For me, it was a book called ‘The Outsiders’ by S.E Hinton. It is known as a literary classic these days, but it was quite hard hitting when it was released back in the 1960s.
In a nut shell; It is about a group of semi-impoverished greaser friends growing up in 1960s Tulsa, Oklahoma, and all the life challenges they face, and how they react to prejudice against them whilst coping with family issues.
It was the first book that made me realise that some people in society don’t get it easy growing up, and I discovered what it meant to live on the ‘wrong side of town’ and what societal prejudice was. The outsiders was the first novel I read that brought up hard subjects like; domestic violence, alcoholism, street gang violence etc.
It was the first book to shatter my naive way of thinking about the world, at 13 years old! It is still one of my favourite stories to this day, and for all its slightly dark themes, I love the compassionate friendship and brotherhood that is displayed in this book!
Confessions of an economic hitman. So fucking depressing and we are all insignificant blips.
This book raised my blood pressure so much it may have shortened my life. Just infuriating.
“The secret history of the American empire” and “hoodwinked” are interesting follow up by the same author
Thanks for sharing these titles- I’m definitely checking them out as I learned so much from Confessions of an Economic Hitman.
If it helps you feel a little better:
Tagging u/Nita_taco in the hopes it helps his blood pressure :D