Does anyone know an influential book for a young reader?

i need to read an influential book that might change my mind about some thing or make me feel more torward it. i need it so that i can write an essay on it for a high school aplication. i planed to do it on "flowers for algernon" but its a to common book. i need sometihng good for a upcoming freshman in high school. please i need it to be influential enouph to make me think differently about something or for me to have stronger feelings torward it. thank you very much.


jebus

Does anyone know an influential book for a young reader?
One of my favorite books in high school was "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. You will probably have to read it anyways!! Its a great book and it really makes you think about our justice system and racism. Good Luck to you!!
Reply:To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an amazing book that would be great for an essay for a high school application. Plus, you could easily find some "help" on the internet since it is a classic.





Another great book about environmentalism and religion is Ishmael by Daniel Quinn. The book centers around a conversation between a gorilla and a man (a little far-fetched, I know) but speaks directly to issues of our environment and man's place in the world. I read it when I was in college and it definitely changed my opinion on life.
Reply:It might be a little advanced for High School, but you may want to try 'The Castle in the Forest' by Norman Mailer.





The story is told from the point of view of a demon who's been assigned to watch over (much like a guardian angel, but pushing in the other direction) the family of Adolf Hitler. Adolf is the product of an incestuous relationship, and becomes more and more a project for the demon in the story. We see him grow from the night he was conceived through his childhood and school years. Very disturbing, and gives rise to thoughts and ponderings . . . are some supernatural powers watching over, possibly guiding, all of our actions?
Reply:to kill a mockingbird - harper lee


If lines like this don't change your point of view, nothing ever will:


"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."
Reply:until i find you by john irving
Reply:yo read da bible! Yea dat is enough 2 change anybodies life!
Reply:HEART OF A CHAMPION
Reply:I, too, would suggest Anthem by Ayn Rand. Each year, The Ayn Rand Institute holds essay contests with cash prizes but unfortunately the 2007 contest has ended. Nonetheless, here is a book that will open your mind to new, rational ideas, and, just may change the course of you life. I know it did mine. This book is recommended for 9th and 10th graders. The other books in the contest are The Fountainhead (for 11th and 12th graders) and Atlas Shrugged, her masterpiece (College students, but high school students entering college in the fall of 2008 are also eligible.)





They also offer free books to teachers for their classrooms. From one teacher: "I rank Rand's novels at the top of my list. I always recommend her to students and teachers. She has a way of touching students in a meaningful way."





Anthem and The Fountainhead both contain many elements that appeal strongly to young readers. They are inspiring and exciting stories, with heroic characters fighting for their ideals. The novels portray events with profound and timeless significance, challenging readers to decide not just what will happen to particular characters, but what their own lives and the world should be like.





For more information on these contests and Objectivism in general, please visit their website.
Reply:ANTHEM by Ayn Rand
Reply:I agree...To Kill a Mockingbird is a very good book that you can read for this. Aside from that, I found Lord of the Rings influential though it's fantasy and a bit difficult to read ...well, at least it did change my views about many things in the world :) I'm referring to the books and not the movies of course.


You also might want to try The Pearl by John Steinbeck.
Reply:Hermans wishes. 56 pg.'s long. Very good book
Reply:Dunno. but my favourite book is HOWLS MOVING CASTLE. Look it up i think you'll like it and i got an A for my report on it
Reply:"Pay it Forward", is an excellent book. It really touched me and though the movie has been playing on the TV recently I can't even think about watching it as I know they changed so much. Read the book, it's great and it's under 200 pages but packs a real message.
Reply:To Kill A Mockingbird
Reply:jebus - Please read Life of Pi by Yann Martel.
Reply:live and times of Teddy Roosevlet
Reply:Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. It's very near to where I believe our future is headed and it really made me aware of how the media tells us who we are and what we want.
Reply:1984 by George Orwell will definitely make you think differently!





I would say that this is a must read, and a highly enjoyable one. When you put that book down, you will be like, "whoa!"





And there is also plenty of other supporting literature for that book, if you want to then go and lean more about it and the author.





The story begins on April 4, 1984 at 13:00 hours: "It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen…" The date's relevance is questionable, because it is what Winston Smith perceives. In the story's course, he concludes that the date is irrelevant, because the State (Big Brother) can arbitrarily alter it to be whatever it says it to be. The year 1984 and its world are chronologically transmutable onto any society that surrenders its freedom to the State.