#1. Fiction
All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
I rarely reread and I almost never read fiction, but I revisited All the Pretty Horses after Cormac McCarthy died this year. Partly in his honor and because i remember it as my favorite.
Cormac McCarthy was a complicated man. He went into the desert and abandoned his wife and children, in pursuit of the empathy required to tell good stories of the American west. They’re violent, unforgiving, honest. His dedication to craft, unparalleled since perhaps Walden.
From the first sentence, it sounds like he’s talking to me in my head and I enjoy reading this book out loud. His stories also include native people, which I’m grateful to have to read.
In the end, he rests in peace and the book tops my book list.
#2. Professional Psychology
Changing on the Job by Jennifer Garvey Berger
When I first wrote this, I called this book, The book with the two fishes”. It’s a memorable cover, not for a good reason, and a forgettable title, but I wont hold her publicist against her, because the content is transformational.
Recommended by my executive coach, Alan, it helped me understand the evolution of the mind, why most people have a linear perspective from black to white and gave me solace that I’m not f’ing crazy living my life in multiple dimensions. It’s apparently a sequel and I read the first book second. Not sure if it’s one of those times where you like the first one you see best, or if the second attempt was just better, but I felt like this one was the must read. Chose your own adventure.
#3. Product and corporate culture
Setting the Table by Danny Meyer
Perhaps the best product and founder book I’ve read (build was pretty good too but it’s west coast vibes, and I’m an east coast b). The first 50 pages are mostly self-centered, typical New Yorker, but the meat of this one was worth the wait. Quite literally the biggest lesson I learned is to consider every part of the customer experience, even the wait, as part of the experience.
#4. Self-help wisdom
Prophetically and like the sage she is, my cousin recommended this book to me over the best ice cream sandwiches of my life. The next week I took some time off in the desert by myself, and this book was on the nightstand of the Airbnb. I devoured it. It’s in the genre of the Four Agreements (an old fav, but a good one) so if you’re getting older and looking for a few more agreements, this it’d be it.