The World-Weary Reading List
This is a list of books that I recommend to my readers on World-Weary. These books cover social issues and important topics about human rights.
Human Rights
Books about the basic rights of human beings, and why we need to stand up and fight for them. This includes everything from LGBTQ+ rights to workers' rights.
If you've ever found yourself working a job where you feel redundant, like you aren't accomplishing anything and you aren't satisfied with the work you do, you aren't alone. This is a common phenomenon these days, and there's a reason for it.
I picked up my copy of this book from the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C.. In this day and age, we're witnessing a resurgence of far-right ideology and the politics of ‘othering’. Hatred and bigotry are returning to mainstream discourse,...
The first time I decided it was time to delve into the Diary of Anne Frank, I did so by listening to the audiobook read by Helen Mirren. It was gut-wrenching. Hearing Anne's words, her beautiful talent for self-expression, her breathtaking prose and ...
Environmentalism
Books about protecting the environment for ourselves, and for future generations. This section is all about recognizing the impact that humans have on the natural world, and why it should matter to all of us.
Environmentalism and Indigenous rights are important topics, especially right now. This book is one that I've had recommended to me, over and over again, pretty much since it was first published. I finally picked up my own copy the other day, and I c...
If you've ever thought to yourself, ‘Money really ruins everything’, you're not wrong. People who are motivated by greed will do anything, lie about anything, to make money. That includes lying about whether cigarettes cause cancer, or standing up to...
Politics
Everything in life is political. Your identity is politicized, your religion or lack of religion is politicized, the money you earn at your job is politicized- you name it, it's a political issue.
This is a really simple, accessible read that goes into detail about the problems with the economic system of the United States. Poverty, lack of access to healthcare, a lack of regulation and a tendency to value human life less highly than the numbe...
I heartily recommend the work of Jason Stanley. He is the Jacob Urowsky Professor of Philosophy at Yale University, and his extensive studies of political theory really shine through in his writing. He comes from a family of Holocaust survivors, and ...
Another absolute banger of a book from Jason Stanley. Both this and ‘How Propaganda Works’ are on a shelf within reach of my bedside, and I often dig back through them for inspiration in my own writing. Couldn't recommend them more highly.
While most books on fascism and other authoritarian systems of government focus on the beliefs and rhetoric of the state, Robert Paxton opted to go a different route. As a historian, he was more interested in the actions and behavior of the facist po...