I seem to be having something of an existential crisis about aging and the meaning of life in general (a small one but still one at that).
Does anyone have any recommendations – ideally something not too heavy (I appreciate the contrast in requirement versus subject).
Thank you in advance!
by egotrooper
29 Comments
Douglas Adams comes to my mind every time I think about the meaning of everything.
Man’s Search for Meaning – by Vikor Frankl.
42
Parable of the Sower
The 5 invitations by Frank Ostaseski, “discovering what death can teach us about living”
Being Mortal – a great insight into nursing home and assisted living culture and the medicalization of dying/aging. A heavy topic but told in a narrative style with easy to digest language, I actually found it to be a page turner.
The daily stoic: 366 meditations by Ryan Holiday. Stoicism is an excellent practice for life. He has an insta page too. Really any book about stoicism if this one doesn’t appeal to you
The Alchemist
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants.
The Wild Edge of Sorrow by Frances Weller
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro is literally a novel about a man about to retire and contemplating his life. It’s very well written! Highly recommend
The Humans by Matt haig
Existentialism for Dummies
The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
At the Existentialist Cafe: Freedom, Being, and Apricot Cocktails by Sarah Bakewell
You might like Becky Chamber’s Monk and Robot novellas. The first is Psalm for the Wild-Built, the second is A Prayer for the Crown-Shy. They’re not aging specific, but very much concerned with the inner ‘what is my purpose’, ‘what is the meaning of life?’. They’re gentle books.
Nobody has the answers. Don’t waste your limited time on this earth trying to find them. Just try to suffer through this existence until you die.
Illusions by Richard Bach
Lamb by Christopher Moore
Ok , I know I recommend this book a lot but there are reasons, “only Cowgirls Get the Blues” ” when I was 13 I saw a spider drinking water do you think that didn’t change my life?”
When Breath Becomes Air
Night by Elie Wiesel. It’s not a light read, but maybe it will give you a different perspective on how bad life can get.
I can save you some time. It’s 42.
Watch Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life.
*The Purpose Driven Life* by Rick Warren
*The Book of Ecclesiastes* (in the Bible)
*What Are People For?* by Wendell Berry (an essay collection)
Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach
Bach’s more famous story is Jonathan Livingston Seagull.
Both are wonderful books about the meaning of life. But I liked how deep and eclectic Illusions got. Imagine if the Messiah didn’t want his job? 😉
Ishmael by Daniel Quinn
Surprisingly? Phantom Tollbooth hit me the hardest.
Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Why is no one mentioning Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse? 😮
Hitchhiker’s Guide? 😉
The Book On The Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are – Alan Watts