Every month our team members pick a book that’s tickled their fancy and recommend it to you, our network, so that we can all read, learn and grow together – just think of it as our own little book club!
Because reading is what? Fundamental!
Julia’s Book Recommendation:
Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman
I want to open by saying I have never identified as a self-help book person. I don’t know why I was so adverse to them, maybe it was the industry built on people’s struggles, or maybe it was me thinking I could do it alone.
Anyway, if you are a similar thinker, then I hope you’ll stick with me – because Four Thousand Weeks changed my life. Truth bomb: I suffer from severe anxiety and have been on meds for around three years. But, they weren’t working and I decided to come off of them. In coming off I was recommended two books to help arm me with the tools I needed to cope with my anxiety and this book was one of them.
Anxiety is rooted in a fear of the future and best believe nobody needs to tell me there isn’t enough time – society keeps trying to show us how to best cram as much into the smallest amount of time, and if we don’t, well then we’re just not girl-bossing hard enough. Conversely, Burkeman explores how we can reject our modern fixation on “optimizing” every minute of every day, and instead, he shows us how to embrace our finitude, accept the choices we make (and the hundreds of choices we then inevitably don’t make) as part of life and learn to reapproach our use of time. Burkeman turns to both ancient and contemporary philosophers, psychologists, scientists, and spiritual teachers to deliver an entertaining, humorous (I lolled often), practical, and profound guide to managing the 4000 weeks you have.
Jill’s Book Recommendation:
Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
I’ve been a huge fan of Japanese Breakfast for years, and have always had a friend crush on the band’s lead Michelle Zauner. She’s a fantastic lyricist, so it’s no surprise that her debut novel, Crying in H Mart, is heart-wrenching and wonderful.
The book talks about Zauner’s upbringing as a Korean American in Oregon and her visits to her grandmother’s house in Korea. When she was 25, Zauner’s mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer. As someone who has also experienced the death of a parent, I deeply felt Zauner’s description of the heartbreak and grief that one experiences when their favorite person in the world is suddenly gone.
The book left me with a new understanding of my own experience with grief, and Zauner’s words will stay with me for a long time.
Also, Japanese Breakfast is coming to Berlin on October 27th! Grab your tickets and I’ll see you there 🙂
Alice’s Book Recommendation:
Three Women by Lisa Taddeo
This book is one of my all-time favorites. I truly think that it didn’t leave my hand from the moment that I picked it up and what’s more, its essence has been ringing in my head since.
Three Women is the debut non-fiction work from Lisa Taddeo and follows the emotional and sexual journeys of three women over the course of eight years. The book is a genuine masterpiece and its finesse is a ridiculous testament to the journalistic dedication and skill of Taddeo, who even relocated to the towns of the women concerned to better understand their lives.
Everyone should read it. Everyone will marvel. Ready, set, go!
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