Do you ever feel like you have no one to depend on? Are you feeling isolated? If you answered yes, to any of those questions, then The 3 Gaps vs Strangers on a Train is for you. It's an unlikely fiction-non-fiction book pairing.
In a hurry?
CLICK HERE to buy The 3 Gaps by Hyrum Smith over at Amazon!
CLICK HERE to buy Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith over at Amazon!
Below you'll find my thoughts on why you should invest the time to read The 3 Gaps in relation to Strangers on a Train.
Introduction: The 3 Gaps and Strangers on a Train
Don’t you just love a good book? And I know you’ll love to to read two great books – The 3 Gaps and Strangers on a Train. This post is for a variety of people. I admit without shame that I’m a hopeless readerholic. And I try to read books from different genres. By way of the Read the World Extreme Reading Challenge, I am also reading global fiction. The reading challenge also allows me to immerse myself into gender diversity, cultural diversity, and generational diversity.
Because reading plays such a big part in my life, and has been that way, like forever, I am starting to see books that you should read together. Some books are antidotes for others. You’ll find food and wine pairing, chocolate and wine pairing, book and wine pairing. So why not book pairing – fiction and non-fiction pairing; fiction and fiction pairing; and non-fiction and non-fiction pairing. I know, I know, that’s very confusing, but I couldn’t help saying it.
Why Book Pairing?
I think it’s important to read books in relation to each other. This allows you to generate many ideas that you can apply to work and life. Another reason to pair books is that one book may bring you down while another will lift you up. Book pairings can give you a continuum you can use to look at life.
I am starting off the book pairing series with Strangers on a Train
by Patricia Highsmith and The 3 Gaps
by Hyrum Smith. At first glance, these two books have nothing in common. Or do they?
The 3 Gaps: Are You Making a Difference?
Strangers on a Train
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Related Posts
Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith: What’s Your Obsession?
The 3 Gaps by Hyrum Smith – My Thoughts
Fiction-Non-Fiction Book Pairing: The 3 Gaps and Strangers on a Train
In Strangers on a Train, the story raises an interesting life problem. And The 3 Gaps are the antidote to the problem. I know that by now you’re intrigued. I have already summarized both books, so I’m not going to do that here. But what I am going to do, is present the problem that Stranger on a Train raises, and how the information in The 3 Gaps will help you to solve the problem.
Fiction-Non-Fiction Book Pairing: Strangers on a Train in a Nutshell
The book is masterfully written, and readers see Patricia Highsmith’s skill as a writer. Alfred Hitchcock turned the book into a film. In the story, two men, Guy Haines and Charles Anthony Bruno, with very different personalities, meet on a train. One is a very hardworking, successful, young architect going through a divorce. He has a promising future ahead of him. The other man, Charles Anthony Bruno, is a lazy, rich boy, who is evil to the core – a psychopath. Charles manipulates Guy into committing a murder. Charles murders Guy’s wife, who is dragging out the divorce. And in return, he wants Guy to kill his father for him.
It’s hardly likely that in real life, someone will pressure you to commit a murder. But for me, that isn’t really the point of the story. In life, people do try to manipulate you. And many experience what is called peer pressure. There are many young, impressionable kids, who are pressured into joining gangs. And they do so because they feel isolated. And they are looking for community – for a place where they feel like they belong. And to them, being a member of a gang, gives them that. A sense of belonging is so important, that it’s on the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs.
Fiction-Non-Fiction Book Pairing: The 3 Gaps in a Nutshell
The book, The 3 Gaps is non-fiction. I recently got the opportunity to hear Hyrum Smith speak at a conference that I attended. His message moved me, so I decided to buy a copy of his book, that the talk is based on. The three gaps are the Belief Gap, the Values Gap, and the Time Gap. A gap is the difference between what you say and what you do. Hyrum Smith uses case studies to get his point across. The gap I am focusing on is the Values Gap, a set of personal values that you use in your life. Your governing values help you when making decisions. Everyone makes decisions every day, some more difficult than others. Wouldn’t it be nice if you had a personal constitution that you can consult when you are grappling with a tough decision? See what I mean? It took me seven hours to write my personal constitution, which is based on my values. But I have been using the document since then.
A Different Look at Two Books: Strangers on a Train and The 3 Gaps
I learn a lot from most of the fiction books I read, even what some might consider, the lowly ChickLit. I read very deeply, and I get into the story. I am like a character in the story. And that may be why Strangers on a Train affected me so deeply. I really think about what I read, and how it relates to real life. I asked myself, “What might have happened if Guy Haines had a support network, or even a mentor to talk about what he was going through?” Now that I have read The 3 Gaps, I wonder, “What choice Guy Haines would have made if he had a personal constitution?” You see what I am saying?
To me, The 3 Gaps is an antidote to what’s going on in Strangers on a Train.
Conclusion: The 3 Gaps and Strangers on a Train, What's Next?
This is the first in a series of blog posts on book pairings – The 3 Gaps vs Strangers on a Train. The objective of the series is for you to look at the books that you read in a different way. Books make great teachers, when you immerse yourself in the content. When you rad books in relation to each other, you give your brain an intellectual workout.
The 3 Gaps vs Strangers on a Train: Fiction-Non-Fiction Book Pairing: 3 Action Steps
- Read Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith: What’s Your Obsession?
- Read The 3 Gaps by Hyrum Smith – My Thoughts
- Buy and read Strangers on a Train and The 3 Gaps.
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