Embedded Files
"No matter what he does, every person on Earth plays a central role in the history of the world; and normally, he doesn't know it. " - Paulo Coelho The Alchemist
"No matter what he does, every person on Earth plays a central role in the history of the world; and normally, he doesn't know it. " - Paulo Coelho The Alchemist
One Sentence Plot: The story follows a young Shephard on a quest to find a treasure he keeps seeing in his dreams. Along the way he realizes the greatest treasures of all.
Why I loved it: I read it at 12, 16, 20, and 23, and each age I read it, I find something new to connect to. When I think about fate, and why life happens as it does, this book helps me through any challenge faced.
"We don’t know enough about ourselves. I think it’s better to know that you don’t know, that way you can grow with the mystery as the mystery grows in you. But, these days, of course, everybody knows everything, that’s why so many people are so lost.”
"We don’t know enough about ourselves. I think it’s better to know that you don’t know, that way you can grow with the mystery as the mystery grows in you. But, these days, of course, everybody knows everything, that’s why so many people are so lost.”
One Sentence Plot: Tish and Fonzi, Harlem natives, are about to celebrate their first baby together. However, Fonzi is accused of a crime he didn't commit. While her partner is in jail, Tish experiences more and more challenges during 1960's New York.
Why I loved it: Baldwin has a particular skill at creating radical love and joy during times of struggle. His writing is powerful and profound, and the ending made me throw the book across the room, it was so good!
“'The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love.'
'And to let it come in.?'
His voice dropped to a whisper. "Let it come in, We think we don't deserve love. We think if we let it, we'll become too soft. But a wise man named Levine said it right. He said, 'Love is the only rational act''"
“'The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love.'
'And to let it come in.?'
His voice dropped to a whisper. "Let it come in, We think we don't deserve love. We think if we let it, we'll become too soft. But a wise man named Levine said it right. He said, 'Love is the only rational act''"
- Mitch Albom Tuesdays with Morrie
- Mitch Albom Tuesdays with Morrie
One Sentence Plot: Maurice is about to die and he knows it. One of the best writers of our time is interviewed by one of the best journalists of our time about the meaning of life, and how to find beauty in death.
Why I loved it: Keep tissues on hand! You may read it in one sitting, I couldn't put it down. I found myself yearning to call my grandparents, and ask them the very same questions.
“Sometimes life is stranger than fiction, but sometimes it's incomparable in other ways. Sometimes it's heaven that the false fire of imagination could never capture.”
“Sometimes life is stranger than fiction, but sometimes it's incomparable in other ways. Sometimes it's heaven that the false fire of imagination could never capture.”
One Sentence Plot: Imagine a coffee shop, where one seat allows you to travel to the past or future. You cannot leave the seat, and you must drink your coffee before it gets cold, or you get stuck in another timeline forever.
Why I loved it: Many people who attempt to change their fate, begin to realize the purpose of life's turmoil. It helps us realize everything we go through, even our worst moments, craft us into who we are today.
“To live every day as if it had been stolen from death, that is how I would like to live. To feel the joy of life, as Eve felt the joy of life. To separate oneself from the burden, the angst, the anguish that we all encounter every day. To say I am alive, I am wonderful, I am. I am. That is something to aspire to.”
“To live every day as if it had been stolen from death, that is how I would like to live. To feel the joy of life, as Eve felt the joy of life. To separate oneself from the burden, the angst, the anguish that we all encounter every day. To say I am alive, I am wonderful, I am. I am. That is something to aspire to.”
One Sentence Plot: This follows the story of Denny, a formula one race car driver, and his dog, who desires to be reincarnated into a human to be with Denny throughout every chapter of his life.
Why I loved it: Another tissue box book! Dogs remind us of the simple pleasure of being in the present. This book allows us a perspective on the purest form of love, only found in our furry friends.
“To fall in love with the world isn’t to ignore or overlook suffering. For me anyway, to fall in love with the world is to look up at the night sky and feel your mind swim before the beauty and the distance of the stars. It is to hold your children while they cry and watch the sycamore trees leaf out in June. When my throat tightens and tears well in my eyes, I want to look away from feeling. I want to deflect with irony or anything else that will keep me from feeling directly. We all know how loving ends. But I want to fall in love with the world anyway, to let it crack me open. I want to feel what there is to feel while I am here.”
“To fall in love with the world isn’t to ignore or overlook suffering. For me anyway, to fall in love with the world is to look up at the night sky and feel your mind swim before the beauty and the distance of the stars. It is to hold your children while they cry and watch the sycamore trees leaf out in June. When my throat tightens and tears well in my eyes, I want to look away from feeling. I want to deflect with irony or anything else that will keep me from feeling directly. We all know how loving ends. But I want to fall in love with the world anyway, to let it crack me open. I want to feel what there is to feel while I am here.”
One Sentence Plot: This is an epistolary/essay style novel. Green reflects on the absurd to the sublime on topics like Mario Kart to Haley's Comet. Through these topics, we discover human persistence, and the glimmers of hope and beauty in moments of life.
Why I loved it: One moment will have you in tears, the other bursting with laughter. Some will make you pause for hours, stuck in a state of wonder. I recommend this book to anyone! An avid reader, or a book hater, this one may find itself to the top of everyone's list!
"There is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft. When you kill a man, you steal a life... you steal his wife's right to a husband, rob his children of a ather. When you tell a lie, you steal someone's right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness... there is no act more wretched than stealing.”
― Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner
One sentence plot: This story follows Amir as he grows up in Kabul, Afghanistan as the country plunges itself into war with the Taliban. Amir and his best friend Hassan go through turmoil, violence, and the struggles of the bildungsroman experience.
Why I loved it: Hosseini is a master of crafting beautiful writing. He provokes complex emotion that will stay with you long after the book ends.
“People love to say, “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime.” What they don’t say is, “And it would be nice if you gave him a fishing rod.” That’s the part of the analogy that’s missing.”
― Trevor Noah, Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood
One sentence plot: Through amusing anecdotes, and occasional info-dumping, Noah explains the time directly after Apartheid in South Africa through the eyes of a young mixed child.
Why I loved it: One of the best ways to learn, is by an entertaining lesson. Noah will make you laugh and analyze the complexities of human behavior, and allow you to realize countries around the world experience far more similar problems, all while reading the same story.
“I renamed myself Ari. If I switched the letter, my name was Air. I thought it might be a great thing to be the air. I could be something and nothing at the same time. I could be necessary and also invisible. Everyone would need me and no one would be able to see me.”
― Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
One sentence plot: This follows two young Mexican-American boys during the 1980's in Texas. Ari meets Dante when Dante teaches him to swim. They spend a whole summer together beginning to question every societal norm around them, creating an unbreakable bond between them.
Why I loved it: As an adult, this read reminded me of the complexities of being a teen, finding yourself, and finding someone who understands you, down to your very soul. Saenz manages to make one of the hardest chapters in everyone's life to a thing of beauty.
"Name one hero who was happy. I considered. Heracles went mad and killed his family; Theseus lost his bride and father; Jason's children and new wife were murdered by his old; Bellerophon killed the Chimera but was crippled by the fall of Pegasus' back.
You can't. He was sitting up now, leaning forward.
I can't.
I know. They'll never let you be famous AND happy." - Madeline Miller Song of Achilles
One Sentence Plot: Miller breathes new life into the War of Troy through the eyes of Patroclus, friend and ally of the warrior Achilles. We see a new side to the epic hero, one of love, struggle, and more weaknesses than the original tale suggests.
Why I Loved It: this features a male character, deeply intune with his emotions, and struggling to find space in a world defined by uber-masculinity. It reminds us that for all history, we all, from time to time, are looking for ways to fit in.
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