The Perfect Nanny, Leila Slimani
Page-turners:
The Perfect Nanny, Leila Slimani
Leila Slimani is a Franco-Moroccan writer and journalist, and has been awarded the Prix Goncourt. From the first sentence in The Perfect Nanny, the reader is hooked, and the rest of the book flows. For expats or lovers of Paris, the book is especially poignant. Slimani’s writing is tense, passionate, and immediate.
Passionate Presence, Catherine Ingram
Philosophy, meditation, Self-help
Passionate Presence: Experiencing the Seven Qualities of Awakened Awareness, Catherine Ingram
In the vast ocean of self-help books, there are authors who stand out like Eckhart Tolle and Thich Nhat Hanh, but I’ve found Catherine Ingram’s Passionate Presence, to be at once genuine, humble, and illuminating. There is a quiet peace that befalls after reading a section. Also recommended by Ingram, In the Footsteps of Gandhi: Conversations with Spiritual Social Activists.
Meditations, Marcus Aurelius
Le Petit Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Meditations, Marcus Aurelius
Then again, for the best of self-help, one need look no further than Marcus Aurelius. When it comes to leading the good life, he pretty much said it all, and simply.
Le Petit Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
One of my favorite books for many years. There is something timeless about Le Petit Prince (The Little Prince) that appeals to generations. Ostensibly a children’s story, the book is a balm also to many adults. Some of the appeal may also have to do with the mystery of Saint-Exupéry’s life. Of the two translations, I have always preferred Katherine’s Woods (perhaps because it is the one I first read) but Richard Howard has many admirers as well.