If I were allowed one possession to carry with me to heaven, it would be this book. I would say this is one of the better books of the 20th century. There have been sticklers of capitalism who have been zealous fans. But I would like to keep it simple – I am awestruck with the individualism of the protagonists. The elaborate section on ‘money’ liberates the mind of the crippled notions we fancy carrying around; and incites within us a religion where merit is God and sublime human effort – the prayer. The book was written in 1957, but in some ways is futuristic even today. The mythological ‘Atlas’ has been personified by the characters for whom human endeavor and achievement is supreme. We realize that the society has taken the ‘Atlas’ for granted in his role of carrying the world on his shoulders. And it makes us wish that ‘Atlas’ would shrug and deny the responsibility of the world on his shoulders. If one had to surrender one’s self to a book, then let that book be Atlas Shrugged