Lao Tzu: Tao Te Ching: A Book about the Way and the Power of the Way by Ursula K. Le Guin
The most well put together rendition of the Tao Te Ching I’ve read with commentary and thoughts throughout from my lord and savior Ursula K. Le Guin.
You can’t go wrong with this one.
The Secret of the Golden Flower: A Chinese Book of Life by Lu Dongbin
- Conserve your semen.
- Achieve immortality.
- Rejoice.
Being and Nothingness by Jean-Paul Sartre
Not my cup of tea. Philosophy should be understandable, this text is incomprehensible.
Maybe if was downing absinthe with Sartre and his crew back in the forties when this was written, I would “get” it. As-is though, this is pretty hard to get through.
Everyday Ethics: Inspired Solutions to Real-Life Dilemmas by Joshua Halberstam
Joshua Halberstam is the king of strawmanning. Every chapter involves him describing these absurd caricatures of human beings and then using them to try to say to something interesting (keyword: try).
Feline Philosophy: Cats and the Meaning of Life by John Gray
I’m deathly allergic to cats (especially unneutered cats) so despite liking them in theory, I can’t spend much time with them.
I’m not allergic to philosophy though. This book talks about cats, talks about philosophy and uses the promise of cats to ease you into thinking about philosophy.
At least, that’s what I think it’s trying to do?
The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
A short semi-biographical discussion and guide on meditation.
TBH I sped through this, I need to read it again.
I remember it having some pretty funny moment where the author puts Jesus on blast.
The Essential Tao by Thomas Cleary
I much preferred Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English’s translation of the Tao Te Ching. I’m not an ancient Chinese scholar so I can’t speak to how faithful this translation is compared to the original manuscript.
But I can say that the poetry doesn’t flow well and some translation choices left me scratching my head — wondering if Thomas Cleary understands how the English language works.
Aesthetic Life and Why It Matters by Dominic Lopes , Bence Nanay , Nick Riggle
We all enjoy (and love to comment on) our experiences with media, cuisine, design, games and more. Clearly, aesthetic pursuits are an integral part of the human experience, this book tries to tell us why from three different points of view.
Games: Agency as Art by C. Thi Nguyen
Games are a unique art form. They do not just tell stories, nor are they simply conceptual art. They are the art form that works in the medium of agency. C. Thi Nguyen’s Games: Agency as Art dives deep into these ideas and expands on them.
On Being Awesome: A Unified Theory of How Not to Suck by Nick Riggle
A philosophical exploration of what it means to be awesome and not suck, and a plea for more awesomeness in our personal, social, and public lives.
Think by Simon Blackburn
Think is a book about the big questions in life: knowledge, consciousness, fate, God, truth, goodness, justice. It is for anyone who believes there are big questions out there, but does not know how to approach them. Think sets out to explain what they are and why they are important. If you’re like me, and you knew barely anything about philosophy before reading this, you’re in for a wild ride.
The Pig that Wants to be Eaten by Julian Baggini
The Pig That Wants to Be Eaten offers one hundred philosophical thought-experiments. To get the most out of it, you might want to pull it out and discuss a thought-experiment with some friends because the book doesn’t do much more than present the thought-experiments one after the other.
Meditations: A New Translation by Marcus Aurelius , Gregory Hays
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (a.d. 121–180) succeeded his adoptive father as emperor of Rome in a.d. 161—and in his Meditations he provides insights, wisdom, and practical guidance on everything from living in the world to coping with adversity to interacting with others. It’s surprising how much of his advice has aged well but given his position of supreme power and the changing times (eg. slavery is bad), some of his meditations have not aged so well.