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Old 04-22-2017, 07:06 PM
 
3,493 posts, read 7,895,019 times
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Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder - the true story of Dr. Paul Farmer and his quest to cure the world of TB. There are people in this world doing amazing, selfless things to better the lives of others. Even if we can't perform on that scale, we can all do what we can.

The Spirit Catches You and Then You Fall Down
by Anne Fadiman - Providing healthcare for people from other parts of the globe is more than calling for an interpreter.

Jonathan Livingston Seagull
by Richard Bach - I learned the power of an allegory. I was probably way to young to fully understand this book the first time that I read it, but my grandparents didn't stop me. I also learned the importance of not censoring a young person's reading material!

Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyles - we will never fully understand the struggles of others.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck - I cried when I read this in middle school because it was such an intimate look at how cruel people can be and I cried when my son had to read it in middle school because I didn't want his innocence touched in such a heart-wrenching way. I suppose that is why it is a classic, huh?
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Old 04-22-2017, 07:11 PM
 
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
17,330 posts, read 32,887,193 times
Reputation: 28898
Quote:
Originally Posted by pinetreelover View Post

Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyles - we will never fully understand the struggles of others.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck - I cried when I read this in middle school because it was such an intimate look at how cruel people can be and I cried when my son had to read it in middle school because I didn't want his innocence touched in such a heart-wrenching way. I suppose that is why it is a classic, huh?
Tortilla Curtain -- incredible book
Of Mice and Men -- y'know, I don't think that I ever read it; that will change
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Old 04-24-2017, 07:48 AM
 
Location: Wonderland
67,652 posts, read 60,339,924 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DawnMTL View Post
Tortilla Curtain -- incredible book
Of Mice and Men -- y'know, I don't think that I ever read it; that will change
I just put Tortilla Curtain on my To Read List.

Of Mice and Men is such a fabulous book - and it's not a long, difficult book to read either. It's simple and yet profound. I love Steinbeck's spare, simple writing style. Wow, talk about every word being laden with portent - he can say so much in so few words. It's really a fantastic book.
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Old 04-24-2017, 07:56 AM
 
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
17,330 posts, read 32,887,193 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KathrynAragon View Post
I just put Tortilla Curtain on my To Read List.

Of Mice and Men is such a fabulous book - and it's not a long, difficult book to read either. It's simple and yet profound. I love Steinbeck's spare, simple writing style. Wow, talk about every word being laden with portent - he can say so much in so few words. It's really a fantastic book.
Thanks, KA, I just bought Of Mice and Men -- it's waiting for me on my Kindle -- but I want to hold off until after I move so that I can concentrate on it, rather than just read a page or two when I happen to have time. I'm looking forward to it.

I hope that you'll like Tortilla Curtain. I read it such a long time ago and I remember nothing except that it had a serious WOW! factor.
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Old 04-24-2017, 09:05 AM
 
Location: Ontario, Canada
31,374 posts, read 20,025,917 times
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The Magic of Believing - Claude Bristol
The Ginger Man - J.P. Donleavy
The Painted Bird - Jerzy Kosinski
Dhalgren - Samuel R. Delany
Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 - Hunter S. Thompson
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Old 04-24-2017, 09:38 AM
 
Location: Wonderland
67,652 posts, read 60,339,924 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DawnMTL View Post
Thanks, KA, I just bought Of Mice and Men -- it's waiting for me on my Kindle -- but I want to hold off until after I move so that I can concentrate on it, rather than just read a page or two when I happen to have time. I'm looking forward to it.

I hope that you'll like Tortilla Curtain. I read it such a long time ago and I remember nothing except that it had a serious WOW! factor.
Just ordered it - and after reading the reviews and the synopsis, I wondered - have you ever read "House of Sand and Fog?"

The movie is good too but the book was absolutely riveting. It's about a clash of cultures and differing perspectives on the same situation as well.

Quote:
On a road crew in California, a former colonel in the Iranian Air Force sees a way to restore his family's dignity in an attractive bungalow available on county auction. But the house's owner, a recovering alcoholic and addict down on her luck, will fight for the one thing she has left. And her lover, a married cop, will be driven to extremes to win her love. In this masterpiece of American realism and Shakespearean consequence, Andre Dubus III's unforgettable characters careen toward inevitable conflict, their tragedy painting a shockingly true picture of the country we live in today.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/...om_search=true
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Old 04-24-2017, 09:39 AM
 
Location: Wonderland
67,652 posts, read 60,339,924 times
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Oh my gosh, I have so many books. This is ridiculous. This thread is like book crack or something.
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Old 04-24-2017, 09:58 AM
 
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
17,330 posts, read 32,887,193 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KathrynAragon View Post
Just ordered it - and after reading the reviews and the synopsis, I wondered - have you ever read "House of Sand and Fog?"

The movie is good too but the book was absolutely riveting. It's about a clash of cultures and differing perspectives on the same situation as well.



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/...om_search=true
OMG! I loved that book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Old 04-24-2017, 10:00 AM
 
Location: Southern MN
11,932 posts, read 8,260,020 times
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Book crack! I just bought another bookshelf for my bedroom. I feel like a book hoarder.


I just have to keep some of them and reread them because they have different interpretations for me at different phases of my life.


Here are a few of the most formative off the top of my head:


The Joy of Cooking by Irma and Marion Rombauer
Alive Miller's trilogy - The Drama of the Gifted Child, For your own Good and Thou Shalt not be Aware
People of the Lie by M. Scott Peck
The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
My Mother, Myself by Nancy Friday
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Old 04-24-2017, 10:56 AM
 
3,555 posts, read 4,369,911 times
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  1. The Hungry Spirit (Sir Charles Handy): Learned the principle of materialistic "enoughism"
  2. The Art Or Worldly Wisdom (Baltazar Gracian): An amazing book filled with practical wisdom, written by a 16th century Jesuit priest
  3. The Prophet (Khalil Gibran)A short book of prosed fables laced with eye-opening philosophical POV's
  4. Voices of Time (Eduardo Galeano): Book of vignettes which allow the reader to experience the wonders of life's small/common things through the eyes of diverse peoples
  5. Tuesdays With Morrie (Mitch Albom): A book that made me appreciate life, the elderly, and how there's nothing wrong with being #2
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