5 Books That Perfected My Seduction Skills

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As many of you know, I pursued pickup through the art of reading and reacting. I never locked-in to a bootcamp or secured private training (though, I maintain it would’ve saved me a SHIT-LOAD of time by going with the ABCs of Attraction), but I did what I have done with everything else, I bought a bunch of books and read them, applying them to the concept of social interaction.

Beginning with The Game by Neil Strauss, an annal we are all familiar with, my social interactions were mostly affected and refined by my personal beliefs. As I say, very regularly, pickup ought to be the icing on a cake of self-worth, strong morals and personal betterment, not the other way around. For those of you wondering, these are the top 5 books that influenced the growth of my character to generate the strongest congruence with the skills I was learning.

In plain talk; All the routines and gambits and games and lines you use are GREAT, but only if you know how to be the person those things are, supposedly, representing. These are the books that helped me become that person.

1) Atlas Shrugged – Ayn Rand

One of the most influential women in my life introduced this book to me. Now known as the bible of the Objectivist movement, this book was America’s introduction to post-war thought and a book I always recommend to people that have a problem being themselves and doing the things that they think are important to them, regardless of whether everyone else agrees, or not.

2) Way of the Peaceful Warrior – Dan Millman

I discovered this book around 15 years old, when I was dealing with general teen angst, and recognized that it was incredibly thought-provoking. We as men have the great gift of allowing logic to override our emotions. We can frequently “logic ourselves” out of being upset (i.e. “Well, there’s no sense in worrying about that, anymore”) and this was the first piece of literature that really introduced and contextualized these abilities. P.s. Don’t bother with the movie.

3) The Way of the Superior Man – David Deida

Continuing with the “Way of” theme, this book is a brilliant exposition on male and female energies and how they relate to each other. This book has an incredible ability to explain the differences between man and woman’s ethereal interactions without getting too hippy-dippy. Included among the little knowledge-gems are concepts like “Women learn through encouragement, men learn through challenge.”

4) Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov

The book that taught me the beauty of romance and fervency of passion. Though, the book was initially dismissed as pornography, the book itself is a testament to the strength of a man’s desire and a perfect representation of what happens when one is so thoroughly encompassed by romantic thoughts. If you can get past the whole in-love-with-a-12-year-old thing, the book is beautiful.

5) History of My Life – Giacomo Casanova

We, as professional seducers, are so often compared to Casanova and often long to be on his level, but what guys don’t know about Giacomo Casanova is his depth of character, his vast resume of accomplishments and his willingness to take risks which, ultimately, gained him both his abilities with women and the fame they gave him. The book begins with one of my most favorite quotes that has influenced me to this day. I leave you with it.

“I begin by declaring to my reader that, through everything good or bad that I have done throughout my life, I am certain that I have earned due approbation or reproof, and that hence I must consider myself a free man.”

-History of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, Venetian, written by himself at Dux in Bohemia.

Tagged as: Ayn Rand, Casanova, David Deida, Gareth Jones, Nabokov, Neil Strauss, Pickup Books, PUA, PUA Reading, Reviews, Seduction