“A book is like a key that fits into the tumbler of the soul. The two parts have to match in order for each to unlock. Then—click—a world opens.” ― Brad Kessler,
Books have always inspired Betsy and me to try new things in our lives and have shaped our dreams, both individually and as a couple. Books have the potential to open our minds to the possibilities in life. They can radically change our minds and plant the seeds for new directions. Books:
- Challeng us mentally
- Transport us to new worlds
- Open up possibilities we had not seen before
- Enable us to connect with others who are living their dream
- Allow us to explore ideas from the comfort of our homes
In addition, books are powerful resources to help you answer the question “What is my dream?”. Inspiration to define your dream can come in a plethora of forms, but a book has the ability to peer inside your mind and create the image of what your dream life may look like.
Over the course of our lives we have read hundreds of books, but there are a few which have shaped our lives into the dream we are living today. Each book listed below has opened our eyes to new ideas, ways of approaching our lives, or opportunities we did not know were possible. We can trace many of the greatest experiences we have had back to words that inspired us to take a leap.
“Be as careful of the books you read, as of the company you keep; for your habits and character will be as much influenced by the former as the latter.” ― Paxton Hood
Following is a list of the 40 books that have inspired us the most. If you are struggling to determine what you want most in your life we believe these books can provide a foundation to answering the question “What is my dream?”.
Determine what intrigues you most and dive in. Head to your library or click on a cover and purchase a copy from Amazon.
What books have inspired your dreams?
40 Books to Inspire Your Dreams
Creativity is a habit, and this book teaches creatives how to systematize their creativity to make it more powerful and focused than ever before.
Who wouldn’t want to know how such a prolific and successful author makes it happen? Like Twyla Tharp’s book, this one focuses on the work habits that shape creativity into actual creations.
A novel of personal strength and fortitude and overcoming terrible circumstances. Not everything in life will go your way, but it is up to you how you will let it affect you.
Explore the limits to which others will go to try big things and the courage it takes to see them through.
Can you see a theme here? We really like books on habits - those small daily efforts that morph your life into something incredible.
Motivation and guidance to step outside the norm and create something amazing. Warren started his first company after reading this book.
Discover the wonders of living in another country through the eyes of one man following his passion.
Fiction is just as powerful for motivation as non-fiction. Cronin examines what it would be like if we had to start all over again and the resiliency with which we would do it.
Discover the freedom of living life without limits, ignoring the nay-sayers, and taking off to chart your own path.
The “magical realism” type of books show us the world is not always as it seems, and the characters who build a life based on this knowledge are always compelling and interesting. Just like in real life.
This book opened our minds to the creative potential in us both and provided us with practical resources we could use to explore them. We are better writers as a result.
You’ll quickly realize that “magical realism” is one of Betsy’s favorite types of books. The main character ages twice as fast as everyone else, and in looking at his life passing you feel an urgency in your own.
Learn about Japanese culture and the quest to understand a foreign people and language.
What happens when you isolate the intellectuals and take away all their tools except pen and paper? None of us are superior to the other, just differently gifted and inspired.
Arguably the greatest adventure ever which inspired us to visit Antarctica and live a more adventurous life alway willing to say yes.
This is the first in a 5-part series which opened our eyes to the Mongolian Empire. We devoured the books and then chartered a course to Mongolia to experience the country for ourselves.
We’re always looking ahead, and in this book it’s a treat to look back and see what it takes to build something big. Having an appreciation for your history makes for a better future.
This is a story about humble beginnings and eventual personal success - despite the Spanish Inquisition. (Cathedral by the Sea)
For years Warren would hold on to so much in his life, creating a ball of stress. This book helped him to see the importance of letting go and focusing on the good in life - and there is a lot of good.
Can you imagine losing your sight in your 40s? Ingrid has Retinitis Pigmentosa, and this personal memoir of how she discovered the disease and how it has affected her and her family will indeed give you focus.
Love that transcends time, ignores the wrinkles and age spots, and sees reality as a mirror of the heart - this is a beautiful book about love and loss and forever chasing what you really want.
My favorite characters in this book are the Indian doctor couple who come to Ethiopia to work in the hospital. Their attitudes toward their work and each other will make you want to be a better human.
This is a book about choice - leaving the comforts of the world as you know it to pursue something different. As expected, this book speaks to us. And it is also the reason we went to Scotland.
This is the single best asset for us when we started our first business together. It taught us the importance of building consistency and gave us the tools to create the business we have built today.
Sometimes life decisions are unpopular or misunderstood. This is the story of one such decision and how it impacted one woman’s life. Your choices have consequences, and this is a good reminder.
We love books that show the interconnectedness of life, history, and people. When you realize how much we have in common, it’s hard not to want to make the world a better place.
We uncovered a desire to explore the Pacific and an interest in living on an island for a few months. A lighthearted read which opened up a new appreciation for conveniences.
This book inspired Warren to learn more about each culture he visits and to challenge any preconceived ideas he may have. It is an eyeopening account to a part of the world most of us know little about.
This is feminism on steroids, told from the vantage point of Ahab’s wife. The adventures are incredible, and it was a big inspiration for Betsy to go wandering the world and making my own way.
Warren found a new love of hiking and exploring the mountains while reading this in Peru. It has inspired some fantastic hikes and created a new passion in us both.
Do The Work is Betsy’s go-to book on Resistance and fighting through it to get the most desired results in your life. When you feel the tug of resistance it is often the sign you are close to the magic.
Another book on magical realism, this time showing the connectedness of people who share a common history or event. While we all have individual experiences, learning about the collective experience is also valuable.
This inspired Betsy in her 20s to start thinking about life in a completely different way. “I thought I was grown up, but this book taught me I still had a lot of growing up to do (and could choose the direction of my path).”
An excellent resource for writers looking to expand their creativity. We both enjoyed the blend of history with fiction and learned more about the art of storytelling.
After receiving this as a gift from his mother, Warren learned the motto he lives by to this day “Live life with no regrets”. A book that shaped him early in life and still holds a big part of his heart.
Each of us will be impacted by cancer in our lives. This biography of the disease is a powerful tale of what we’ve learned and how far we’ve come. An excellent primer in combating one of humanity’s deadliest diseases.
Warren discovered a passion for Morocco as well as the importance of not just understanding the culture when you live in another country, but also the beauty of embracing it.
We love this book for what it teaches about travel, that the biggest journey is actually inside yourself.
Each time we’ve read the story we are touched by a different aspect of Carroll’s world. Most recently we love the metaphor of following the white rabbit down the hole to discover a new path available for our lives.
Provides practical and detailed steps to creating the action plan for your dream life. It has inspired hundred to define their dream and take the steps to make it come true.
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About Warren
Not only do I love this list, I love how you laid it out so wonderfully in the post! What a wonderful layout. I need to find out who did your site!!!
Tony, glad you enjoy the list. We had fun sitting down and going back down memory lane to create it.
As for the site, thank you for the nice words. I built the site myself with my own 2 hands.
Not only do I love this list, I love how you laid it out so wonderfully in the post! What a wonderful layout. I need to find out who did your site!!!
Tony, glad you enjoy the list. We had fun sitting down and going back down memory lane to create it.
As for the site, thank you for the nice words. I built the site myself with my own 2 hands.
*sigh* Into the Wild… what a bitter sweet tale. I never met him but felt as though I did after reading this.
Thanks for putting together my summer reading list. *grin*
Maria,
I agree 100%. Into the Wild is the book that has impacted me the most in my life. I’ve read the book several times and each time I learn something new about myself. Truly an inspiring tale.
*sigh* Into the Wild… what a bitter sweet tale. I never met him but felt as though I did after reading this.
Thanks for putting together my summer reading list. *grin*
Maria,
I agree 100%. Into the Wild is the book that has impacted me the most in my life. I’ve read the book several times and each time I learn something new about myself. Truly an inspiring tale.
Love this post! Includes many of my favorites, along with two on my bookshelf I have not yet read and just put on top of my “pile.”
Also added three new ones to my ongoing “to read” list.
Thanks!
Angela, given your excellent taste in books it means a lot to know we have a nice overlap. Can’t wait to hear what you think of the books you’ve added to your list.
Love this post! Includes many of my favorites, along with two on my bookshelf I have not yet read and just put on top of my “pile.”
Also added three new ones to my ongoing “to read” list.
Thanks!
Angela, given your excellent taste in books it means a lot to know we have a nice overlap. Can’t wait to hear what you think of the books you’ve added to your list.
What a great list! We see quite a few here we’ve read or have in our ‘to read’ pile. There really is nothing like a good book to spark the inspiration in your soul.
Since you all introduced us to the wonders of Conn Iggulden we have you to thank for our trip to Mongolia and the tremendous time the adventure provided.
What a great list! We see quite a few here we’ve read or have in our ‘to read’ pile. There really is nothing like a good book to spark the inspiration in your soul.
Since you all introduced us to the wonders of Conn Iggulden we have you to thank for our trip to Mongolia and the tremendous time the adventure provided.
Beautiful post! I love this
Beautiful post! I love this
One of my inspirational books is actually a book for children around 10 or 11. It is “My Side of the Mountain” by Jean Craig. It’s about a boy from New York City who studies up on the skills needed to live off the land and then does just that.
Kim, thank you for sharing the book that inspired you. It sounds intriguing and something I’ll now need to check out.
One of my inspirational books is actually a book for children around 10 or 11. It is “My Side of the Mountain” by Jean Craig. It’s about a boy from New York City who studies up on the skills needed to live off the land and then does just that.
Kim, thank you for sharing the book that inspired you. It sounds intriguing and something I’ll now need to check out.
Indeed! Tammy and I have made it a habit not to read shit. Life is way too short for that. Love the Paxton Hood quote.
Hey CJ, I could not agree more. The older I get the more willing I am to put down something that I’m not enjoying.
Indeed! Tammy and I have made it a habit not to read shit. Life is way too short for that. Love the Paxton Hood quote.
Hey CJ, I could not agree more. The older I get the more willing I am to put down something that I’m not enjoying.
I love that Paxton Hood quote
And time to update my Kindle I think, thanks for the great list!
Hi Laura,
Happy to help and hope you enjoy some of these as much as we have. Happy reading.
I love that Paxton Hood quote
And time to update my Kindle I think, thanks for the great list!
Hi Laura,
Happy to help and hope you enjoy some of these as much as we have. Happy reading.
Oh, CJ and I love reading and sharing books. We, like you and Betsy, have learned so much from books. I could list so many, but I will just comment on the fact that I love how you also included fiction. CJ and I love making connections to our own lives through great fiction. Love in the Time of Cholera and The Corrections were two of our favorites. On our way back from a hiking trip in Big Bend, we read aloud Hugh MacLeod’s Ignore Everybody and 39 Other Ways to Creativity. Sharing what we read is one of the highlights of our marriage. So glad to see others loving it too, Warren! Thank you for some great ideas for reads.
Oh, CJ and I love reading and sharing books. We, like you and Betsy, have learned so much from books. I could list so many, but I will just comment on the fact that I love how you also included fiction. CJ and I love making connections to our own lives through great fiction. Love in the Time of Cholera and The Corrections were two of our favorites. On our way back from a hiking trip in Big Bend, we read aloud Hugh MacLeod’s Ignore Everybody and 39 Other Ways to Creativity. Sharing what we read is one of the highlights of our marriage. So glad to see others loving it too, Warren! Thank you for some great ideas for reads.
ooo so glad i found this! i’m always on the lookout for new, interesting books to read. Will definitely be added some of these titles to my ‘must read’ list! Thanks
Hi Sacha, happy to help. We hope they will inspire and encourage you.
ooo so glad i found this! i’m always on the lookout for new, interesting books to read. Will definitely be added some of these titles to my ‘must read’ list! Thanks
Hi Sacha, happy to help. We hope they will inspire and encourage you.