50 books everyone should read

The other night while sitting here at the hotel I decided to try to identify 50 books that have been influential to me. I think everyone should read these books. Not every book I have enjoyed has to be everyone else's favorite. But these books are classic. A classic is defined as: 1. "of the first or highest quality, class, or rank: a classic piece of work; 2. serving as a standard, model, or guide: the classic method of teaching arithmetic." These books are not in the order of greatest influence of my life. I find it impossible to rank one book over another. But I feel everyone, man or woman, would be better off if they read and understood these books.


1.  The Book of Mormon
2.  The Holy Bible
3.  The Doctrine and Covenants
4.  The Pearl of Great Price
5.  Leadership and Self-Deception by Arbinger Institute
6.  Band of Brothers by Stephan Ambrose
7.  Hanging by the Thread by Donald Anderson
8.  God's Humble Instrument by Ron L. Anderson
9.  Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley
10.  Enders' Shadow by Orson Scott Card
11.  How to Win Friends and Influence People in the New Digital Age by Carnegie Institute
12.  Prelude to Glory series by Ron Carter
13.  Wild Swans by Jung Chang
14.  Magnificent Obsession by Lloyd Douglas
15.  The Robe by Lloyd Douglas
16.  First Family by Joseph Ellis
17.  Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank
18.  Deconstructing Penguins by Lawrence Gladstone
19.  Team of Rivals by Doris Goodwin
20.  October Sky by Homer Hickham
21.  The Jackrabbit Factor by Leslie Householder

22.  The Great Conversation by Robert Hutchins

23.  Redwall by Brian Jacques
24.  The Education of a Wandering Man by Louis L'Amour
25.  Last of the Breed by Louis L'Amour
26.  Endurance by Alfred Lansing
27.  The Great Divorce by CS Lewis
28.  The Alliance by Gerald Lund
29.  The Freedom Factor by Gerald Lund
30.  The Freatest Miracle in the World by Og Mandino
31.  Are You Liberal, Conservative, or Confused? by Richard Maybury
32.  The Thousand Years War by Richard Maybury
33.  Driven by Larry Miller
34.  Little Britches by Ralph Moody
35.  Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink
36.  Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig
37.  Anthem by Ayn Rand
38.  Harry Potter series by JK Rowling
39.  Any book by Jeff Shaara
40.  The Making of America by W. Cleon Skousen
41.  The Naked Communist by W. Cleon Skousen
42.  The Great and Terrible series by Christ Stewart
43.  Mindset by Carol Sweck
44.  Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage
45.  The Great Apostasy by James E. Talmage
46.  The Dream Giver by Bruce Wilkinson
47.  All the President's Men by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein
48.  The Final Days by Bob Woodward
49.  The Promised Land series by David G. Woolley
50.  The Rise of the American Nation