The first shock to my intellect came sometime around 1972 when I read the New Testament (from Matthew's gospel to John's Apocalypse). That was serious reading; to my recollection, the first I'd ever really done on my own (i.e., outside of school).
The second shock came in the summer of 1973, when I read Thoreau's Walden (at Swain's Lake, New Hampshire, pictured here).
It is not likely that I would be who I am today had I not read the New Testament at that tender age; I am certain, however, that, had I not read Walden then, I would be someone else altogether.
Thoreau is our model American dervish.
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