No, books alone are not the sole cause of action, but they can often be one of the many catalysts that create action. I have a hard time believing the writings of Socrates, Plato, Thomas Paine, Alexis de Tocqueville, John Locke, Adam Smith, J.S. Mill, J.M. Keynes, etc. did not influence political and economic changes in history.

I also think fear of true reflection plays into several best-sellers not being widely adopted. To think that you are doing something wrong in your life that needs to be fixed can be very uncomfortable for a lot of people. Therefore, we search for individualized quick fixes that give a lot of platitudes, instead of truly thinking about how we can change ourselves. I don’t mean to be overly critical, as I’ve sometimes fallen victim to this as well. I’ve tried to change this by reading a variety of opposing opinions on a topic (for example, education) and not just sticking to a philosophy that I’m initially attracted to.