Some of these books were banned years ago, but now a required reading for many high school students.

1. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: Banned in 1931 in the Hunan Province of China due to the portrayal of talking animals which exudes sense of equality between man and animal. To sum up the book: A little girl fell down a rabbit hole and meet unusual creatures. It delves into logic and education. Some of the characters in it were a representation of the author’s friends and enemies.

2. All Quiet on The Western Front: All right, guess which country banned this? Germany. For insulting their defense-force, The Wehrmacht. It’s a good read, I read it back in high school. It’s about the detachment of German civilians life.

3. Animal Farm: I highly reccomend this book. It’s  short book, you can read it in a couple of hours. Was banned in 3 countries; 1946 in Yugoslavia, 1991 in Kenya, and 2002 in United Arab Emirates. It’s an allegory in which the farm animals were able to set up its own government system and eventually revolted against humanity. Moral of the story? Don’t be a vegetarian, those pigs might turned on you. Then you’ll be wishing that you hadn’t been a vegetarian.

4. Fight Club: Banned in China for explicit content in making explosives. That tickles me. If you don’t want to read the book, watch the movie. It great nonetheless.

5. The Call of the Wild: Banned in Yugoslavia and Italy. A story of a pampered dog turned sled dog. Okay, so the plot is a little deeper than that, but that’s the gist of it.

6. Gulliver’s Travel: Banned in Ireland. My grandpa used to tell me this story. After He finished reading the book to me, I would keep making him tell me more stories of Gulliver’s travel. Since there’s no more story to tell, my grandpa would just make up random adventures that Gulliver would go on. Yep, he was quite the story teller.

7. Wealth of Nations: Banned in communist countries. Duh. Too much capitalism in one book. Must read for any business students.

8. 1984: Banned in the USSR back in the 50’s. Stalin thought he was reading his own future. Read the book and watched the movie. The concept of Big Brother has always been real through out the ages.

I know there are still many must-read banned books out there, but these are my personal recommendations based on what I have read. If you want to add anything else, Don’t hesitate to leave a comment!

-I’m still here!

NOTE: EDIT: The Wehrmacht, and “defense-force”

This post was written by Leo Babauta of Zen Habits.

We all know that money can’t buy happiness … but many times we act as if we’d be happier with a bit more money. We are conditioned to want to be rich (when we know the rich aren’t happy either); we are trained to want the latest gadget or style that television tells us to want; we want to earn more money because then we’ll have the good life.

But none of that will bring us happiness. No matter how much we earn, no matter how much we have in the bank, no matter how nice our clothing or cars or toys, none of it will make us happier. And the sad thing is that it could take us decades of pursuing wealth and luxury items before we realize this.

So what will bring us happiness? Luckily, it’s three things that don’t cost a thing. These three things have been proven by research — surveys of hundreds of thousands of people about what they have, what their lives are like, and how happy they are.

Here they are, the Three Secrets to Happiness:

1. Good relationships.

We have a human need to be close, to be intimate, with other human beings. Having good, supportive friendships, a strong marriage or close and loving relationships with our family members will make us much more likely to be happy. Action steps: Take time, today, to spend time with your loved ones, to tell them what they mean to you, to listen to them, and develop your relationship with them.
2. Positive thinking.

I’m obviously a big proponent of positive thinking as the best way to achieve your goals, but it turns out that it can lead to happiness too. Optimism and self-esteem are some of the best indicators of people who lead happy lives. Happy people feel empowered, in control of their lives, and have a positive outlook on life. Action steps: Make positive thinking a habit. In fact, this should be one of the first habits you develop. Get into the habit of squashing all negative thoughts and replacing them with positive ones. Instead of “I can’t” think “I can”. It may sound corny, but it has worked for me, every time.
3. Flow.

This is a popular concept on the Internet these days — the state we enter when we are completely focused on the work or task before us. We are so immersed in our task that we lose track of time. Having work and leisure that gets you in this state of flow will almost undoubtedly lead to happiness. People find greatest enjoyment not when they’re passively mindless, but when they’re absorbed in a mindful challenge. Action steps: Find work that you’re passionate about. Seriously — this is an extremely important step. Find hobbies that you’re passionate about. Turn off the TV — this is the opposite of flow — and get outside and do something that truly engages you.

You’ve been given the Three Secrets to Happiness. Don’t waste them!