Top Ten Books That Made Me Think

'Top Ten Tuesday' is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's topic is 'Top Ten Books That Make You Think (About The World, 

People, Life, etc.)'. I don't know if I will be able to find ten, but here we go:

1. The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. When I was younger every year we would travel to visit my grandparents at Christmas. And, every year I would listen to The Diary of a Young Girl audiobook (on cassette tape!). I really loved this book and it made an impact on me at even a young age. I couldn't imagine hiding for my life, have someone want to kill me because of who I was. I think this book is enlightening, inspirational and heartwarming. But, I also think that it is important to remember the Anne Frank was simply a young girl living in 1942 Holland. 

2. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. When I first read The Hunger Games I was really obsessed with thinking about and exploring the ways in which power and privilege are distributed in our world, the ways in which control is utilized in society (by governments, media, individuals, etc) and how these topics play out on a global sphere. These were things that I was generally becoming more and more aware about - through my studies at university, maturing as a person and other books. The Hunger Games offered an opportunity to disengage from the world around me and still explore these themes and ideas. Additionally, it was easy to see the similarities between Panem and the society that we live in today. Although a young-adult novel, for me, The Hunger Games  helped further illuminate the horrific events that take place in our society, but that as first world citizens we may turn a blind eye to, just like the citizens of the capital.   

3. Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. This book was really fascinating and helped me to think about the world around me. Similar to Malcolm Gladwell's books, Freakonomics explores "how people get what they want, or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing". Don't be intimidated by the title's illusion to economics, no math is needed when reading this book!    

4. Lucky by Alice Sebold / Night by Elie Wiesel / The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls. All of the above memoirs have given me insight into the unique lives and worlds of their authors. Additionally, they have all reminded me of the resilience that exists in all of us. Lucky, Night, and The Glass Castle have all helped me to explore the unequal distribution of power and privilege in our world. From rape, to the Holocaust and poverty, these memoirs are beautiful and open one's eyes to a world beyond their own.  

5. John Green's Novels. As John Green has frequently discussed, when talking about his novels, they explore how we incompletely see and imagine the people in our lives. When I read his novels I really began to think about how easy this is to do this, and... "What a treacherous thing to believe that a person is more than a person." (John Green, Paper Towns). 

6. The Five People you Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom. When I first read The Five People you Meet in Heaven I was obsessed with the idea that we can touch the lives of the people around us in such varying ways. I highly recommend this novel.   

7. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. Into the Wild is a wonderful book the explores the life of Christopher McCandless and his quest to leave the society of material goods, conformity and duty. Although I don't aspire to follow in McCandless' footsteps, his story did remind me of the fragility of life, my own materialism and to think about whether my life decisions and choices are things that I truly want, or was told to want.