[Preechr]

I'm gonna start him on Fountainhead, then Atlas Shrugged, just to get him going. Very easy reads, and very instructional. Then, The Lexus and the Olive Tree for some economic reality, followed by The Pentagon's New Map to build on that and bring him into the post-9/11 world. Nothing particularly right-wing, left-wing or controversial, just realistic, objective and practical.

Depending on how he progresses, I might add to that list. If he quits on the first few pages, he'll at least have the books for the day he chooses to pick them back up. He has displayed a wide range in tastes, but no taste for industrious study. Who knows where a little reading might take him?

If he shows an interest in science, I'd try some Hawking or maybe Blink if he hasn't already read that far. Anthro- or Sociology: Guns, Germs and Steel is a long one but doable and fun. For religion, I like The Life of Pi even though it's fiction and not very deep. (I'm not a very religious person anymore...) If he decides he likes politics, he'd need a firm grounding in stuff like Bastiat's The Law and some gritty History that, were I to list it, I'd surely be accused of trying to brain-wash the guy... so I won't.

Really though, I figure once he gets half way through Fountainhead, he won't let me buy him anything anymore.