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Ani Difranco's Reading List

The singer-songwriter, whose new memoir is “No Walls and the Recurring Dream,” says her shelves contain “poetry for when my mind is spinning” and “a bunch of learn-how-to-meditate books that don’t seem to be helping.”

By the Book: Ani Difranco (2019)

NYT By the Book column (2019-05-15).

Source: www.nytimes.com

The Hidden Life of Trees

Peter Wohlleben · Buy on Amazon

"Trees warn each other about danger. They care for their sick. They have relationships."

Assata

Assata Shakur · Buy on Amazon

"I was really struck by Assata Shakur's "Assata""

Life's Work

Willie Parker · Buy on Amazon

"I think it was Parker's voice that ended up providing the most guidance to mine as I was writing my own story."

Dreams From My Father

Barack Obama · Buy on Amazon

"Barack Obama's "Dreams From My Father" and Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" were also real standouts, both particularly epic."

Born to Run

Bruce Springsteen · Buy on Amazon

"I thought the Springsteen memoir was an amazing piece of work."

Miles: The Autobiography

Quincy Troupe · Buy on Amazon

"there's nothing quite like seeing all the greats of jazz through the eyes of Miles Davis! Now that was a gripping autobiography."

A Freewheelin' Time: A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties

Suze Rotolo · Buy on Amazon

"I also found books by lesser known artists, such as Suze Rotolo's "A Freewheelin' Time" ... which I thought were great."

The Mayor of MacDougal Street

Dave Van Ronk · Buy on Amazon

"Dave Van Ronk's "The Mayor of MacDougal Street," which I thought were great. Revealing of a whole cultural movement and era and scene."

Woody Guthrie: A Life

Joe Klein · Buy on Amazon

"I remember really loving Joe Klein's "Woody Guthrie: A Life""

The Alphabet Versus the Goddess

Leonard Shlain · Buy on Amazon

"Books that contain some kind of renegade theory in sociology, science, philosophy or spirituality, like the kind that opens doors for me into new areas of awareness — those books often get replays."

The Spell of the Sensuous

David Abram · Buy on Amazon

"Books like "The Alphabet Versus the Goddess," by Leonard Shlain, or "The Spell of the Sensuous," by David Abram. These are my textbooks of science and philosophy."

The Botany of Desire

Unknown · Buy on Amazon

"Books like "The Botany of Desire," "Molecules of Emotion," "In a Different Voice," "The Power of Now," "Spiritual Midwifery" — these are my textbooks of science and philosophy."

Molecules of Emotion

Unknown · Buy on Amazon

"Books like "The Botany of Desire," "Molecules of Emotion," "In a Different Voice," "The Power of Now," "Spiritual Midwifery" — these are my textbooks of science and philosophy."

Outliers

Malcolm Gladwell · Buy on Amazon

"I would kick off his reading career with Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers.""

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