On Sundays, The New York Times includes a separate "Book Review" section, and within that section, The Times runs a column it calls, "By The Book." A different notable person - almost always an author - is interviewed each week, and the author responds to book-related questions posed by The Times. The questions vary somewhat, from author to author, but the last question posed is typically this one: "You’re organizing a literary dinner party. Which three writers, dead or alive, do you invite?"
A large part of the fun of the column, of course, is thinking about how you, the reader, would respond to the various inquiries addressed to the person being interviewed. With respect to that typical last question, I have almost always stalled out after determining that I'd extend an invitation to William Shakespeare and to Bob Dylan. Most recently, I have been feeling ever more confident that I'd include Marilynne Robinson in the guest list, to round out my three.
The other questions posed in the "By The Book" column are also questions intended to make the reader think - and the questions do vary, somewhat, from week to week. On May 12, 2024, for instance, Judi Dench was asked, "What’s the best book you’ve ever received as a gift?"
Now, I had no hesitation when I read that question. I had an immediate response in mind. I have mentioned this book before, quite a number of times (and most particularly in a section of a blog posting devoted to my Dad's accomplishments), but at the peril of repeating myself, stimulated by the "By The Book" column featuring Judi Dench, let me renew my recommendation.
The best book I ever received as a gift (it was a gift from my father) is James Allen's book, As A Man Thinketh.
Allen makes an excellent case that "your thoughts shape your life." I would like to go further, though. Our thoughts will shape our world, and can expand, or can limit, the boundaries and the nature of the world in which we live. We do live, most immediately, in a world that we create ourselves, and it is our own actions, both individual and collective, that shape the "Human World" in which we most immediately reside. In that world - the world of our own creation - our possibilities are limited only by what we think, and by what we therefore can envision. [Back in September, I was making the same point].
As my father told me, "Unless you have a dream, Gary, you can't have a dream come true."
Maybe I should invite James Allen as that "third guest" on my invite list!
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(2) - https://youtu.be/dnq56sTfU_Q?si=rNgjiDc60zg3fHv_
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