The Sympathizer: A Novel (Pulitzer Prize for Fiction)

Oh, we're celebrating buying books now? Sure, I'll tell you about a few of my recent purchases or library loans. They aren't about Scientology, as it happens, but they certainly have helped me consider how to make better decisions and think about the world differently. The Sympathizer: A Novel. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and deserved to. The narrator is a conflicted subversive and idealist working as a double agent in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. It focuses on people making terrible decisions for what appear to be good reasons... and losing their souls as a result. Leadership: In Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin. The historian revisits the lives of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Lyndon B. Johnson to show how they faced their fears and confronted their mistakes before they could be recognized for their leadership qualities. What the Dormouse Said: How the Sixties Counterculture Shaped the Personal Computer Industry by John Markoff. This is still in my To Read pile (okay, that's a bookshelf, not a pile...), but I look forward to diving into it because of the description: "It’s a brilliant evocation of Stanford, California, in the 1960s and ’70s, where a group of visionaries set out to turn computers into a means for freeing minds and information." That's just a sample. Because, as much as I can appreciate Scientology tech, I also know that it is not the only source of wisdom. And the real world has nuances. Morality is different from ethics. Good people can make wrong decisions. Some things seem like a good idea at the time, but ultimately they don't work out. (As Jerry Weinberg pointed out in Becoming a Technical Leader, "𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲.") We here all recognize that you're here on an Amends Project, and you are convinced (or told) that posting links to Scientology books will offer others enlightenment. (It sure won't counter the CofS's terrible SEO results.) However, this is an opportunity for you to learn, too. There are other sources of good advice. I betcha that active community members can suggest additional sources of inspiration to you, so that you can expand your own world.