Book Qualities

Books I devour are both didactic and relatable.

A book can’t just be educative. It also has to be entertaining. 

Entertainment doesn’t equal frivolity. It means emotions, passion, and intrigue. If the book doesn’t keep the reader from sleeping at night, it ain’t that good, or as Bukowski would say: “They must make you want to turn a page – bim bim bim, bim bim bim.” 

Post Office is one of those books. Kerouac’s On The Road also comes to mind. The latest I read that had this effect on me was Goggins’ Can’t Hurt Me. The first two are novels, the latter is non-fiction written like a novel. There is probably a lesson to learn here. 

There are great non-fiction books that don’t keep you awake. To name a few I recently read: So Good They Can’t Ignore You by Cal Newport, and Stillness is the Key by Ryan Holiday. There is a lot to learn from them, but they aren’t very fun to read. They are didactic, as they allow learning in a fascinating and intriguing manner, but they aren’t as impactful as the ones I previously quoted.

It probably has something to do with the fact that those words aren’t as relatable to me. It’s not that I can’t relate to what’s being said by the author, but I’m having a hard time believing them, if that makes sense: they are books written by researchers who spent a long time in the library, not living things that are an extension of their authors. There is great value in this kind of book, but I don’t find them nearly as good because it appears as anybody could write them. As an aspiring author, this is clearly not the kind of books I want to write.