Basically what the title says: Is there any fiction book you’ve ever read that has emotionally or intellectually connected with you so much it changed the way you viewed the world, changed the way you viewed yourself or changed the way you viewed life (your own or in general)?
If so…
- What book was it?
- Why did it connect so well with you?
- How did it make you feel?
- And how did it change you?
Just to emphasize, I’m solely asking about works of fiction here. So nothing like reading just an academic book on philosophy or a self-help book or something.
The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
I realize this book is usually associated with extreme capitalism, so my disclaimer is that it did NOT make me an extreme capitalist. That said, it was the first book I encountered that looked at some of our most basic moral precepts and deconstructed them. I had never had a book so blatantly question everything I thought was universally good.
It made me feel as though my mind was expanding while I was reading it.
It’s been about 10 years since I read it, and it profoundly changed the way I approach any controversial concept. Now, I have a much more sophisticated ability to see the two sides to every issue. It was an incredibly valuable book in that it allowed me understand how every stance can be rationalized in some way or another. It almost dismantled my belief in absolute morality.