SirWere:
Top 5 Bro; thre are literally hundreds of books that shape up the event of one's life.
Off my head, I can mention 15 books that would stick with you.

Just 5 Ahh

Well; seeing this is constricted; I'll pick 5 books from 5 different authors.

1) The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

2) The Trial : Frank Kafka

3) The remains of the day by Kaguro Ishiguro

4) 1984 by George Orwell



and....




















Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

SirWere:
Top 5 Bro; thre are literally hundreds of books that shape up the event of one's life.
Off my head, I can mention 15 books that would stick with you.

Just 5 Ahh

Well; seeing this is constricted; I'll pick 5 books from 5 different authors.

1) The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

2) The Trial : Frank Kafka

3) The remains of the day by Kaguro Ishiguro

4) 1984 by George Orwell



and....




















Catch 22 by Joseph Heller

SirWere:

I don't know whether all Russian literature writers at that time swore an oath to make their plots long and windy.
Lolita by Vladmir Nabakov was also the same.
Everyone's been recommending that book to me now. I'll shelve it. Definitely a to read.

Ah Ishiguro novels always have that effect. That man had an innate talent for digging deep and touching you down inside....

Add "The remains of the day" too to that list. Powerful stuff

I've actually read all 13 books in the Ender series; from Enders Game to Shadow of the hegemon to speaker for the dead.
Orson branched out from Ender in those books and talked about different characters though.
Unless you're committed to sci-fi; you would have trouble adjusting.

Ah; I also have problems arranging my fiction list. That's why I just put down the first books that come to my mind.
No rushes.
I want to drown in academia too but my mind just ain't agreeing with me

nightingalee:
Firstly, Your bible.
2. 33 strategies of war.
3. The mastery.
4. 48 laws of power
5. Art of seduction.
... All four books authored by Robert Greene. The importance of these books cannot be over-emphasized, take my word for it.

askibee:





haven't u heard? haven't you seen? why remain in your shell, are dere no demons walking around on the earth, dis you think bartimaeus was formed like dat? broda wisdom is all dat matters, d devil stand has an acusser and he posses power on earth, he can destroy, steal and cos serious confusion even jesus Christ who is a God was tempted, you think d devil was bluffing when he said bow to me and I will gv u d whole earth? have you forgotten d saying woe unto men for the devil is cast down on earth

cooncudee:
1984?really? that photocopy of animal farm?. catch22 REALLY?! whoisthis? never thought anyone could suggest that crazy bk fr others

kjhova:
My 5 books will be:
4: Things fall apart - Chinua Achebe (How it is inevitable for societies that refuse change to collapse in presence of superior people)

Now many have selected "The 48 Laws". I consider the book a hogwash and I am not alone. You can do a quick internet check on that. Greene is a good author but a misleading observer. If you follow the 48 laws, you may or may not make it to greatness in life but you will certainly become a selfish and cold hearted character who is nothing more than a schemer who no one should draw close to.

Exciton:




If you're based in Naija, then this will be the first time in my life that I get to see a home bred Nigerian who knows Fyodor Dostoyevsky and Kaguro Ishiguro.

But what do I know, I'm just a science person who has no naija friends with arts or humanities background.

Nice list, but it's lacking in science and history.

Kingbilo:
If anybody put gifted hands here, that person needs slap

gabrielniy:
It largely depends on the area you want to develop. For general purpose:
1) The richest man in Babylon
2) Why nations fail
3) Outliers
4) Rich dad poor dad series
5) The power of positive thinking

merahki:


Will try again....thank you...and I read books lightly...never seriously, this affected me in medical school
I think the hype about it was too much, and I expected to be wowed from page one, when it didnt happen, my brain zonked out...has to be
Les Miserables was a joy (I read it during my nysc...10 years ago)
My friend had the book, and I borrowed it from him....during our service year, we read sooo many classics, have lost count...Madame Bovary on my mind too

Now thinking how time flies, and how we let people off our radar...my service year was an awesome one, far away iin Boko Haram land, imagine
I haaate soft copies of books with every fibre of my being....I only read the Twilight series from a device, that was a real drag, I resolved never to again even though I loved the books.
I would rather wait till I get the hard copy of any book I want to read...I like the sound when I turn a page, or dog-ear a page for later (guilty me, covers face)
Cheers

SirWere:
1984 is a critical thoughtpiece that everyone who wants to explore how the real danger and implication of being the odd man out.

And Catch22 is crazy humor. You can't deny it
There are still some countries as potrayed in the book. North Korea for example.

SirWere:

I'm sorry, but I don't think that was what Achebe was trying to potray in the book.


While I agree that Greene may deliberately tantalize the readers, I wouldn't go as call 48 laws Hogwash.
48 laws is actually a practical guide to attaining power in any environment. And as for the claims of being "cold hearted"; that's hogwash. We all unconsciously apply these laws in life. Greene just brings it to the fore.
If you have read 48 laws and other Robert Greene books, you will notice that he is a careful researcher who distills ideas from hundreds of other works. You may not like the idea personally but to call it hogwash is......hogwash

cooncudee:
on that, 1984 presents an exaggerated example of these 'dangers and implications'. I'd recommend Ayn Rand's 'The fountainhead' for that. If I could buy d time I wasted on that bk, I would.
I still wouldnt suggest catch22.

Ezionye:


Do u have soft copies of any of these? Pretty please

Except the bible.

kjhova:

Hmmm...I apologise for my extreme views on 48 Laws. It is just that I found a few contradictions in them. Also, I can't help feeling that a Hitler wana be would find the laws more appealing and useful than a Mandela or Ghandi wana be. I guess it comes down to individual views and definition of power.

As for Chinua's Things Fall Apart, of course i agree the book has multifaceted learning points. What struck me the most as a socio-political fellow is the eventual outcome of the clash of civilizations and how poor adaptability can be detrimental to the lesser civilization. Okonkwo being the key personification of this.

PrettyGaby:

and you just had to bring messi and Ronaldo into it

SirWere:


And with that statement, you have taken the words right out of my mouth.
I think Greene succesfully depicted the struggle for power through the eyes of a Macheivellian cynicist.
Emotions, basic goodness, empathy; that sh+t don't matter unless you can manipulate it to acheive your aims.
The scary thing is all great leaders; leaders who have made history not just read it, have applied the laws Greene listed, although they may not have been manipulative in their purpose.
Gandhi applies The Rule on Presenting yourself as weak to your opponents;

Mandela carefully honed and crafted his reputation.

And many others, I'm sure but I can't remember right now.
While one might not be comfortable with the Greene's cynical commentary and lessons; one should learn them, hone and refine them. Or so I think.


I doff my hat to the insightful dissection of the okonkwo- englishman issue.
But once more, I don't think it was a lesser civillization tussle. Can civillization be quantified, on any scale?
Apart from that; I fully agree with you.

SirWere:

P.S : Can you recommend some books which analyzes the socio-political problems of Nigeria and Africa in general from a ...... Detached perspective The closest I've seen to that so far, "There was a country" was coloured by Achebe's personal and tribal sentiments.

Revolva:
the adventure s of nackson lolly magazine wow i missed it

SirWere:

Yes, well, it is best to keep in mind the times and political ramblings that was going on at the time George Orwell wrote the book. The book was specifically written to condemn communism and socialism and it does so rather brutally. It might seem over exaggerated to you but there were once times where the ideogogue and political machinations were scaringly similar to what he potrayed.
Yes, the book might be long and winding sometimes but it also contains sailent observations about dictatorial government and tendencies. I personally don't think it's a waste of time.



And maybe it's because I disdain Ayn Rand after reading Anthem but I don't think FountainHead would outshine 1984.

---

Catch 22 ; is a book that captures the heavy absurdism and confusion in war and life in general.
It might never be regarded as a great classic but I feel the book is as funny as f.

But it's a love it or hate it book. If you don't appreciate absurd humor or can't stand the endless stream of characters, and the whole senseless confusion about war in general; well, you can't like it

cooncudee:
Prior to your mentioning it here, it skipped my mind that George Orwell (the author of Animal farm) wrote 1984. Now I understand why I kept having this nagging feeling of disdain at the graphic descriptions and and overemphasis of the author while reading the book (same way I felt reading Animal farm). I dont take subjective writers seriously. They employ every means to drive home thier point (including exaggeration). Wont read either of the two books a second time.

I dont like Ayn Rand either, but The fountainhead presents a very good representation of the 'consequences' of being the odd one out/standing out.

Catch22 on the other hand, I like, but wont recommend. For same reasons as you mentioned above. It can put ideas in some people's heads

::I knw u from Oau's thread. Aw fr with Oau?

Mynd44:

Da Vinci has been dead for decades bruh.

Dan Brown wrote the book

kjhova:


The problem with defending christianity with the bible or islam with the koran is that the evidence itself is automatically subjective and refutable. How can you confirm the validity of a faith with evidence from books written by fanatical adherents of the same faith? Evidence backed with no empiricity of any type.

So, You have not seen any demon roaming the Earth, you have no evidence that there was a Barthimeaus not to metion that some devil was behind his blindness. No evidence that Jesus is/was some god, certainly no evidence that the so-called devil tempted him thrice.

This particular story is odd for the fact that this Jesus supposedly spent 40 days ALONE on a mountain top only for us to have this fabulous telling of the devil tempting thrice? Was it that a descended Jesus told his followers this story? In this case, isn't this mere hearsay from the fellow who may or may not be nothing more than a vain glory seeking character?

If I spend 3 days alone in my room only to come out to tell you that I killed a demonic lion while in there, would you rather hail me to posterity or place an emergency 767 call to LASEMA for possible help?

nightingalee:
https://www.fichier-pdf.fr/2015/12/15/robert-green/robert-green.pdf