The P2P Reading List (2023 April)
Read the best books first, otherwise you will find you do not have time.—Henry David Thoreau
I am an avid reader who believes books are a treasure trove of wisdom. Nonetheless, you need to find the good ones. I found real gems this month, with Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values being the best.
Discover Your Inner Economist: Use Incentives to Fall in Love, Survive Your Next Meeting, and Motivate Your Dentist by Tyler Cowen
The title is already provoking, and it does not fail to be an unorthodox piece. Tyler Cowen uses economic reasoning to propose incentive-based strategies for real-life situations. Though I would not adopt every strategy, the author's unconventional road widened my perspective. Nonetheless, Tyler Cowen also acknowledges that the homo economicus-based reasoning is not always the way to go: using relationships as case studies in a book about economics makes the reader smile on multiple occasions.
A Philosopher Looks at Science by Nancy Cartwright
Epistemology is the branch of philosophy I got interested in during my Ph.D. If you aspire to be a scientist, you might also want to familiarize yourself with the meta-level. If you have questions about science, this book gives you a philosopher's perspective on topics such as: How are hypotheses born? What are the tidbits of a scientific theory? Is everything physics in the end? (Spoiler: the author answers in the negative.)
Do the Work by Steven Pressfield
The go-to manual of every creative endeavor. This is the piece that inspired P2P No. 19 — On Resistance and Procrastination. It is short, actionable, and down-to-Earth. The perfect piece to taste the style of Steven Pressfield.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values by Robert M. Pirsig
By far one of the best books I have ever read in my life. The clash of romantic and classical values (art and science), elaborated on the occasion of a cross-country motorcycle trip of the protagonist and his son through the US, culminating in the unifying concept of Quality, this seminal book is an anthem to mastery, understanding, and a deep inquiry into the change technology brought to society in the 1970s.
Last of the Amazons by Steven Pressfield
As a lover of history, especially the era of Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire, this piece of fiction is a gem to my literary taste buds. Alas, it is again by Steven Pressfield. His prose stretches my vocabulary, and this reinforces me even more to read his books. In the end, how could it hurt to learn something why you enjoy yourself?
If you are interested in all the books that piqued my interest, you can also visit my Goodreads profile.