Required Reading

[jokerthief]

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin -- This is a window into the thinking process one of the most brilliant men in history.

The Singularity is Near, by Ray Kurzweil -- Kurzweil is a futurist with a great track record (he predicted that the internet would be a world wide phenomena when it was still called Arpanet in the mid eighties) that talks about the upcoming revolutions in genetics, nanotechnology, and robotics (including strong AI).

[limon]

pimp by iceberg slim &
the art of war by sun tzu

[MicroBob]

yeah, I'm pretty much not thinking of this list in terms of 'books every American should read'.

I think most American adults would not be able to comprehend a lot of this stuff.
Even a lot of university educated Americans would be mostly 'why bother?'

I'm looking at all the suggestions as mostly a bunch of books that I should read.

I'm actually embarassed by how little I've read.

[hexag1]

Religion:
The Power of Myth by Joseph Cambell
all the recent anti-faith polemics: The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, God is Not Great by Christopher Hitchens, Breaking the Spell by Daniel Dennett, and of course The End of Faith by Sam Harris already mentioned in OP. An excellent audio book Hitchens' book [read by the author] can be downloaded via torrents from mininova.org

Science:
Im gonna add Sociobiology: The New Synthesis by E.O. Wilson. Its hefty, but well worth the effort. Read the Selfish Gene first. It will really change your outlook on the natural world.
I also reccomend "Conciousness Explained" and its companion "Sweet Dreams" by Daniel Dennett. This was my intro to the philosopy of mind, and I find myself looking back to it and its style of thinking whenever i get introspective.
Stephen Jay Gould: "The Mismeasure of Man", a great debunking of standardized intelligence tests.
Hawking - a brief history of time
Novels:
Moby Dick - Mellville
Blood Meridian - Cormack McCarthy. absolutely sick..
Anything by Nabokov (guy writes the most beautiful and exquisite sentences ever) Hilarious to boot.

Politics/History: The Gulag Archipelago by Alexender Solzhenitsyn. This will show you why you should hate communism and fascism. A moving account of the worst crime in recorded history.

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST
EVERTHING by George Orwell not already mentioned

[hexag1]

oh yeah, dont forget Miles Davis' awesome autobiography "Miles"
its really just a transcription of a long series of interviews conducted by Quincy Troupe. Troupe interviewed him and organized them into general chronology of Miles' life. Easy to read and completely in Miles' own speech. Amazing account of a real artist to abandoned everything [his health, his family, friends] for his art and lived only for the day.

[tsearcher]

1. If you live in the U.S. or North America for that matter, then "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain is a must read. Even if you're not from North America this book will do a a really good job of explaining the U.S. to you.

"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn", just is the perfect explanation of the U.S. It shows the country's greatness and its flaws. First off it's an adventure/buddy story and shows all the variety and beauty of the U.S. On the other hand it really does a good job of exposing the problems that occur here (and worldwide). These problems include: racism, sexism, child abuse, substance abuse, social inequity etc.

It's been over a hundred years since this book has been published and it's still current. It's just an amazing book.

2.) "On the Origin of Species", by Charles Darwin. This is a science text that reads like a novel. It shows the scientific thought process. And it's enjoyable to come along with Darwin as he figures this stuff out. Understanding Evolution is such an important part of understanding humanity that this is an absolute must read.

Honorable Mention: The Holy Bible. No matter what your beliefs are, the Bible is important. This book is the foundation of Western Civilization. Get the King James version for the incredible poetry.

[RobertJohn]

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i love hamlet

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Hamlet or King Lear.

Walden - Thoreau

The essays Walking and Civil Disobedience - Thoreau

Leaves of Grass Whitman

[amplify]

tsearcher,

I just finished reading Huck Finn for the first time. What you left out is that it is about the goddamn funniest book on earth. Near the end when Huck and Tom Sawyer are planning Jim's escape, I was falling out of bed laughing. "That was the most undigestible sawdust I ever see." So funny. Tom Saywer is like a 19th century Don Quixote with Huck as his Sancho Panza.

The social humor is also devastating. One exchange I remember goes something like:

"The engine blew up."
"Oh no! Was anyone hurt?"
"Nope, killed a n*gger."

Pretty rough stuff.

[pokeraz]

Maybe something that discusses critcal and skeptical thinking, The Demon-Hauned World: Science as a Candle in the Wind, so they can receive their 'Baloney Detection Kit'. Or something even more profound like Cosmos, Both by Sagan.

[RobertJohn]

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If you had the power to make two books required reading for every adult american which books would you choose and why?

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[ QUOTE ]
which two books do you think would most benefit society if they were widely read.

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1. The Autobiography of Malcolm X

It’s a great overview of the tumultuous 50s and 60s from a perspective that most Americans would never receive otherwise. It also has an important lesson to teach about dogmatism and equality.

2. Walden

This work is filled with the philosophical musings of one of America’s greatest thinkers, one who would later inspire Gandhi and MLK Jr.. His scathing criticism of nineteenth-century antebellum politics and society is still relevant and applicable to modern America. It also helps that he has the same amusing wit as Twain.

It would definitely “benefit society” if everyone read Walden, probably more so than any other work.