Ashlea's Picks
The Introspective Researcher
(In no particular order)
Reading Style
Most of my reading examines life or imparts wisdom in some way. I love reading things backed by research – psychology in particular. I also enjoy random reads.
Literary Likes
01
Everything is F*cked: A Book About Hope by Mark Manson
Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Psychology
In this book, Manson turns his gaze from the inevitable flaws within each individual self to the endless calamities taking place in the world around us. Drawing from the pool of psychological research on these topics, as well as the timeless wisdom of philosophers such as Plato, Nietzsche, and Tom Waits, he dissects religion & politics and the uncomfortable ways they have come to resemble one another. He looks at our relationships with money, entertainment and the internet, and how too much of a good thing can psychologically eat us alive. He openly defies our definitions of faith, happiness, freedom—and even of hope itself. With his usual mix of erudition and where-the-f*ck-did-that-come-from humor, Manson takes us by the collar and challenges us to be more honest with ourselves and connected with the world in ways we probably haven’t considered before.
02
Love is a Dog from Hell by Charles Bukowski
Genres: Poetry, Classic Literature
Poems rising from and returning to Bukowski's personal experiences reflect people, objects, places, and events of the external world, and reflects on them, on their way out and back.
03
The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Psychology, Self Help
The Happiness Project is Rubin's year-long experiment to discover how to create true happiness. In this lively and compelling account, Rubin chronicles her adventures during the twelve months she spent test-driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific research, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier. Among other things, she found that novelty and challenge are powerful sources of happiness; that money can help buy happiness, when spent wisely; that outer order contributes to inner calm; and that the very smallest of changes can make the biggest difference.
science-backed information, travel, strong imagery
Literary Dislikes
romance, things I can’t relate to, slow beginnings
What's on my bookshelf
Books on deck to read next
The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer
Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness & Well-being by Martin E.P. Seligman
Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love & Life from Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed
04
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Genres: Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Science Fiction-Dystopian
A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don’t know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other. The Road is the profoundly moving story of a journey. It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, “each the other’s world entire,” are sustained by love. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation.
05
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by
Mark Manson
Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help
In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the crap to show us how to stop trying to be "positive" all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people. For decades, we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is Manson's antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected American society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up. Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.
06
The Myths of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky
Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Self Help
In The Myths of Happiness, Lyubomirsky isolates the major turning points of adult life, looking to both achievements (marriage, children, professional satisfaction, wealth) and failures (singlehood, divorce, financial ruin, illness) to reveal that our misconceptions about the impact of such events is perhaps the greatest threat to our long-term well-being. Lyubomirsky turns an empirical eye to the biggest, messiest moments, providing readers with the clear-eyed vision they need to build the healthiest, most satisfying life. A corrective course on happiness and a call to regard life’s twists and turns with a more open mind, The Myths of Happiness shares practical lessons with life-changing potential.
07
The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom by Jonathan Haidt
Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Time Travel, Romance
In his widely praised book, award-winning psychologist Jonathan Haidt examines the world’s philosophical wisdom through the lens of psychological science, showing how a deeper understanding of enduring maxims – like 'Do unto others as you would have others do unto you', or 'What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger' – can enrich and even transform our lives.
08
Women by Charles Bukowski
Genres: Fiction, Classic Literature
Low-life writer and unrepentant alcoholic Henry Chinaski was born to survive. After decades of slacking off at low-paying dead-end jobs, blowing his cash on booze and women, and scrimping by in flea-bitten apartments, Chinaski sees his poetic star rising at last. Now, at fifty, he is reveling in his sudden rock-star life, running three hundred hangovers a year, and maintaining a sex life that would cripple Casanova. With all of Bukowski's trademark humor and gritty, dark honesty, this 1978 follow-up to Post Office and Factotum is an uncompromising account of life on the edge.
09
Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
Genres: Nonfiction, Autobiography, Travel Literature
At twenty-two, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother’s death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no experience or training, driven only by blind will, she would hike more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State — and she would do it alone. Told with suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, Wild powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.
10
The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter–And How to Make the Most of Them Now by Meg Jay
Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Self Help, Sociology
Contemporary culture tells us the twenty-something years don't matter. Clinical psychologist Dr. Meg Jay argues that this could not be further from the truth. In fact, your twenties are the most defining decade of adulthood. The Defining Decade weaves the latest science of the twenty-something years with real-life stories to show us how work, relationships, personality, social networks, identity and even the brain can change more during this decade than at any other time in adulthood. Smart, compassionate and constructive, this is a practical guide to making the most of the years we cannot afford to miss.