If you enjoy reading books about people facing impossible challenges, join the club. Human beings are amazing, but if you have doubts about the future of humanity given all of the reasons we seem to want to destroy ourselves, perhaps it’s time to read one of the books in today’s column. “Against all odds” stories remind us that challenges do not have to be negative; in fact, obstacles can be inspirational.
The titles in this week’s reading suggestions cover some major human challenges: survival at sea; space travel; Antarctic exploration; and mountaineering. Not all of us are meant to face monumental tests such as climbing Mount Everest or surviving alone in the middle of the Indian Ocean. But challenges don’t have to be big to feel impossible. Attending the first day of school, interviewing for a job, processing a difficult medical diagnosis — all of these things are hard. The point is that even when something feels impossible, we can succeed; and “The Stuff” by Dr. Sampson David and Sharlee Jeter, the sister of Derek Jeter, offers guidance on how to have “the stuff” to be your best self.
Climb every mountain … reach for the stars … you can do it.
- “Alone: Lost Overboard in the Indian Ocean” by Brett Archibald.
- “Carrying the Fire: An Astronaut’s Journeys” by Michael Collins.
- “The Last Cold Place: A Field Season Studying Penguins in Antarctica” by Naria de Gracia.
- “The Next Everest: Surviving the Mountain’s Deadliest Day and Finding the Resilience to Climb Again” by Jim Davidson.
- “The Stuff: Unlock Your Power to Overcome Challenges, Soar, and Succeed” by Dr. Sampson Davis and Sharlee Jeter.
