Well, Jia Qing Yap tagged me this morning, and since International Literacy Day is next week, Ill share the 10 books which have influence my life/thoughts. Honestly, I struggled to pick out 10 titles. Ive easily read tens of thousands of books, so many of which I would love to find and read again if only time permits. That being said, I would make no pretense at the (lack of) diversity of the books I read. History, politics, religion, geography, travel...thats about it. I do have an inclination to delve in-depth into certain topics which fascinate me - Ancient Egypt (esp. the Old Kingdom) is one, the Tudor Century is another - and largely ignore the rest. Here then, in no particular order: 1) The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau / Perhaps it was ironic enough that I read it JUST before I enlisted. It so beautifully expounds on the power of the masses. Many of the observations which disgusted Rousseau still persist today however. 2) Common Sense by Thomas Paine 3) The Secret History of the World by Jonathan Black / Possibly THE most life-changing book Ive ever read. When I picked it up as a Sec 3 student back in 2009, I scarcely expected that it would, irreversibly, turn my prior understading of ancient history entirely on its head. It challenged all my basic notions of the dim past and ruthlessly assails the Established view of history with a litany of rather convincing counter-examples. I didnt even finish reading it unfortunately (it vanished in the midst of my O-Level preparations and I never found it) but what I have read left my mind preoccupied with the continual hankering for any shred of evidence on Atlantis, any sensational find beneath the shifting sands of Egypt, on the lofty valleys of Tibet, or elsewhere. The next 4 books in this list, and hundreds more I have read since, attest to this enduring obsession. 4) The Orion Mystery: Unlocking the Secrets of the Pyramids by Robert Bauval 5) The Giza Power Plant by Christopher Dunn 6) Unearthing Ancient America by Frank Joseph 7) From Atlantis to the Sphinx by Colin Wilson 8) In the Lions Court: Power, Ambition and Sudden Death in the Reign of Henry VIII by Derek Wilson 9) The Merchant of Venice 10) The Oxford History of Modern Europe / I have not read John Merrimans volumes on a similar topic, but I believe it to be a worthy alternative. I wonder what your top 10 picks are? Benjamin Heng Harvey Lim Travis Quek Jaryl Ling Anh Kim
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 14:58:02 +0000
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