Books are sources of knowledge, which is cool. They lend us the mind of great people. Some of them transfer us to places we never knew existed, or lecture us about political system which is hard to understand, or may also reflect to our memories that we can’t express in words. Personally for me, books are the best mentors. They give the best advices and visions of life. They expand my sense of imagination, but also strike me the perks of being in reality.
I am a firm believer in the theory that everybody loves reading. If you hate books, it’s because you haven’t found the right book for you. The sad fact is that, not all books are good. Some of them are poorly written or that they lack knowledge. Therefore, I am writing this list of books which I recommend reading, so hopefully you will find a book or two or even more that you will enjoy reading:
Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki
I used to consider the topic of Finance very boring and too mundane, until the reality forced me to study about the money. I, then, read Rich Dad, Poor Dad and it changed my point of view. The knowledge of Finance is important. Because as bitter as it sounds, lacking of money is never good. The book basically speaks about how we should (and we can) get out of the “rat race,” the term used by Robert to refer the relationship between the income and the outcome of the middle class people.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
The book is about a boy named Christopher who suffers from Autism. He lives with his own rules, and has difficulty in engaging social activity. One night, his neighbor’s dog died. He noticed that the incident was unusual and did an investigation. What interests me, though, is not his trial in solving the case, but what’s inside his mind. From the book, I managed to understand that human has different way of thinking and always has reason behind their (unique) behavior. This book, in that way, makes me less judgmental. Therefore this book is in my top recommendation.
The perks of being a wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Every teenager has problems. They may have traumatic issues, difficulties in growing up, and life crisis. What matters is how they cope with the struggles caused by their problems. The story in the book is about a boy named Charlie who is struggling with his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He wrote a letter to a stranger to share his story. I wish I had read this book when I was fifteen (I was 18 when I read this) because it would have helped me a lot in understanding the phase of being a teenager; that it’s okay to be different and it’s very important to accept yourself. But it’s never too late to read the book, because truthfully, this book made me stronger to cope with reality.
Looking for Alaska by John Green
For me, this book is the epitome of young adult novels. Set in a high school, this book shares a story of a student whose life changed when she met a girl. The girl, Alaska, is very unique and makes the story fierce, while the narrator, Miles, is a guy whose life has been very ordinary. Rather than being a philosophical book about growing up, it’s more of an entertainment book which makes you wish you had lived through the story. John Green book always has educational side, though, including this book. So you will still learn.
The 100: a ranking of the most influential persons in history by Michael H. Hart
You can always learn from someone’s life. And therefore, biography is a fine source of knowledge. You have to read biographies of the people whose contribution matters to your interest. This book, anyway, lists the life of 100 persons from various fields namely religious/political leaders, scientist, activist etc. Reading their story and acknowledging their hard work help me in widening my point of view and being a more rational human being. I realise that they have done a lot, and that inspires me to do the same. This book also informed me a wide range of world’s history. Truly an essential reading.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Santiago dreams that he will find a treasure in Egyptian Pyramids. So, he carries a journey to Africa. Along the way, he meets various people from whom he learns the philosophy of life.
This book is mainly about a journey of a guy following where his dream leads him to, which also proves that your heart will lead you to a place you need to be. Life is adventurous, and sitting quietly won’t take you anywhere. This book is recommended because it will wake that adventurous side within you.
The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins
To survive is the basic instinct of human. But, “to kill or to be killed” which centers the idea of The Hunger Games, is not on everyone’s mind. And Katniss, the main character, had proved that killing was not always the answer to survival. She rebelled and fought her way to the victory. The series is recommended because it basically taught me to be brave and not to foolishly bow down to social norms. One needs to rebell and fights for their right.
LOCAL BOOKS
Trilogi Negeri 5 Menara by Ahmad Fuadi
What I love the most from this book is how it’s written. Not that it’s as beautifully written as the books of Hamka, but the series of the event in the trilogy are well elaborated. This book is the personal life of the author, Ahmad Fuadi. In the book, the author represents himself as the main character namely Alif Fikri. He envisions how Alif Fikri fights hard to achieve his dream, step to step, and eventually proves that hard work does pay off. This is the kind of book that makes me believe that dreams come true and sparks my hope. And I want you to also spark your hope by reading this trilogy. Many people assume the books as Islamic books while they are more of motivational book, like the next book.
Mimpi Sejuta Dolar by Alberthiene Endah
This book shared the life’s story of Merry Riana. In 1998 she had to fly to Singapore and went to Nanyang Technical University to avoid the chaos that happened in Indonesia. She told us how she had to survive with $300 a month in Singapore. That with the money, she hardly could eat three times a day. Although for me, it’s a bit dramatic since many students who have to survive with less than the sum of money, or even worse, do not have the opportunity to continue studying in University.
The later part of the book which explained how Merry Riana wanted to be financially stable before the age of 30 and her hard work to achieve that made me in love with this book. She didn’t want to be a company’s staff because she wouldn’t be rich quickly from that way. She then decided to be salesperson of an insurance company and continued her hard work. This book inspired me to think differently from other people and that I need to to step out of my comfort zone to be successful.
Saman by Ayu Utami
The challenge of reading local literature book is finding the right one. Most books written before 1960s are very beautifully written but the stories are no longer relevant and thus boring, while ones written after 1960s have wide range of impressive stories but they are so poorly written. Saman, however, is one of the few local books I fall in love with that doesn’t fall into either of the categories.
The author, Ayu Utami, has a very high sense of literature. The words in the book are carefully picked. She also has done a good research, leaving little space to be criticized. Although, the stories in the book are a little too varied for a 197-page-book, they are enjoyable. This book discusses feminism, politics, spirituality, and other social issues which are mostly still relevant to this day. I am very impressed by the impact of the book to Indonesian literature and political views. My personal favorite.
Thoughts Exhibition 