Most influential Books you've read

[robert]

What is the most influential book you've read about veganism or anything else that really inspired you?

 

I'll be honest, I don't read a lot. It is one of the things I really am not very happy with. I wish I read a whole lot more, and that is one of my goals.

 

For me, some of the most influential books have been:

 

How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

 

Diet For A New America by John Robbins

 

Fit For Life by Harvey Diamond

 

What about the rest of you?

Edited March 9, 2006 by robert

[Jay]

Scott Nearing's autobiography The Making of a Radical was what finally pushed me over the edge into veganism, but I was just about ready for veganism and many other books would have had the same effect.

 

Manufacturing Consent by Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky had a similar life changing effect. But that had nothing to do with being the right book at the right time. Anytime from the age of 10 to 28 that book would have been huge. Was like a religion experience. I walked around in a daze for weeks afterwards.

[willpeavy]

Little Engine That Could, and Origin of the Species

Edited September 1, 2006 by willpeavy

[Daywalker]

1. Conversation with God - Neil Donald Walsh.

 

2. Diet for a new America - John Robbins.

 

 

Others, but those two (well, four, as CwG is a trilogy) were the most important, in that order.

[Over40]

This should probably be a list that is dynamic in nature, continued reading should bring about a new appreciation for the books we read.

 

Here is my list, as of now: "Running Scarred" by Tex Maule, "Ravelstein" by Saul Bellow, "Aerobics" by Ken Cooper (yea, it's almost 40 years old...), "Being Peace" by Thich Nhat Hanh (I wouldn't have known about Thich Nhat Hanh if I hadn't visited Mike Mahler's site...). The "Nautilus Book" by Dr. Ellington Darden.

 

There they are.

 

Jon

[crashnburn]

We should sticky post this one to continually follow it.

 

Illusions : The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah - Richard Bach

 

Jonathan Livingstone Seagull - RB

 

Sand & Foam: The Book of Aphorisms - Kahlil Gibran

 

TO DO:

- Conversations with God

- In communion with conciousness

Edited April 11, 2006 by crashnburn

[madcat]

Ishmael by Daniel Quinn

[JW]

probably Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

 

It was the first book I read that "woke me up"

I was appalled enough to want to learn more and ultimately become vegan

 

[bronco]

Fast food nation is a good book Id say

[belleadonna]

My favorite is Intuitive Eating by Humbart "Smokey" Santillo. If you haven't read it, its a must for a vegan. I also like Jay Kordich's book on juicing. I do alot of juicing. Anyone else out there do juicing?? I really like carrot and ginger juice. Juicing is really good for you. Fruit juices for cleansing and veggie juices for building. I did alot of juicing the first time I became a vegan and have started again since returning to a veggie diet.

[Over40]

My favorite is Intuitive Eating by Humbart "Smokey" Santillo. If you haven't read it, its a must for a vegan. I also like Jay Kordich's book on juicing. I do alot of juicing. Anyone else out there do juicing?? I really like carrot and ginger juice. Juicing is really good for you. Fruit juices for cleansing and veggie juices for building. I did alot of juicing the first time I became a vegan and have started again since returning to a veggie diet.

 

I juice. Not as much as I used to (2-3 pints a day now). I used to drink up to 2-3 quarts a day. My favorite book on juicing was by Norman Walker.

 

Jon

[belleadonna]

Yeah, I don't do as much as I used to either. I am slowing working it back up. I do 8oz of carrot/ginger juice right now but I am going to add another 8 oz soon. I used to do (3) glasses (8oz) a day.

 

Have you ever heard of the Hallelujah Diet?? That's where I first learned about juicing and a vegan diet.

 

I still use their Herbal Fiberblend which is a great source of fiber and helps clean you out!!

 

I also like their Barleygreen which I used to add to the juice. I am thinking of buying that again but it is kind of expensive. Do you use any greens?

Leslie

[vegangirl]

I was a vegetarian for years but it was Fast Food Nation that made me consider veganism and The Food Revolution that made me realize I could never not be vegan.

 

Free the Animals by Ingrid Newkirk had a pretty big effect on me. I just finished Eternal Treblinka which helped me make a lot of connections.

 

Nonveganwise, Einstein's Dreams moved me to tears many times.

 

And Harry Potter makes me happier than just about anything!

[teanyrican]

I haven't read too many books on veganism or animal rights, I'm sorry to say. But these are the ones I have read.

 

1. Diet for a New America by John Robbins, which helped me finalize the decision to go vegan.

2. Mad Cowboy: Plain Truth from the Cattle Rancher Who Won't Eat Meat by Howard F. Lyman, which kept me vegan.

3. Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin, which showed me that you can be vegan and fall prey to unhealthy eating habits. (I wrote my review of it in my veg blog: http://vegan-noise.blogspot.com/2006/04/book-review-skinny-bitch.html)

 

I'm currently reading When I Was Puerto Rican by Esmeralda Santiago, but that has nothing to do with veganism. However, I do have a whole list of books to tackle addressing the issues of diet, health, veganism, and animal rights. These are just some of the ones waiting, on my book shelves, to be read:

 

*Animal Liberation by Peter Singer, which I began but couldn't go through with reading.

*Dominion by Matthew Skully

*Peace to All Beings -- Veggie Soup for the Chicken's Soul by Judy Carman

*Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

*Making Kind Choices by Ingrid Newkirk, which I've only flipped through as a guide.

*Breaking the Food Seduction by Neal Barnard, M.D.

[Gorilla]

'How to Win Friends and Influence People' by Dale Carnegie is definitely an essential book. Very influential, it draws on the history of wisdom, virtue, and interpersonal relations.

 

Another absolute "must-read" is 'Sophie's World' by Jostein Gaarder. These paragraphs sum it up nicely:

 

http://www.bol.de/shop/home/artikeldetails/sophie_s_world/jostein_gaarder/ISBN1-85799-291-1/ID3021232.html;jsessionid=fdc-zyhuwpss6p6.fdc62

[VeganGirl2006]

probably Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

 

It was the first book I read that "woke me up"

I was appalled enough to want to learn more and ultimately become vegan

 

 

Ditto. Fast Food Nation was what caused me to go vegan.

[CrispyQ]

"101 Things You Can Do to Save the Animals" -- a Peta book. Probably the hardest book I've ever read. The chapters were short, 1-2 pages only, but each one left me weeping. I was stunned at how all encompassing animal cruelty & exploitation is in our society.

 

I read it shortly after becoming vegetarian & even though I continued to eat cheese for some years afterwards, I switched to rice milk & I got rid of all my clothes & beauty products that were not vegan.

 

Another moving book, Mad Cowboy by Howard Lyman. The chapter titled Bovine Planet is our future if we don't alter our course.

 

on edit: I'm about half way through When Elephants Weep. Another great book -- one that was recommended by someone here, btw.

[andesuma]

wow....I wouldn't know where to begin...

I read, a lot! I am a research and information guru/seeker,

so I try and read as much as possible.

(on average I read 1-4 books per week, and about 5-50 articles per day, depending on the time I have to spend..)

 

A few favorites are:

 

"The Sexual Politics of Meat- A feminist-Vegetarian Critical Theory" -- by Carol J. Adams

The bibliography in this book alone is almost 20 pages long!

This book revealed to me an entire new world of veganism that I wasn't as

aware of, like for example.. the cultural manipulation of language to

promote acceptablity in food, one of the reasons I believe we experience a

large number of chicken eating veggies and fish eating veggies, is because we drop the word "meat" from what we're really eating.

(ie. it's not "chicken meat", it's "chicken", it's not "fish meat", it's "fish")

Pretty amazing and profound, highly recommended.

 

"Vegan: the new ethics of eating" -by Erik Marcus

I am a big Erik Marcus fan and promoter of his work(except one article

I read in VegNews lately..), but I think if you want something lasting that

will help "convert" others to the vegan lifestyle, or for information in general, this book is IT.

I give this book to anyone I know who is interested in the veggie

way of life, I've probably bought it at least 5 times.

He is also a very good writer.

 

"Beyond Beef- The rise and fall of the cattle culture" -by Jeremy Rifkin

Speaking of beautiful writers, Jeremy Rifkin is one of the best.

This book is written wonderfully, and is loaded with factual information.

He also writes a lot of articles for Organic Consumers, so of course

I am a big supporter.

 

 

"The Detox Solution - by Dr.Patricia Fitzgerald"

By all means, NOT a vegan book.. but very very informative, none the less.

I am also a detox enthusiast, & this is one of the better books I have

read on the subject.

 

 

"The Body Electric -Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life" -by

Robert O. Becker, M.D. and Gary Selden

Recommended to me by Bo Rinaldi(owner of Blossoming Lotus), and is

an amazing read. Anyone interested in reiki, massage, physiology, and anatomy will enjoy it..I am sure... : )

 

 

"The Top 100 Immunity Boosters -by Charlotte Haigh"

Also, not entirely vegan, but 98% of this book is full of herbs, fruits, veggies, etc.

It not only talks about all of the beneficial properties of

fruits and veggies, but it dissects nutrients, and goes in depth on how to

cure ailments with food.

I have had first hand experience with food being my medicine, and continues to be.. so this book is a definite read for anyone interested in feeling euphoric.

 

 

 

 

ok...since I am obviously going to write long experiences of some of my favorites, I'll briefly mention just a couple:

Thrive -by Branden Brazier,

Selling Sickness - by Ray Moyniham/Alan Cassels,

Big Pharma -Exposing the Global Healthcare Agenda -by Jacky Law

Any article from: www.organicconsumers.org

www.notmilk.com

www.newstarget.com is also informative and worth checking out.

 

 

As for childhood influential books, "The Lurox" by Dr.Seuss

would have to be at the top of my list ; )

[PETACANABIS]

Mannual for an animal right campaign

 

Human zoo Desmond Morris

[belleadonna]

Anyone ever read, "The China Study", by T. Colin Campbell. This is an awesome book.

[Evan]

The Pokey Little Puppy which I hate to say I got with a Happy Meal

[Guest]

I read a lot.

 

As far as veganism and health concerns go:

 

Diet for a New America

The Food Revolution

Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating

Fast Food Nation

The Detox Solution

 

Inspirational:

 

The Alchemist

[Guest]

I read a lot.

 

As far as veganism and health concerns go:

 

Diet for a New America

The Food Revolution

Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating

Fast Food Nation

The Detox Solution

 

Inspirational:

 

The Alchemist

[Odidnetne]

The Food Revolution and Fast Food Nation were probably the 2 biggest "veganism" type books that are inspiring to me, that I've read anyway.

[SeaSiren]

Through darkest America ~Neal Barrett

This one isn't for the faint of heart. I got a hold of a copy when I was 12 years old. And although there is no way I could have understood the complexity of the book. I still vividly rememer it. I will be re-reading it as an adult: in a world that nuclear war has almost decimated of cities, technology and large animals. To replace farm livestock, the country's sole source of meat is genetically altered humans, without intelligence or speech.

 

Sink Reflections ~Marla Cilley

Taught me how to painlessly keep my house in check

 

The Complete Tightwad Gazette ~Amy Dacyczyn

This one is a bit learning curve for me. But it teaches me to not only save money, but help the environment in the process of less use and creating my own natural cleaning products. My Depression era Great Gram would be so pleased.

 

Skinny Bitch by Kim Barnouin and Rory Freedman

Simply the best in your face weight loss book I have ever read!