Plato, Confucius, the Buddha… We know that great thinkers like these were influential in their own day. But what we tend to forget is that their wisdom is, in many ways, just as helpful today as it was thousands of years ago. Empires rise and fall, and technology transforms life as we know it, but the fundamental questions of human life remain the same.
So if you’re looking for a bit of guidance on a problem you’re facing, we recommend checking out the five superb reads below. While perusing these pages, you may hear an answer still echoing from centuries past.
The Great Guide: What David Hume Can Teach Us About Being Human and Living Well
By Julian Baggini
Philosopher Julian Baggini gives us a complete vision of Hume’s guide to life, including topics ranging from the meaning of success and the value of travel to friendship, facing death, identity, and the importance of leisure. View Our “Book Bite” Summary
Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life
By Luke Burgis
Luke Burgis draws on the work of French polymath René Girard to show how we can gain more control over the things we want, achieve more independence from trends and bubbles, and find more meaning in our work and lives. View Our “Book Bite” Summary
When You Wonder, You’re Learning: Mister Rogers’ Enduring Lessons for Raising Creative, Curious, Caring Kids
By Gregg Behr and Ryan Rydzewski
With insights from thinkers, scientists, and teachers—many of whom worked with Rogers himself—the book is an essential exploration into how kids and their parents can excel at what Rogers taught best: being human. View Our “Book Bite” Summary
The Reason for the Darkness of the Night: Edgar Allan Poe and the Forging of American Science
By John Tresch
Shining a spotlight on an era when the lines separating entertainment, speculation, and scientific inquiry were blurred, Tresch reveals Poe’s obsession with science and lifelong ambition to advance and question human knowledge. View Our “Book Bite” Summary
The Socrates Express: Searching for Life Lessons from Dead Philosophers
By Eric Weiner
The bestselling author of The Geography of Bliss embarks on a rollicking intellectual journey, following in the footsteps of history’s greatest thinkers and showing us how each—from Epicurus to Gandhi, Thoreau to Beauvoir—offers practical and spiritual lessons for today’s unsettled times. View Our “Book Bite” Summary
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