Friday Bookstack is a weekly series featuring the books I currently have on my nightstand. I believe that diversity of interests is vital to encouraging creativity, so I pick up books on a wide variety of topics. I don’t always read the entire book, but I feel that exposure to even some of the ideas broadens my mind.
- Inkheart by Cornelia Funke (I’m listening to the CD book version
, read by Lynn Redgrave)
The field of young adult fantasy has taken off since the popularity of Harry Potter, and I’ve enjoyed exploring what other authors offer. Inkheart is an enchanting story sure to appeal to anyone who loves books. It revolves around the adventure of a girl whose father can read the characters right out of books, with sometimes tragic consequences. The pacing is sometimes a little slow, but that may be an effect of listening to the book rather than reading it. However, I highly recommend the audio book for the wonderful voice characterization by Lynn Redgrave. - The Anti 9 to 5 Guide: Practical Career Advice for Women Who Think Outside the Cube by Michelle Goodman
It’s the dream of a lot of writers and other creative types to break free of the structured world of work. Goodman, a long-time freelancer herself, gives suggestions for finding work that appeals and takes advantage of your natural talents. She profiles other successful women freelancers and entrepreneurs and suggests action plans for scenarios ranging from negotiating flex time to starting up a nonprofit. I’ve also enjoyed the profiles and other articles she features regularly on her website. - Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
Freakonomics has been on my to-read list for a long time, partly just for the apple/orange photo on the front cover. I felt like a book with a cover like that must have something interesting to say. Although I expected the economics angle to be difficult to wade through, I thoroughly enjoyed the explorations of topics from drug dealing to parenting. I think all creative people should read this book to absorb its central message: Question everything. The world is both more complex and more fascinating than you ever knew. - Survival of the Sickest: A Medical Maverick Discovers Why We Need Disease by Dr. Sharon Moalem with Jonathan Prince
Another book with an apple on the cover, Survival of the Sickest is also similar to Freakonomics in its focus on questioning what we think we know about the world. The authors contend that diseases like diabetes were the results of evolutionary efforts to save our ancestors from environmental threats. With our longer lifespans and comfortable lifestyles, diseases that only afflicted our ancestors at the end of their lifespans now plague their descendants in the prime of life. Survival of the Sickest explores this conundrum and other medical curiosities in accessible, engaging prose.
