowing with or without you that is so prevalent among the writings of The Lost Generation.