November 2024
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    10 Comments

    1. My sister the serial killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite. It’s got a great sense of drama despite its short length, it’s paced really well, it’s not a traditional crime story for people who don’t like crime, but it does revolve around suspense for the people who do. I’ve never had bad feedback from suggesting it.

    2. For me it depends on the person and what they need or I think they might enjoy or need.

      I’ve given a lot of copies of Jon Ronson’s “The Psychopath Test” sometimes in jest, but generally because it’s light reading that you’ll learn some truths from. Particularly about the area of mental health in a non-academic ( i.e. dry and dull ) way. His other books, including “Conversations With Extremists” are also good.

      Michael Lewis, writes well on a variety of topics, mainly sport and finance. There’s nothing he can’t make interesting because he always finds one or two people affected by the topic and their voice becomes part of the story. If you told me I’d enjoy a book about how the American government’s civil service works I’d have laughed at you until I read “The Fifth Lesson”. And I don’t know the first thing about baseball, but “Moneyball” was riveting.

      David Sedaris for light humour and mood lifting experience. “Me Talk Pretty One Day” or “Let’s Talk Diabetes With Owls” Anything really, he’s very funny.

      For the creatives in my life or people looking for a bit of guidance outside of therapy a few copies of “The Artist’s Way” Julia Cameron have landed with friends ( My dad introduced me to this one ). I also found “The Tao of Pooh” particularly good when I was doing exams as a take on Taoism and life. Also, “The Element” by Sir Ken Robinson, he did a great Ted Talk so I bought the book. It’s a very interesting take on education.

      I steer clear of gifting people heavier books like “Zen and The Art of Motorcylce Maintenence” unless I know them well enough to know they’ll enjoy it.

      “The Power of Now” is another good one, but I’m not a fan of the wellness industry. Most of what is written is often common sense tarted up with a grand concept, or a pseudo science term to define it. But that doesn’t take from the truth of the core message, so I still recommend some of these books. Ken Robinson, though I’d recommend his book does this with “the element” to some extent, but I’d still recommend that book because he’s not over egging the concept. I also think that’s why “The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k” has a high place in my recommendations for the right people.

      Timing is everything, and knowing the person, like relationships the right book at the right time can have a big impact on a friend.

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