Het kwintet van Jim Stovall

Recently I was asked to list five books that I feel to be revolutionary or that stand out as significant in the realm of literature.  This task is overwhelming, so I decided to confine my list to books that have made a difference to me.  Any well-read person would have their own individual list, and this is only my opinion; however, I am still considered to be the world's leading authority on my opinion.  I hope my selections will prompt you to read these books or begin an ongoing list of your own.

To consider the possibility of being stranded on a desert island with only five books seems insurmountable to me, because books have become such an important part of my life.  As a blind person, I remember when I could see and read words much as you are reading these; I don't know that I ever read a whole book cover to cover.  But for the last 20 years as a blind person, thanks to a high-speed tape player and the National Library for the Blind, I read a book virtually every day.  This has changed my life and has opened my world not only as a reader but now as a writer of a dozen books of my own.

Since I have never heard of a book entitled "How To Get Off of a Desert Island", these would be my five selections if I were, indeed, stranded.

I would first select The Power of Positive Thinking by Dr. Norman Vincent Peale.  This book can only be read when you understand the context of when it was written.  It was the breakthrough book that began what we would think of today as the personal development or success movement. It may seem simplistic today, but Dr. Peale changed his world and now ours.

Second, I would pick Dante's Inferno.  It is a work that explores the heights of hope and the depths of despair.  It is a masterpiece of literature while giving us many life lessons.  It is both artistic and practical at the same time. 

Third I would select The Psychology of Winning by my mentor, colleague, and friend Dr. Denis Waitley.  This book reached me at a time and place when I was ready for its message.  You've heard it said that when the pupil is ready, the teacher will arrive.  Dr. Waitley and The Psychology of Winning came to me in such a way as to create a maximum impact.

Fourth I would select a collection of poetry that contains Rudyard Kipling's "If".  It is a work of poetry that I have read a multitude of times, and I have never failed to learn from it.  It resonates with me as if Kipling had observed my strengths and weaknesses and written a message just for me.  Having had the opportunity to meet many world leaders, celebrities, and successful individuals of our day, many of them have shared with me that Rudyard Kipling's "If" touched them in much the same way.

Finally, my fifth book would be my own novel entitled The Ultimate Gift-not because it holds a place in society or literature like the four other selections, but because the book has given me an opportunity to impact countless people around the world.  The Ultimate Gift has been translated into numerous languages and has sold millions of copies around the world.  The 20^th Century Fox movie based on The Ultimate Gift has reached many people who are not typically readers and has encouraged them to consider the messages contained in books.  I did not write The Ultimate Gift from a perspective of my own success or as someone who has arrived.  Instead, The Ultimate Gift recounts my own struggles and challenges as lived out through the characters in this novel.

I am thankful for each of these books in their own way, but I am ever grateful that there are more great books in the world than any of us will ever read, and none of us are forced to limit the gifts that great books can bring us