Have any books really affected you? Maybe a book was the reason you felt like getting into ibanking.
Post the book, and a short summary of the book and how it affected you.
Me being pretty young, I could say that the only book that has affected me is Where the Red Fern Grows, and it just made me think a bit more into what actually matters in life. The book is well known, so I don't think it needs a summary, but it's basically a boy who raises 2 dogs, and they die protecting him from a lion.
| +81 | GF doesn’t care about her looks | 49 | 12h | |
| +52 | Affair with my Associate… In Desperate Need for Advice | 23 | 3h | |
| +41 | How to sound more eloquent? | 16 | 2h | |
| +39 | Insurance as High Finance? | 10 | 1d | |
| +38 | 400k/year in HVAC sales? | 26 | 23h | |
| +33 | Would you rather live alone in an outer borough or with roommates in Manhattan? | 23 | 1d | |
| +27 | Why do people listen to Jim Cramer Investing Advice? | 10 | 7h | |
| +26 | Is my boss gaslighting me? | 3 | 4h | |
| +25 | Carnivore Diet | 9 | 7h | |
| +25 | WSO Ranking On Resume??? | 6 | 4h |
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Predator's ball
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The Way of the Superior Man by David Deida, I would be insulting this masterpiece if I tried to use words to describe how awesome it is.
For Finance, The New Market Wizards definitely fucked my whole world up once I read about SAC and how Steven Cohen can put up consistent 40%+ returns.
The last book you should read is "The Game" by Neil Strauss. PM me when you finish that and we can talk.
Alot of my friends like 'Rich dad, poor dad'
Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwell (great writer)
It's about a woman's experience in a dystopian world post a nuclear war, it would probably appeal to more females than males, but it really makes you think "what if"...it was made into a movie (never seen it)
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
If you like conspiracy theory this will give you your kicks --- pretty much how we really got into the mess we are in w/ oil and such. Not really a 'finance type' book but very good and an easy read
The Things They Carry - Tim O'Brien
A series of short stories, memoir type book about solder's lives post Vietnam
Not trying to be a dick about your choice, but I read that book when i was about 10. It is a great a book, but I would talk about something you have read in the past few years.
In defense of the OP; when I first read the topic heading, "Where the Red Fern Grows" was the first book that came to mind.
I started a personal library a few years ago and below are some of my favorites:
A Dangerous Pursuit A Million Little Pieces A Random Walk Down Wall Street Angels & Demons Barbarians at the Gate Blink Deals of the Century Freakonomics How To Keep Score in Business Liar's Poker Monkey Business My Friend Leonard One Up on Wall Street Real Money Rich Dad Poor Dad Street Addict The Davinci Code The Five People You Meet in Heaven The Money Culture The Predator's Ball The Principals of Economics The Tipping Point Wealth of Nations Where the Red Fern Grows Winning the Game of Life The Father Factor The World is Flat Loose Change Whatever You Think, Think the Opposite Einstein's Dreams Learn to Earn Excel Bible 2003 Applied Mergers & Acquisitions (textbook) Investment Valuation (textbook) The New New Thing Innovator's Dilemma 2020 Vision Good to Great Long Walk to Freedom The Prince Endurance War and Peace The Lexus and the Olive Tree The Audacity of Hope Market Wizards
Where the Red Fern Grows - I read it when I was 13 and it still traumatizes me I think it might have been the first book I cried over -- My favorite book from Grammar School book was The Outsiders
Some other great finance books:
Fischer Black and the Revolutionary Idea of Finance - technical but very good FIASCO Fooled by Randomness Reminiscences of a Stock Operator
I'm reading Traders Guns and Money by Das and its also very good
Black Swan Confession of an Economic Hit Man
I enjoyed "The Game" by Neil Strauss as well.
The Stranger by Camus, Les Miserables by Hugo, On the Road by Kerouac. For finance related books Reminiscences of a Stock Operator was fairly inspiring.
Kama Sutra for Beginners.
"There was only one catch and that was Catch 22, which specified that a concern for one's own safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; and as soon as he did, he would no longer be crazy and would have to fly more missions. Orr would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn't, but if he was sane he had to fly them. If he flew them he was crazy and didn't have to; but if he didn't want to he was sane and had to. Yossarian was moved very deeply by the absolute simplicity of this clause of Catch-22 and let out a respectful whistle."
The first three books are miles ahead of anything I have ever read. Jack Schwager's Market Wizards changed my life. Originally a gift from my boss when i was 17 over the years I have read them over and over again. Ugly Americans just really inspires me of how life can really change and is a great perspective on the life as a trader and expat.
Market Wizards New Market Wizards Ugly Americans
Other finance books i have found influential Trade your way to financial freedom Reminiscences of a Stock Operator Trader Vic
non finance Moneyball Great Gatsby One Flew over the cuckoos nest
and finally a short story many of you have probably never heard of
Bartlby the Scrivener - This short story that I chose not to read and subsequently put my grade in a huge hole in highschool that I was forced to dig myself out of. It had one of the most memorable quotes of any book i have ever read "Ide prefer not to".
thanks trade4size
Granted I read WTRFG when I was around 11 myself, there just haven't been any books that have affected. Sure good books I've enjoyed, but not affected.
And I will try and read as many of the books in this thread as I can.
Some already mentioned it but Black Swan will change the way you feel about finance/life substantially.
Liar's Poker (sales), When Genius Fails (trading/hedge funds), Fiasco (structuring), Monkey Business (I-banking) are all must reads for want to be wall-streeters...with Liar's being the most famous/entertaining.
"Dear Mr. Henshaw" - This kid writes letters describing his home life. His dad has left his mom to go trucking. It's a small, dinky book, but the last part always makes me cry.
"American Psycho"- When I lived in Japan, it was the longest book I could find in the bookstore, and even though it was really violent, it did make me think of nyc and home.
"The Chosen" - I just finished this recently, but man is it a deep book. It talks about friendship, family love, philosophy, history, the works. It's an amazing book.
********"Babies don't cost money, they MAKE money." - Jerri Blank********
For the people who have read The Black Swan by Taleb, I would recommend reading Fooled by Randomness. It's a similar book, but I found it to be more interesting.
I know mentioning this book brings controversy, but I enjoyed reading Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged a great deal. Whether you agree with her philosophy or not, the story is terrific.
Finally, I think that When Genius Fails is a great book.
do you guys seriously ever get tired of math crazy.... I am finishing up with Cramers first book. Its pretty solid, it answered some questions i had but not much on inspiring original content. How to get access to information is what I found was the most interesting part of the book. From the way he writes it his wife accounted for much of his hedge funds sucess including the bailout in 1998.
For those of you interesting in investment banking check out Rigged by Ben Mezrich another great read.
Coopetition by Adam Brandenburger and Barry Nalebuff
Permanently changed my perspective on business tactics and competition - stretches your mind to think broadly about incentives and consequences. The only book on game theory you ever need to read, in my opinion.
Hey girlytrader - nice to see a plug for Margaret Atwood - I'm also a fan. Skip the Handmaid movie - book is way better. Did you know it was also made into an opera? Never saw it though.
I think Atlas Shrugged might be the best book of all time
This is my next read. Start by reading The Fountainhead. A sort of prequel to Atlas Shrugged.
This is correct. I've read like 800 books or something close to that (I used to keep count but stopped) and nothing has ever touched me and spoke to me as much as Atlas Shrugged did both for the philosophy behind it and just her prose and imagery.
I think it is a fantastic introduction into the mindset one should have in business/life.
Finance: One Up On Wall Street (the book that started it all for me) Liar's Poker (great entertaining peak into The Street of old) Den of Thieves (extremely well written detailed a/c of the milken madness) The Millionaire Next Door (broke down the hype of being a millionaire)
Literature: Catch 22 (see excerpt from ab123, enough said) Grapes Of Wrath (beautifully descriptive and devastatingly personal) Crime and Punishment (suspense + existentialism wrapped up nicely) Herzog (so much of the profound in single sentences) Slaughterhouse Five (strange, lovely, imaginative trip)
Self Encouragement: Think And Grow Rich (oldy but a goody from my Pops) How To Win Friends And Influence People (same as above - a CLASSIC) The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (well organized and very thoughtful)
a few favs
One More Day by Mitch Album(the Tuesdays with Morrie guy): basically about spending time with family, specifically your mother. great book for potential I-bankers to think about some things.
Jonathan Livingston Seagull: a book about the life of a seagull. Interesting look that is applicable to our lives
Kite runner: (surprised no one has mentioned it) great book about growing up and facing tragedies. I believe a movie came out, but cant vouch for it yet/
The Quran: the holy book of Muslims. Very straight forward and helps you put things into perspective.
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Penthouse forum
Books that inspired you (Originally Posted: 02/21/2015)
What are some of your personal favorites or books that simply inspired you? The books don't have to be business/finance related.
Not me personally, but for a bunch of people I know - the Bible has had a huge impact.
anything by jack welch or warren Buffett (or anything written about Buffett, most of his stuff was written by others) the carolina way - the late, great Dean Smith anything by shawn achor 7 habits - stephen covey any of the winner's circle books, nick murray, stuff about successful brokers gets me fired up
I'm big on positive psychology books and books by people who you'd like to be like (hence why I like to read about successful brokers & money managers). positive psychology is very cheesy, but if it gets you to make one positive change in your life, it's worth it
I definitely agree with you about reading anything by welch or Buffett. I'm currently reading Buffett's Essays and am thoroughly enjoying it. Have you read soros' alchemy of finance?
ill have to check out 7 habits. It looks quite interesting.
I am also big on positive psych books. One book that always comes to mind is Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning. I highly recommend it if you haven't read it.
Since you mentioned this, I would throw The Secret into the mix. About as much cheesy positive psychology as you can get, but it's good shit.
Off the top of my head right now: Outliers - Malcolm Gladwell (his other books are pretty good too but this one had the most impact on me) How To Win Friends and Influence People. I'll echo what the guy above me said too, I dont really believe in those "How to change your life with 4 steps" kinda books, but if it can make you make a change for the better, then why not.
I completely agree. I've been meaning to read how to win friends and influence people, but haven't had the time. I'm not particularly familiar with Gladwell's work so thank you for mentioning him. I'll have to read Outliers at some point (I'm pretty interested in his examintation of why the majority of Canadian hockey players are born within the first few months of each year).
Fountainhead. My thoughts on Rand have evolved as I've gotten older but Howard Roark is one of my favorite fictional characters.
Fountainhead is also one of my favorites. Have you also read Atlas Shrugged? I've heard mixed things about it
a thousand plateaus by deleuze and guattari
I've never heard of it but it looks really interesting
Nate Silver's 'The Signal and the Noise' -- not finance related but a great read about how to look/think about data
It looks interesting. I didn't realize Silver was such a prominent political forecaster.
Are any of you fans of say Nietzsche, Camus or Sartre?
big nietzsche fan, i studied under one of walter kauffman's proteges. camus is good reading and sartres fiction is better than his tomes of ontology (hey, heidegger was more interesting anyway).
foucualt, butler, hardt and negri, gramsci, spivak, harroway... these are my people...
I am, as my username might imply. Although, Nietzsche can get a little tiresome if you try to marathon through his stuff.
Predictably irrational by Dan Ariely.
g
A bit shocked nobody has said The Prince. Monkey Business and the Path to Power by Margret Thatcher. Those 3 has inspired me a lot.
Good point. The Prince and Monkey Business also inspired me. I haven't had a chance to read the Path to Power though
One of the best books I've read in a while was probably Arbeit und Struktur (not sure if it has been translated into English yet). It's pretty much about the author's struggle to accomplish as much as he can in the limited amount of time he has before he dies from his terminal brain cancer. It made me realize how much I take for granted.
Wow! That's really deep.
Completely agree with you haha! I've reread it countless times. What did you find so intriguing or inspirational about Thatcher's book?
These are hardly "inspirational" books... how about Lone Survivor?
7 Habits, Mastery (Robert Greene), The 50th Law (Robert Greene and 50 Cent), Moonwalking with Einstein.
Surprised no one has mentioned Barbarians at the Gate. Great book.
On the Road by Jack Kerouac. Read this is middle school, truly inspirational
Thinking Fast and Slow. This had been recommended to me a bunch over the last couple years, I put it off figuring it was more empty calorie pop-psychology/econ in the vein of Blink/Tipping Point/Freakanomics, but this book is really excellent and contains some real, lasting insights.
Will second this one. That book, more than any other, allowed me to realize just how bounded everyone's (especially my own) rationality is.
I absolutely agree with The Prince. Also, Let My People Go Surfing, The Alchemist and Rich Dad Poor Dad (I know there's a major post related to it now, but it did inspire me to get my first sales job).
Leadership & perseverance: Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage Self-reflection & perseverance: Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl Finance & Thinking "against the herd": Reminiscences of a Stock Operator by Edwin Lefèvre
The Way of the Superior Man
Hi Everyone, long time reader, first time poster. Currently reading Toughness by ESPN College basketball analyst Jay Bilas. Great read. Goes into what characteristics mentally tough people display in sports and in life.
The Alchemist. Somewhat cheesy but I personally thought it was a really good read. Not too long either so you can knock it out in a day or two.
The Alchemist. Somewhat cheesy but I personally thought it was a really good read. Not too long either so you can knock it out in a day or two.
Firms of Endearment- we read some excerpts in school where it grabbed my attention. It really caught hold when I was given a copy during an internship at a PE firm that invested along the premises described in the book.
Anybody on here ever read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance? I hear it's a really good read.
I have and would highly recommend it.
Yeah had to for a high school class (which I barely did then) and tried to revisit it later after college, it's really long and disconnected. I never ended up making it all the way through it.
Even though it's sappy as shit, I loved The Art of Racing in the Rain. Great book, I'd recommend it to anyone. Also have to agree with How to Win Friends and Influence People, I'll probably read it for the second time soon.
I also loved The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. It is a great book that definitely puts into perspective what is most important in life.
+1 for listing Man's Search for Meaning.
Have any of you monkeys read Peter Thiel's Zero to One? I honestly felt like it was a complete waste of my time, but then again, I half-heartedly skimmed my way through it.
yeah, not great. he's a better speaker than writer.
Ishmael by Daniel Quinn. It's the kind of book that will make you want to quit your job though.
I agree with both of you regarding Ishmael. I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Money Game by Adam Smith
Money Game is very underrated.
Reminiscences of a Stock Operator by Lefevre is an absolute must read if you want to work in markets.
As much as a lot of the guys on here seem to drool over The Wolf of Wall Street, I would've expected a few references to that as "inspiring" them. I guess it lost its luster when they figured out that Wall Street isn't just about money, coke, cars and hookers.
Read Lone Survivor and American Sniper and I was inspired but at the same time felt like a huge waste by not having done basically anything compared to those dudes.
Read the Prince. It's pretty Alpha male and driven. I love it.
LOL, A) you guys barely read, B) this reads like a suggested reading list for budding sociopaths
Anything (everything) by Taleb, Ariely, or Michael Lewis you can't go wrong.
Also just about finished with A Theory of Justice, which is extremely thought provoking.
Others:
Only the Paranoid Survive The Indomitable Investor Richard Branson Autobiographies Consolations of Philosophy How Proust Can Change Your Life Confessions (Tolstoy) Against the Gods
Oops double post
Has anyone read Deep Value: Why Activist Investors and Other Contrarians Battle for Control of Losing Corporations? If so, I'm interested in hearing about what you thought of it
American Sniper
If I had to pick one book: The Alchemist. Read it at a turning point in life and that book is perfect to me.
Other really good reads that expand the mind:
The Power of Gold: History of an Obsession Decline and Fall of Roman Empire Intelligent Investor Cat in the Hat Collected works of Tolkien The Bible, Koran, Baghavad Gita, etc... Encyclopedia Britannica (cover to cover) Deadpool comics Early Batman comics when he was completely insane Harry Potter. Sue me. Shadow Wars Guns, Germs, Steel Wealth of Nations The US Constitution, Declaration, etc. Total genius. Thus Spake Zarathustra Clifford the Dog Chomsky, lots of him Brzezinski's Grand Chessboard Monkey Business Polgar's book on chess, and no way I'm finishing that Dunham's book on fly fishing (well, tying) Bonfire of the Vanities One Hundred Years of Solitude
This could really be a long list.
Liked seeing somebody bring Tom Wolfe into the discussion. Read The Electric Koolaid Acid Test in high school and was instantly sold on his writing. Even though the latest ones (Man In Full, I Am Charlotte Simmons) have gotten bad reviews, I still like what he's doing.
This x1000
Art and Zen of Motorcycle Maintenance, not an easy or quick read, but an extraordinary philosophical work. I was really taken aback by the piece and the discussions about quality, epistemology, and rationality vs. romanticism. It's one of few books that I can say truly reassess my life. In addition, the book was rejected over 100 times and the author wrote the book from 2am-6am before going to work full-time.
Malcom Gladwell - David and Goliath !
The Bond King!
Blink!
Virus of the Mind!
The Pig That Wants to be Eaten!
1984!
Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield. It helped provide me with a deeper understanding on sacrifice, perseverance, teamwork and commitment.
Guns, Germs & Steel probably affected the way I think about the world more than any other book I can think of.
Pardon me for digressing, just watched the Guns, Germs and Steel Nat Geo documentary on YouTube, I have to say that Jared Diamonds and Edward Norton kinda resemble each other!
years ago, john sabastian raul wrote a good book called voltaire's bastards --> i dont remember most of it, but my takeaway is that small arms are worse than nuclear weapons.
i love seeing mentions of the alchemist on here. simple book, but big part of why i'm living the life i am and why i'm living in buenos aires
The Intelligent Investor Thinking, Fast and Slow (you could also read The Master-Key to Riches, its shorter) The Cash Nexus & Virtual History (same author) The Most Important Thing
My biggest take away from the Intelligent Investor had almost nothing to do with finance, but an understanding of the theory of relativity.
Intelligent Investor
Atlas Shrugged.
The Fountainhead and Atlus Shrugged. These two books made a huge impact on me when I was doing my Engineering
For the people saying rand, its like... You have read other books, right? Not just the vapid ideological soliloquy, but the dry matter of factness of the narrative frame, if we are even using that term, and the total lack of imagination in her own abandonment of the Objectivist romanticism she preaches....but not judging. Its cool if you like that kind of thing. Somebody is buying t swift, too, I guess. Takes all kinds.
I regret I have but one banana to give.
Most days, I feel a lot more like bartleby the scrivner than captain ahab
The Fountainhead (really inspired me to do well in high school), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Bourne Series by Ludlum, Meditations by Marcus Aurelius (Stoicism)
The Fountainhead (really inspired me to do well in high school), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Bourne Series by Ludlum, Meditations by Marcus Aurelius (Stoicism)
The Ultimate Guide to Anal Sex for Women. Changed my life around.
Before I read this book I used to resort to:
Me: Cmon, it will feel really good. Girl: No it's not! Me: Yes it it will. Girl: Absolutely not! Me: What if I only put the tip in?!?!
Now I have hundreds of pages of facts to bring to the table.
The Alchemist. Really gives you positive reinforcement that anything dream is possible
guess I've read a lot of inspiring books, but my top 5: Economics in one lesson by Hazlitt, Atlas Shrugged by Rand, The Black Swan by Taleb, Critique of pure reason by Kant and Essays in love by de Bottom (yeah cheesy tho really got me thinking)
oh man how could I forget? Damn it feels good to be a banker is definetly inspiring... that guy lives the dream
from the same writer of the alchemist i would recommend the pilgrimage and the warrior of the light. the former is a book about a real life experience of the author that ties in with the alchemist , it is also great because it has exercises in the book that you may find useful in your life; the latter is not a book per se but rather full of insightful quotes
the greatest trade ever and its depiction of what paulson had to go through before he cashed in i found inspiring
It wasn't inspirational per se, but I really enjoyed Candide when I read it back in high school
Sein und Zeit - Heidegger
Predictably Irrational - Dan Ariely A brave new world - Aldous Huxley Guns, Germs and Steel - Jarod Diamond Jack Welch books - although they are repetitive The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch Shogun A few of Chernow's books, house of morgan and alexander hamilton were pretty good. Dune
Lone Survivor and most recently Unbroken. Both amazing stories of surviving against all odds.
48 laws of power
Got introduced to the concept of Stoicism by a friend, and The Obstacle is The Way written by Ryan Holiday captures it really well, provides a solid context to the original Meditations version. Wen Jia Bao, the former premier of People's Republic of China has read the Meditations teachings for at least a 100 times!
For those of you interested in monetary policy, the IMF, currency wars, the Fed, the roles of central banks, the gold standard, I'd totally recommend Currency Wars and The Death of Money written by James Rickards. Absolutely brilliant.
Fountainhead by Ayn Rand How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg Wild Cheryl Strayed
I read three books of Malcolm Gladwell's, Outliers, David and Goliath, and What the Dog Saw. And they are all very inspiring!! By the end of last year, I also read Think Like A Freak and The Power of Habits. Mindblowing? Pretty much!
The Theory of Money and Credit
The Theory of Money and Credit
The Millionaires Mind, Thomas Stanley
The Millionaire Next Door is a great book. Definitely inspired me to think about how I spend, save, and invest.
How to Win Friends and Influence People Greater Than Yourself Getting Things Done
How We Got to Now: Six Innovations That Made the Modern World by Steven Johnson
The Buffett biography by Lowenstein - it made sense of value investing for me and really set me up career-wise.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - one way to enhance the imagination as a kid (without smoking/snorting/injecting something)
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind - I'd read somewhere that Steve Jobs read this book on meditation. I needed a way to clean out the dead wood in my brain. Someone on WSO recommended The Practicing Mind; well, I think Zen Mind is more abstract and maybe more effective.
Unbroken
The Alchemist The Five People You Meet in Heaven
Alex Ferguson's auto-biographies - Great perspective on how he managed Manchester United as a sports line-up and a business.
+1 for the books listed
Tuesdays with Morrie is always one I recall
How to make friends and influence people - D.Carnegie Diplomacy - H.Kissinger Thinking Fast And Slow - D.Kahneman The power of habit - C.Duhigg On the brink - H.Paulson
One of the most influential books i've read is "How will you measure you life" by Clayton Christensen.
Father Son and Co, story about thomas Watson jr and how he took IBM to the next level. Reason I liked it was that it proved to me that other people have struggles too and you just gotta keep on working.
How much do you read / What books have influenced your life the most? (Originally Posted: 03/12/2012)
Just interested in how much people read here? How do you fit in reading to a busy schedule?
I am looking for some new books to read, so I wanted to ask what sort of books have influenced your life the most - gave something that lasted for longer than a week (please don't say The Secret or some other shit)? I read a lot of fiction, but I don't feel like I get out a lot of it and I've read somewhere in the range of 200-400 books.
The books that got me going:
The Bible - Helps me put things in perspective
Barbarians at the Gate - Shows you how deals really get done.
Think BIG .. by some doctor.
Satires are some of the most under appreciated books the genre as a whole is far superior to pretty much any other genre of books. With that being said Bret Easton Ellis is a true genius and he writes social satires. In reality while his characters are usually grossly over stated his books are sharp criticisms of society as a whole.
I'm reading "Thinking, Fast and Slow" and "Coming Apart" right now, both good reads.
Dave Barry's Money Secrets. Changed my life.
Playboy changed my life when I was in 1st grade.
Did you read it?
.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. Is a great read.
How's it compare to The Pilgrimage? Own the latter, haven't read it yet.
Right now I'm reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. While definitely not my favorite read, it does raise good thoughts on recognizing different personalities and stuff like that. Not far enough through to say much more than that.
Fountainhead - good story, slow read though. Enjoyed it.
I'm up pretty early and don't have cable, so usually pre-work is reading for career type stuff (CFA, finance/professional development, industry pieces, whatever) then any spare time in the evening I'll read fiction. Usually can get an hour or so in before bed.
Read anything by Albert Camus, "There is but one truly serious philosophical problem and that is suicide." You can also try anything by Dostoyevsky.
Read classics--these books have stood the test of time and have been peer reviewed by thousands of people smarter than you. Doesn't matter if you end up liking them or not.
Classics give us a shared cannon on which to draw for analogies or anecdotes. Speaking with someone else who has read the classics makes for more interesting conversation as you can frequently relate the topic of conversation to the various books you have in common.
Simple example - I was recently talking about Edward Snowden with someone and likened him to Winston from 1984. My interlocutor thought he was more like Prometheus.
Maybe it's just me but I get a kick out of that sort of thing.
Dance of the Furies by Michael Nieberg
Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
Very amusing, really solid plot and characterization
our crowd ( the great jewish families of ny) by stephen birmingham. great book!
Read the series of Rome sub rosa by Steven Saylor its entertaining plus it depicts historical events in Ancient Rome.
Beware, you might get addicted...
I rarely read fictions, especially fantasy genre.
Fav authors maybe Mitch Albom and Malcolm Gladwell. Memorable books: How to Read a Person Like a Book (Gerald Nierenberg) and Virus of the Mind (Richard Brodie).
Currently reading The WSJ Guide to Information Graphics (Dona Wong), re-reading The Intelligent Investor (Benjamin Graham), and just finished Young Money (Kevin Roose).
Oh, How to Steal Like an Artist (Austion Kleon) is fun too.
Unbroken. Best book I've read in the last 5 years.
The Black Swan
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Autem quia minima assumenda cum quia quod sequi. Id et quam commodi consequatur odio. Cupiditate esse accusantium omnis sed. Excepturi et qui est natus eum.
Ducimus nam inventore sint vero ut in facere quia. Voluptate quia sequi dolore consequatur. Tempora ullam libero ex et esse. Animi mollitia adipisci et natus in non. Neque voluptatibus ex exercitationem dolorem quia voluptas.
Tenetur dolorum aut molestiae quia qui aut. Ratione dignissimos et dicta ut. Nisi accusantium quasi aperiam recusandae magni reiciendis asperiores voluptatem.
Nulla laboriosam adipisci quidem voluptatem. Sit non aut odio voluptatem. In explicabo possimus ea nostrum. Quis distinctio quia quia deleniti quisquam dicta aliquam. Magnam similique veritatis est aperiam et molestiae.
Id architecto provident nemo inventore. Nisi autem nobis unde nulla fugit quod consequatur fugiat. Rem doloribus necessitatibus odit perferendis. Quae esse maxime eum pariatur ipsum deserunt nemo aliquam. Ea tempore libero cumque sed molestias temporibus quisquam.
Molestias eveniet impedit molestiae ut commodi. Sint architecto libero a omnis molestiae beatae. Voluptatibus quia soluta illo quis saepe non.
Aut ratione et quia non. Minus omnis deserunt expedita non vel. Minus in praesentium ipsam ipsam. Aperiam tempore consequatur libero repudiandae. Ut itaque ullam consequatur adipisci.
Reiciendis quidem consectetur nostrum quas quas qui sit. Et est ullam consequatur est voluptas. Laudantium veniam est esse aut quaerat. Dolorem eum minima minima explicabo.
Ea id pariatur quam iure maxime. Sit cum recusandae quos odio atque eligendi. Odio at omnis aut hic. Dolor necessitatibus dolor provident aperiam adipisci rem. Corrupti dolore eum rerum at natus. Error impedit accusantium aperiam voluptatem magnam dolores quos libero.