Stock markets crashing, countries locking down, and everything sold out at the grocery stores. Well, almost everything.
Who else has been slowly looking around their place thinking: “How long can I really last in here?”, “Why didn’t I build that bunker when I had the chance?”, or “What do you mean nobody can find the can opener?”
Well, I put together a list of 49 things to do during the Coronovirus and now I’d like to offer 25 of the best books to read during Coronavirus. (Clearly all my writing these days ends in “during the Coronavirus” so please do reply and send me suggestions or others you’d like to see.)
These 25 books are a place for you to open your head and carefully put your mind for a while if, like me, yours just can’t stop spinning right now.
Let’s get into it:
25. The Floor Is Lava: 99 More Games for Everyone, Everywhereby Ivan Brett. Do you have kids bouncing off the walls already? Then you need this book. Remember that game you played when you were a kid where you pretended the floor was lava and you had to jump between all the couches and coffee tables to avoid melting into the Earth’s molten core? Well, I never really thought about it but the most beautiful thing about that game was that you didn’t need … anything. Nothing! You didn’t need a thing. This book is a wonderful collection of games like that. Leave it beside the dinner table.
24. The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I know what you’re thinking. Dark, right? First three lines on the back: “A father and son walk alone through post-apocalyptic America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray.” Yes, you’re right, it’s dark. But it is also touching. Because even though this phenomenally tight and sparse classic doesn’t sound like the heartwarmer you need right now it will produce deeper feelings of appreciation, gratitude, and love for what you do have right now.
23. The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbableby Nassim Taleb. Coronavirus is a black swan event. What’s that? A highly improbably event that is a) unpredictable, b) carries massive impact, and c) results in, after the fact, everyone baking up explanations to make it appear less random and more predictable than it really is. This is the book I have thought about over the past few weeks more than any other. It is absolutely essential reading to make sense of these times and (more importantly) help yourself prepare for even more of them in the future. (Bonus: Nassim Taleb is very active on Twitter and offers a lot of insight / rage on what is happening on Coronavirus.)
22. Civil Disobedience and Other Essaysby Henry David Thoreau. I am not a big fan of social media or politics but if you’ve been followingmy Twitter account lately you’ve seen a sudden change in my behavior on both counts. I believe Coronavirus is too big a topic to be publicly silent about. (Inspiration from Seth Godin here.) I flipped open this book on civil disobedience for some guidance and inspiration and I think you should, too. Especially if you have a platform or a voice or are a leader people turn to in your family and team. And then, after you’ve read it, stick around for the the fantastic essay “Walking” which is wedged in the back like a cone-shapped chocolate nugget at the bottom of a Drumstick. I love walking and that essay jostled my mind even more. Here’s a link to the full text online. Walking! Sexier than ever.
21.Before Afterby Matthias Arégui and Anne-Margot Ramstein. Does it feel like your life is cleaving into Before Coronavirus and After Coronavirus phases? This book has no words and offers a metaphorical reflection as you ponder personal changes. On the left side of a page is an acorn. On the right side is an oak tree. On the left side of a page is a bud on a branch. On the right side is a fresh peach. On the left side is a fresh peach. On the right side is a rotten bug-infested peach that was left unpicked. You get the idea. If you’re intrigued, scroll to the end of this YouTube video for a peek inside.
20. Meanwhile: Pick Any Pathby Jason Shiga. Did you like Choose Your Own Adventurebooks when you were a kid? If so, you’ll love this post-modern graphic novel with 3856 story possibilities (3856! seriously!) all told through images and rampant flipping between pages. It’s head-twisting, it’s frenetic, it’s mad-scientist, but if you’re into puzzles or games (or your child is) then this is for you. Like any great game, it is absolutely absorbing, frustrating, and rewarding at the same time.
19. The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet by David Mitchell. Do you want to disappear? Do you want to go somewhere really far away for a while? How about Japan in the year 1799? I highly recommend this book. Whenever I start telling people about author David Mitchell I catch myself saying “Have you heard of Cloud Atlas? He wrote that!” and then they usually go “Oh! Oh yeah, that was that movie with Tom Hanks, right?” Yes, Cloud Atlas did turn into a movie with Tom Hanks and Halle Berry, and yes it’s wonderful and crazy escapist too, but I personally found it a lot less accessible than this one.
18. Solitude: In Pursuit of a Singular Life in a Crowded Worldby Michael Harris. Are you living in your head too much right now? Are you getting a bit lost in there sometimes? I am. And if you’re with me then we both need to work on our ability to be in solitude. If loneliness is “alone and sad” then solitude is “alone and happy.” Michael Harris peels back the layers of this incredibly subtle life skill to show us why it’s crucial to master, what gets in the way, and how we can reorient ourselves in the distraction machine we live in. (PS. This book made my Best Of 2018 list.)
17. Thinker Toys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking TechniquesbyMichael Michalko. Are you feeling the tectonic plates below your business, workplace, or livelihood groaning? Are you already feeling like it’s going to be a long road to recovery or something more like this changes everything? If you are chomping at what’s next then this handbook of ways to poke and prod your own thinking is a great book to flip through to jostle your own thoughts.
16. SeinLanguageby Jerry Seinfeld. Can you believe Jerry Seinfeld has only written one book ever? Yes, it’s true. He’s reported to have another one out this fall but, until then, this is all we got. Even though it’s 30 years old it completely holds up. If you need some laughs to distract you, why not call up the most successful comedian in the world to help?
15. Little House in the Big Woodsby Laura Ingalls Wilder. Okay, you’ve hung out in the 1700s so now it’s time to hang out in the 1800s. A hypnotically vivid autobiographical description of growing up in rural Wisconsin from shooting panthers to smoking meat in hollow tree trunks to playing catch with pig bladders. There is no plot. There is no crisis. There’s just 238 pages in 18-point font of vivid memories weaved into a captivating tableau that makes you feel like you’re living another life. Another fantastic dose of escapism. Written in 1937 as the first book in the famous “Little House” series. According to the wonderful folks at Common Sense Media it’s perfect for anyone age 7 and up. Yes, I read it for the first time recently and loved it. (ThanksGretchen Rubin.)
14. Naked by David Sedaris. About ten years ago my friend Shiv told me she read a David Sedaris essay every night before bed to help clear her thoughts. I remember thinking that sounds weird! But then I tried it. Turns out she’s right! This is something so soothing about David’s slow and paceful writing. The laughs always feel like a surprise even though you know they’re coming every three sentences. I can’t think of an author who grows on you more over the years. Btw, since you asked, popping out of the book in the pic above is indeed the thank you postcard David Sedaris sent me (!?!?) after I interviewed him for 3 Books.
13. Tribe: On Homecoming and Belongingby Sebastian Junger. A friend said to me the other day “Despite the physical seclusion my parents are thrilled I’m suddenly calling them every day.” Who else is feeling a pull back to their tribe? When our tenuous global connection feels short-circuited many of us likely lean back into the tribes which we know for sure we belong. This short book combines history, psychology, and anthropology to share why our tribal connection has been largely lost in modern society and why regaining it may be the key to our psychological survival. In the words of a hockey movie trailer, or this movie trailer this book may matter now more than ever before…
12. Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step At A Timeby Jeff Speck. Since I brought up Thoreau’s “Walking” earlier let’s tap that nail a little deeper here. Do you ache for simpler times? Walkable neighborhoods? Small town living? I just finished this book I’ll post a longer review in my monthly book club but, suffice to say, Jeff’s voice is fresh, funny, and whip smart, and he will leave you convinced that almost nothing is as important as creating a rich walking life.
11. Moby Dick by Herman Melville. I freely admit this is the only book on this list that I haven’t read. But I want to! I’ve read the first 100 pages a couple times. I like it! But I crumble under its weight. And that’s exactly why I threw it on here. It’s so I could ask you a general question: What is your personal white whale book? Moby Dick? Lord of the Rings? The Count of Monte Cristo? Infinite Jest? What gigantic tome can you finally grab from the basement, dramatically blow the dust off the cover, and place firmly on your bedside table? Because now is time for that book, everybody. Now is that time.
10. The Moth. Loneliness is up! It was already up before Coronavirus but hailing “social distancing” as the new norm for a while has certainly jacked loneliness stock even more. (Sidenote: We should be calling it physical distancing not social distancing. Can we start doing that? Sure, yes, absolutely, keep far apart from everyone. That’s how we stop the virus. But we need to call, text, and connect more than ever before.) If you miss the feeling of hanging out with friends at a bar over a sticky pile of chicken wings then I recommend grabbing The Moth (or the wonderful follow-up All These Wonders) and letting yourself feel like you’re back in the ripped plastic booth under the neon Amstel Light signs. These are stories told live and without notes to standing-room crowds around the world. They will sound like the best story you’ve heard all night when you’re out with friends.
9. Reworkby Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH). Jason Fried and DHH run a famously 100% remote organization called Basecamp. They also are incredible writers who have treated their company as a management test kitchen. If you’re trying to figure out new ways of operating then this is a great thought-provoking primer on what’s possible. (They also wrote a follow-up more specifically about remote-working)
8. Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?By Seth Godin. Pairs well with Rework above (which features a blurb from Seth Godin on the cover). I debated whether to put this or The Dipon here but I think if your employment is feeling shaky then this is the better one to start with. No matter what happens, you own you. Challenges are coming. That’s for sure. But you own you. And this is a guidebook to jacking up your confidence, unlocking boxes you didn’t realize you were sitting inside, and seeing your strengths and opportunities with fresh eyes.
7. Hatchetby Gary Paulson. Do you feel like you just crash landed in the Canadian wilderness and you’re all alone right now? And you need to figure out how to collect your wits and sort yourself out to make it through this trying time? Well, that’s exactly what happens to 13-year-old Brian Robeson in this YA book about survival and determination.
6. The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha. My own book? What the hell? Well, I’ve actually been feeling a lot of deja vu over the past couple weeks. I began writing 1000 Awesome Things in 2008 during a very similar feeling period … crashing stock market, rising unemployment, a sort of “anxiety everywhere” cloud floating above us. (That was on top of my own inner world, of course.) The daily blog posts I wrote to cheer myself up and provide a getaway for the everyday eventually got stapled together into this book.
5. There Is No Good Card For Thisby Kelsey Crowe and Emily McDowell.Emily McDowell out-Hallmarks Hallmark. Her incredible cards over at Emily McDowell and Friends are wonderful, beautiful, and inspiring. (Get a dose on her Instagram, too.) Elizabeth Gilbert calls this book ‘a wonderful crash course in Humanity 101… shows you how to show up as the best possible version of yourself when it matters most.’ A great I find myself turning to again and again. (PS. Check out my conversation with Emily here.)
4. On The Shortness of Lifeby Seneca. If you’ve followed my stuff for a while you know I’ve talked about this little 2000-year-old essay many times. I keep a copy in my suitcase. In stressful times it seems to give me much needed comfort and grounding. Given that it’s 2000 years old the whole thing is out of copyright and available online here. (If you like this and want another dose of stoic philosophy I recommend The Art of Living by Epictetus.)
3. Their Eyes Were Watching Godby Zora Neale Hurston. If you are looking for a book of ultimate redemption over struggle then here it is. Zora Neale was born in Alabama in 1891 and published this novel about a Southern black woman’s journey to independence in 1937. Born from a rape and raised by her grandmother who was a slave, it’s an incredibly epic tale of her life which (I promise) ultimately rewards at the end.
2. Mindset: The New Psychology of Successby Carol S. Dweck. A lot of what happens to us over the coming weeks and months is going to come down to mindset. How are you able to see what happens to you? A deeply researched book that will help you develop a growth mindset across all spectrums of life from business to parenting.
1. Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatchby Eileen Spinelli. We got a letter in our mailbox last night from somebody on our street who’s offering to help anybody, with any errand, at any time. How beautiful is the tightened togetherness during tragedy? How are your neighbors doing and how can you help? And, a bit less discussed, what are the ripple effects of your help? This children’s book helps show that impact. It’s a tear-inducing story of a lonely old man who receives a giant box of chocolates from a secret admirer which helps him become a loving citizen, friend, and neighbor. When it turns out the box was delivered to the wrong address, he quickly returns to his glum and depressed state. But the people he began loving haven’t forgotten all that love and the book closes with them lifting him back up. For ages 5–8 or, you know, anyone who wants to cry while putting their kid to bed.
