Four Thought Provoking 'Must Reads'

Recently I’ve been shying away from my usual choice of fiction and delving into those books you see on tables in the middle of Waterstones. If you’re a spine-breaker or page-turner then grab a pen because these are the kind of books that had me wanting to underline genius statements about the world that surrounds us, they’re the kind of books that had me on Goodreads afterwards seeing what others thought. I’ve picked four of my utter favourites in case your looking for something to chew on.

George Orwell - Nineteen Eighty-Four

This was the first book that popped into my head when I thought of writing this post, a clear no brainer and so I thought I should start with this one. The novel’s set in 1984 (surprisesuprise) set in a totalitarianism society where compassion, family and independent thought is punishable by death. Orwell depicts the life of Winston Smith the main character, and the emotion struggles he faces from living in such a cruel society. There seems to be a lot of these futuristic books out there full of controlling rulers and rebelling citizens; this book’s different. I was utterly gripped from start to finish which was something I wasn’t expecting, since it was written way back in 1948 I thought it would be fairly slow moving or ‘waffley'. But Orwell created such a poignant message I was left comparing the world he created to the one we live in today. 

Milan Kundera - Immortality 

I’m not one for reading books or even seeing films twice, however I think this book may be one of the few that doesn’t apply. I’m not really even sure how to describe it, I’m thumbing through the pages trying to slot it into a category but I just don’t think it has one. I guess the book is a comment on human nature and more generally speaking, the meaning of life. Throughout the seven parts of this book we hear both Kundera’s voice speaking as himself, and through the voices of a few characters. It’s as if you are reading not only about these carefully constructed characters, but also about Kundera’s thought process behind them; it’s as if he is pulling apart a normal story line to delve much deeper than what appears on the surface. The reason I will probably read this again in down to the multitude of clever and delicate references he uses throughout the novel, some of which I probably missed and would only understand as I grow older. 

Cheryl Strayed - Wild 

The reason I picked this book up is due to the ‘real life story’ label, I always think a novel is ten times better when you can believe it actually happened. In the summer of 1995 Cheryl embarks on a 1,100 mile trek across the Pacific Crest Trail - one of the most famous hiking trails that runs from the west coast of Mexico all the way down to Canada. We learn about her past throughout the book and why she decided to walk part of the trail it, I found it so inspiring that she did this track alone with so few belongings and it made me rethink what life’s goals are all about - deep huh?

 Naomi Klein - This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate

A little less philosophical and life meaning-ey than the others, I’ve mentioned this book before in a post because I just can’t stop rambling on about it! It’s basically a big explanation of who, where and how global warming is caused as well as the clash this problem has with our capitalist societies of today. This was the first big factual, non-fictional book I’ve ever picked up and I’ll admit it was heavy going at times. But I just felt the book focuses on such an important issue that I needed to be clued up on it and I feel so much more aware and ready to help support change because of it. 

How gorgeous is this edition of Nineteen Eighty-Four?! I just couldn't resist. 
Any books that have got you thinking lately? I’d love to hear.

Georgina