Books That Change the Way You See the World

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book, books, perception

I found a list of 26 books that “change the way you see the world” by Erin La Rosa. Out of the list, I’ve read one: The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling. I’ve also read two of the other authors, but not the books listed: Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. Since I haven’t read most of them, I can’t begin to comment on whether it’s a good list or not. At first, I thought, Harry Potter didn’t really change how I look at he world, but it has. Would Blind Sight exist if we’d never wondered how differently the Harry Potter story would be through Snape’s point of view? Probably, eventually, but maybe not done as well.

Some books that have changed the way I see the world:

Matched by Ally Condie: Most dystopian novels make me think, but I was specifically taken by a scene where the government chopped down all of the trees in a neighborhood to make things even. While one family took care of their tree and nurtured it so that it grew tall and strong, another family had a wilting tree, small and sickly. Since things weren’t even no one got a tree.

Inferno by Dan Brown: A very interesting solution to overpopulation. While I’ve enjoyed the rest of his books, this was the one that left a book hangover.

Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett: This one is a little different. It didn’t change how I see the world, it just made me more aware about some of the assumptions I make. It’s like getting a review that opens your eyes and lets you become aware of certain faults or traits.

Are there any books that have changed how you see the world?

-Eliabeth

The eyes deceive!

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Alexa Meade, art, painting, people, perception, photography, still life, subway

Real people made into art.  These are some amazing images from the post “still life” on the blog allrainydaysarentgray.  Artist Alexa Meade challenges eye by combining painting, people, and photography.

That’s a real person.  If you don’t believe me, click to see more. 😉

Perception Matters

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community service, Japan, Maru Gomi, perception, point of view, POV, United States, volunteer, volunteering, Warren Cat

How perception affects action.
Picking up trash in the East vs. West.

12 Sept 2009 - Asakusa Japan

I spent my Saturday morning at Warren Cat Clean Up Day cleaning up areas of the highway with a group from Warren Cat Construction where my dad works.  What a stark contrast to picking up trash in Asakusa Japan!

In Japan, littering shames not only yourself, but your family and ancestors as well. You bring shame on your entire family tree by throwing a cigarette butt into the bushes, but people still do.  Thousands of people came out for the national “No Trash” day to clean up the streets.  As seen above, we got blue bags for recycling and red bags for trash.  On a small island country, recycling is a much bigger concern than it is in the United States.

9 Sept 2011 - Midland Texas

On the other hand, in the States, we often associate people on the side of the highway picking up trash with prisoners doing community service.  One of the other volunteers told us that her minister wanted her to keep her back to the traffic so that none of her church members saw her and thought she was on parole.  Wow.  If we have such a negative perception of people picking up trash, it is no wonder that our highways are so, let’s face it, disgusting.  While I do not advocate taking on a stance as strict as Japan’s regarding waste clean up, we really need to get rid of this negative stereotype of people who clean the highway or people won’t take action to care for the environment we live in.