To Kill a Mockingbird

Great thread. 2019 was the first time in about 7-8 years I made reading for pleasure a tertiary priority ((school+career)work/sleep/exercise+socializing+(NEW!)reading) and I got through about 20 books of varying length and difficulty, so here are the next 20 in my queue: - Infinite Jest (already started, will likely finish in early Jan. I love it so far.) - Quantum Computing Since Democritus (started in November as my nonfiction read, but took a break; I think I want to finish IJ first. Scott is an excellent writer and I was really enjoying this) - Building Microservices - The Code Book - How Cars Work (I want to turn the projection of a car in my brain from a black box to a gray box this year, and I don't mean by purchasing a Cybertruck) - To Kill a Mockingbird…

To kill a mockingbird. Quite frankly that both introduced me to racism and taught me to strongly condemn it. I also learnt the value of education and the utility of appropriate conduct.

Update: added a few lines about the books than just a name listing From the ones I read in 2017, I would highly recommend (non-IT): 1. The hidden life of trees- Peter Wohlleben Why forest trees are different than the ones you plant, how the communicate, how they care for their friends when they are not well, how mother trees protect their young ones by not letting them grow too fast, the fungi network, etc. The book is very easy to read- there is no scientific terminology overload. Things are told very simply. Not restricted to students of the subject. Learned something interesting every couple of pages. Another aspect is that the love shows. It is very clear that the author is in love with the subject. The author manages a wild forest in Germany and talks mainly about trees in terms of beeches, firs, oaks, etc. The author is politely insistent that we should protect the natural wild forests and let them be. 2. Why the allies won- Richard Overy Probably the best book I read on WW2. So many more factors went into winning the war than actual fight. Probably appealed to my analytical mind.…

Well, "fiction" is an incredibly broad category (if it can even be called that). And "must read" is highly subjective ;-) If you're just looking for some light entertainment, go for sci-fi or fantasy (Lord of the Rings, anyone?). But if you don't mind some slightly "heavier" reading, have a look at the classics. In some cases they can be a little tricky to understand, but they are called "classics" for a reason... Specific suggestions (incomplete and in no particular order): Shakespeare's plays, Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice", Daniel Defoe's "Robinson Crusoe", Harper Lee's "To kill a mockingbird", JM Barrie's "Peter Pan", Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories...

Oh boy, you fucked up now. Here are the books I read this past year that I felt were "Good", starting from the most recent : To Kill A Mocking Bird (Insanely good) True Grit (Insanely good) The Little Friend (Good) Priceless (Very good, about art theft) The Secret History (Insanely good) Ready Player One (Good, nerdy) Shadow Divers (Very good, history nerd book) Diary of Anne Frank (Very good) Unbroken (Very good, way better than the movie) With The Old Breed at Peleliu and Okinawa (Very good) Seveneves (good, but I'm a Stephenson fanboy) The Martian (Very good, but just watch the movie). I read a bunch of other stuff, but that's what I found really "good" this past year.

to kill a mocking bird: it was refreshing, looking for more simple books like this one

I am biased towards fiction. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. The timeless beauty and innocence of the book remains unparalleled. Light in August, by William Faulkner. It is the opposite of the above, dealing with complex emotions. Faulkner's prose and characters are unmatched in their depth.

To Kill a Mockingbird

I also read "To Kill a Mocking Bird" for the first time, and it is truly a work of art.

My younger self wouldn't have been interested in the books that interest me now. Instead I'd have to settle for some good fiction. Going back in time to around 12-16, I'd send one of: * Brave New World - Aldous Huxley * 1984 - George Orwell * To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee * Catch 22 - Joe Heller * Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut * Of Mice and Men - Steinbeck * Fahrenheit 451 - Ray Bradbury * The Call of Ctulhu - H.P. Lovecraft * Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card Some of those I actually read in school and loved (but wish I read earlier), others I didn't. I think any of those books would've interested me at the time. There's plenty of time for Rich Dad, Poor Dad, SPIN Selling and all the business books later in life.