Non-Fiction Books People Should Read

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http://list25.com/25-non-fictional-book ... ould-read/

I actually read Tuesdays with Morrie in my English class at my vocational school. Some parts I thought were a little sad, but it was very inspiring. After we read the book, like Mitch interviewed Morrie, the class had to interview an elderly person in their life, e.g. their grandparent. I learned some things about my grandmother that I hadn't before (like when she used to work as a soda jerk as a teenager).

The Interpretation of Dreams? Why???

If I were them I would add on to the list, Ideas have Consequences by Richard Weaver, Plato's The Republic, The Social Contract by Jean Jacques Rousseau, Confucius The Analects, and the Dhammapada, translated by Eknath Easwaren.

I personally recommend "Physics for Engineers & Scientists". It's a useful scientific source for skeptics and debunkers, as well as scientists and engineers.

You may be able to find the 1st or 2nd editions at used book stores.

Interesting. I have an old paperback copy of the Tao Te Ching & Hua Hu Ching.


I have read Sun Tzu: The Art of War. I feel that book contains good strategic and objective thinking and contains many good quotes about waging war.


The book I have not read yet, but I think I should, is The Prince.

I have read The Lost Art Of Walking by Jeff Nicholson.

Amusing commentary on pedestrianism.

Ten points off for writing "non-fictional" when she means "nonfiction." A fictional book is one which does not actually exist outside a work of fiction, like the various textbooks and dragonkeepers' guides mentioned in the Harry Potter saga.

Anyway, I would add Hazlitt's Economics in One Lesson. I can only dream of how much more prosperous the world would be if most people had a good grasp of economics and voted accordingly.

Some suggestions from me, sticking to "popular" books (that is, books which are accessible to a lay audience) and trying to avoid duplication:

Matt Ridley- "Genome"
Nick Lane- "Life Ascending"
Mark Lynas- "The God Species"
Ben Goldacre- "Bad Science"
Mark Henderson- "The Geek Manifesto" (or, for an American, "The Republican War On Science" by Chris Mooney may be more relevant)
Bill Bryson- "A Short History Of Nearly Everything"
Richard Dawkins- "The Oxford Book Of Modern Science Writing"
Mary Roach- "Packing For Mars"
Michio Kaku- "Parallel Worlds"
Ian Stewart- "Professor Stewart's Cabinet of Mathematical Curiosities"
Alex Bellios- "Alex's Adventures In Numberland"
Nate Silver- "The Signal And The Noise"
Daniel Kahnemann- "Thinking, Fast And Slow"
Ian MacDonald- "Revolution In The Head"
Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner- "Freakonomics"
Douglas Adams and Mark Cavendish- "Last Chance To See"
Bill Bryson- "The Complete Notes"
Charlie Connelly- "Stamping Grounds"
Joe McGinniss- "The Miracle Of Castel Di Sangro"
Matthew Syed- "Bounce"
Michael J. Sandel- "Justice"
Nigel Warburton- "A Little History Of Philosophy"
Pierro Ferucci- "The Power Of Kindness"
Sandra Newman- "How Not To Write A Novel"

Anything by Dr. Carl Sagan (except "Contact").

Personally, I enjoyed the book "Between a Rock and a Hard Place", by Aron Ralston. It really makes you think about how many things you have in your life, and that you shouldn't overlook them. Certainly not for the weak-stomached; the book describes how Ralston was trapped under a boulder for over 5 days, and did a self-amputation on his arm. A movie (which I have not had the chance to see) was made out of it, called "127 hours".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Between_a_ ... %28book%29

One of the best books I've read is The Demon-Haunted World: Science As A Candle In The Dark by Carl Sagan. It's about how technology and science has shaped the modern world, and how scientific illiteracy affects us when so much today depends on technology. The book was written in 1996, and its even more relevant today, maybe more relevant every year that goes by.

Charles Darwin - On the Origin of Species.

I cannot believe they didn't include that on the list. It should have been number one.

I have a clear favourite here in the books of J.E. Gordon about materials and structures. The format is stories about the history of engineering, which are quite entertaining struggles, and the result is a better balanced sense of engineering than I see in many professionals. Gordon is not only a superb writer, he also lends his name to the Cook-Gordon mechanism for crack-stopping, which is what all non-metallic but tough substances such as wood and fiberglass use to avoid being as fragile as solid glass.

There are dozens of books on the current ecological crisis, and I can't pick out the best for you, but one I found fascinating was Collapse, by Jared Diamond, which has the history of many failed civilizations, and IIRC, some inspiring self-rescues, such as Tikopia.

Sociobiology is probably the best book to have been widely reviled in my lifetime.