What I'm Reading Lately | Summer 2020
If you’ve been around here for a minute, you know that I’m an avid reader. For me, hard copy is the way to go - while I understand the convenience of e-books and audio books, I want to hold paper in my hands and physically turn the pages. Maybe I’m old school, but I swear it helps me both concentrate better and enjoy what’s in front of me even more.
During quarantine I’ve been reading a ton of books. Most of the time I gravitate towards good stories, usually fiction, that take my mind off the here and now and let me escape a little bit. With the events of the world going on right now, my priorities have shifted a bit as I’ve worked to educate myself on the history of civil rights and the Black Lives Matter movement. Additionally, as I added a new member to my team, I realized how important it is to learn how to be a good manager. I’ve managed people in the past, but I want to do it well, and I have a lot of learning to do.
Yet, of course, I want to read fun books, too, so here’s an even mix of all three. Take a dive into one or all of them as you add to your summer reading list for 2020!
Image from amazon.com
The Educational: A More Beautiful and Terrible History: The Uses and Misuses of Civil Rights History by Jeanne Theoharis
This is an important book. There are a lot of important books surrounding this topic, including Be the Bridge by Latasha Morrison and The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby - among countless others, but this is the first book I’ve read. I won’t lie: this book presents so much shocking information from America’s very recent history, and it left me feeling both horrified and very uncomfortable.
I’m really ok with that, and I truly believe that growth without growing pains is fairly impossible. I’m disheartened by so much of our past, but hopeful that as we collectively dive deeper into the mistakes we’ve made before, we’ll come out the other side with a clear plan moving forward so we never return there again.
Image from deliaowens.com
The Fun: Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
This book is intense, funny, and it will make you think hard about the course of relationships and how they are affected by our pre-conceived notions about people. The reason I love it so much is for the story, which pulls you along and allows you to get so lost in the book you can forget about the world around you.
It’s not the most lighthearted book in the world, but it is certainly thrilling, and one I’m so glad I actually bought during quarantine. When you reach the end, you’ll want to read it all over again from a completely different perspective - and after some time, that’s exactly what I’m going to do.
Image from radicalcandor.com
The Business: Radical Candor by Kim Scott
Several other business owners in my mastermind group recommended this one to me, and I’m so glad I took their advice! While the tagline is about being a boss, the concept of radical candor could be applied to a lot more than management. I think it’s especially important for me to read as I begin this new journey into a manager role, but regardless of where you are in the process of managing people, this book will shift your perspective and change your mind about so. many. things.
What books are you reading, and what would you recommend? Let me know so I can add them to my list!
