Recommended Reads
March 2025
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Forever Boy: A Mother's Memoir of Autism and Finding Joy听by Kate Swenson
Do you love true stories and memoirs? If so, Forever Boy: A Mother's Memoir of Autism and Finding Joy by Kate Swenson is a must-read. Kate, a mother to Cooper, who has severe nonverbal autism, shares her journey with remarkable authenticity. She candidly discusses the challenges they faced, including relocating from a rural community in Wisconsin that lacked necessary resources and the strain on her marriage, which ultimately led to divorce. However, they find their way back to each other after dealing with their grief in their own ways. Kate鈥檚 narrative delves into the common dynamics seen in families dealing with autism. As a mother, she explored every possible therapy to help her son, while her husband struggled with denial about the long-term nature of the diagnosis. Her authenticity shines through as she addresses the complexities of raising other children in this context. She openly shares the feelings of isolation and exhaustion that come with raising a child with severe autism, and the unique challenges of navigating the school system for her son, Cooper. The memoir will resonate deeply with you if you are a family living with special needs, evoking both empathy and a sense of shared experience, regardless of the severity of the diagnosis. Despite the challenges, Kate doesn't focus solely on hardship. She emphasizes finding joy in the journey and reaching a place of acceptance regarding autism's impact on Cooper and their family. Her heartfelt and genuine storytelling will make you feel as though you are right there with her, experiencing the highs and lows of her family's life.
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It鈥檚 OK That You鈥檙e Not OK鈥eeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn鈥檛 Understand by Megan Devine听
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Devine鈥檚 book covers the complex and uncomfortable topics of grief, loss, trauma, and mourning in a way that is insightful and meets the reader where they are at in their journey of working through trauma, from bandaging the fresh wounds of recent events to looking back and carefully minding the scars of tragedies passed. Devine speaks from her own personal experiences as a griever, still coping with the sudden loss of her fianc茅 a decade prior. Beyond her own perspective, she includes writings from some of the students in her 鈥淲riting Your Grief鈥� course and refers to other groundbreaking books on psychological trauma, such as Bessel van der Kolk鈥檚 2014 book The Body Keeps the Score. Devine also draws upon philosophy, comparing Eastern and Western attitudes on trauma, death, and mourning, and critiquing how Western society鈥檚 outlook on trauma and grief views them as problems to be fixed rather than a natural part of life and the human condition.听
The book is written in a way that allows the reader to jump between sections and read out of order, moving at their own pace through the writing while paying closest attention to the sections most beneficial to them in their current condition. The book also includes exercises for approaching grief and suggested coping mechanisms.听听
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In My Time of Dying by Sebastian Junger
Sebastian Junger鈥檚 memoir offers a deeply moving examination of the ultimate questions we human beings ask: What is the purpose of my life? What will it be like to experience death? Is there any life or consciousness afterwards? Junger, author of The Perfect Storm and Tribe, spent years as a war correspondent, but his closest brush with death occurred on a quiet, ordinary day in his own home, when an abdominal aneurysm, which he didn鈥檛 know he had, suddenly ruptured. Bleeding out, unable to stand up, and losing consciousness, he was rushed to the hospital, where he saw his dead father at his bedside, saying, 鈥淭here鈥檚 nothing to be afraid of. I鈥檒l take care of you.鈥� As he recovered, Junger questioned this amazing vision. As an atheist and rationalist, he found it hard to accept a supernatural explanation, but as an open-minded person, he couldn鈥檛 discount his own experience. He set out to learn more about near-death experiences (NDEs) and the experience of dying in general, both from personal accounts and from scientific research into NDEs and the dying brain. A unique blend of memoir, rational inquiry, and philosophical meditation, In My Time of Dying explores the intersection of science and spirituality, and the meaning of human consciousness. Junger鈥檚 writing is both poignant and thought-provoking, offering readers a chance to reflect on their own beliefs about life, death, and what dreams, if any, might come when this life passes away.
How to Live a Good Life: A Guide to Choosing Your Personal Philosophy, edited by Massimo Pigliucci, et al.
This brief and engaging anthology presents various philosophical traditions from cultures around the world, along with their practical applications for everyday life. The book is structured around contributions from fifteen different philosophers, each presenting a distinctive perspective on what it means to live well. One of the best features of this book is its accessibility. Despite dealing with complex philosophical ideas, the essays are conversational and easy to understand, making it an excellent resource for newcomers to philosophy. Another strength is its diversity of viewpoints across a wide range of geography and history: included are ancient philosophies and religions from both East and West (e.g., Stoicism, Epicureanism, Buddhism, and Judaism), alongside modern philosophies like Existentialism and Effective Altruism. This diversity allows readers to compare different paths and find one that resonates with their own experience鈥攐r mix and match elements to create their own unique philosophy (that, after all, is how most famous philosophies were created, by recombining elements from previous thought systems in a new way). This small book is packed with wisdom from around the world and throughout human history, all aimed at helping readers find their way to a fulfilling, meaningful, and happy life.
The Stranger by Albert Camus听
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Amid the dead heat of the Algerian summer, The Stranger鈥檚 protagonist, Meursault, finds himself living a life of monotony. His mother has recently died, his doting girlfriend wants to marry him, and the neighbors within his apartment block beat their women and scream at their dogs on the other side of the apartment walls. Meursault is completely devoid of feeling toward his circumstances, choosing to float by in his melancholic life instead of becoming an active participant in the world around him. A chance interaction with one of his shady, sleazy neighbors leads to a friendship that ends in Meursault carelessly unloading a pistol into a stranger on the beach. Camus鈥� existential classic brings to the forefront of the mind what it means to live a meaningless life and how nihilism can lead to dire situations and consequences.听听听
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Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera (Available on Libby!)
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To all the mystery readers out there, Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera is a gripping novel with a compelling story that will keep you hooked from start to finish. Be warned, there is quite a bit of strong language and some scenes that might be a bit much, but overall, the storyline is intriguing and uniquely written. The narrative jumps between the past, where a murder occurred, and the present, with a podcast element that adds to the mystery. The audiobook is particularly enjoyable, with January LaVoy and Will Damron as the voices in the story. The plot revolves around a murder that happened years ago, with the main suspect unable to remember what happened the night her best friend died. A podcaster starts a series on the case, turning the suspect's life upside down鈥攕he loses her job and boyfriend in one fell swoop. As she returns to her hometown for her grandmother's birthday, she must confront her past. The questions linger: Will she remember what happened that night? Did she really kill her friend, or is someone else to blame? Is the voice in her head responsible, if she did do it? The book is filled with suspense and dark humor, making the main character's grim sense of humor about her life both interesting and comical. The twists and turns, combined with the podcast format, create a thrilling and mysterious read that will keep you guessing until the very end.听
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