Basically Myra » books

Delivering Happiness

nmyra — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 17:13:05 +0000

This book should be under every entrepreneur’s Christmas tree. Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, nails it in Delivering Happiness: A Path to Projects, Passion, and Purpose. I’ve been fortunate enough to hear Tony speak at SXSW and was very inspired by his convictions in his business endeavors. Tony makes business human. This book should give every reader a glimpse into fulfilling their dreams and goals by staying true to their core values.

Delivering Happiness

Kafka on Books (and Happiness)

nmyra — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 20:07:52 +0000

“I think we ought to read only the kind of books that wound or stab us. If the book we’re reading doesn’t wake us up with a blow to the head, what are we reading for? So that it will make us happy, as you write? Good Lord, we would be happy precisely if we had no books, and the kind of books that make us happy are the kind we could write ourselves if we had to. But we need books that affect us like a disaster, that grieve us deeply, like the death of someone we loved more than ourselves, like being banished into forests far from everyone, like a suicide. A book must be the axe for the frozen sea within us. That is my belief.”

-Franz Kafka-

Currently Reading: Loving Frank

nmyra — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 20:54:43 +0000

Currently reading Loving Frank by Nancy Horan. I’m a big fan of Frank Lloyd Wright’s work and his outlook on design and the environment. Horan blends fact and fiction beautifully in this novel by telling a story that gives us a glimpse into the personal life of Frank Lloyd Wright and his intense love affair with Mamah Cheney.

I’ve visited three Frank Lloyd Wright houses in the United States. I’m always taken back in time when I enter one of his architectural masterpieces. So far, this novel is doing the same for me. By the way, how incredibly gorgeous is the book cover? Frank loved to incorporate glass into his designs, and the parallel lines in the same planes that never meet — ahh, sigh!

Anna Karenina

nmyra — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 17:37:35 +0000

Re-reading one of my favorite books of all time, Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. I dare say, perhaps, one of the greatest novels ever written.

Vintage Jane Austen

nmyra — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 14:04:18 +0000

Just darling illustrations. I heart Jane Austen. I don’t care what anybody says.

Via Random House

Reading

nmyra — Wed, 20 May 2009 02:11:00 +0000

I just received “Society Without God: What the Least Religious Nations Can Tell Us About Contentment” from Amazon today. Looking forward to starting this one in the next few days.