Alright this is going to sound kind off silly but the book that changed my opinion about something would be The Martian by Andy Weir. It changed my opinion because I used to think Mars would be so cool to visit but after reading about Mark’s time trying to survive on Mars, I think I am good just staying on Earth 😛
Synopsis (Taken from Goodreads): Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.
Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there.
After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive — and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.
Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error” are much more likely to kill him first.
But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills — and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit — he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?
This book was so intense! I loved that it was scientific but that it dumbed it down a bit for you to understand. The way Mark survived for so long all by himself with very limited supplies was amazing. You find yourself constantly wondering how this guy is still alive (I know if I was in these circumstances, I would not last long :P). This is one of those rare cases where the movie followed the book almost exactly and was just as intense. Andy Weir is a great writer and I would strongly recommend checking him out if you ever get the chance. I know he recently just came out with another book which I will have to pick up soon.
Let me know which book changed your opinion on something in the comments!
It isn’t that it changed my opinion, it just made me more aware of something.
THUG by Angie Smith practically slammed racism in my face. Over here there’s simply not the drastic kind of racism that America apparently has to cope with on a daily basis. Sure, people stick to “their own kind” but to say they’re treated completely unfairly because of it.. Not really. Or I don’t think they do. Not that I’ve noticed / heard?
THUG, however, opened my eyes that it could be a whole lot worse. Ever since I’ve been careful not to be even the slightest bit racist. We all know how easy it is to sit next to another white person instead of a colored one if you’re white yourself. Trying not to do things like that!
[God, I hope this whole rant doesn’t come off the wrong way to others.. :’)]
So.. Didn’t change my mind, but, in a way it did?
That’s very cool. Yea I wish racism wasn’t an issue because it doesn’t matter what colour of skin you have, we are all people and we should treat each other with kindness and respect. I haven’t read too many books dealing with this issue but I would be interested in getting into some. Any other recommendations for this? I heard “The Hate You Give” is really good.
Yeah, indeed. Reading a book like that definitely points you in the direction you do NOT want to head.
Haha, THUG = The Hate U Give! 😀 I can’t really think of another one like it though..
Alright well I will check it out!
The first book that changed my opinion was Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. When I grew up people would always gush about America and how great it is bc of Hollywood and the cool high school life you see in movies. I read Americanah when it just came out and it pretty much changed my opinion on America very quickly. Similar to THUG it tackled racism but in a very different way not too much focused on gun violence but a lot of other racist patterns and topics. It also talked about immigrant life in America and how your perception of your home country can change and how people in your country may perceive you as different and more American and how the second you leave Nigeria you are not Nigerian you are black.
Wow that sounds like it has a very powerful storyline.
It really does. And the thing that I loved the most is how sarcastic the main character was and how critical. In the book you actually get snippets from her blog where she talks about her experience with racism. They were so snarky and definitely my favourite parts of the book.
Nice! Snarky can be so funny sometimes 😛 I know I can get snarky if I don’t have coffee
Or food…don’t be around me when I am hungry. 😀
Don’t know if the answer is “no books” or “all books”, as all, or nearly all, books alter my perception of things but I can’t think of something specifically that changed my opinion. . 🙂
Well, not quite true as I can think of three books that actually altered the course of my life: one fiction, one fiction based on (maybe) true events, one non-fiction.
1. Lord Valentine’s Castle by Robert Silverberg. The main character ends up in a travelling circus where he becomes a juggler. The description of how he learned juggling was so intriguing I photocopied a library book on juggling (Carlo’s The Juggling Book), learned how to juggle, and within a year had all the gear (balls, clubs, rings, fire clubs, plates, spinners, diablos) so I could do some busking.
2. The Tracker by Tom Brown, Jr. It’s supposed to be non-fiction but knowing Tom as I do now I know much of it is fabricated. It is about Tom as a young boy who learns how to track and survive in the woods. It fired my interest in tracking and wilderness survival so much that 15 years later I quit working full-time to take numerous courses with Tom at his wilderness survival and tracking school in New Jersey. Even those courses only whetted my appetite so after the last course I didn’t return to work, but returned to school instead to become a biologist so I could learn even more.
3. Meh, don’t feel like getting into it now, have work to do. :-)) But it is a science book that brilliantly dismantled some philosophical pseudo-science arguments. These were the arguments I’d used, but now I saw how greatly over-simplified, and in many cases just plain wrong, they were. So, I had to change a great many opinions.
By the way, when you read Artemis you won’t want to live on the moon either. :-))) I finished it off this a.m.
I will still read it lol, the last one was so intense,. I can’t wait to dive into this one.
I enjoyed it. Different than The Martian (which is a good thing, otherwise it would be The Martian except on the moon), but it has a resourceful character too. I started reading it at 9:30 last night, went to bed at a decent hour, then finished it over breakfast this a.m. I have some thoughts on it, but not saying anything other than I enjoyed it so I don’t ruin anyone else’s experience. 🙂
Alright I appreciate that ! I will probably review on the blog once I finish it and knowing me I will want to buy it to have on my bookshelf so a trip to the mall is in order.
The book I’m going to share didn’t exactly change my opinion on anything, but it did help me through one of the most traumatic times in my life. The book is “When Bad Things Happen to Good People”, by Rabbi Harold Kushner. An English teacher gave me a copy when I lost my dad to a brain tumor when I was 16 . I was angry and inconsolable and was having trouble dealing with his loss. I was raised as a Catholic and as a teenager I couldn’t understand how the living omnipotent God I had been taught to believe, could have let such a good man as my father suffer so much. This book gave me a much needed different perspective.
Wow I’m really sorry to hear that about your father but I am glad that you could find something in that book to help you get through it. Some books can have great healing abilities without us even realizing it at the time.