This is my ultimate reading list.
I tried to keep it as succinct as possible and only included my absolute favorites. Each of these books has truly impacted my life. I can always return to them, flip them open anywhere, and find an inspiring passage.
All items listed below are Amazon affiliate links. That means you can purchase the book at zero extra cost (the price won’t change) while I receive a very small commission that’d support my work.
My Current Non-Fiction Favorite
Resonance by Hartmut Rosa is an accurate snapshot of why we struggle to live The Good Life in a hyper-accelerated, capitalist society. No other book I read has depicted the problems and potential solutions for leading a meaningful life in the modern world as clearly as this one. Because contrary to popular opinion, the solution is not necessarily to slow down, get mindful, and certainly not get rich. Instead, it’s to change your relationship with the world. It’s to resonate with it.
With roughly 800 pages, this is a brick of a book, albeit a brick of wisdom. It’s absolutely worth working through it and dissecting Rosa’s nuggets of insight.
My Current Fiction Favorite
The End of Loneliness by Benedict Wells is one of the most beautiful, refreshing books I read in a long time. I don’t want to give too much away, so let me simply say this: Wells beautifully encapsulates the human struggles of loss, loneliness, and coping with childhood. And the book dares to ask a question I couldn’t stop thinking about since reading it: What makes a life a life?
On Life
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is equally relevant for children, teenagers, and adults. Whenever I read this book, I tap into my own thought patterns and question the norm. It nudges us to remember the truly important themes of life: friendship and loss, loneliness and love.
Every time I flip through these meaningful yet straightforward pages, I go on a journey and discover another nugget of wisdom.
On Money
How to Worry Less About Money by John Armstrong is the best book about money I’ve ever read. This is because it tackles the real, psychological problems around money rather than telling you 68 quick ways to get rich. The truth is, no matter how much money you have, you’ll always worry about it. A good life is largely determined by how well you deal with these worries.
A really insightful and underrated book. I wish more people would read it.
On Love
Conversations on Love by Natasha Lunn changed my perspective on all types of relationships (not just romantic ones). Love requires work, yes. But it should still feel easy. Interviewing a line of psychologists, philosophers, and authors, Lunn unveils the secrets of finding, sustaining, and losing love.
If you’ve ever struggled with love, do yourself a favor and get this book. You won’t regret it.
On Time
Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman is one of the most soothing books I’ve read. This is because Burkeman embraces the limitations that come with human life. The fact that we’re all going to die one day is not a reason to fall into despair. It’s an incentive to flow with the time we’re given and do whatever matters most.
I prefer this book over any book on productivity or time management.