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Eric Schuurmans ericschuumans — I read this when I went through a small Stephen King phase in middle school. The stories were scary precisely because they're stories--my imagination made them horrific. The only King movie adaptation I've liked is The Shining and only because Kubrick changed the ending (King hates it--ha!).

Steve Koski stevekoski — Disturbing. I couldn't put it down!

Tugce Tan tugcetan — This is a captivated book because it's very different from any other I've read. It's astonishing how Ayn Rand was able to maintain suspense through more than 1000 pages although her main theme is the workings of society and economy. Sometimes the plot gets terribly tiring though. There are some awfully long monologues that summarise the same ideas that have been expressed ten times before. Rand describes ideal men and how they create an ideal society and economy. They are being stopped by all the other "non-perfect" people who are irrational, emotionally steered and without aim. Rand's descriptions made me think a lot about my views on personal attitudes and the view on society at large. She reawakened the importance of a positive and active attitude in life. Too often successful people in industry and elsewhere are depicted as negative simply because they have everything possible and don't seem to need what everyone does (money, an clear aim in life, ability to differentiate good and bad...). However, these people contribute so much to our societies and economies which is often taken for granted. On the other hand I don't think that "succesful" people in real life are that clear about their views on the world. Neither do they contribute only good things, while others may contribute just as much. I agree with Ayn Rand that rationality is crucial for taking decisions in life. In the end everybody has choices. Walking along a preset path blindly isn't going to make anyone happy. Especially as at some point everyone has to face the results of his/her actions. Also, Ayn Rand conveys the necessity not only to think but also to act. However, there is a lot I disagree with. Put simply, the world isn't black and white. Most of it comes in shades of grey for me. Are people not allowed to have any weaknesses? Is it realistic to believe that man's mind can conquer everything else including cultural learnings, religious notions and biological settings? I don't think an uneducated girl from a slum who starts having kids from the age of 16 can be blamed for not rationally questioning the philosophy behind the traditions she grew up with and the workings of the social system she lives in. In fact, I think, most people - whether disadvantaged or not - perceive the world as immensely complicated: they can't answer the problems to be tackled as simplisticly as Rand's characters do. The starting point of my criticism of Rand's work was her view on the economy - simply because that's something I've thought about before. In my view the balance between government and market activity is always difficult to find and is different in every situation. Discouraging an industrialist from innovation by creating red tape everywhere is fatal for an economy. However, nobody can seriously believe that there should be no taxation and redistribution, not even to finance basic schooling and healthcare. How can anyone become the rational self-confident person Rand dreams of if he/she isn't given a chance to be physically strong and develop his mental possibilities by studying? In summary, I don't think Rand's thoughts can be called a philosophy. They are more like a bitter and over-confident person's ideology. This impression is underlined by the one-dimensional characters and the white-and-black view of the world. There are a few points that I liked about Rand's thoughts: especially the active energy transmitted. The more significant reason why this book is so important to me is because I completey disagree with most of the social views while still enjoying to read the novel. This combination made me develop arguments in my mind against her opinions while I proceeded reading.