LitQueuelitqueue

After

The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat

Oliver Sacks1980

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More like it

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  • I Hate You—Don't Leave Me: Understanding the Borderline Personality

    Jerold J. Kreisman

    A clinical guide to Borderline Personality Disorder that uses case studies to explain symptoms and treatment options for patients and families.

    meditative → clinical, still case study

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Denser prose

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  • The Argonauts

    Maggie Nelson2015

    A memoir of the author's relationship with her partner and her pregnancy. It mixes personal narrative with academic theory on gender and family.

    Same meditative register

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  • The Red Book: Liber Novus

    C.G. Jung2009

    A psychologist records his visions and internal dialogues in an illuminated manuscript created during a period of intense self-exploration.

    meditative → dreamlike

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  • No Archive Will Restore You

    Julietta Singh2018

    The author examines the history of her own body through the lens of race, desire, and pain. It is a collection of fragments and academic theory.

    Same meditative register

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To recover

meditative → playful

3 more ↓

  • An Anthropologist on Mars

    Oliver Sacks1995

    Seven case studies of individuals living with neurological conditions, including amnesia and Tourette's, and how they adapt to their worlds.

    meditative → tender, still science writing

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  • Mile High

    Liz Tomforde2023

    A professional hockey player and a flight attendant clash on the team's private plane during a season-long road trip.

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  • Behind the Net

    Stephanie Archer2024

    A former musician becomes the live-in assistant for a professional hockey goalie she knew in high school.

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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.

    meditative → playful

    pace+2·prose-1·bleak-1

  • 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.

    meditative → playful

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  • 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.

    meditative → earnest

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Slower

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  • 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.

    Same meditative register

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  • 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.

    meditative → mysterious

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  • 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.

    Same meditative register, still essays

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Heavier

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  • 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.

    meditative → sardonic

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  • 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.

    meditative → earnest

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  • 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.

    meditative → bleak

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