Books that "changed your life"

[Don't Change Your Name]

Just wondering if you have some book or text that made you think on a different way or "opened your mind".
If you do, which is it?

[Hampton]

Malcolm X's Autobio and Soledad Brother are probally my biggest.

[commieboy]

catcher in the rye did, and i'm not sure how or why, it just did

[DaCuBaN]

Scepticism Inc. by Bo Fowler

Here's a short review and frankly, it doesn't do the book justice:


Do the Dalai Lama's teeth fall out every time he laughs? Who Knows?
Mar 30 '04 (Updated Mar 30 '04)

The Bottom Line
Machinery is the new Messiah - Henry Ford.

Full Review
Scepticism inc. is one of those books that no matter how many times I read, I always manage to find something new. Written in a unique and original way, Bo Fowler really has excelled himself when it comes to writing the perfectly original novel.

It screams to be reviewed. It's taken me this long to get around to it, since the review has to be perfect. It isn't however, but it's the best I could do. Analysing every word of this book has been a painstaking process, especially when it comes to choosing which quotes to use, or which characters to talk about. Because it's an almost impossible task to select it's best bits, since the entire thing is one huge best bit. In fact the only mundane bit is the bit on the back cover where the price is (but it was worth every penny). Even the inside of the sleeves and the author's notes are best bits.

This novel takes a sublime and most satirical look at the eccentricities and lunacies of organised religion, metaphysics and dogma.

Set some time in the future, the narrator of the story is a supermarket trolley fitted with AI and a conscience (an Infinity Chip), the ability to think and speak, the ability to question. The trolley works for Shopalot, a supermarket situated in St Pancreas, which is next door to the Most Famous Little Church In The World. The most intriguing and interesting thing about this trolley, is his (we know he's a He, since the technician that greeted him off the production line tapped his push bar and said "Who's a pretty boy then?") ability to quote facts, figures and statistics about almost anything.

By 2022 there were 38 different brands of popcorn in Shopalot. Aztec priests used to wear amulets of stringed popcorn in religious ceremonies. they really did. One of the brands of Popcorn we had, was called Popecorn and was distributed by the Vatican. Each piece of Popecorn had been individually coated in sugar and blessed by a Bishop

But not just the vast amounts of merchandise they had at Shopalot. Imports/exports and weapons were also some of his specialities.

The inventor of the Infinity Chip had been a chap called George Milles Jr. When George Milles jr died, here's what happened at his funeral.

Speeches were read out, tributes made, scores settled... 700 Alpine yodellers started to yodel like mad, and 500 elephants performed a small dance routine.. The entire Scandinavian Air Force flew over and dropped 10,000 rubber ducks each equipped with a parachute and a tape recorder, which played "Bustin' Surfboards" by the Tornadoes once the ducks dropped below 5,000 feet.

So as you can see, this is no ordinary piece of fiction. This is abstract and surreal genius. It's porcelain art.

The trolley befriends Edgar Malroy. The owner of the Most Famous Little Church In The World. Edgar Malroy opens his first metaphysical betting shop there. People would come along and place bets as to the existence of God and/or other things that can be neither proven nor disproved. Edgar found it fascinating that people's beliefs were so strong, that they would willingly part with their money on a bet that could never be won. Upon placing a bet, each person would receive a badge that said; I'VE PUT MY MONEY WHERE MY METAPHYSICS ARE.

The trolley places a bet for £500,000 (IOU) that God exists.

The Metaphysical betting shop becomes so famous, that several branches are opened worldwide, as well as "Who Knows?" (Edgar's slogan) TV and Radio. The whole franchise became known as Scepticism Inc. And soon, Edgar Malroy becomes the richest man in the world. Scepticism Inc. becomes the most famous company in the world.

Edgar Malroy has quotes by Friedrich Nietzsche tattooed on his ärse.

The story surrounds the people that come along to his Metaphysical betting shops. Religious nuts, leaders, atheists and agnostics alike. But it is the narration by the trolley and his keen eye for detail that makes it the fascinatingly hilarious piece of fiction that it is.

Another betting shop was opened in Mecca... Muslims made a series of bets as they circled the Kabah anti-clockwise 7 times.

The trolley also goes into great detail about each of the world's religious leaders, from when they were born, to how they became a leader. Pope John John, for example, had been born in California, and dropped out of school and became a carpet cleaner. After he was made Pope, many of the houses where he had cleaned carpets were turned into shrines. The Vatican even invented a carpet cleaner, called Cardinal Cleaner. Having the very latest technology installed in it, so that every time the carton was shaken, a short benediction would follow.

The first thing many Californians heard after the 2021 earthquake, was their Cardinal Cleaner mumbling in Latin under the sink.

Apparently, Pope John John never photosynthesised or masturbated, either.

Much of the money Edgar made at his shops, was donated to various worldwide help organisations to help the poor, the hungry, the ill etc etc. Money made through the questioning of the existence of the Divine is used to help mankind.

Another of the books central characters is Sophia Alderson. The most ridiculously beautiful woman in the world. (Men would willingly die for her ears alone). Sophia Alderson claimed to be divinely inspired by the Virgin Mary at least 3 times a day. Thus, in addition to being ridiculously beautiful, Sophia Alderson also claimed to be God's messenger. Of course, Edgar fell in love with Sophia, but they argued constantly, since she was a sizeable nut in the case of all things religious, and Edgar, of course, didn't believe. On the day they meet, they argue all day. Although, at the end, Edgar asks Sophia to leave immediately and give him her telephone number, which she does. Having just had a vision of the Virgin Mary riding a penny-farthing blowing bubbles, holding a sign that said: Leave immediately and give Edgar Malroy your telephone number.

The book focuses a lot on Sophia and Edgar's fraught and tempestuous relationship, through the eyes of the little trolley. And every minute of it is toe curlingly funny. A lot of which involved them swapping essays on their beliefs. They would then return the essay to one another. Sophia always wrote on Edgar's essays, No! no! no! no!. Edgar would respond with Nuts! nuts! nuts!.

And so it goes. The story is elaborately told with painstaking attention to detail by the little supermarket trolley. The trolley even recounts the time he climbed Mount Everest. How did he do it? Slowly.

The book builds and builds, the satire gets even more satirical. The ridiculous gets even more ridiculous, but it's beautiful! Ending with the best fictitious documentation of a Holy War I've ever read.

Excerpts from the War:

On 30th September the Society of Friends stopped collective worship and the Spiritualist Church gave up the ghost.

Popedoms were being sold for £24.99 a throw.

As the Holy war raged another General Council was summoned, to try and end the Second Great Schism. It failed abysmally, merely electing yet another Pope. Dilipkumar Thanki, the 16th Dalai Lama, was elected Pope on December 3rd 2026.

Whatever your views on Religion, you'll love this book (especially if you have a slightly warped sense of humour and a penchant for the ridiculously sublime). Even trees would willingly donate themselves to paper factories to ensure vast quantities of this book could be produced, if they could read. Because it's that good.

Fowler writes with such enthusiasm for his subject matter, that the quality of this book even outweighs many of the modern classics, in my opinion. His writing style may not be for everyone, but it's certainly unique. His characters are believable, even though the concept of them is ridiculous. This book is undoubtedly a caricature of modern religion, encompassing the path of modern technology. And it's more fun than you could shake a pink, rabbit shaped pom-pom at.

The moral of the story is;

People matter more than The Truth.

Aloha.


As a testament to the innate 'readability' of this book, I actually gave it to my catholic mother. She loved it :lol:

:redstar2000:

[Ziggy]

the giver
catcher in the rye
one flew over the cuckoo's nest
songs of innocence and experience
zen and the art of motorcyle maintenance
the drifters

[Urban Rubble]

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair.

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

Originally posted by Urban [email protected] 22 2004, 09:40 PM
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair.
That's a good book, my friend!

Probably the first book that I read which condemned oppression in the workplace.
Of course, my mother had already been filling my head with those carzy pinko ideas for years prior to that. :lol:

[Political Suicide]

Catch 22
1984
Basketball Diaries
On the Road
Porno (the book.. lol)
The Stranger
Slaughterhouse-Five

[Louis Pio]

Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell

[Pedro Alonso Lopez]

Same as above, it made me realise how the idea of leadership and comradeship can work.

Nietzsche's the AntiChrist turned me off Christianity for good so thats a huge effect.

Joyce's Portrait of the Artist confirmed my love of the English language and basically kept me going in college when Philosophy was taking too much of my reading up,

[che's long lost daughter]

Tree by F. Sionil Jose...I bet nobody else knows of this author. Well, is there?

[Floyd.]

Junky by William S. Burroughs

[SonofRage]

A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn

[refuse_resist]

1984 by George Orwell

[SittingBull47]

"A Little Matter of Genocide"
by Ward Churchhill

Basically a history of America's oppression against Native Americans
This book is what got me into Native Politics and history. one thing led to another a couple years ago (when i didn't care about such things) and i started the sharp turn to the left.

[Hawker]

Jennifer Government by Max Barry

The Art of War by Sun Tzu

[James]

The Once and Future King by White is well worth reading, simply because of what Merlyn has to say. His observations are usually linked to fate, power, and "right".
The concepts thrown around are quite quaint, usually throught provoking.

Hardy's Mayor of Casterbridge is a book which can change your outlook on life. Hardy was a clever so-and-so. Its a book detailing the life of this guy who goes off the rails (gets pissed and sells his wife), gets back on them again (resulting in him becoming mayor), and then falls again. He experiances every feeling possible to man; because of this, Hardy described it as a novel "about character". It is equally about time and history though. It demonstrates how the past dominates the present and future, and how trying to forget/ignore/paint over your past often leads to disaster.

[che's long lost daughter]

Thomas Hardy is a really a brilliant writer. Have you read any of his other works?

[Red Skyscraper]

-----

[James]

I had started Tess, but i was sort of moving house at the same time so i just didn't read for several nights. You know how it is... you just don't pick it up again. I must only be on the 3rd chapter. I should try and get into it. It just hasn't grabbed me like MofC did.

You read Tess?

[Agent provocateur]

A People's History of the United States by Dr. Howard Zinn

Inevitable Revolutions: The United States in Central America by Dr. Walter Lafeber

The American Age by Dr. Walter Lafeber

Killing Hope by William Blum

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

1984

The Time Machine
: by H.G. Wells
War of the Worlds

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce

etc.