What books would you read to help improve your general knowledge?
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Bri_L (
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October 14th, 2008
“He’s well read.” Let us assume you have the time and are willing to read. What are some good books to read. History? American? World? Political? Social? Humor?
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28 Answers
I’d say;
‘A short history of nearly everything’ By Bill Bryson
is definitely a good place to start, it has a fantastic humour to it, whilst feeding you full of political, social (and, granted, mainly) scientific history and discussion.
I love to read and learn.
I’ve read thousands of books.
I pretty much only read “The New Yorker” magazine anymore.
Except for a couple of special issues, each week presents a wide range of well-written topics (at least one about politics, science, medical, social, biographical….) a fictional story, poems and cartoons.with in-depth reviews of books, movies, plays.
The articles are currently topical, but frequently delve into the history of the topic.
As an author, I’d go with John McPhee who used to be a regular writer for The New Yorker, has written several non-fiction books and teaches at Princeton. Even if the subject seems unappealing, his writing makes it fascinating, understandable and enjoyable.(The Deltoid Pumpkin Seed is a terrific first read and once again timely)
The one single book would be: The Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakura (1906). It is a small book that covers everything you need to know about life and you get to learn about tea.
@ BioMystro: have you read Bill Bryson’s The Lost Continent: Travels in Small Town America ?
I am finishing it up now…so funny!
When I was younger I read a book called How is it done? and although it’s aimed at the younger generation as opposed to adults, it is an absolute gold mine of information on the world. It includes things from how they make matches, to how the dispose of nuclear waste, to how the ancients moved the large Easter Island statues, how the pyramids were constructed, an absolute wealth of information. And for a kid like me who was always learning it proved to be very influential in terms of knowledge, it was wonderful.
As for what would be best to read now, for adults I guess, I wouldn’t know sadly, my reading lacks. Most of my information is taken from Wikipedia, BBC News, Fluther and Google Finance, I don’t tend to read books :(
the bible has plenty of practical knowledge!
History because it has a way of repeating itself.
I suggest Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond. This book attempts to synthesize most of modern human history on the basis of geography and diseases. A Pulitzer Prize winning book for good reason (though it can get dense at times).
I’d also say that for a further understanding of self, maybe give:
‘Almost Like a Whale’ by Steve Jones
a go. Fantastically well written and absorbing. A great companion to the Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins.
@jsc: I have indeed read that book, it’s brilliant. He’s such a fluid and witty writer.
Great answers everyone!!!
@cheeb – I had seen an interview with that guy I have to add that to this list.
Isaac Asimov’s Beginnings: The Story of Origins. A perfect book for the night table. It consists of a series of short articles covering the origins of everything, and is written in a way that anyone can understand. Asimov had a unique talent for making science accessible, perhaps more so than any other modern writer.
I like to read biographies, because in addition to the story of the person’s life, you also learn all about the time they lived in, and the industry they worked in (at least, if it’s a good biography you do!)
Andrew Carnegie is a good one for learning about the rise of industry and the railroads in the 1800’s, as well as the politics of the time; Walt DIsney: An American Original is great for learning about the history of motion pictures and animation; and Act One is all about the New York theatre scene in the early 1900’s – I highly recommend all three of them!
The Secret Teachings of All Ages by M.P. Hall
Books?
I just watch National Geographic / Discovery and try to filter out which ones are bull$hit and which ones are not…
@wenbert- any non-cable suggestions?
@Bri_L, newspapers? Since tv news also gets tons of BS these days :( sometimes I head to my RSS feeds in netvibes like news.ycombinator.com
@ wenbert: excellent, thanks!
I pass my university thanks to wiki
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Hey Thanks for the link!.
And welcome to fluther!
Just as a starter list, I personally would doubt anyone’s claim to be well-read if they had not read these works:
Hamlet
The Bible
The Great Gatsby
Huckleberry Finn
To Kill a Mockingbird
Horton Hears a Who
For Whom the Bell Tolls
The Republic (Plato)
The Iliad
A Tale of Two Cities
The Invisible Man
1984
This is a very abbreviated list, of course. But, each has made a significant contribution to our culture. Plus, after reading these books, you will recognize almost all TV plots as a derivation of one of them.
Wow…Didn’t see that one coming.
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