I was raised as a christian and have read the bible several times. Now I want to get caught up and read some intelligent literature.
What books do you like? What were some that you found informative? Interesting? or just entertaining?
2007-08-29 04:20:04 · 10 answers · asked by Nea 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I read all of John Irving's books because they cast some comedy upon being raised like we were. I think " A Prayer for Owen Meany" and " Son of the Circus " are my favourites. Of course anything by Kurt Vonnegut. As far as non-fiction goes, I like to read history books and psychological journals. And, I do something alot of people really think is crazy, I read the newspaper every day, every word of it.
I gotta say it, Mike D picked my favourite book of all time " a confederacy of dunces " which won a pulitzer after the author, who only wrote one book in his life , killed himself
2007-08-29 04:39:40 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
My highest recommendation goes to Conversations with God (volume I; the others I didn't care for so much) by Neale Donald Walsch. Whether or not you accept his premise of speaking with a deity, it puts forth some very potent philosophical points that helped me change my whole way of thinking.
I'm now a Taoist (atheist). So I also recommend the Tao Te Ching.
For some lighter reading of course there's the Harry Potter series :-) And my favorite author of all time, Terry Pratchett. Anything by him is a jewel. He's funny and profound at the same time. (Johnny and the Dead is about the afterlife, if you want to stay on topic.)
2007-08-29 11:31:03 · answer #2 · answered by KC 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What exactly did you have in mind.
For philosophy/religion there's always Bertrand Russel's "Why I Am Not A Christian"
For entertainment, I really enjoyed Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy. "The DaVinci Code" was an enjoyable, if brainless read.
Update:
I can't believe I forgot about Vonnegut. And that reminds me of another favorite, "A Confederacy of Dunces". Hilarious book.
2007-08-29 11:29:07 · answer #3 · answered by damnyankeega 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I don't know what you like, but here you go:
"Women, Race, & Class" by Angela Y. Davis; "Guns, Germs, & Steel" by Jared Diamond", "Letter to a Christian Nation" by Sam HArris; "Race Rules", "I may Not Get There With You; The True Martin Luther King Jr", & "The Michael Eric Dyson Reader" by Detroit native, Baptist minister, Ph.D, & Penn/Georgetown professor Michael Eric Dyson; "The Vagina Monologues" by Eve Ensler; "M. Butterfly" by David Henry Hwang; Any play by August Wilson, specifically "Fences" & "The Piano Lesson"; "For Colored Girls who have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow is Enuf" by Ntozake Shange; Drama by Suzan Lori-Parks, eg "In the Blood"; "The Bluest Eye" or "Beloved" by Toni Morrison; "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint-Exupery; and my favorite novel is "Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston.
2007-08-29 11:46:28 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
I was raised Christian and turned Agnostic.
I have found reading about Astrology to be an interesting hobby along with learning about other religions.
2007-08-29 11:28:12 · answer #5 · answered by Sith 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
May I respectfully point out, that if you were raised as a Jehovah's witness, you were not raised as a Christian...
You were raised in a controlling and manipulating cult that is far away from being Christian as you could get.
I loved poisonwood bible may I also recomend " kingdom of the Cults" by walter Martin
2007-08-29 11:48:33 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand is instant intelligence and also Anthem.
Flatland by Edwin Abbott.
Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut.
2007-08-29 11:29:09 · answer #7 · answered by . 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
My guilty pleasure is Robert Jordan, and Heinlein. My more respectable titles are I highly suggest Sartre and Camus, Plato's a great read and is actually quite funny, and Bart Erhman is great for a bit of biblical History (my favorite two of his are "Misquoting Jesus" and "Lost Christianities").
Edit:
DAMN IT! I can't believe I forgot Bertrand Russell's "Why I'm not a Christian." It's a classic. Thumbs up for Mike D
2007-08-29 11:29:48 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Read some of the dali lama's books, they are really interesting and talk about lots of ideas and concepts that are fun to hink about.
2007-08-29 11:44:08 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
anything by Laurence Gardner, but particualarly, Bloodline of the Holy Grail, or Genesis of the Grail Kings.
2007-08-29 11:28:53 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋