/lit/ - Literature

posters in this thread seem to be very knowledgeable in Buddhism. What books would you guys suggest for a goes-to-church-once-a-year-at-Christmas Christian to gain more knowledge on Buddhism? I gained a surface level-knowledge after my grandfather died and I read Nietzsche, but I'd like get a deeper understanding.
What is Buddhism all about for you? Should I go live in a monastery for 5 years? What drugs should I/do you take? Daily practices? It always seemed to me that if rebirth and an eternal universal is real then we would relive this life over and over, but this isn't what you guys believe and I personally don't like the implications of that idea.