RECOMMENDED BOOKS
Books rule the world.
-Voltaire-
Other notable books--non-fiction
1. The Lord of the Rings, by JRR Tolkien
2. The Gormenghast Trilogy (Titus Groan, Gormenghast, Titus Alone), by Mervyn
Peake
3. The Well At the World's End, by William Morris
4. Dune, by Frank Herbert
5. Phantastes, by George McDonald
6. The Stranger, by Albert Camus
7. Magister Ludi (The Glass Bead Game), by Herman Hesse
8. A Wizard of Earthsea, by Ursula K. LeGuin
9. 1984, by George Orwell
10. The Narnia Chronicles, by CS Lewis (actually seven books in a series)
2001: A Space Odyssey, by Arthur C. Clarke
Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clarke
The Hobbit, by JRR Tolkien
The Silmarillion, by JRR Tolkien
The Famished Road, by Ben Okri
Works of HP Lovecraft
Works of Edgar Allen Poe
The Lions of Al-Rassan, by Guy G. Kay
The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follet
The Harder They Come, by Michael Thelwell
Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card
The Good Earth, by Pearl Buck
Illusions: The Adventures of A Reluctant Messiah, by Richard Bach
Zen In the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by
Robert Pirsig
Black Elk Speaks, by Black Elk
Tao Te Ching, by Lao-tzu
Journey To Ixtlan, by Carlos Castaneda
Biblical selections: Genesis, Ecclesiastes, Pslams, Matthew, James, by God
Clearing the Path: Writings of Nyanavira Thera
Way To Wisdom, by Karl Jaspers
Freedom From the Known, by Jiddu Krishnamurti
The Power of Myth, by Joseph Campbell
Religions of Man, by Huston Smith
History: The Rise
and Fall of the Great Powers, by Paul Kennedy
Inside the Third Reich, by Albert Speer
Shaka Zulu, by AE Ritter
American Caesar, by William Manchester
Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, by William Shirer
Poetry: Song of Myself, by
Walt Whitman (a book-length poem)
Twenty Love Poems and A Song of Despair, by Neruda
Philosophy: Lila, by Robert
Pirsig
Mythology, by Edith Hamilton
I Ching, edited by Confucius
History of the Eternal Return, by Mircea Eliade
Sacred and Profane, by Mircea Eliade
Krishnamurti's Notebook, J. Krishnamurti
Krishnamurti: Years of Awakening, by Mary Lutyens
Krishnamurti: Years of Fulfillment, by Mary Lutyens
This list forms a veritable course guide to Buddhism, from the most basic texts to the most difficult and complex. I recommend, especially for beginners, that they be read in the order presented. If one has really worked open-mindedly for understanding while reading these texts, there is no reason why they should not be able to supply everything one needs to know to truly understand the Buddha's teaching (Dhamma) on at least an intellectual level.
1. What the Buddha Taught, by Walpola Rahula
2. The Buddha's Ancient Path, by Piyadassi Thera
3. The Noble Eightfold Path, by Bhikkhu Bodhi
4. The Four Noble Truths, by Nyanatiloka Mahathera
5. Path To Deliverance, by Nyanatiloka Mahathera
6. Buddhist Philosophy: An Historical Analysis, by David J. Kalupahana (for
beginning students, only the first section of this book, that on early Buddhist
teachings, is necessary)
7. The Heart of Buddhist Meditation, by Nyanaponika
8. Living Buddhist Masters, by Jack Kornfield
9. In This Very Life, by Sayadaw U. Pandita
10. A
Buddhist Dictionary, by Nyanaponika Mahathera (as a general reference work
to be used while reading everything else.
Advanced Works
Clearing the Path: Writings of Nyanavira Thera
Concept and Reality, by Ven. Nyananada
The Magic of the Mind, by Ven. Nyanananda
Stein On Writing, by Sol Stein (far and away the
best book on writing--especially for novelists--available)
How To Write A Damn Good Novel, by James N. Frey
The Elements of Storytelling, by Peter Rubie
Zen In the Art of Writing, by Ray Bradbury
