LitQueuelitqueue

After

Slouching Towards Bethlehem

Joan Didion1967

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • Men Explain Things to Me

    Rebecca Solnit2014

    Seven essays examine how women are silenced in conversation and society. The text moves from social anecdotes to systemic violence.

    cold → earnest, still essays

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Denser prose

3 more ↓

  • The Education of Henry Adams

    Henry Adams

    A man writes a sardonic third-person account of his life and his failure to adapt to the technological shifts of the late 19th century.

    cold → sardonic

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak0

  • Confessions

    Augustine of Hippo

    A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

    cold → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-2

  • Antifragile

    Nassim Nicholas Taleb2012

    A philosophical exploration of systems that thrive under stress and disorder. It argues against fragility in economics and personal life.

    cold → reflective

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To recover

3 more ↓

  • When to Rob a Bank

    Steven D. Levitt2015

    A collection of short essays and blog posts applying economic logic to everyday life. Topics range from gambling to the ROI of bank robberies.

    cold → playful, still essays

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Carry On, Warrior

    Glennon Doyle2013

    A collection of personal essays about marriage, motherhood, and recovery from addiction.

    cold → warm, still essays

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • The Butterfly Kid

    Chester Anderson1967

    Hippie protagonists in Greenwich Village discover that a new drug allows them to manifest hallucinations into reality to fight an alien invasion.

    cold → playful

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

    Neil deGrasse Tyson2017

    A summary of the origin of the universe, the laws of physics, and the nature of space and time.

    cold → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Steal Like an Artist

    Austin Kleon2012

    A series of short, illustrated principles for creative work. It focuses on remixing existing ideas and establishing productive daily habits.

    cold → playful

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

  • Poke the Box

    Seth Godin2011

    A short manifesto encouraging readers to start projects and take initiative. It argues that the greatest risk is staying in place.

    cold → earnest

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-2

Slower

3 more ↓

  • Confessions

    Augustine of Hippo

    A 4th-century bishop writes a spiritual autobiography addressed to God. He recounts his sinful youth and his eventual conversion to Christianity.

    cold → meditative

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-2

  • How to Read a Book

    Mortimer J. Adler1940

    This is a guide to active reading techniques for different genres. It outlines levels of reading from basic literacy to syntopical analysis.

    cold → mysterious

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-1

  • Self-Reliance and Other Essays

    Ralph Waldo Emerson1993

    A collection of 19th-century lectures advocating for individualism and nonconformity. The prose is dense, formal, and philosophical.

    cold → meditative, still essays

    pace-1·prose+1·bleak-2

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • Animal Farm

    George Orwell1945

    Farm animals overthrow their human owner to run the farm themselves. The pigs gradually seize control and establish a new hierarchy.

    cold → sardonic

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1

  • The Diary of a Young Girl

    Anne Frank2001

    A Jewish teenager records her daily life and thoughts while hiding from the Nazis in a secret annex in Amsterdam.

    cold → earnest

    pace0·prose-1·bleak+1

  • A Child Called "It"

    Dave Pelzer1987

    A memoir of the author's childhood survival against severe physical and psychological abuse by his mother in California.

    cold → bleak

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak+1