Daily writing prompt

List three books that have had an impact on you. Why?

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Factfulness by Hans Rosling, and while I disagree with him on a *lot* of things (and it was written pre-COVID and Russia/Ukraine War), he definitely had some good points like not forming your perspective based on mainstream news alone, which would be akin to forming your opinion on a person based on a photo of their foot, and that the world, for the most part, the world is doing better than we think, and in some areas (though not all) has transideological appeal.

A People’s History of Christianity by Diana Butler Bass, which really spoke to me as a Christian, and as she herself is/was Episcopalian like I am, it really exemplified my view, definitely shared by many today, that many religious authorities throughout history have made the religion more about themselves than Jesus, and that his message of social justice has been constantly misinterpreted.

A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn, since he didn’t sugarcoat American history at all, didn’t play favorites in terms of Presidents, really solidified my view that the U.S., its founders, its inception, its history, and all leaders and policies past and present are just as subject to criticism, judgement, and review as in every other country in the world, and gave credence to the quote “Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.”