I have been challenged by friends Howard Buchman and Erika Kashman-Gellis to name ten books that have had an impact on my life. These are in no particular order: The Land of Oz by L. Frank Baum: One of my earliest books that I read on my own. I had no idea that there were 14 Oz books all together and that The Wizard of Oz was just the beginning. As a 4th grader, I just had to know what came next. The Fifth Column by Robert Heinlen: The first book after a long dry spell where I did not read for fun or unless forced at gunpoint. I was about to get on a plane from Erie, PA (Freshman year of college) back to my home in NJ and I stopped into one of those airport shops. I saw it and I figured Id give it a shot. I didnt think I could handle anything that wasnt a comic, but I was hooked after the first page and had it finished by the time my plane landed...I was hooked. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein: Truly my favorite book of all time. Yes...the Lord of the Rings is epic in scope and yes...the Hobbit movie tries to be the same, but the actual book is a sheer joy to read. Its playfully told through the eyes of Bilbo and can be read over and over again. The Foundation Series by Isaac Asimov: From Foundation to Foundation and Earth, the entire series, while high-concept takes you on a journey of hundreds of years but tells it so well. Some of the concepts, particularly in the first Foundation book were inspiration to my own written works on Relationship Capital. The last book Foundation and Earth ties together Asimovs Robot novels and is a brilliant ending to a much larger piece of work. At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft: Explorers in the Antarctic? Discovering a lost secret that has been long-forgotten? An ancient city? Im in love! My first Lovecraft story ever read. Once read, had to read ALL the rest...yep, again...hooked. The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: What can I say? Youve seen all the interpretations from Basil Rathbone to Benedict Cumberbatch in the movies and on TV, but nothing holds a candle to the original. One can almost feel the rage and pain of an original fan as Holmes and Moriarty fall to their deaths over the falls in Germany, and elation when Doyle reluctantly reunites Holmes with Watson for more adventures! Devil in the White City by Erik Larson: Time for some non-fiction. I have a fascination with Worlds Fairs and Expositions - theyre just real cool to me. When I heard of Larsons parallel-track tale about 1.) the planning and personalities behind Chicagos Columbian Exposition of 1892 and 2.) one of the U.S.s first serial killers whos escapades took place in the same city at the same time. Truly a book you cannot put down - totally eye-opening. Power vs. Force by Dr. David Hawkins: A book told in a few parts. In one, you are posed with a hypothetical question: If power and force were to go head-to-head in a boxing ring, who would win?. Fascinating stuff that sets you up for the next part about kinesiology and actual experiments performed by Dr. Hawkins to determine if a held packet of a substance was sugar or artificial sweetener. Other studies are discussed and have fascinating results, with real HUGE IMPLICATIONS, including Hawkins consciousness scale...big, immense stuff. Conversations with G-d by Neale Donald Walsh: Speaking of immense stuff, this simple book, just might make a believer out of the staunchest atheist. Then again... The Way of G-d by Chaim Luzotto: Lastly, speaking of the devine, this Kabbalistic work written back in the 1700s is truly amazing and eye-opening. This book made me realize that what I thought was spiritual and not religious was just me practicing my faith all along. Here are the people who I would like to challenge/invite: Alan Kovitz, Cheryl Kovitz, David Fradin, Erica Casillo, Yukiko Iino, Binyomin Mermelstein, Steve Gursky, Robert Gottesman, Samuel Hofkins.
Posted on: Tue, 09 Sep 2014 04:15:26 +0000
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