I am so old fashioned. I enjoy the old school practice of reading a book, an actual book not a tablet. I like the distinct smell that wafts from a book as you briskly flip the pages from cover to cover. I mark sections that I find to be intriguing, brilliant, or impactful so that I can return to them again somewhere down the road. I leave them along my travels at coffee shops or hostels that offer a book swap shelf. On the same shelf I pick up a new (to me) book and embark on yet another micro-education adventure.
Books by Bill Bryson: The magic of Bill Bryson is that he is a master of self-deprecation in the funniest of ways. The other magical component of Bill Bryson is that he is relentlessly curious and manages to repackage even the most boring of facts into something pleasantly digestible, I mean, the man could make an oven manual intriguing. I’ve read most of his books and re-read several. If you haven’t given his stuff a read it’s worthwhile.
Unbearable Lightness by Portia De Rossi: If, like me, you’ve found yourself curious about the inner dialogue of someone with an eating disorder, this book provides that and I found it absolutely fascinating.
The Lamb by Christopher Moore: I am normally a non-fiction reader. I just am. However, this is one fiction book that held my attention all the way through. If you have a sense of humor about religion then this book would be a great fit.
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown: A true story of the American rowing team that goes to the Olympics in Germany during Hitler’s reign. The era that the story is set in made me think of how few people from our current era could even survive daily life back then. Excellent read from start to finish.
Grandma Gatewood’s Walk by Ben Montgomery: The life story of the first woman to through-hike the Appalachian Trail. The title might provide a hint that she wasn’t young when she took it on, but she was definitely full of grit.
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah: Trevor’s personal re-telling of growing up bi-racial in South Africa during apartheid.
Expecting Better by Emily Oster: If you are pregnant or have plans to get pregnant, this is an excellent read. Rather than listening to people tell you what you should or should not do while you’re pregnant with no information to back-up their perspective, you could read this book instead. It is written by a statician who became pregnant and wanted hard numbers from which to base her decisions. This book provides you with information, which you can then make informed decisions from. What a great concept!
Parenting without Borders by Christine Gross-Loh: This book helps to bring really great parenting norms and concepts from around the world into your reach. Best read during pregnancy to get ideas from infancy on up.
Unconditional Parenting by Alfie Kohn: This book is a great tool for detaching you from your perspective and helping you to look at parenting practices from the child’s point of view. It’s also a good read for human interactions in general, even adult to adult.
This is the short list, more to come in the future!
