Have you read an exciting book this month/year? Or Have you abandoned reading one? This Tuesday was World Book Day. Celebrate this special week with me by sharing your reading experiences. Maybe a book made you laugh, cry, or transport you into a place where you forgot all your worries. In this post, I share the books I have been reading, the ones I let go of, and those next on my list.

Two Books I Just Finished Reading

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie—I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was happily surprised with this book. It has insights on how to make people like you, give feedback in a way that is not offensive, and become a great leader. Dale Carnegie uses stories from familiar people like Abraham Lincoln, Charles Schwab, and many others to make this book enjoyable. 

This book can change how you approach people. It made me reflect on how I approach people and implement positive changes. I will certainly come back to it from time to time. 

Dear Martin by Nic Stone—I picked this up because I saw my son devour it over the weekend and rave about how good the book was. Although written for young adults, the book invites anyone interested in understanding their world to read it.

Author Nic Stone makes you experience many emotions through her book. Teenage love makes you feel tingly inside, and their friendships take you back to adolescence. The losses they experienced and the trauma they faced broke my heart and made me angry at the world. Nic does a great job of using her characters to raise awareness of racism and what it means to be a young black man in today’s age.

Two Books I Decided to Pause On

We all start a book to finish it. We want to love it and learn from it. Unfortunately, this doesn’t happen to all the books we pick up. But even the books we let go of teach something about ourselves.

Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger—I wanted to finish this one since it is a classic. This is my second attempt at Catcher in the Rye. Every time I start reading, I lose interest after a few chapters. I got tired of the main character and didn’t have it in me to keep going. My son kept going with it and had the same feeling at the end of the book. 

Outliers By Malcolm Gladwell—I loved Malcolm Gladwell’s writing course on a master class. It inspired me to pick up one of his books, ‘Outliers.’ When I started the book, I had every intention of loving it. After a few chapters, I felt he made the same point in various ways. It got repetitive. There may be some things I could learn from it further down the road, but for now, I have decided to pause it. There are other books that I want to get my hands on. 

Two Books I Am Currently Reading

The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan—When The Feminine Mystique first came out over sixty years ago, a conservative magazine named it one of the most harmful books of the 20th century. As I read this book each night, I am shocked at how relevant it is even today.

On Writing Well by William Zinsser—My writing group recommended this book, and I am already in love with it. Whether you are a writer or not, anyone can benefit from this easy-to-read book on writing non-fiction. 

Two Books I Am about to Read

No Mud, No Lotus by Thich Nhat Hanh—Thich Nhat Hanh has inspired me for the past few years. His talks have provided solace during some of the difficult moments in my life. I look forward to unpacking the wisdom from this one next month. 

A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle—Eckhart Tolle’s other book, Power of Now, is like a Bible you want to keep returning to. It is one of the reasons I picked this book.  A New Earth comes with over 200K ratings on Goodreads, making a strong case for anyone to pick it up.

What are you reading? Tell me about your most beloved books, the ones you abandoned, and those you plan on reading. Every reading experience teaches us something about ourselves. Share your joy with your fellow book lovers and celebrate this World Book Day with us.