Books have the power to inspire and make people feel like they can accomplish things.
People read stories of heroism and of brave souls accomplishing huge things against tremendous odds. Books both fictional and non-fictional can help us learn how better to cope with where we are going while highlighting where wehave come from. Books it seems are a powerful medium. That is, unless nothing is truly powerful and life itself or human civilization as we have constructed it is simply a front built to help us avoid the reality that in fact we are all constantly plummeting towards our collective demise. Mortality is the only thing that matters maybe, and anything else is just a way to avoid that fact. This is the major thrust of the 1973 psychology and philosophy tomb The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker, a winner of the Pulitzer for General Non-Fiction in 1974. The book dissects depression, heroism and our collective sense of meaning in life. It is an emotionally heavy read that could leave a reader rethinking their lives in either hyper positive or hyper negative terms. The book has been referenced by Bill Clinton and Woody Allen in the film Annie Hall. It has also recently been a frequent topic of conversation on the WTF with Marc Maron podcast. It’s classic literature in a strange scary way. Can you handle it?
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AuthorFelix Carpenter is a founder of this blog and book reviewer. Felix lives in Los Angeles with his dog Greggy. Despite his hectic schedule, he still finds time to wite book reviews for Edusson writing service. ArchivesCategories |