6 Books That Influence Me Everyday

I wanted to do 5, but I couldn't seperate those at number 3.

1. The Bible – Like the song says, “I am so glad that our Father in Heav’n Tells of His love in the Book He has giv’n; Wonderful things in the Bible I see, This is the dearest, that Jesus loves me.” There is nothing better than knowing that someone loves you- except having it in print.

2. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison – This is book is so many things. It is the first “grown-up” book I ever read. I used to see it on the shelf in my parent’s bedroom and I always wanted to read it. Something about it just called to me. I would constantly touch it and finally around the 6^th grade I read it. It cracked my world wide open. I had never been so consumed by a book. The lessons about self-hate, desire, the need for acceptance, and love are too much to explain. It is a total must read.

3 & 4. Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin/ Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe – I am the only one of my peers to have read these books and that is a shame because together these books highlight race relations in a most interesting way. I read Black Like Me first. I just could not believe the premise. What would he learn? What made him think this experiment was a good idea? Even when I talk to people about it now they look at me like I made it up. The way that Harriet views Uncle Tom and his motives is an interesting contrast to Howard’s evolving view as he learns from behind the scenes. Her explanations for the behaviors she sees in black culture made me laugh riotously as much as it made me furious that she could be so audacious as to insult us by painting such a simplistic and unrealistic of our lives and mental fortitude. Even as I type it makes my blood run hot, but then I realize that is one of the things I like about this work. I like knowing that she has no idea of the reasons we wore the “happy slave” mask and that books should evoke emotions. I was drawn to reading Uncle Tom’s Cabin for the same reason many of my peers are turned off. I just had to understand what was so bad about being an Uncle Tom. Now I know, but I like to still give him credit for not snitching on the slaves that ran when he decided to stay.

5. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens – I, like many, read this book in high school. I have always loved to read, but most of the books on my high school reading list just did not excite me. I had great teachers who somehow made books like The Pearl, The Good Earth, The Crucible, and The Scarlet Letter interesting enough. I will admit that I never finished The Invisible Man despite trying 4 times. Hamlet was a wash. I wrote my essay based on the movie and general knowledge, but A Tale of Two Cities was different. I was so vivid and so carefully written and full of tension and drama. I loved every moment. I even used a children’s version as a study guide despite being teased by a classmate. It helped me flesh out the story so that I could understand and appreciate the picture were painting. The ending makes my heart pound just think about it. In my opinion this plot twist comes second only to that of the movie The Sixth Sense.

6. The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx – I am by no means a supporter of Communism, but the sheer audacity of someone to declare a manifesto of his ideals virtually declaring a revolution without any actual group of supporters lets me know that I as an individual have the power to change history should I so choose.