This content material comprises affiliate hyperlinks. When you purchase by way of these hyperlinks, we could earn an affiliate fee.
I typically learn to flee. But that doesn’t imply I don’t love thought-provoking tales that may make me query my total existence, too. That’s why I adore it after I come upon a philosophical e book. I don’t imply straight up philosophy books or textbooks. I imply fiction that has deep philosophical musings at its core. I additionally imply essay collections or memoirs which can be extraordinarily philosophical with out them strictly being philosophy books. The factor I like most about these sorts of tales is that they are usually simpler to digest and extra participating. There’s one thing that drives the story and you continue to get to have an existential disaster. Kind of like The Good Place.
But I digress. Today, we’re having a look at eight nice philosophical books that aren’t straight up philosophy books or textbooks. As a matter of truth, most of them are works of fiction. But I additionally threw a few memoirs within the combine as a result of I believe they’re stuffed with philosophical musings too.
I suppose you might argue that any e book could be philosophical. But those I picked at present spotlight philosophical concepts and purposely make you query or debate them. Actually, if you’d like an excellent definition of what philosophical fiction is, you need to take a look at fellow Book Riot author Rebecca Hussey’s submit about it!
So now that that’s out of the way in which, let’s soar proper into these eight philosophical books.
8 Philosophical Books That Will Make You Think
The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li
Kicking issues off with an excellent e book about reminiscence and the character of actuality. The Book of Goose follows two childhood pals named Fabienne and Agnès. They grew up in a war-ravaged city in France, the place they made up these magical tales to flee their actuality. It was principally enjoyable and video games, till Fabienne got here up with the plan to put in writing and publish their very own e book — making Agnès the only real writer. This choice modified their relationship eternally. Years later, Fabienne dies. Now, Agnès is free to inform her story.
The Wind That Lays Waste by Selva Almada
Next comes an exquisite philosophical e book that talks about religion and morality. Translated from Spanish, The Wind That Lays Waste sees 4 characters with very totally different ideologies spend a day collectively speaking and attending to know one another. There’s Reverend Pearson and his daughter Leni — whose automotive breaks down. This leads them straight to our different two characters, an getting older mechanic named Gringo Bauer and the younger boy who lives with him referred to as Tapioca.
How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler
This is a superb memoir that may not appear as philosophical at first look. But Imbler’s exploration of id, group, adaptation, and survival make this a deeply thought-provoking learn! How Far the Light Reaches is written as a group of essays wherein Imbler seems at their life after which compares it to a unique sea creature — most of which dwell in notably hostile environments. Some of these creatures embrace the mom octopus, the Chinese sturgeon, and even the weird Bobbitt worm. What have they got in widespread with the writer (and us) you would possibly ask? Well, you’ll need to learn it to search out out!
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
Ruth Ozeki’s books are inclined to have very philosophical cores to them — that are often impressed by Buddhist ideas. A Tale for the Time Being particularly explores the concepts of time and existence by way of Dogen’s Being-Time concept. The story itself follows two fundamental characters. Sixteen-year-old Nao lives in Tokyo and desires to doc her great-grandmother’s life in a diary earlier than she dies by suicide. Years later, a novelist named Ruth finds a lunchbox washed ashore. It comprises a number of artifacts, together with the diary of a younger lady.
I’m Waiting for You: and Other Stories by Kim Bo-Young
I’m Waiting for You is a speculative quick story assortment that talks about destiny vs. free will — in addition to what it means to be human. Translated from Korean, this assortment is made up of 4 interconnected tales. The first two observe a pair attempting to coordinate their particular person house missions with a purpose to arrive on Earth and get married. The third and fourth tales observe the godlike creatures that created people. These beings watch Earth and its inhabitants, which leads them to some fairly philosophical musings.
Why Fish Don’t Exist by Lulu Miller
Next, this memoir can be an exquisite exploration of science and expertise. It touched upon subjects of perception, the concept of naming making issues actual, the dandelion precept, and the concept of getting order out of chaos. Why Fish Don’t Exist is the story of a scientist named David Starr Jordan. Despite shedding his analysis time and time once more, the person by no means gave up attempting to categorize species from the pure world. He’s really credited with discovering a fifth of the fish we all know! When Lulu Miller heard his story, she took him for a idiot. But as her personal life started to unravel she, realized he was not what she thought in any respect.
Faces within the Crowd by Valeria Luiselli
Translated from Spanish, Faces within the Crowd is stuffed with explorations on reminiscence, language, and the long run. The story follows an unnamed girl. She lives in Mexico City, and is writing a novel about her time as a translator in NYC. We additionally observe one other translator who spends his time using the subway and wishing desperately to translate the poems of obscure Mexican poet Gilberto Owen. Lastly, it follows Owen himself, together with his life in Philadelphia and his relationship with the well-known poet Federico García Lorca.
Think Like a Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day by Jay Shetty
Last however not least, this can be a memoir that talks about discovering that means in life— and it additionally offers recommendation on how you can do it. Which is one thing Shetty discovered from his time as a monk. In Think Like a Monk, Shetty recounts how he thought he was meant for that path. But after some years of studying in India, one in every of his lecturers instructed him he would have an even bigger affect on the world by leaving that path behind. So that’s what Shetty did, and he grew to become fairly profitable by sharing what he discovered, each in social media in addition to this memoir.
Those have been some thought-provoking philosophical books! If you’re seeking to learn extra about philosophy, you may take a look at among the finest books about ethics. Or check out 10 of the most effective philosophy books of the final decade!
Discussion about this post