Does anyone have any good reading recommendations?
I was really excited to get a book a recently ordered in the mail this morning — The Humanist’s Devotional. It seems really cool and I am looking forward to reading more later when my husband gets off work and I can take a little break from our three-year-old.
The book is filled with thought-provoking and motivational quotes meant for daily reflection — something I have been on the lookout for to use when I meditate with mala beads.
My favorite so far: “Nature is resilient. And you are a part of it.”
Have you read any good atheist or humanist books lately? There’s no better time than now to pick up a new book. I’m trying to make the most of my time in quarantine.
What sort of genre are you after? Fiction, non-fiction, serious, light-hearted, any particular topics/sub-genres of interest? What are some of your favourites?
I tend to go for non-fiction and a little more serious. I love reading poetry, too. But really I’m open to anything. 🙂
Ah, then as it happens I’ve recently finished reading one that might be perfect for you; ‘Dear Life’, by Rachel Clarke. It’s a palliative care consultant’s story of how she went into medicine, how she chose to specialise in palliative care, and how her own personal experience with her father’s death affected her; she uses these stories to explore the ways in which we need to talk about death and dying as a society, the discussions we need to have to make sure that end-of-life care is a much better experience for all concerned. She was a journalist before going into medicine, and has put her writing training to good use; it’s stunningly well-written as well as discussing a topic that’s important for us all.
Alternatively, if you feel like reading something that’s very on-topic right now (which maybe you don’t; I can well imagine this book being a bit near the knuckle for some people at the moment!) there is a beautifully-written novel called ‘Year of Wonders’, by Geraldine Brooks, which is based on the true story of how the village of Eyam quarantined itself when affected by plague in the seventeenth century, to avoid passing the plague onto others. My mother gave it to me after the amateur dramatics group that I used to be in many years ago performed a play based on the same true story. As you can imagine, it makes difficult reading at some points… but it ends with a powerful, positive message of the protagonist’s life continuing and finding meaning.
Thank you so much for your recommendations!!