Life Changing books

[grokim]

I was thinking the other day, after reading some of the threads on the nings about books, how they (books) can impact us. I was curious what books you've read that have impacted you or changed you in some way.
For me two books I connected with right away and just made a huge differences was Just Listen by Sarah Dessen and The Awakening by Kate Chopin. I know some people dont like these books, particularly The Awakening, but I will always love it because it impacted me in a deeper way. It just spoke to something and helped me to realize a lot of things.
So Nerdfighters, what books have you read thats affected you deeply. That maybe it changed your life, or comforted you during a hard time? Maybe it got you into reading, or caused you to think about things on a different level? It can be more than one book, and if you feel comfortable enough share why it affected you.

[Julie Anne]

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins cemented ideas harbouring in the back of my head about humanity and the nature of its evils.

Little Princess by Frances Hodgens Burnett and Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah were also big things in my life as a kid.

[Jenny Lind]

The Bible
The Book Theif
and anything by GK Chesterton

[michelle]

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. I'm not sure why I connected with it the first time, but it is a really beautiful book. It makes you feel less self-conscious, because we're all different and unique, and sometimes our culture wants to embrace our similarity, or promote a single image. Also A Mango Shaped Space.

[Christy]

Looking for Alaska,Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life,and The Same Stuff As Stars were basically the ones that connected to me and I think changed me.

[Team Unicorn (ningmaster)]

I read Thirteen Reason Why a week ago. I think the reason it really made me change my outlook on life was the fact that it was a teenage girl struggling with her life. And frankly, I'd been an emotional ball of stress and screamy panic for two weeks before due to graduation. I really enjoyed the book and it gave me hope. Just remember to have a lot of kleenex if you do read it. lol. Best wishes.

[D.e.m.]

One really inspiring book that I just read was "I am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak. It was great.

[Evie]

I have to say a lot of people talk about Just Listen by Sarah Dessen, but the best Sarah Dessen book by far is Dreamland. That book literally changed my view on life as a teenager. Also, another great book is Anna Karenina. It will take a while until you get into it, but once you do, it will suck you in and change the way you view life in general. AWESOME BOOK!

[Amerah]

The Perks of Being A Wallflower, for me. Kind of.

[Nate a.k.a. "Mateo"]

Books don't change me in the cliche, "empowering" sort of way. (Good) books, rather manipulate my perspectives on certain subjects or ways of life. I won't go into the themes, etc. but this list is the best that I can do.

A Clockwork Orange, Anthony Burgess
Slaughterhouse-Five, Kurt Vonnegut
The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger
Fight Club, Chuck Palahniuk
Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck

[James Jensen]

I agree very much, Nate. I feel that every book I read leaves an impression upon me of some sort. I take things from it, and I leave things from the experience: always growing. Reading is an incredibly interactive process, which is why I have so much trouble coming up with any particular "life-changing book."

[Jack Taitt]

The Catcher in the Rye.
Im sure it has been mentioned already on this forum: D but...
I think a lot of young people can relate to Holden through their teen years. When they are faced with adolesent pressure and the tension of growing up. So read it!!:]

[Jason G]

I didn't care for the story, but I loved the character. It was a really weird read for me, and kind of hard to get through. I ended up caring about Holden, but there was no plot.