A guide to the good life: March at the Reader's Nook
Explore new cultures, dip into historical fiction, and feed your mind with some {rather interesting} philosophy. Grab a cuppa and dive into the world of books!
Dear reader,
I start writing my letters to you in the last week of each month. It takes me a day or two or three to put these together — looking for interesting books to recommend for each of the book bingo prompts isn’t something I take lightly. I almost always offer you a mix of books that I’ve personally read and books that I think sound interesting, that I think you may like too.
Then I look over my reading list for the month and start to compose this letter to you. Looking over this month’s reading list, I realized, much to my astonishment, that all of the books I read corresponded to one of the Book Bingo prompts! I’ve now finished all of the prompts from the last column and the second row. Double bingo!
Of the six books I read this month, two really stood out for me — Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s The Last Queen (A book by an author from a developing country) and Shelby Van Pelt’s Remarkably Bright Creatures (A book by a debut author). The storytelling in both of these books was par excellence, and both stayed on with me long after I turned the last page.
Head here for a wrap-up of this month’s books.
If a miles-high TBR pile makes your bookish heart happy, you’re in the right place! Invite your book loving friends to join you in the Reader’s Nook. Pull up a comfy chair, and let’s read together.
Recommendation corner:
Have some of the bingo prompts got you scratching your head, wondering what to read or maybe even what it means? I got you covered! Every month, I will pick 2 bingo prompts and share a couple of recommendations with you. And just so you’re not here all day reading this, I’ll link you up to Goodreads so you can check out the book and add it to your Want-to-read shelf. Here we go!
Philosophically speaking
Etymologically, philosophy comes the Ancient Greek philosophia, a combination of phílos (friend or lover) and -sophía (wisdom). Philosophy is this the love of wisdom, a way to understand the ways in which we humans experience the world. At its best, philosophy gives us a set of tools and a way of looking at the world that helps us lead a more meaningful life. Here are a few recommendations:
A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine: Stoicism is having a bit of a moment, and for good reason, as many of the stoic philosophies have withstood the test of time. Irvine does an excellent job of bringing this ancient philosophy to a modern audience without the “bro vibe” that can be common in other, more mainstream books on Stoicism. You can read some of my thoughts on the book here.
American Philosophy: A Love Story by John Kaag: An intellectual tour de force: part memoir, part philosophy, and part intellectual history, Kaag takes readers “on a thrilling journey that leads him to the life-affirming tenets of American philosophy—self-reliance, pragmatism, and transcendence.” If you have even a passing interest in philosophy, you will enjoy this book. Read a mini-review here.
The Socrates Express: In Search of Life Lessons from Dead Philosophers by Eric Weiner: Weiner takes you on a whistle-stop tour of history’s greatest minds, showing us how each of them, from Epicurus to Gandhi, Thoreau to Beauvoir, offers practical and spiritual lessons for today’s unsettled times. I think it may be time for me to re-read this treasure trove of insightful ideas!
A book by an author from a developing country
Books open up whole new worlds for us; and reading books by authors from developing countries exposes us to cultures that are different from our own and lives that are different, and yet have a shared commonality with our own drives, desires, and motivations. Here are a few recommendations:
Dark Things by Sukanya Venkatraghavan: Enter the world of yakshis (demonesses) and the forces that govern Atala and Aakahsa. Combining fantasy with the rich tapestry of folklore, Dark Things is a strange fairytale wrought of intrigue and enchantment, of shadows and secrets, of evil and those who battle it.
The Pearl That Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi: Set in Afghanistan, the book explores the ancient custom of bacha posh, which allows young girls to dress and be treated as boys until they are of marriageable age. Crisscrossing in time, the story interweaves the stories tales of two women — Rahima and her great-aunt, Shekiba —separated by a century, but who share similar destinies. You can read my review of this book here.
Mistress by Anita Nair: Set in Kerela, India, Mistress offers a fascinating insight into the art of kathakali and the mind of an artist who devotes his very life to his art; as well as a nuanced examination of the messy intricacies of married life in India. Narrated in the voices of the three main protagonists, presenting their stories and emotions from their unique vantage point in the overall story arc, Nair weaves a rich tapestry of history and storytelling that will have you spellbound as you turn the pages.
For the love of poetry
I use random poem generators from time to time as a little oracle — more often than not, the poems that appear are just what I need in that particular moment. Or maybe that is simply the function a poetry. In either case, poem are balms for the world-weary soul. My hope is that these monthly poems will offer you wisdom, comfort, joy, wonder.
Lucky
Kirsten Dierking
All this time,
the life you were
supposed to live
has been rising around you
like the walls of a house
designed with warm
harmonious lines.
As if you had actually
planned it that way.
As if you had
stacked up bricks
at random,
and built by mistake
a lucky star.
Monthly round-up
Things that caught my attention this month
⫸ Why do you postpone yourself?
⫸ The Instagram conundrum: Should you stay or should you go?
⫸ This courage, this perseverance, and finally, this!
⫸ These words:
You must realize that. something is happening to you, that life has not forgotten you, that it holds you in its hand and will not let you fall. — Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet
Thank you for being here and for spending some time in my bookish world. Hit reply and tell me what you’ve been reading and enjoying this month!
Happy reading,
Shinjini