I’m a sucker for recaps and looking back at this list, it’s a trip to see where these books came from, and how they’ve shaped what I’m reading now. Also a pretty wild way to view time—hard to believe some of these books were from this year. They feel like I read them years ago.
I would abso love to learn what you think belongs here and in my head. Let me know!
Show Your Work – Austin Kleon
So highly recommend this to any/every artist or human who thinks about how we share and communicate life and art. I keep it handy for times when I’m overthinking and need straightforward advice about what to share. I still take it all with a grain because: stay weird forever! Also though, weird folk, share your stuff 🙂
Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls – David Sedaris
Listened to the audiobook read by Sedaris (my only audiobook this year for whatever reason). So good! Love when he takes the liberty to fictionalize hateful folks like those against gay marriage at the end. More of the same raddness from him which I can’t get enough of.
The Peaceful Stillness of the Silent Mind – Lama Yeshe
Learning to meditate, to ditch attachment, and to not be so into judging everything. Like how someone can be both friend and enemy (or neither). So happy I randomly came upon Lama Yeshe thx to my mediation folks. Kind of like a headier (or less-easy-to-grasp) Thich Nhat Hanh.
Parable of the Sower – Octavia Butler
Like a survival guide embedded with mindfulness and community. Incredible. Why wasn’t this required reading in high school or college??? Such a life-changing work.
Thanks to my wife for the recommendation. And thanks to her and our bud Nisey for showing me the Octavia’s Parables Podcast with adrienne maree brown & Toshi Reagon. Every episode changes how I think and who I am and I’m not even halfway through. The hosts reflect on the book and offer tangible elements from Octavia Butler’s work we can incorporate into our lives and communities. Can’t hype this up enough!
Also noticing it’s fun to read stuff that came out in the ’90s. Usually, I feel like I’m reading books from forever ago or more current stuff. Reading books (and listening to music) from the ’90s is like digging into my past, or the era that shaped me a bit. I mean I was a person then. Far from grown, but alive.
What It Is – Lynda Barry
“We don’t create a fantasy world to escape reality, we create it to be able to stay.”
This book is a lovely journey through ourselves via art and thought exercises. It’s a kind of book I had no idea existed, and so grateful it does!
Aftershocks – Nadia Owusu
Good god wow what a poetic and detailed description of trauma and depression told through weaving tales of growing up in every corner of the world. Reclaiming narratives taken away by systematic hate and BS. I attended an online Q&A and they spoke about the work being a way to process. They looked at all their raw material, journals, their past, and asked — can I make art of this? So highly recommend <3
The Stone Sky – N.K. Jemison