The 5 Books I'd Want With Me If I Was Stuck On A Desert Island
We have a radio show in the UK called Desert Island Discs.
Guests are asked to select five songs they'd want with them if they were marooned on a desert island.
It's an interesting premise and one I thought I adapt for books. Reading is one of my favourite pastimes but what if I was restricted to five books? Which ones would I choose?
It's a tough question. One I had to think long and hard about. Here are the five books I'd want with me if I was castaway on a desert island.
Meditations - A remarkable book. It still amazes me you can access the personal thoughts of a former Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, today. A man who was the most powerful person on the planet at the time.
Jurassic Park - The novel is a warning about hubris in the face of forces we can't control. It hammers home how the best intentions can lead to terrible unintended consequences. As good as the film in my opinion.
The Odyssey - A Greek classic. The tale of a man fighting to find his way back home to his family. The scrapes Odysseus gets into along the way make for riveting reading. They also present plenty of moral lessons which still apply today.
The Black Swan - This book made me rethink how I saw the world when I first read it. I was blown away by the concepts Nassim Taleb discusses. A must-read, especially in the age of Covid.
The Beach - A book about living on a beach while stuck on a desert island! Sure, it might provide a few tips on how to survive but it's also a brilliant novel. I read this while backpacking in Australia and have loved it ever since. Much better than the movie version with Leonardo!