1. Destiny Disrupted
Tamim Ansary
Who am I ?
Where am I going?
Where do I come from? (read this book)
2. The Little Prince, and Wind, Sand & Stars
Antoine De Saint- Exupery
The forerunner to Coelho with a turn of phrase more magical than Rushdie's. Saint-Exupery was the real deal – a true-blue adventurer amongst poseurs.
3. Fallen Giants
Maurice Isserman and Stewart Weaver
Vittorio Sella's photographs and its all-encompassing sweep place this book higher than Viesturs' K2 and Krakauer's Into Thin Air.
I have been addicted to the printed word all my life. Even these days when I am the busiest I have ever been at work, I manage to read two or even three books a week.
My reading style is slightly bizzare. Typically, I speed read every new book in a single marathon reading session which may last throughout an entire day and night. If I like that particular book, I then re-read it over the course of the week, slowly taking it in like the boa in The Little Prince. Often I shall read it again if an incident down the years triggers the memory of that book.
Funnily enough, two exceptions to this rule are the first and third books on the list above – due as much to the quality as to the scope of these books. Destiny Disrupted and Fallen Giants are to be savoured a chapter at a time. The Little Prince, on the other hand, is a short but timeless fable with an almost sufi-like sensibility.
I envy you the reading joy you are about to experience.
