Books of My Adolescence
I have been reading a lot of posts about books lately. Some are listing their top 10 or 15 favourites others are simply reviewing books. Well I would like to speak of the all-important junior high /high school reading era. This is the age that we are highly impressionable and eager to seek out philosophies, dabble in new religions, and have a fascination with the taboo. For me, there were some books that gave me a new perceptive on life. I have read books since, such as the Sandcounty Almanac, that has been meaningful to my outlook, but the books of my adolescence seemed so monumental at that point in my life. Here is my list (In no particular order):
1. Illusions by Richard Bach- I have reread this book since, but with little enthusiasm. When I was 15 it seemed so significant.
2. Ishmael by Daniel Quinn- I thought this book was the truth.
3. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath- Plath was my favourite poet. After being denied reciting Ginsberg's Howl for English class I did Plath's Daddy. Quite the change from other student's Frost and Silverstien poems. Her novel was a great rad for me.
4. The Stranger by Albert Camus- I still have the Sterling High School copy. I guess I "forgot" to return it.
5. On the Road by Jack Kerouac- Perhaps this book helped shape my traveling fetish-well being a sag helps too.
6. The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger- I thought I would name my child Holden.
7. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse- The riverman part still sicks with me.
8. Nineteen Eight-Four by George Orwell- The gloom seemed so real at the time
9. Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman- Another pseudo spiritual journey
10. Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach- Helped shape my love of the Northwest and the environment.
11. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous- Drugs really weren't that fun
12. Please Understand Me: Character and Temperament Types by David Kiersey and Marilyn Bates- Psychology was fascinating for me.
13. Selected Poems 1956-1968 by Leonard Cohen Religion, death, sex, and war....wow.
14. Magritte edited by David Larkin- Art was my life in high school and the surrealists were my idols
15. Dali edited by Max Gerard- see number 14.
Other notables were A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand, and Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut.
Now I am entering a journey in my like of seeking out books on parenting, nature, nutrition, and agriculture-but I still enjoy a thought provoking novel.
2. Ishmael by Daniel Quinn- I thought this book was the truth.
3. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath- Plath was my favourite poet. After being denied reciting Ginsberg's Howl for English class I did Plath's Daddy. Quite the change from other student's Frost and Silverstien poems. Her novel was a great rad for me.
4. The Stranger by Albert Camus- I still have the Sterling High School copy. I guess I "forgot" to return it.
5. On the Road by Jack Kerouac- Perhaps this book helped shape my traveling fetish-well being a sag helps too.
6. The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger- I thought I would name my child Holden.
7. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse- The riverman part still sicks with me.
8. Nineteen Eight-Four by George Orwell- The gloom seemed so real at the time
9. Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman- Another pseudo spiritual journey
10. Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach- Helped shape my love of the Northwest and the environment.
11. Go Ask Alice by Anonymous- Drugs really weren't that fun
12. Please Understand Me: Character and Temperament Types by David Kiersey and Marilyn Bates- Psychology was fascinating for me.
13. Selected Poems 1956-1968 by Leonard Cohen Religion, death, sex, and war....wow.
14. Magritte edited by David Larkin- Art was my life in high school and the surrealists were my idols
15. Dali edited by Max Gerard- see number 14.
Other notables were A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand, and Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut.
Now I am entering a journey in my like of seeking out books on parenting, nature, nutrition, and agriculture-but I still enjoy a thought provoking novel.
Labels: Books, Enough About Me, Random Thoughts
posted by BurdockBoy @ 10:45 AM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Nice post. It was an impressionable, idealistic time. I remember a copy of Walden from our school library that I held onto for the entire year, but in the end returned, becasue I didn't want to deprive anyone else of it's wonders. Now I actually wish I did still have it... no other editions have spoken to me quite as much. Or maybe it was my age?
I also read some very lofty Richard Back at that age, and also found it very profound... something I'm fairly sheepish about now, but glad to know I wasn't the only one!
Oops, make that Richard Bach.
gtr: I think a lot of highschool kids go through a Bach faze. I think he does a great job presenting the material for that age group. I probably wasn't mature enough for a metaphyssical book that was too intellectual.
I didn't absorb Walden until college so I didn't list it. We read blurbs in highschool, but I didn't fully appreciate it until I was older.
I can't say how many times I have read Ishmael. No matter where I'm at, or what I'm thinking about reading that puts my head on straight - or at least facing a new direction.
Dom
http://dominic.ebacher.googlepages.com/
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