If you had to choose one book to open a friend's eyes, be they D or R

[arcane1]

what book would that be?

[RandomKoolzip]

1. "Nickel and Dimed," Barbra Ehrenreich

[yardwork]

25. Hey Koolzip long time no see. Good book.

[RandomKoolzip]

26. Thanks!

:)

[malaise]

2. Naomi Klein

Shock Doctrine

[Thunderstruck]

4. I'm with malaise, though wingnuts aren't smart enough to get it.

[Luminous Animal]

9. Yep. +1 It is a very important book.

[hlthe2b]

10. Ditto... Naomi Klein's Shock Doctrine.

[hlthe2b]

15. alternate: Confessions of an Economic Hitman..

John Perkins

[malaise]

51. That was my second choice

:hi:

[w8liftinglady]

That one,too! I'd have to offer two books to read.

[Bozita]

48. Klein and Zinn

[Earth_First]

31. I used this exact title to open the eyes of my (R)-wing father...

Every time I see him, he's in utter disbelief.

Still votes party line since I convinced him to cast his first (D) for Eliott Spitzer, but we're still working on him...

[malaise]

53. It's the best book I read in decades

The last time a book hit me like that was Michael Parenti's Democracy for the Few.

[mzteris]

3. A People's History of the United States

by Howard Zinn.

[valerief]

11. +1

[ReggieVeggie]

40. +2

[ThomCat]

44. That would be the one I would choose.

[w8liftinglady]

5. This one "A Peoples History of The United States"

http://www.historyisaweapon.com/zinnapeopleshistory.html

[leftstreet]

29. +1

[gateley]

6. Atlas Shrugged.

Kidding - couldn't resist. :evilgrin:

I need some protein.

[jillan]

55. lol - you!! I read your response before I saw who posted it.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[REP]

7. Major Barbara, GB Shaw

[Drale]

8. War and Peace

because its big and thick and will make a real impact when you smack them in the back of the head with it. :rofl:

[Duer 157099]

12. Confessions of an Economic Hitman

It's hard to choose just one book, though. Shock Doctrine would be high on my list too.

[Buzz Clik]

13. The Portrait of Dorian Gray.

[in_cog_ni_to]

14. Just 1? How about 2!

David Brock's "Blinded by the Right"

John Perkins "Confessions of an Economic Hit Man"

[checks-n-balances]

42. Depends on what you're focusing on - Democracy, war, &/or economics

Sometimes a combination of the above. We've been hit in several different avenues by the rightwing for many years.

Media manipulation: Blinded By the Right is EXCELLENT - opened my eyes!
Roots of the present economy: The Shock Doctrine
Not as familiar w/Perkins' book, but I seem to remember that it includes the dirty work done internationally by the CIA reaching back at least 100 years.

GREAT QUESTION!!

[pnorman]

56. That bug!

Call for Tom DeLay1

[ThomWV]

16. I always go back to "1984"

[eleny]

17. Family of Secrets....

Family of Secrets: The Bush Dynasty, America's Invisible Government, and the Hidden History of the Last Fifty Years by Russ Baker.

http://www.amazon.com/Family-Secrets-Americas-Invisible-Government/dp/1608190064/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1303950119&sr=8-1

[gateley]

28. I just ordered that this morning -- glad to see you liked it. nt

[eleny]

36. "Like" is a hard word to describe how you feel when reading it

You know what I mean - some tough facts and truths to learn and digest. But it's an important book that pulls you in because it's so well written for novices like me.

[gateley]

41. Yeah, I'm already anticipating a dramatIc rise in blood pressure! Even though I'm

aware of the general story, seeing it compiled in print and presented coherently makes a MUCH bigger impression, and helps to understand the enormity of the whole thing.

I heard the author on a radio show - I listened to the whole thing with my jaw hanging to the floor.

[eleny]

46. Months ago, I heard Baker interviewed by Ray Taliaferro on KGO

He was on the show for about 3 hours. It was great.

[H2O Man]

32. Great book.

I'm re-reading today.

[eleny]

37. I'm glad this is one I bought instead of borrowing from the library

[MannyGoldstein]

18. To The Bitter End

a memoir by Hans Gisevius. Gisevius was a very-high-ranking Nazi who turned against the Party, fled to Switzerland where he befriended the US ambassador to Switzerland (who was also running the OSS, before it was the CIA). Gisevius returned to Germany to aid in the plot against Hitler, and fled back to Switzerland when it failed. He was a key witness at the Nuremberg trials.

It is one of the best history book I've ever read: the plot to kill Hitler is only a part of the book, which methodically covers the way in which the Nazis came to power - prior to the Nazi rise to power, Germany had been perhaps the most liberal and tolerant country in the world. In just a few years, it turned into Hell on Earth. It's an amazing story, and Gisevius saw it all from the inside, but came to realize how awful it had become.

Read this book and you'll realize: it can happen here.

http://www.amazon.com/Bitter-End-Hans-Bernd-Gisevius/dp/0306808692

[PassingFair]

19. The Second Sex

I saw it transform my father.



I remember him reading it when I was a teenager, he constantly started
sentences with "Simone says...".

The other book that effected him was "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire".

He tackled that in his 50's.

I've started it about 4 times...I'm not ready for it.
Maybe when the kids move out.....

[Annata4Peace]

20. Chomsky

Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media

Too many people fail to realize that CNN, MSNBC, DRUDGE, FOX and their ilk are contributors to the problem. If you watch MSNBC you're misinformed.

[H2O Man]

21. Autobiography of Malcolm X

[blondeatlast]

22. "The Republican Noise Machine" by David Brock. nt

[arcane1]

23. I know, it's hard to choose just one!!!!

I suppose my choice would depend on the reader.

"The Shock Doctrine" is definitely a number one. But I would not give that to a dumb-ass.

"People's History" is a GREAT book, but I've found "Lies My Teacher Told Me" by James Loewen to be much more accessible to the masses, while covering much of the same material.

There have been a few posted here that I have not heard of, which is great for me! I promise this OP wasn't an attempt to get reading ideas!

Ok, not entirely such an attempt :)

[ScreamingMeemie]

24. "Against All Enemies" by Richard Clarke.

I've given it out a few times, and it has opened some people's eyes.

[ThomWV]

27. +1

[gateley]

43. Not familiar with it -- I'll go check it out. nt

[sunwyn]

30. Rights of Man Thomas Paine

[Paradoxical]

33. We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families

Highly disturbing. Highly moving.

[Brickbat]

34. The USA Trilogy by Dos Passos or "Let Us Now Praise Famous Men" by James Agee.

[mmonk]

35. The Shock Doctrine.

Then I'd throw in, "The Eliminationists, How Hate Talk Radicalized The American Right" for good measure.

[Exilednight]

38. A People's History.

[bluestate10]

39. The Pearl. Shows the consequences of unfettered greed. nt

[spooky3]

45. The Healing of America

[gauguin57]

47. Can I make it a DVD instead of a book? If so ... the documentary "Why We Fight."

... by Eugene Jarecki.

It's an even-handed look at how the military-industrial-congressional complex (which was the phrase that was originally in Pres. Eisenhower's cautionary speech) makes sure we keep going to more and more wars ... to feed the machine.

It should be required viewing for every school kid.

[applegrove]

49. "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee.

[applegrove]

50. "God's Little Bits of Wood" by Sembene Ousman

[canoeist52]

52. "Griftopia" by Matt Taibbi, "Free Lunch" by David Cay Johnston

http://www.amazon.com/Griftopia-Machines-Vampire-Breaking-America/dp/0385529953/ref=sr_1_1/175-8020963-4839901?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1303953969&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Free-Lunch-Wealthiest-Themselves-Government/dp/1591841917

And of course Howard Zinn and Naomi Klein's books

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

54. Catch-22

[MedleyMisty]

57. My Bondage and My Freedom

by Frederick Douglass.

Amazon link - http://www.amazon.com/My-Bondage-Freedom-Penguin-Classics/dp/0140439188

free e-text link - http://etext.virginia.edu/toc/modeng/public/DouMybo.html

I preach the gospel of Douglass whenever possible.

[cali]

58. Two Cheers for Democracy by the great humanist, novelist and essayist, E.M.Forster