You could try a standard textbook, but these are dry and boring and because they are “system” books they tend to be quite tame. And yet nothing could be more maverick and anti system than philosophy itself! So I suggest instead that you read the philosophers themselves. A lot of them (Bertrand Russel immediately springs to mind) wrote philosophy books for laymen.
Here are some that I enjoyed:
Isaiah Berlin – Five essays on Liberty (Isaiah Berlin is a minor philosopher but a superb writer – worth reading for the pleasure his style elicits).
Karl Popper – Conjectures and Refutations (Popper is my favourite philosopher, although he is underrated. This book is a collection of his essays and it is perfectly inteligible by anyone).
Robert Nozick – Philosophical Explanations (Nozick, in my opinion one of the greatest philosophers of the 20th century - he died in 2002 – wrote extensively on a variety of subjects, especially politics, but this book is his most interesting imo)
If you are into the old Greek philosophers, a very funny way to get to know them is Robert Pirsig’s The art of motorcycle maintenance (not really about motorbikes).
Finally, get books on and about these two philosophers, probably the most important (for the development of philosophy in the 20th century) : Noah Chomsky and Ludwig Wittgenstein (you may find their books heavy going).
This should keep you busy for a while.
Best wishes,
Bernhard.
Topic: Beginning philsophy suggestions? [Bob asks]