Book Recommendations

This right here is a short list of some of my favorite books, a few of which I read for school while others were just for personal enjoyment. Since reading and writing is such a wonderful form of self expression, education, and comfort, I want to share them with you. Through these books you will get a little insight into my life and who I am. Hopefully, they help you discover something in yourself too.

Bird by Bird: Anne Lamott

I know that most people would put their #1 book recommendation later in the page so that you get that feeling of anticipation BUT Bird by Bird is one of my comfort books so… it’s going at the very top of the list.

Bird by Bird is a book written by Anne Lamott about how she experiences the world as a struggling writer and as an average person dealing with mental health issues. In a culmination of small moments she paints a beautiful picture of life, humanity, and what it means to be a person in our crazy society. She talks about core memories that motivated her, the pain of disappointment and loss, and the struggles of everyday life.

Lamott is absolutely hilarious and will keep you interested all the way through the book. Her writing will make you laugh and sob simply because her stories are so painfully relatable. Her struggles, her lessons, her memories, they are all written in a way that are meaningful. Even without having met her, it feels as though we are one and the same. From the moment I read the synopsis on the back cover the book felt nostalgic—as though I was talking to an old friend or a good therapist.

Regardless of whether or not you are an aspiring writer, I can almost guarantee that you will find some kind of meaning in this book. It’ll leave you feeling optimistic and seen in a way that you hadn’t felt seen before. I truly can’t recommend it enough.

Just Mercy: Bryan Stevenson

This is the most serious book on this list as it is a nonfiction story about Bryan Stevenson’s experiences fighting against the death penalty and meeting with those on death row. If you do choose to read it just be aware that this is not a light read and that you will need an unbelievable amount of tissues. That being said, it’s an incredibly important story that fights for racial equality and systemic change in a extremely powerful way.

Stevenson does an incredible job documenting his journey and makes you feel as though you were in the room with him. You will feel the pain of seeing real people, just like you and me, in a position that we can’t even imagine. Stevenson’s writing will make you feel connected to them on such a deep level even without meeting them. This is one of the reasons why this book is so influential, because you want the best for these people. You feel for them and it motivates you to help the cause.

Just Mercy is especially important in the modern world where it is becoming increasingly prevalent that we are still extremely racially divided and that many of the systems we have in place only exacerbate this issue. Reading books such as Just Mercy help to educate people in a way that hits the heart but also makes you hope for the future.

The Stranger: Albert Camus

This book right here is the start of my humanities literature obsession. If you are looking for a good philosophy book that you can over analyze all you want, The Stranger is the book for you.

The Stranger is a relatively short story about a man named Meursault who has become indifferent to the world and how he goes about his life. However, in a series of unfortunate and random events, he must face the absurdity of the world and what it means to him.

Although it is short, Camus manages to create a fascinating character in Meursault, who I wrote an extremely long essay on for my humanities class about sociopathy and why he may have ASPD. It is fascinating to see inside the character’s mind in a way that makes him feel relatable but also so foreign.

There are so many connections that can be made within the book itself that I find absolutely fascinating and I especially recommend it if you are interested in philosophy or psychology.

Siddhartha: Herman Hesse

Siddhartha is yet another book from my humanities class that is great to analyze, especially in the modern context. It’s an incredible classic story of discovering oneself through trial and error.

Siddhartha is a young man from a respected family back in ancient India who wants more from life. So, in order to achieve enlightenment, he and his best friend Govinda go on a journey where they try living in the ways of others. As Siddhartha manages his many failed attempts at finding the meaning of life, we as an audience get to see him grow and see a bit of ourselves struggling to find the purpose in our own lives.

Herman Hesse manages to tell an incredible story of self improvement, hope, and meaning in some of the most exquisite writing I have ever read. In fact, one of my favorite quotes comes from Siddhartha in the final chapters of the book.

“Wisdom that a wise man attempts to impart always sounds like foolishness to someone else ... Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it” (Hesse, 142.)