Books in the last few years

Since childhood, I have always found companionship in books. Maybe it was my father's influence with his collection of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, P.G. Wodehouse and others. Whether it was the children's detective series such as the Famous Five and Secret Seven or Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys, I have always found a sounding board in books. I have woven dreams about my life based on the characters in them. Even today, I prefer reading stuff online to watching You Tube videos or interviews.

There are several books that have crossed my path over the last few years. I have mentioned some of them in an earlier post. However, there are some that have truly left an imprint.

What Should I Do With My Life by Po Bronson

This is perhaps the most influential book that I have read on a personal level.

Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Washington Square by Henry James

I discovered this author after I read about his work in Reading Lolita in Tehran.

The Pact by Jodi Picoult

Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi

Helen of Troy by Margaret George

I also read quite a bit of Cleopatra by the same author.


I had read an abridged version of Jane Eyre as a child. This time, I read the unabridged one and even read the reviews of it written shortly after the novel was published that were included in the preface.

I must say that the books The Age of Innocence, Wuthering Heights and Love in the Time of Cholera together packed such a punch in terms of love and relationships that they have left me even more ready to question my assumptions. In fact, these books keep nagging me long after I put them down.

I have already written about Love in the Time of Cholera and will share my thoughts on some of the others later.