Commonfund Institute is excited to share our staff-curated reading list this winter, filled with stories that warm the heart and spark imagination. We extend our warmest wishes for a season filled with joy. Happy reading, and we hope you enjoy!
All About Love: New Visions | bell hooks
“The word ‘love’ is most often defined as a noun, yet we would all love better if we used it as a verb,” writes bell hooks as she comes out fighting and on fire in All About Love. Here, at her most provocative and intensely personal, renowned scholar, cultural critic and feminist bell hooks offers a proactive new ethic for a society bereft with lovelessness–not the lack of romance, but the lack of care, compassion, and unity. People are divided, she declares, by society’s failure to provide a model for learning to love.”1
Black Cake: A Novel | Charmaine Wilkerson
“Charmaine Wilkerson’s debut novel is a story of how the inheritance of betrayals, secrets, memories, and even names can shape relationships and history. Deeply evocative and beautifully written, Black Cake is an extraordinary journey through the life of a family changed forever by the choices of its matriarch.”2
Black Wall Street: From Riot to Renaissance in Tulsa's Historic Greenwood District | Hannibal B. Johnson
Crook Manifesto: A Novel | Colson Whitehead“Early in the twentieth century, the black community in Tulsa- the "Greenwood District"- became a nationally renowned entrepreneurial center. Frequently referred to as "The Black Wall Street of America," the Greenwood District attracted pioneers from all over America who sought new opportunities and fresh challenges.”3
Humanizing Robots: How Making Humanoids Can Make Us More Human | Dr. David Hanson“Crook Manifesto is a darkly funny tale of a city under siege, but also a sneakily searching portrait of the meaning of family. Colson Whitehead’s kaleidoscopic portrait of Harlem is sure to stand as one of the all-time great evocations of a place and a time.”4
The Memo: What Women of Color Need to Know to Secure a Seat at the Table | Minda Harts“By diverse collaboration with many researchers in numerous scientific and arts disciplines, Hanson seeks to participate in an integrated “superdiscipline”, of robotic artificial life and sentience, and pursue insights into the deepest nature of mind, meaning, of humanity and beyond.”5
Non-Obvious Megatrends: How to See What Others Miss and Predict the Future | Rohit Bhargava“Most business books provide a one-size-fits-all approach to career advice that overlooks the unique barriers that women of color face. In The Memo, Minda Harts offers a much-needed career guide tailored specifically for women of color.”6
Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity | Peter Attia, MD“You don’t need to be a futurist or innovator to learn to think like one. The key to growing your business or propelling your career into the next decade lies in better understanding the present. The future belongs to non-obvious thinkers and this book is your guide to becoming one.”7
The Power of Crisis: How Three Threats – and Our Response – Will Change the World | Ian Bremmer“Wouldn’t you like to live longer? And better? In this operating manual for longevity, Dr. Peter Attia draws on the latest science to deliver innovative nutritional interventions, techniques for optimizing exercise and sleep, and tools for addressing emotional and mental health.”8
The Power of Remote: Building High-Performing Organizations That Thrive in the Virtual Workplace | Cynthia Watson & Shane Spraggs“In this revelatory, unnerving, and ultimately hopeful book, Bremmer details how domestic and international conflicts leave us unprepared for a trio of looming crises—global health emergencies, transformative climate change, and the AI revolution. Today, Americans cannot reach consensus on any significant political issue, and US and Chinese leaders behave as if they’re locked in a new Cold War. We are squandering opportunities to meet the challenges that will soon confront us all.”9
“… Many companies either see the shift to remote work as a threat to their culture and management style, or they just don’t know how to make the transition. It’s time to take advantage of the many opportunities remote work presents. Stop saying “we’re not there yet,” and start saying “we’ve arrived!” This book will show you how.”10
The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness | Morgan Housel
Upstream: Selected Essays | Mary Oliver“In The Psychology of Money, award-winning author Morgan Housel shares 19 short stories exploring the strange ways people think about money and teaches you how to make better sense of one of life’s most important topics.”11
“Upstream follows Oliver as she contemplates the pleasure of artistic labor, her boundless curiosity for the flora and fauna that surround her, and the responsibility she has inherited from Shelley, Wordsworth, Emerson, Poe, and Frost, the great thinkers and writers of the past, to live thoughtfully, intelligently, and to observe with passion. Throughout this collection, Oliver positions not just herself upstream but us as well as she encourages us all to keep moving, to lose ourselves in the awe of the unknown, and to give power and time to the creative and whimsical urges that live within us.”12
HAVE YOU READ ANY OF THESE BOOKS? WE’D LOVE TO HEAR YOUR REVIEWS. EMAIL US AND LET US KNOW YOUR FAVORITES.
- All About Love: New Visions
- Black Cake: A Novel
- Black Wall Street: From Riot to Renaissance in Tulsa's Historic Greenwood District
- Crook Manifesto: A Novel
- Humanizing Robots: How Making Humanoids Can Make Us More Human
- The Memo: What Women of Color Need to Know to Secure a Seat at the Table
- Non-Obvious Megatrends: How to See What Others Miss and Predict the Future
- Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity
- The Power of Crisis: How Three Threats – and Our Response – Will Change the World
- The Power of Remote: Building High-Performing Organizations That Thrive in the Virtual Workplace
- The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness
- Upstream: Selected Essays