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Everyone who reads a book knows that a book can change a person's life. But what about the entire generation? Can books change the future? Miriam Tuliao, assistant director of collections at the New York Public Library, helped us put together a book list: 25 books that turned history around.
Aesop's Fables (Aesop): Believed to have been written between 620 and 560 BC. Aesop's Fables are a collection of stories designed to convey life lessons to the listener. The fable itself is often attributed to the ancient Greek slave and the narrator of the story, Aesop (although the origin of the fable is still disputed). The fable itself is still an important moral education and has had a profound impact on literature and colloquialisms, such as The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, Here Comes the Wolf, The Goose Laying the Golden Egg, and so on.
The Analects (Confucius): Believed to have been written between 475 and 221 BC. The book is a collection of quotations, and it also contains the core idea of the Chinese philosopher Confucius: how to live morally and kindly, which Confucius called "benevolence". Today, the Analects still have a profound impact on Eastern philosophy and ethics, especially in China.
The Diary of Anne Frank: published in 1947. The book was compiled from Anne Frank's diary. Anne went into hiding with her family for two years during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Anne's family was discovered and arrested in 1944, and Anne eventually died of typhoid fever at the Bergen-Belson concentration camp. Since the publication of The Diary of Anne Frank, it has been translated into more than 60 languages and remains the most famous and influential major document on the European battlefield of World War II.
The Art of War of Sun Tzu (Sun Tzu): Written between 600 and 500 BC. The Art of War of Sun Tzu is an ancient Chinese military work written by the military, strategist, and tactician Sun Tzu. It is divided into 13 chapters, each of which focuses on a certain aspect of war, such as espionage, quick thinking, and avoidance of massacres and atrocities. Today, the book still has far-reaching implications, especially for the military thinking of the East and the West, as well as business strategy, legal strategy, and even how to beat opponents in sports competition.
The Valley of the Broken Knee (Dee Alexander Brown): Published in 1970. The Valley of the Wounded Knees reveals the history of the Indians in the late 19th century, particularly the injustices and betrayals of the U.S. government and the forced migration of the Indians. The bestseller has never been out of print and has been translated into 17 languages to date. Through government records and first-hand accounts, Brown uncovered and continued to expose massacres carried out to "win" the American West.
The Communist Manifesto (Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels): published on February 21, 1848. This short book, written by two of history's most famous communists, discusses class struggle, the problems of capitalism, and the enormous potential of communism. Although its impact is not immediately visible, the manifesto's battle cry resonates with the working class in Europe, the United States and Russia, "Unite the proletariat of the whole world!" ”
The Great English Dictionary (Samuel Johnson): published in 1755. This anthology contains 4,000 of the most representative, vivid and historically interesting entries in the English language. It uses shakespeare and Milton's original spelling methods and examples, spanning fashion, diet, science, sex and more. Used by Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, the Brontë sisters, and many others, the book not only had an impact on classical literature, but also continued to provide writers, scholars, and publishers with a revolutionary approach to the use of English.
The Feminine Mystery (Betty Fryden): published in 1963. While the idea that women eventually become self-satisfied housewives is still widely accepted, Betty challenges the modern advertising, cultural, and misogyny in her book The Feminine Mystery, focusing on the internal turmoil of American women. The book sparked a second wave of feminism, encouraging women to transcend the satisfactions of marriage and childbearing, challenging traditional patriarchal expectations.
Hiroshima (John Hussey): Published in 1946. The author of Hiroshima, Pulitzer Prize-winning John Hirsy, tells the story of six survivors after the atomic bomb landed in Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945. Their memories are filled with earth-shattering loss, fear, and courage. 40 years later, Hirssy returned to Hiroshima to find the victims he had interviewed and to learn about their fate. The book will continue to influence future generations' consideration of the use of nuclear weapons in war and the brutal effects of the holocaust.
How the Other Half Lives (Jacob Reese): published in 1890. The late 19th century was not a good time for New York workers. They lived in squalid houses, and journalist Jacobis used graphic descriptions, sketches, statistics, and photographs to show the middle and upper classes the hardships faced by the poor on a daily basis. "How the Other Half Lives" has caused real changes in schools, sweatshops and construction sites on the Lower East Side, and it will be the basis for future "gossip" journalism.
Zhou Yi: The book dates back to 3 to 2 BC. Also known as the I Ching. The Zhou Yi is believed to have been used for sacrifice and is the oldest classical text in China. The importance of the Zhou Yi is obvious—not only is it the common foundation of Confucianism and Taoism, it is still used for divination by people around the world.
The Life of a Slave Girl (Harriet A. Jacobs): published in 1861. This narrative work of slaves is so deeply based on the author's own experience as a slave, and in particular documents the terrible sexual abuse suffered by female slaves: rape, forced sexual relations between minors, trafficking in their own children, and the relationship between female slaves and mistresses. Although published at the time of the outbreak of the Civil War and did not attract enough attention, it regained attention in the 1970s and 1980s as an important historical record of sexualization and rape of female slaves.
Slaughterhouse (Upton Sinclair): published in 1906. "The Slaughterhouse" vividly describes the squalor of factory life in Chicago—the harsh working conditions that workers face every day, the horrors of slaughterhouses, suffocating poverty and despair. Upton Sinclair is an American journalist who wrote this book to draw attention to immigrants in the United States. Slaughterhouse stimulated the public's nerves and forced the government to step in to investigate, eventually leading to the passage of the Food Standards Regulation.
The King James Bible: Written in 1611. The King James Bible is dedicated to providing English translations of the Christian Bible used in The English Church, and in this way attempts to reflect the structure of Protestantism and its beliefs in the ordained clergy. Although the object of this English bible was the Church of England, it had important implications for the rising denominations of the time—the Presbyterians, the Quakers, the Baptists—and even the British colonists in the Americas. To this day, it is still considered a shining example of prose, verse and translation.
The Life Story of Frederick Douglas (Frederick Douglas): Published in 1845. This is one of the most famous autobiographies in the world. Douglas, a former slave, recorded his struggle for freedom as a slave and his struggle with all the terrible things his so-called "master" had done to him. The book not only had a huge impact on the abolitionist movement in the United States, but also had a great influence on local politics after Douglas's public speeches in Britain and Ireland.
On Liberty (John Stewart Mill): Published in 1859. Originally a short essay by the British philosopher John Stewart Mill, On Liberty eventually became one of the most important works of social and national pragmatism. Mill emphasizes the importance of being individual and independent of government. On Liberty continues to have an important influence in political science and philosophy, and its questions about the nature of individual liberty in democratic societies remain earnest and important to this day.
The Origin of Species (Charles Darwin): published in 1859. After charles Darwin traveled to the Galapago Islands, he made the most important scientific discovery of the 19th century, evolution. Not only did The Origin of Species lay the foundation for evolutionary biology, but the ideas of evolution and natural selection in it continue to have important influences on modern scientific theories, politics, and,especially, American, religious discourse.
Quran: Believed to have been written between 500 and 600 AD. The Quran is the core religious text of Islam and has 160 million Followers among Muslims. The Quran is believed to have been spoken by God to the Prophet Muhammad 1400 years ago. The Qur'an mentions many stories of prophets and messengers, including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Jesus, and his disciples mentioned in the Bible.
The Republic (Plato): First published around 380 BC. The Republic is written in Socratic dialogues (questions and answers). The most famous part of this is the cave fable. Here, Plato discusses the influence of education and the role of the philosopher. Topics in the book include the definition of justice, the characteristics of a righteous government, and what makes a good person. The Republic is still considered one of the most influential philosophical works and political theories.
On Human Rights (Thomas Paine): Published in 1791. In His Treatise on Human Rights, Paine argues that mass political revolutions are permissible when a government does not protect people or their natural rights; he believes that the best way to end poverty is through interventions such as welfare and pensions. In its first year of publication, the book sold between 100,000 and 200,000 copies, and many people still read it today. His ideas were used in the later Irish, Scottish and Welsh independence movements.
The Second Sex (Simon De Beauvoir): published in 1949. As a second wave of feminism that had a huge impact, "The Second Sex" brings together the knowledge of history, philosophy, economics, biology and other disciplines to analyze what "women" are and why they are regarded as inferior to men. The book argues that a woman's idea of femininity is imposed by a civilization constructed by men. This idea has influenced an entire generation of women and has had a huge impact on the feminist movement across the globe.
Silent Spring (Rachel Carson): published in 1962. Silent Spring documents the harmful effects of pesticides on the environment and human health and condemns the chemical industry for spreading disinformation. The book is widely credited with initiating the environmental movement in contemporary America, prompting revolutionary changes affecting air, land, and water laws.
Tao Te Ching (Lao Tzu): written between 600 and 400 BC. Lao Tzu was the official of the Zhou Dynasty's cloister, and it is believed that he was the one who wrote this philosophical text. The Tao Te Ching is not only the foundation of Taoism, but also has close ties to Confucianism, Chinese Buddhism, and Chinese popular culture.
The Law: The Five Books of Moses: First appeared in 600-400 B.C. The Law is at the heart of Judaism, especially the first five books of Tanakh, written in biblical Hebrew. These five books are God's teachings. Not only is the Law the core and most important document of Jewish culture, but it is also known to Christians as the Old Testament and has had an impact on world patriarchs, histories, and cultures for more than 2,500 years.
1984 (George Orwell, 1949): Written in a dystopian world of almost 40 years from World War II, the protagonist Winston Smith seeks to escape censorship, propaganda, and government oppression in the future society in which he lived. Orwell's books had a great influence in the English-speaking world, inventing such things as "Big Brother", "Room 101", "Inhuman", "Double Thinking", "New Talk", "Thought Police" and so on. After a massive leak of surveillance intelligence in 2013, sales of the book soared by 7,000 percent.