“Books lift us out of the smallness of the present and into history, out of the smallness of ourselves and into humanity.” - Brian Jay Stanley
In this section I will link to various books; those that have most nourished me and those I’ve had a hand in bringing to life.
The Ten Books That Made Me Who I Am:
- The Denial of Death, by Ernest Becker taught me why human individuals act and feel the way we do.
- Escape from Evil, by Ernest Becker taught me why human civilizations act and evolve the way they do.
- The Story of Philosophy, by Will Durant introduced me to the ideas of our world’s greatest minds.
- The Story of Civilization, by Will Durant revealed to me the adventures, personalities, and lessons of history.
- Walden, by Thoreau introduced me to the majesty of the natural world and the glory of good writing.
- The Collapsing Universe, by Isaac Asimov taught me the awesome power and beauty of a scientific mindset.
- Anna Karenina, by Tolstoy taught me the power of a well-written novel and spurred a lifelong love of Russia.
- Don Quixote, by Cervantes showed me that hilarious writing pre-dates The Onion by 400 years.
- Hamlet, by Shakespeare taught me that a book can contain all imaginable by any one reader, and more.
- How the Mind Works, by Pinker showed me that vast realms of the “unknowable” are coming into focus now.
Recent (Past 20 Years) Favorites
- Is That a Fish in Your Ear?
- Natasha’s Dance
- PostWar
- Tolstoy, Maude
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Books by Friends
Some More Bookish Quotes
Make thy books thy companions. Let thy cases and shelves be thy pleasure grounds and gardens.
- Judah ibn-Tibbon (12th century)
To add a library to a house is to give that house a soul.
- Cicero
It is, however, not to the museum, or the lecture-room, or the drawing-school, but to the library, that we must go for the completion of our humanity. It is books that bear from age to age the intellectual wealth of the world.
- Owen Meredith
The only true equalisers in the world are books; the only treasure-house open to all comers is a library; the only wealth which will not decay is knowledge; the only jewel which you can carry beyond the grave is wisdom.
- J. A. Langford
Good as it is to inherit a library, it is better to collect one.
- Augustine Birrell
My library
Was dukedom large enough.
- Shakespeare, The Tempest
