AnnaORBISON
BOOK CLUB
This book club is dedicated to inspiring books, books that expand our world view, and books that bring us joy. We do read some yoga related books, but we also read novels and non-fiction. As you will see below with out past selections we tend to be all over the map with what we choose. If you'd like to participate and live in LA, please feel free to contact me about meeting dates and times. If you don't live in LA, but you'd like to read along or start your own group based on our selections, feel free! If you're more interested in reading yoga books, I've compiled a reading list at the link below with some fantastic yoga philosophy books that will help you deepen your understanding of the practice.
CURRENTBOOK:
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnemen
In his mega bestseller, Thinking, Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman, world-famous psychologist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics, takes us on a groundbreaking tour of the mind and explains the two systems that drive the way we think.
System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. The impact of overconfidence on corporate strategies, the difficulties of predicting what will make us happy in the future, the profound effect of cognitive biases on everything from playing the stock market to planning our next vacation―each of these can be understood only by knowing how the two systems shape our judgments and decisions.
Engaging the reader in a lively conversation about how we think, Kahneman reveals where we can and cannot trust our intuitions and how we can tap into the benefits of slow thinking. He offers practical and enlightening insights into how choices are made in both our business and our personal lives―and how we can use different techniques to guard against the mental glitches that often get us into trouble. Topping bestseller lists for almost ten years, Thinking, Fast and Slow is a contemporary classic, an essential book that has changed the lives of millions of readers.
PASTSELECTIONS:
Amoralman by Derek Delgaudio
Derek DelGaudio believed he was a decent, honest man. But when irrefutable evidence to the contrary is found in an old journal, his memories are reawakened and Derek is forced to confront - and try to understand - his role in a significant act of deception from his past.
Using his youthful notebook entries as a road map, Derek embarks on a soulful, often funny, sometimes dark journey, retracing the path that led him to a world populated by charlatans, card cheats, and con artists. As stories are peeled away and artifices are revealed, Derek examines the mystery behind his father's vanishing act, the secret he inherited from his mother, the obsession he developed with sleight-of-hand that shaped his future, and the affinity he felt for the professional swindlers who taught him how to deceive others. Once he finds himself working as a crooked dealer in a big-money Hollywood card game, Derek begins to question his own sense of morality, and discovers that even a master of deception can find himself trapped in an illusion.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Few have failed to be charmed by the witty and independent spirit of Elizabeth Bennet in Austen’s beloved classic Pride and Prejudice. When Elizabeth Bennet first meets eligible bachelor Fitzwilliam Darcy, she thinks him arrogant and conceited; he is indifferent to her good looks and lively mind. When she later discovers that Darcy has involved himself in the troubled relationship between his friend Bingley and her beloved sister Jane, she is determined to dislike him more than ever. In the sparkling comedy of manners that follows, Jane Austen shows us the folly of judging by first impressions and superbly evokes the friendships, gossip and snobberies of provincial middle-class life.
Circe by Madelein Miller
In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child -- not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power -- the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves. Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love. With unforgettably vivid characters, mesmerizing language, and page-turning suspense, Circe is a triumph of storytelling, an intoxicating epic of family rivalry, palace intrigue, love and loss, as well as a celebration of indomitable female strength in a man's world. We LOVED this book as a group!
Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle
A memoir of betrayal and self-discovery by bestselling author Glennon Doyle, Love Warrior is a gorgeous and inspiring account of how we are all born to be warriors: strong, powerful, and brave; able to confront the pain and claim the love that exists for us all. This chronicle of a beautiful, brutal journey speaks to anyone who yearns for deeper, truer relationships and a more abundant, authentic life.
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett
At the end of the Second World War, Cyril Conroy combines luck and a single canny investment to begin an enormous real estate empire, propelling his family from poverty to enormous wealth. His first order of business is to buy the Dutch House, a lavish estate in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia. Meant as a surprise for his wife, the house sets in motion the undoing of everyone he loves.The story is told by Cyril’s son Danny, as he and his older sister, the brilliantly acerbic and self-assured Maeve, are exiled from the house where they grew up by their stepmother. The two wealthy siblings are thrown back into the poverty their parents had escaped from and find that all they have to count on is one another. It is this unshakeable bond between them that both saves their lives and thwarts their futures. Set over the course of five decades, The Dutch House is a dark fairy tale about two smart people who cannot overcome their past.
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
Soulful and uproarious, forceful and tender, Untamed is both an intimate memoir and a galvanizing wake-up call. It is the story of how one woman learned that a responsible mother is not one who slowly dies for her children, but one who shows them how to fully live. It is the story of navigating divorce, forming a new blended family, and discovering that the brokenness or wholeness of a family depends not on its structure but on each member’s ability to bring her full self to the table. And it is the story of how each of us can begin to trust ourselves enough to set boundaries, make peace with our bodies, honor our anger and heartbreak, and unleash our truest, wildest instincts so that we become women who can finally look at ourselves and say: There She Is.
Klara and The Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
Here is the story of Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, who, from her place in the store, watches carefully the behavior of those who come in to browse, and of those who pass on the street outside. She remains hopeful that a customer will soon choose her. Klara and the Sun is a thrilling book that offers a look at our changing world through the eyes of an unforgettable narrator, and one that explores the fundamental question: what does it mean to love?
Our book club was torn on this book, while we all found the story compelling and well-written, some of us were disheartened by the world portrayed in the book and others found it interesting. Be prepared to be somewhat confused by the narration, as you're seeing the world through Klara's eyes.
The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett
Seldom does a book have the impact of Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow. Since it was first published in 2010, it has been cited in judicial decisions and has been adopted in campus-wide and community-wide reads; it helped inspire the creation of the Marshall Project and the new $100 million Art for Justice Fund; it has been the winner of numerous prizes, including the prestigious NAACP Image Award; and it has spent nearly 250 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Most important of all, it has spawned a whole generation of criminal justice reform activists and organizations motivated by Michelle Alexander's unforgettable argument that "we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it." As the Birmingham News proclaimed, it is "undoubtedly the most important book published in this century about the U.S."
How to be an Antiracists by Ibram X. Kendi
Antiracism is a transformative concept that reorients and reenergizes the conversation about racism—and, even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. At its core, racism is a powerful system that creates false hierarchies of human value; its warped logic extends beyond race, from the way we regard people of different ethnicities or skin colors to the way we treat people of different sexes, gender identities, and body types. Racism intersects with class and culture and geography and even changes the way we see and value ourselves. In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes readers through a widening circle of antiracist ideas—from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities—that will help readers see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves.
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
Seldom does a book have the impact of Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow. Since it was first published in 2010, it has been cited in judicial decisions and has been adopted in campus-wide and community-wide reads; it helped inspire the creation of the Marshall Project and the new $100 million Art for Justice Fund; it has been the winner of numerous prizes, including the prestigious NAACP Image Award; and it has spent nearly 250 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Most important of all, it has spawned a whole generation of criminal justice reform activists and organizations motivated by Michelle Alexander's unforgettable argument that "we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it." As the Birmingham News proclaimed, it is "undoubtedly the most important book published in this century about the U.S."
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns of a father for his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful new framework for understanding our nation’s history and current crisis. Americans have built an empire on the idea of “race,” a falsehood that damages us all but falls most heavily on the bodies of black women and men—bodies exploited through slavery and segregation, and, today, threatened, locked up, and murdered out of all proportion. What is it like to inhabit a black body and find a way to live within it? And how can we all honestly reckon with this fraught history and free ourselves from its burden?
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined. Roy is arrested and sentenced to twelve years for a crime Celestial knows he didn’t commit. Though fiercely independent, Celestial finds herself bereft and unmoored, taking comfort in Andre, her childhood friend, and best man at their wedding. As Roy’s time in prison passes, she is unable to hold on to the love that has been her center. After five years, Roy’s conviction is suddenly overturned, and he returns to Atlanta ready to resume their life together.
The Overstory by Richard Powers
The Overstory, winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction, is a sweeping, impassioned work of activism and resistance that is also a stunning evocation of―and paean to―the natural world. From the roots to the crown and back to the seeds, Richard Powers’s twelfth novel unfolds in concentric rings of interlocking fables that range from antebellum New York to the late twentieth-century Timber Wars of the Pacific Northwest and beyond. There is a world alongside ours―vast, slow, interconnected, resourceful, magnificently inventive, and almost invisible to us. This is the story of a handful of people who learn how to see that world and who are drawn up into its unfolding catastrophe.
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
We chose this book before Covid was a thing and were shocked as we read that we had chosen a book about a virus that devastates the world. That being said, it was a very interesting and well-written book about the challenges of rebuilding a world after most of society has succumbed to a pandemic. The story goes back and forth between people's lives before the virus (a child actress and a famous Hollywood star, an emt, and business man) and a group a of traveling musicians and actors who tour the US in order to continue sharing the arts with the people who remain. There are connections between characters that could never be predicted, a "prophet" threatening their lives, and many beautiful and sad moments in this wonderful novel.
One Day in December by Josie Silver
After a string of serious books, we decided to pick a light book. This was a cute romance about a woman seeing the man of her dreams on the street from a bus and then watches him disappear forever... until her roommate and best friend ends up bringing home her new boyfriend and it's him. Our poor romantic lead goes through years of being in love with this guy and many ups and downs, but it's a sweet, easy read and will keep you wanting to know how the happy ending is going to turn out.
Hillbilly Elegy by JD Vance
Hillbilly Elegy should be required reading for every American. This book is an incredible portrait of the low-income people of the rust belt who have been essentially left behind in economic growth and education, and the struggles they face on a daily basis. Vance does not paint his family, friends, and neighbors as victims though. He thoroughly explores where the system has failed and where the people have failed themselves and each other. Hillbilly Elegy was widely loved by our group and people found it fascinating, enlightening, and a great way to understand people who live a very different life than many of us in the US.
Where the Crawdad's Sing by Delia Owens
This was an intriguing novel about a "marsh girl" named Kya who has been abandoned by her family and survived for years on her own in a small home in the marsh. When there is a possible murder in town, the locals immediately assume Kya was involved. Owens has filled this book with mystery, romance, and beautiful descriptions of nature of the North Carolina coast. We had some mixed reviews from the group on this one. Many of us loved it, but some people found the story a little cheesy and the members of the group who listened to it, did not like the voicing at all.
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
We couldn't put down this book! Lori Gottlieb is a therapist in LA and Maybe You Should Talk to Someone is a compilation of stories from her own practice and from her experience going to her own therapist during a particularly difficult period in her life. She perfectly captures her patients and her own journey to finding a healthier mental space in funny, ridiculous, and poignant ways. You become completely invested in everyone from the TV exec who's a total jerk to the woman dying of cancer. She has a way of seeing all her patient's humanity and drawing it out of them, as she is searching for what she wants and needs with her own wonderful therapist.
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
Trevor Noah is an incredible author who has lived an incredible life. We found Born a Crime to be moving, funny, inspiring, and an amazing portrait of life as a young mixed-race man living in South Africa during Apartheid. His stories range from horrible sad and angering to laugh out loud funny and we loved every bit of it. Noah's ability to tell a story with honesty, humor, and clarity made us all completely in love with the book and him as a person. This book is a fantastic way to understand the consequences of systematized oppression on a people and on a young boy as he attempts to find his way in the world.
Educated by Tara Westover
This book was jaw-dropping. We all could not believe the life this woman has led growing up in a Mormon survivalist home with a father who has a severe mental illness. It's hard to imagine this is a modern memoir, but Westover leads us honestly through her journey of escaping a household where she wasn't allowed to go to school, didn't have a license or birth certificate, and couldn't go to a doctor. We all found her descriptions of what it's like to be in abusive relationships or families incredibly moving. She never glosses over the challenges, the fear, and loneliness, and you're cheering her on through everything that comes her way.
Becoming by Michelle Obama
We loved this book... although, we agreed reading it is better than listening to it. Michelle Obama is an incredible person who has done so much in her life outside of being the first lady. She describes everything from her childhood to their last day in the white house with honesty and openness that you don't often get from people in politics. She is funny, committed to helping the country, sincere, and it's a quick read because of that. It's also a really nice way to learn about some of the ins and outs of life in the white house.
All the Light we Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
This was our first novel and collectively we loved it! Some of us had a hard time dropping into the timeline, as the story is told in a non-linear way, but the story was incredible and the way it was told was fascinating after you got used to the shifting time. We found this to be a heartening, beautiful book about people trying to survive in a war that neither of them fully understands. It demonstrated not only how many people get swept up in the tragedy of war, but also how good we can be to each other despite our differences. We highly recommend it!
You are a Badass by Jen Sincero
This book was a quick and easy read and you'll either love the light-hearted and funny tone or wish it was a little more in-depth. She has a lot of great ideas and ways that she describes things, although if you have read previous books on this list, none of it will be very new. A great introduction to how to take action to create a life that inspires you though.
Braving the Wilderness by Brené Brown
Read everything this woman has written, but especially this book. If you are looking to find peace, inspiration, and courage in the trying times we are living in, read this book. It's short, easy to read, and one I'll be turning back to over and over again for inspiration.
The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer
This is a must read for those of you into spirituality and mastering the noise in your mind. Singer describes what happens in our minds beautifully and gives great advice on how to quiet ourselves so that we can really understand what is happening in our hearts and minds.
A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle
A classic book in the field of spirituality and consciousness. Tolle is an amazing writer and thinker and has a wonderful way of explaining very profound concepts. It is a little more dense than some of the other books we have read, but very powerful and the group really enjoyed the book.
The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks
This is a wonderful book about how we get in the way of our own happiness without even realizing it. It has some wonderful insights and questions to ask yourself about what makes you happiest and how you can move towards that in your daily life.
Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes
This book is an incredible book about the portrayal of women in folk tails and throughout our storytelling history. There are so many beautiful discoveries to be made about the way women think and feel based on the stories we are told across cultures. It's a bit dense and a little tough to get into, but once you get into it, you will find it fascinating.
The Book of Joy by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu
I cannot say enough about the joy we found reading this incredible book. Not only is the content rich with inspiration but the friendship of these two men is beautiful to read about. It truly makes you feel that we can all come together and overcome any obstacle in front of us on our path to joy.
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Ruben
This is the one book so far that people did not enjoy. We found Gretchen to be fairly hard to connect to and a pretty unlikable person. She did a fantastic job researching what makes us all happy, but she seems fairly unhappy the whole time she's writing about it. Many people did not finish this book and this is the only one we've read that I would pass on.
The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho
This book is a magical as everything you've heard about it. There's a reason that millions of people are in love with it. The story is compelling, the message is inspiring, it's a short easy read, and we all adored it. This is one you could read 100 times.
