8 Books Every Intelligent Person Should Read

Harvard’s president, Charles W. Eliot made a frequent assertion: If you were to spend just 15 minutes a day reading the right books you could give yourself a proper liberal education.  “If you read all of these works (below) you will glean profound insight into most of what has driven the history of the western world” concludes astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson.

The one-line comment after each book is not a review but a statement about how the book’s content influenced the behavior of people who shaped the western world.

1.) The Bible (eBook) - “Christian influence on values, beliefs, and practices in Western culture are abundant and well ingrained into the flourishing society of today. The Bible itself is responsible for much of the language, literature, and fine arts we enjoy today as its artists and composers were heavily influenced by its writings.”

2.) The Age of Reason by Thomas Paine (eBook – Audio Book) – “to learn how the power of rational thought is the primary source of freedom in the world.”

3.) The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith (eBook – Audio Book) - “to learn that capitalism is an economy of greed, a force of nature unto itself.”

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5.) On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin (eBook – Audio Book) - “to learn of our kinship with all other life on Earth.”

6.) Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift (eBook – Audio Book) – “to learn, among other satirical lessons, that most of the time humans are Yahoos.”

7.) The Art of War by Sun Tsu (eBook – Audio Book) - “to learn that the act of killing fellow humans can be raised to an art.”

8.) The Prince by Machiavelli (eBook – Audio Book) - “to learn that people not in power will do all they can to acquire it, and people in power will do all they can to keep it.”

If you’re looking for a more extensive list of essential works, don’t miss The Harvard Classics, a 51 volume series that you can now download online.