A Book That Changed My Life
We have to admit that some great books have the power to heal our souls and make us better people. Around The World in Eighty Days is just such a book to me. This book is a fiction story written by a French writer, Jules Verne. In this story, an Englishman, Phileas Fogg and his new French valet Passepartout attempt to travel around the world within eighty days just because he had a huge wager with his friends at the club. Mr Fogg wants to prove his contention that one can travel around the world in only eighty days. During their journey around the world, they met many friends and faced tons of challenges and difficulties. Besides the interesting and vivid plot of the story, this inspiring book has taught me three things when facing difficulties in life: never give up, caring others, and do something meaningful in life.

First of all, of the many things that I learned from this book, one of them is overcoming difficulties. Traveling around the world in eighty days is a daydream for many persons but Mr Fogg made it successfully because he insisted and did not give up. Even though this book is a fiction, from the author’s perspective, the tools that we need for success is perseverance. Throughout the whole book, I learned that there are many difficult problems we need to be confronted with in our real life. But if you try hard to conquer it and you may find a way to be success. Therefore by the end of the book I decided to study a very tough course that I never studied before. I was really interested in this course and I want to challenge myself. Many friends laughed at me about my impulsion. But I never regret this decision. Instead, I thought it was the best decision of my life because I learned a lot from that tough process. People in the world usually like to criticize and judge others. By learning from Mr Fogg, I realized that I should not care of those criticisms. Finally, I passed this tough course with my effort. I think it is this book makes me a much stronger person.

Secondly, this book also made me understand it is more important for us to give than to receive. In the story, Mr Fogg is a very punctual and serious Englishman. And after he fights with Indian in America, he found that his valet Passepartout was missing. Other people asked Fogg to hurry on with his journey because of the wager, but Mr Fogg refused to continue his journey without his valet. At that moment, Mr Fogg has shown his humanity and kindness. I was impressed about Mr Fogg’s selfless personality to his companion. I realized that sometimes I am a little bit self-centered. Therefore I need to be more considerate of the needs and feelings of the other people. Indeed, this book has totally changed my personality traits from a person with a negative life attitude and a little self-centered to a person with a positive life attitude, and a considerate heart.

Last but not least, this book stimulates my mind to start thinking in a different way. In the story, Mr Fogg was a typical Englishman who was stubborn, punctual and serious. But he finally realized that the essence of life should be more colorful and meaningful. People need to try different ways of life. I remembered that when I was taking Asian American class, the professor told me that 99% of the people are living in a pretty boring life. They go to the same restaurant every day, sitting in the same seats and ordering the same food. If you jump out of the box and try something new or think in a different way, you will get totally new experiences and ideas that may surprise you. Mr Fogg was just a normal people before his great journey, until one day he made a bet with his friends in the club. And he did what he boasted and finally became a hero. I realized that I did nothing meaningful in my past life. So I decided to do something which can make my life more challenging and meaningful. I joined couple of volunteer work and groups. Through that process, I gained both new life experiences and happiness.

It is true that some books can greatly change our life. I learned many valuable personalities from Mr Fogg such as determination, perseverance, and selflessness. It also taught me that I need to think in a different way and do something meaningful in my life. Overall, this inspiring book has altered my behavior and changed my mind. I highly recommend this great book.