Phew. Deep breath out. You’ve found it. The one, single list you need this summer to guide you through each and every book choice you might need to make.

Picking which book to read next can be an incredibly stressful task, right? In my recent post on how to read more books, I talked about how the paradox of choice is paralyzing many would-be avid readers. With so many books to choose from, how do you know which one to devote your time to?

That’s why I delight in any reading list I come upon. It narrows the field of options to a credible handful of recommendations by someone that I trust. My hope is that this list is that for you. 

I have read every book on this list in the last few years, so it’s got a recent and relevant stamp of approval. Much of what I read has inspired the thoughts you see on this site, so if you’re a fan of Blue Sky Mind ideas and conversations, you’re likely to enjoy some of the below:

Non-Fiction Book Recommendations

Philosophical/spiritual reads for those wanting to go deeper into mindfulness & meditation:

• Why Buddhism Is True 
• Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind

Spiritual poetry to calm and inspire the soul:

• Tao Te Ching
• The Book of Love x Rumi

Auto-biographical novels that both open your eyes and make you feel less alone:

• Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things
• First They Killed My Father
• Hillbilly Elegy

Smart books with a science-based approach to better health:

• In Defense of Food
• Super Genes

Some of my favorite positive psychology books, in case you’re ready to dive deeper:

• The Truth: An Uncomfortable Look At Relationships
• Happiness Advantage: The 7 Principles of Positive Psychology
• Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness (written by the "father" of positive psych himself!)

Growth-focused reads that make you better at your job:

The idea behind this recommendation is to help you find "flow" in your life. When you're better at something -- let's say, the job you show up to and sit at for 8ish hours every day -- you'll begin to enjoy it more, perhaps even getting lost in the work. This is a good thing, and a key measure of happiness according to a lot of experts. 

Since my career has meandered through both sales and marketing roles, I thought I'd share my favorite recommendation compilations below: 

• My favorite sales book list
• My favorite marketing book list, and my favorite career reads so far: 
  • Content Inc.
  • Contagious: Why Things Catch On

Fictional Book Recommendations

Historical fiction that offers perspective and empathy:

• The Kite Runner
• Schindler’s List
• House of Names

Surrealist books that read like art, but compel like a mystery novel:

• Sputnik Sweetheart
• Station Eleven

Stories that spotlight inequalities in our world & challenge the misconceptions they bring:

• The Handmaid’s Tale
• Behold The Dreamers

Coming of age stories about teenage to early-20s women that will keep you turning the page:

• Sweetbitter
• The Girls

For more grown-up book reports on what I’m currently reading, subscribe to Blue Sky Mind! I send a monthly update with all the content you might have missed, along with some extra mindfulness goods from around the web.