Some say that John Milton read everything there was to read in the world (that is, all books published in English).
We have no hope of accomplishing the same feat today, which is why book recommendations are so helpful. Here are some of my faves—and I hope you’ll share some of yours with me!
A QUICK DISCLOSURE: THIS PAGE USES AFFILIATE LINKS.
Books about writing, language, and words:
Dreyer’s English by Benjamin Dreyer
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
On Writing by Stephen King
Notes from a Public Typewriter by Michael Gustafson
The F Word by Jesse Sheidlower
The Subversive Copy Editor by Carol Fisher Saller
Fucking Apostrophes by Simon Griffin
Write Right! by Jan Venolia
Chicago Manual of Style by University of Chicago Press
Books about entrepreneurship, sanity, and real life:
Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey
You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero
You Are a Badass at Making Money by Jen Sincero
Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine by Mike Michalowicz
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson
The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store by Cait Flanders
In Praise of Slowness: Challenging the Cult of Speed by Carl Honoré
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
The Dude and the Zen Master by Jeff Bridges and Bernie Glassman
The Little Book of Hygge: The Danish Way to Live Well by Meik Wiking
Books about dystopian futures, dream worlds, and fictional characters:
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery
Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Paper Girls by Brian Vaughan
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Of Love and Other Demons by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo