books
This is going to be a work-in-progress. I loved reading as a child, but as an adult got into the mindset that I should only read business or self-improvement books. Making time to read fiction and whatever else I want has brought me amazing joy. And who doesn’t want more joy in their lives?
I’m always looking for my next read and will share my favorites with you. The lists below are just titles, authors, and my brief thoughts on why I loved or not. I’ve linked to the author’s website when possible, and then otherwise to Amazon simply to make your life easier to click. Most of my reads are through the NYC Public Library system and Libby. and Feel free to ask me for more info if you are interested, and I’d love to hear your favorites and why.
loves + likes
apeirogon
colum mccann
While following the lives of two men – one Israeli and one Palestinian – who lost daughters to political violence, McCann also delivers interesting snippets about birds, correspondence between Freud and Einstein, Arabian Nights, and other topics. It’s a long read, but extraordinarily interesting and moving, and has moved me to explore more about the West Bank.
the unlikely adventures of the shergill sisters
balli kaur jaswal
Traveling through India with three sisters as they learned to regain their closeness and rely on each other after their mother’s death was a fun and heart-warming adventure to read.
caste: the origins of our discontent
isabel wilkerson
This book was recommended to me by many people, and I’m read it for a book club discussion. It takes a look at the unspoken class system we have created in America, comparing it to systems in India and Nazi Germany. A worthy read.
shantaram
gregory david roberts
This is another favorite of mine. Extremely long, but similar to The Goldfinch in that it chronicles a good man's sufferings and triumphs, many of each which Lin brings upon himself.
the mountain shadow
gregory david roberts
The sequel to Shantaram. Lin is a good bad boy, and it was satisfying to discover the end game for him.
a promised land
barack obama
Does this one really need a description? I am loving the humor and intelligence that comes through in the recount of the two presidential campaigns and terms in office. My favorite quote - “Then I told myself that it was still the weekend and I needed a martini. That was another lesson the presidency was teaching me: Sometimes it didn’t matter how good your process was. Sometimes you were just screwed, and the best you could do was have a stiff drink—and light up a cigarette.”
writers & lovers
lily king
Casey has her share of issues, and we work through them with this writer, waitress, daughter, sister, friend. You’ll really enjoy if you were a literary major or are trying to write yourself.
the portrait of a lady
henry james
I’ve wanted to read a Henry James novel since I first watched Notting Hill where Julia Roberts took a “serious” role in a film based on one of his novels. This one did not disappoint. His writing is witty and beautiful, as you can see from this description of windows.
“They were massively cross-barred, and placed at such a height that curiosity, even on tiptoe, expired before it reached them.”
He also offers some advice through Ralph Touchett.
“Live as you like best, and your character will take care of itself. Most things are good for you; the exceptions are very rare, and a comfortable income’s not one of them.”
love in the time of cholera
gabriel garcía márquez
A classic story of love and loss and love again. Beautifully written and based in Columbia, Love in the Time of Cholera is a tribute to a love that lasts a lifetime.
the surgeon’s daughter
audrey blake
A sequel to The Girl in His Shadow, Nora Beady attends medical school in Bologna as the lone female student. Challenges abound, but Nora finds an ally in the only woman professor.
burnout
emily + amelia nagoski
Some good tips here for dealing with stress and feelings of being overwhelmed, but I felt that it sometimes laid a feminist agenda on a bit thick - that all of our burnout issues came from female oppression. “Dealing with your stress is a separate process from dealing with the things that cause your stress. To deal with your stress, you have to complete the cycle.”
how to be an antiracist
ibram x. kendi
The personal stories brought this book to life while Dr. Kendi helped understand different aspects of antiracism and made the interesting and valid argument that “the source of racist ideas was not ignorance and hate, but self-interest.”
”We can knowingly strive to be an antiracist. Like fighting an addiction, being an antiracist requires persistent self-awareness, constant self-criticism, and regular self-examination.”
maybe you should talk to someone
lori gottlieb
A fun, motivating, and thought-provoking read by a therapist about her clients and her own therapy.
“Most big transformations come about from the hundreds of tiny, almost imperceptible, steps we take along the way.”
dare to lead
brené brown
Focuses on being vulnerable and brave as leaders. I like the fact that she references topics from her earlier books and gives concrete examples of things to do to be a better leader.
the other bennet sister
janice hadlow
Lovely account of the most annoying Bennet sister, Mary. You should read this if you are a fan of Pride and Prejudice.
untamed
glennon doyle
A reminder that you will never please everyone, and that’s ok. It is more important to be true to ourselves. “I did not know, before that woman told me, that all feelings were for feeling. I did not know that I was supposed to feel everything. I thought I was supposed to feel happy. I thought that happy was for feeling and that pain was for fixing and numbing and deflecting and hiding and ignoring. I thought that when life got hard, it was because I had gone wrong somewhere. I thought that pain was weakness and that I was supposed to suck it up. But the thing was that the more I sucked it up, the more food and booze I had to suck down.”
their eyes were watching god
zora neale hurston
The story of a Southern Black woman who makes her own way in the world. Alice Walker says, “There is no book more important to me than this one.”
mrs. osmond
john banville
After reading Henry James’ The Portrait of a Lady, I wanted to know more about Isabel, the book’s main character. Luckily John Banville provided us with a sequel. Although no one writes like Mr. James, I enjoyed seeing what happened next.
the turn of the screw
henry james
This gothic horror novella follows a young governess who is hired to look after a young boy and girl in Essex. Although the children are beautiful and sweet, things are not all as they seem.
the immortal life of henrietta lacks
rebecca skloot
The story behind HeLa cells - taken from a black woman with cancer and used globally for medical research.
separation anxiety
laura zigman
This is one of those books that has you cringing for the characters over and over again. I mean the woman is carrying a dog around in a baby sling – need I say more?
a death in vienna
the english assassin
the confessor
daniel silva
I’m addicted to this series as a respite from my non-fiction and as an education on the modern history of Jews. Can’t wait for the next one!
why i’m no longer talking to people about race
reni eddo-lodge
A British perspective on the system race issue.
”We tell ourselves that good people can’t be racist. We seem to think that true racism only exists in the hearts of evil people.”
”It seems there is a belief among some white people that being accused of racism is far worse than actual racism.”
the goldfinch
donna tartt
This book may have replaced my long-time favorite, Pride and Prejudice - it is at least a close second. Of course, very different in subject, tone, and almost everything else, The Goldfinch follows a young boy through the tragedies and redemptions in his life. It's a really long book but completely worth it. Also love that it is set in NYC. Unfortunately, the movie was a huge disappointment.
curating your life
gail golden
Curating your life means deciding what you are not going to do, what you will be mediocre at, and what you will be great at. Key takeaways:
”Most of us make the cardinal mistake of comparing our own insides to other people’s outsides.”
”Don’t focus on managing time, focus on managing your energy.”
”Am I doing good work? Am I having fun? Am I making money?”
”If you can’t think of something you’re willing to less of, then you can’t add the new activity to your life.”
wordslut: a feminist guide to taking back the language
amanda montell
There is a lot of interesting history and insights into how language shapes perception, particularly in regard to sex and gender.
“If you want to insult a woman, call her a prostitute. If you want to insult a man, call him a woman.”
go set a watchman
harper lee
Lots of themes in this book - the difficulty of going back “home” as an adult, the grief of seeing that things are not as you thought, the de-idolization of your parents, the pervasiveness of racism in the South.
silver sparrow
tayari jones
An engaging story of an Atlanta family told through the eyes of the secret daughter of a bigamist. Things become even more complicated when she becomes friends with her father’s child from the other family, who doesn’t know they are sisters. Heartbreaking, but beautifully written.
the girl in his shadow
audrey blake
Nora Beady, taken in by a doctor as a child after her entire family dies, becomes her guardian’s most trusted assistant, but must deal with the discrimination of of Londoners in the late 1800s.
in progress
designing your life
bill burnett + dave evans
This book is supposed to help you use design thinking to create a meaningful and fulfilling life - primarily around your career choices. Their advice is not the typical follow your passion. “Passion is the result of a good life design, not the cause.”
mozart
maynard solomon
After watching Amadeus, I wanted to learn more of the story of Mozart. It’s a really long read, so I’m interspersing it with others. So far, at 15%, Mozart is still a young adult and the story is mostly about his father. Still, very interesting.