Biology, Sixth Edition – by: Neil A. Campbell and Jane B. Reece (2002)

   This is a large (over 1300 pages) college Biology textbook. I asked a friend to order it for me since it was one of the texts most frequently referenced as “Essential Reading” along with the DVD Biology course I signed up for (*). The course itself is dated ten years, so I knew this would be an outdated edition (the current edition is on something like nine or ten) and hence VERY affordable (this edition cost less than $15, and that includes shipping, while the newest edition probably costs hundreds of dollars).

   It’s a beautiful book, and already has made the biology course I’m taking dozens of times more interesting (and informative, which for me is practically synonymous with interesting).

   (*) The prison education department provides the DVDs (and DVD player) only, without any accompanying books or other study materials.

Note: This is another book that I have not yet read, though I certainly intend to read most of it. I list it here because it has already become an important part of my life, and I expect it to remain so for some time to come.

The Gaia Hypothesis: Science On A Pagan Planet – by: Michael Ruse (2013)

   I asked for this book and received it as a gift from a friend who bought a copy for herself to read along with me. That made me a little self-conscious as I read because I kept thinking how dull this book must seem for my friend. It’s the kind of book I actually enjoy though. Not because it’s a pleasure to read --- it’s not --- but rather, because it’s full of information and perspectives that was new to me.

   Don’t get me wrong; I knew about as much as most people about the Gaia hypothesis to begin with. I also knew that the idea of Earth as a living organism has been around for thousands of years. But, what I didn’t know, and found very interesting, was the specific socio-political forces that tugged and pulled at the very concept of a living planet in our modern age. The details were insightful, and significant to me as a wanna-be philosopher.

   No real surprises though. The information merely added to and supported my previous experiences with how ideas play out in the mind of society. I should write my own book someday about how we think collectively, and about how those collective thoughts are expressed in our individual lives.

   Maybe I will, if Gaia lets me.

Dictionary of Philosophy and Religion: Eastern and Western Thought, New and Enlarged Edition – by: William L. Reese (1996)

   I normally only list books here that I have actually read completely, but this book has proven to be such a valuable reference book for me that I feel listing it is only appropriate.

   I refer to this book almost as much as I do to my dictionary while I am reading. No doubt this is because much of what I read has a philosophical and/or religious bent. In fact, no one recommended this book, nor did I find some reference to it somewhere. Instead I just reasoned, there must be some kind of dictionary of philosophy and religion out there for someone like me who casually reads so much of it. And I asked a friend to search Amazon for any and this was the only such book she found.

   I didn’t like not having several to choose from, but upon receiving, and consequently using this book it has well earned my respect and appreciation. My education in philosophy and religion, while more extensive than most, is informal and hence full of holes. This book helps tremendously to fill in those gaps.