The Paris Review endorses Maddie Crum’s “One Perfect Book for Every Single Myers-Briggs Type.” Like all Myers-Briggs related lists, it’s at once silly, entertaining, and at least partially true. Mine:
INTP
“The Thinker”Traits: Abstract, rational, ingenious, independent
Book: This type is the most likely to enjoy reading up on philosophy, as they think very abstractly (see: Mr. Ramsay from “To the Lighthouse”). Huxley’s blend of scientific insights and social commentary in the classic book, “Brave New World” would probably appeal to them.
The Mr. Ramsay comparison is unfortunately, and terrifyingly, viable. One of those personality-development-scenarios I’d do my best to avoid.
Their attempt to distinguish the “Judging” and “Perceiving” personality types–“Is your desk covered it receipts, Starbucks cups, silly putty (?), and half-finished knitting projects, or a simple to-do list with every item checked off?”–manages to capture my borderline personality perfectly. My desk is covered in all of the above–the Silly Putty and several weeks’ worth of old, crossed-out To-Do lists.
I am going to have to dig hard to reverse-engineer justifications for my perfect book being Atlas Shrugged. It’s… not. Weirdly judgmental and narcissistically assholish Randian politico-philosophy aside, the endless, repetitive, preachy, repetitive, tedious, repetitive speechifying is just plain boring.
You can’t make me read it again without holding a gun to my head like Wesley Mouch, and I won’t do it on my own.
I’m on record as my favorite book being Neal Stephenson’s Baroque Cycle (technically eight books in one, but what the hey).Report
Did you ever read Cryptonomicon? If not, you should, because it’s awesome.Report
Agreed. I love that book.Report
If you’ve read Cryptonomicon, you ought to go on and read Baroque Cycle.Report
I consider Cryptonomicon part of The Baroque Cycle. It’s part prequel having come first chronologically from the author’s desk, part sequel coming later in history, part reshuffling with descendants of the Baroque characters still interacting and displaying shuffled personality traits of their ancestors, and part continuation of the exploration of the audacity of new ideas.Report
I did read Baroque Cycle, but I liked Cryptonomicon better. I consider it my first “real” Neal Stephenson book (Snow Crash was fun, but Cryptonomicon blew my mind).Report
“I’m on record as my favorite book being Neal Stephenson’s Baroque Cycle (technically eight books in one, but what the hey).”
Typical ENTJ. Taking eight books for yourself while the rest of us just get one.Report
I’m an ISTJ/ISTP (it’s pretty close), but my preferred reading leans heavily towards speculative fiction (along with certain literary classics). Realism and practicality are for work, but relaxation demands a break from that.
I may check out The Gunslinger, though.Report
Yay! I get Keri Russell!!!
Oh wait, that’s Karen Russell. Hmmmm……Report
Actually, I have been meaning to read Swamplandia. Now that I know it’s all about me somehow, I’ll have to move it up the list.Report
Hey! I’m an INTP too!
And I’m a Huxley fan as well. I wasn’t aware that might have anything to do with my personality type though.Report
What’s the type where it’s littered with several old, not crossed-out to-do lists?Report