Reading List

There have been a surprising number of requests for the kind of books I read. Rather than keep answering them one at a time, I've put a short list here. If you find that you are not ready for these books, if you find them boring, irritating, or perhaps even repellant, then please put them down and walk away. One must not have answers pushed at him before he has even asked the question. Besides, there is nothing whatsoever wrong with walking a different path.

Although the Bros. W used Baudrillard's Simulacra and Simulation as a reference, I do not recommend it. Books like that are only for the most serious-minded, persistent students of philosophy. I haven't read much of it myself, because the density is too great. The other notable absentee is The Bible, which you should read (again?) only after you have made your way through the list. I suggest using the New International Version and starting with the Gospels.

Now on to the list.

Non-fiction

1. The Power of Myth, Joseph Campbell as intereviewed by Bill Moyers. This is a fantastic introduction to the interpretation of mythic symbols. Start here.
2. Iron John, by Robert Bly. You can see how someone other than Campbell dissects a mythic story. Skip all the male support group parts, unless of course you enjoy them.
3. A Brief History of Time, by Stephen Hawking. Now the object is to see myth in the physical universe. I think this is most apparent at the frontiers of understanding. If you are really up for a challenge, you can graduate to The Universe in a Nutshell, in which myth and scientific theory seem like almost the same thing.
4. The Hero with a Thousand Faces, by Joseph Campbell. Return to myth in a big way. This book may be the single most important volume on mythic interpretation ever written. (Yes, I know about The Golden Bough. I have a copy approximately one meter away from me on the bookshelf. It is so dreadfully hard to read that I question whether Frazer ever meant for anyone to actually get through it.)

Fiction

1. The Hundred Secret Senses, by Amy Tan. Reading this book taught me the difference between fact and truth. I believe I came to comprehend religion because of this book.
2. A Wizard of Earthsea, by Ursula K. LeGuin. I have often referred readers of the Matrix essays to this book. The depth of meaning in this story is astounding.
3. Mona Lisa Overdrive, by William Gibson. This is the world of the Matrix as imagined 20 years ago.