Changing Perceptions One Page at a Time: Some Non-Fiction Book Recommendations

It has been my experience that reading is a transcending activity. Typically, I read fiction and gather many life lessons through the adventures of fictional characters and learn a lot about this  (and other) worlds in the process. Sometimes though, I venture over to the non-fiction side of things, but it has to be an excellent book to hold my interest long enough to actually make it through non-fiction. For me, they need to spark joy! Of course, the best non-fiction is delivered with excellent prose, my opinion, which is certainly the correct one.  

I firmly believe that reading is good for the soul, mind, heart, and brain! Make reading every day — or at least regularly in some way — a goal to improve your life. Reading has a ton of awesome benefits including a better vocabulary, stress relief, and it can even make you a happier person. One benefit you might not know about? Reading can help you see through other’s eyes and comprehend what other people are thinking and feeling.

Today I’ve got several book suggestions for you. One of them I’ve read, The Four Agreements, one of them I am currently reading, The Book of Joy, and the other one is on my to-read list. I am looking to become more informed, enlightened, and entertained as I strive to become a better person — YMMV (your mileage may vary).   

The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom

Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, The Four Agreements by Miguel Ruiz provides four guiding ideas that can make life more manageable. Gather some wisdom with these quotes from the book. The four agreements are:

• Be Impeccable with your word.
• Don’t take anything personally.
• Don’t make assumptions.
• Always do your best.

The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World

Spend a week with authors Desmond Tutu, Dalai Lama XIV, and Douglas Carlton Abrams as they discuss how their life experiences and studies have taught them to seek joy. In a nutshell, the book’s takeaway according to Goodreads happens as “two great spiritual leaders share their own hard-won wisdom about living with joy even in the face of adversity.”  

The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell

“Gladwell, a New Yorker staff writer, offers an incisive and piquant theory of social dynamics that is bound to provoke a paradigm shift in our understanding of mass behavioral change. Defining such dramatic turnarounds as the abrupt drop in crime on New York’s subways, or the unexpected popularity of a novel, as epidemics, Gladwell searches for catalysts that precipitate the ‘tipping point,’ or critical mass, that generates those events.” — Booklist

What books are on your reading list? Which ones have you loved? Share your reviews and recommendations by leaving a comment below. Happy reading!