Books that make us Better People continued…

These are another 5 books which have broadened my mind and I think have truly contributed to who I am as well as how I see things. I can really see this in the way I can still relate to such books, enjoy going back to them, and also in the ways that they come to mind from time to time.

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

The first of the series, this book really lays the foundation of how our species evolved. Harari writes quite naturally and almost conversationally, even though this remains a mostly scientific book. He also remains somewhat impartial to the truths and untruths of history - in which the victor is usually the one to set the record straight. Here you have something different - it is the trial to go beyond what they want us to know, to something more openly factual, if that can ever wholly be the case.

Nonetheless it’s a beautiful read and really helpful if you want to continue to the other books, although I wouldn’t say that to enjoy 21 Lessons you have to read this - it would just be an asset. He interestingly divides this book into our revolutions, namely the: cognitive, agricultural, and scientific, with a chapter on ‘the unification of humankind’. For anyone who enjoys history, anthropology, science, evolution and culture this will be a compulsive read and really a stepping stone of thinking about what is to come!

21 Lessons for the 21st Century

This one was definitely even more engaging for me, only because of the topics that Harari tackles here. So before you had the sort of introduction to our start as a species and how we evolved, how our history up to the last centuries really shaped us. This book turns its focus towards the challenges of our life today, in the 21st century. And there’s this focus on clarity, and becoming clear about the truth and what’s really a challenge we need to tackle sooner rather than later.

Harari tackles subjects such as work, equality, nationalism, immigration, religion, war, humility, ignorance, justice, and the last section called ‘resilience’ focuses on perhaps the three most important aspects which coexist and are interdependent: education, meaning and meditation. This is a deep dive into understanding where we’ve come from and who we are today, it asks you - who are you? what is ‘purpose’ and ‘meaning’ to you?

A Brief History of Everyone who ever Lived: The Stories in our Genes

Adam Rutherford is superb, I honestly couldn’t let this book go. I remember reading this whilst working part-time (well nearly full time hours) and working on my thesis at the end of the day, picking up this book wherever I left off was the best part. And the best part is that I got to use this scientific, historic and in many ways literary text in my boundaryless thesis.

Why? Because it confirms that there is no scientific backing to race - race is not imprinted in our DNA, it’s something we made up along the way. He goes over so many topics and yet he still makes it personal, after all this is our story; he also includes so many literary and cultural references (which was just a bonus for me) - such as Larkin, Sanders, Shakespeare, Wilde, Twain, Eliot and .2Pac! Rutherford writes in such a funny and natural way, it feels as though you’re talking to an old friend, who’s a bit of a know-it-all! It’s also quite amusing how he jumps from subjects like DNA, the first European union, blue-eyed blondes and colonization to ear wax, inbreeding, race and fate.

Perhaps what was really special to me was the ability to say - we are all more similar than we are different. This, to me, is the power of this piece. Skimming through it like this I think it’s about time I kept it next to me for a second round!

On Grief and Reason: Essays

This is perhaps a tad more philosophical in nature than the rest of the books on this list, but Joseph Brodsky is best known for such works after all.

There’s something special about this collection of essays, and it’s something that I can’t really put my finger on, you know - it’s like something you can only feel. In many ways they are simple reflections - young memories from Russia and those from his exile in America - and yet there is a complexity within the subjects he tackles - from poetry and history to the émigré writer, there is this feeling of being in-between. Perhaps most writers are in-between something, between living and seeing, knowing and dreaming, in-between lives in one’s own mind...

Two of my favourite essays have to be his homage to Marcus Aurelius and his studies on Robert Frost.

Blessed be all metrical rules that forbid automatic responses, force us to have second thoughts, free from the fetters of Self

W.H. Auden

How could I be writing about books that inspire and not include works by the Dalai Lama! So here is a book by the Dalai Lama and also Daniel Goleman on His vision for our world.

The Dalai Lama: A Call for Revolution

This is a tiny handbook full to the brim and overflowing with love and hope. It’s size and form make it perfect to carry around with you and read the short sections in those little escapes from daily routine or hustle and bustle. The Dalai Lama talks about his fate in us to unite, and to remain united as a human race, he also tackles the reality of shame and war and the effects they have on us. He encourages us to be the ‘rebels for peace’, to be solution-finders rather than problem-makers or problem-grumblers - we need a revolution that transforms the spirit! And of course He gives us a beautiful chapter on the importance and beauty of compassion - for you, for others, for all areas of life - to be able to see the shortcomings yet move beyond these towards something whole rather than fragmented.

The Dalai Lama shows us how this world of compassion can exist and how in some or many ways it already does - we just have to dig a little deeper. He asks us: ‘what can you do for the world?’ and also places before us the notion of universal responsibility, which is so important.

This is a truly inspirational, gentle and compassionate read, not to be put aside.

A Force for Good: The Dalai Lama’s Vision for Our World

Daniel Goleman, who is the bestselling author of Emotional Intelligence, puts together the Dalai Lama’s vision for us in four parts - a world citizen; looking inward; looking outward; and looking back, looking ahead. There is also a forward written by the Dalai Lama Himself.

With such interpretations of the Dalai Lama’s vision it is interesting for me to see how different and yet also similar the western language is to the Dalai Lama’s writing, and perhaps this is the point - to get the vision and the message to a wider audience. The themes themselves are not different to A Call for Revolution (that we just discussed), we still go through being a world citizen which implies global and local responsibilities to ‘reinvent the future’ as Goleman puts it.

There’s the need to look inwards and reconnect with ourselves - we need to take the time to be kind and compassionate with ourselves and take care of our own spirits before looking outwards. Then when we are ready, we can give to others what we are practicing for ourselves - we have to practice compassion as we would a muscle, care for those in need, healing what we can, and make sure to educate the heart along with the mind. In the last chapter it is as if we are going back to the first chapters of looking towards our social responsibilities, looking towards our past, our present and so to our future - what kind of, or quality of future do we want? This is our call to action - seek to understand, think and plan, act.

If you could change one thing right now, what would it be? How would you go about it?

Remember - first think local; then global will happen naturally. And your ‘local’ can be as close as home, as family, as neighbours, as your local community.

Enjoy your reading!

Book Club