Essential books for expanding critical thought and understanding society
For many reasons, these books have become my favorite books. Some have powerful themes, some have powerful stories, and some have powerful writing styles. A couple of these books have all three of these and more. Above all, I recommend these books to you.
The List:
Why this book is important:
Many books are great due to the imagination, the story, or the themes associated with it. Gabriel García Márquez masterfully ties all three of traits together to create One Hundred Years of Solitude. The story is written to paint a vivid picture of the life of one family. Along with the aesthetic, the book serves a function by telling the story the family. The messages in his magnum opus can be applied to an individual and the world as a whole. No one can read One Hundred Years of Solitude and not relate to the themes in some way, shape, or form. Few books cross my mind as often as this one does while I navigate my own life and observe the world. All the while, the story is specific the roots of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and ties in specific literary elements of his culture in Latin America (Colombia and Mexico to be specific).
Why this book is important:
As usual, James Baldwin delivered a dark yet appealing work with Go Tell It on the Mountain. As he tells the story of a young black boy, there are visceral feelings related to the struggles of the child as he tries to navigate his oppressive experiences. The tension created in the book builds at an unrelenting steady pace. All the while, the reader knows that many of these experiences must have been felt, lived, and or seen for someone to weave the story together. He lets the world know the struggle that many black men face due to the pressures of society and familial tradition. The combination of a machista culture, religion, and race creates the tough dynamics faced by many black individuals. Even if you cannot personally relate to being a black male or black in the first place, the quality of the story and writing makes this story a masterpiece worth reading.
Why this book is important:
Few people have lived such a dynamic as Malcolm X. He has seen the underbelly of a life in the margins and the underbelly of a life as a revolutionary. If anyone embodies the quote: “Its not the years in your life that count; it’s the life in your years,” it is Malcolm X and we have been fortunate enough to be able to read his journey. After a terrorizing childhood, he lived a life of crime fighting against law enforcement. However, as his intelligence and power grew, so did his enemies. Even though these enemies overcame him, his ideas and mentality lives on in part due to this book.
Why this book is important:
Almost everyone in the world knows his name and more should know the details of his story. His perseverance, intelligence, and patience gives you hope that we (as a people) can overcome so much and fight back from anything. He lead with love and it’s time for us to do that now and for forever. From finding joy in the bleakest circumstances through thinking, learning, and observing, he sets the tone for how we all should be. Madiba revealed the ugly side of society and the importance of facing it with a combination of force and compassion. All 625 pages were well worth it.
Why this book is important:
In the United States, no group has a tougher road to freedom and true independence than black women. To show the dynamics associated with the liberation of black women and the benefit this has on society, Toni Morrison follows the life of Sula in a small town in Ohio. Toni Morrison beautifully and flawlessly writes about the events leading up to the creation of Sula and the impacts that she herself has on the environment around her. The book is full of twists and turns and contains many of the same elements of One Hundred Years of Solitude to shine a light on society. This may be one of the first books I can describe as pure beauty.
Why this book is important:
The Coddling of the American Mind provides us an unconventional look at what is happening on college campuses and with the youth in the United States. Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt use their experience as professors to highlight the changes they have seen in the last decade regarding Generation Z. Contrary to many media outlets, they use a critical lens to draw their predictions, conclusions, and solutions to the problems we face. They leave no stone unturned. This book is not something that only Gen Z or Baby Boomers should read, rather, everyone should read it because there is something for everyone to learn from to help create a better society.
Why this book is important:
Just as Chimamanda expressed in her TED talk, this book is important because the story is not based on stereotypes and it is based on true human nature. Many of traps that Black and African story tellers fall into is the expression of the single story. For Black writers, they often talk about a do or die situation revolving around the criminal justice system or living in the hood. Additionally, African stories frequently revolve around becoming civilized. Her story breaks the mold and is about a relatively normal life being upturned by war. This story of war shows how dynamic people can be in the face of abjection. Women show characteristics associated with men and men show characteristics associated with women. Essentially, she writes about the reality of life and the fluidity of people’s true selves. Her elegant delivery of the story makes you FEEL the story as it progresses and this is where it shines.
Why this book is important:
The one-thousand plus pages go by too quickly. Murakami opens up his world to the reader. Tengo and Aomame, the two protagonists, are thrust into the world of 1Q84 by unseen forces. With vivid detail and imagery, Murakami takes the readers on a journey with the main characters. Murakami anchors his dream world through the use of references to jazz and well known events throughout world history. He also intricate literary elements to make allusions to the world we live in and hint at the process he went through to write the book itself. With this method of writing and the foundation of Japanese culture, there is a unique style of writing worth the read.
Honorable Mentions:
The Ethnographer
Animal Farm
1984
Outliers: The Story of Success