Hello, folks! This is my first post here (and in the great, wide, still-confusing world of Lemmy). So stoked to find a new book community!
To answer the question, mine is “The Future of Nostalgia” by Svetlana Boym. I stumbled upon this book when I read a quote from it in a different book and I immediately went to track down a copy. A truly happy accident.
The most fascinating thing about this book was how universal it felt. Here was someone writing about post-Soviet Russia in the nineties, yet it felt strangely familiar. The commercialization of nostalgia, the unchecked rewriting of history, and the rose-tinted delusion of “The Golden Age”; it felt like she was talking about my own country. I’m a Lebanese expat, so nostalgia is a big part of my life and my relationship with my country (which is very much a love/hate relationshit), and this book completely redefined my understanding of nostalgia, nationality and collective identity, heritage, and even food. It helped me understand the survivor’s guilt, the PTSD, the resentment, and the stubborn fondness. It’s been so long since a book scooped out my soul and shook off the dust like this.
So, yeah. What’s the last book that made you go, “Holy shit, I think that just rewired my brain”?
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer.
The book felt like a constant epiphany. I wanted to rekindle my relationship with nature and it helped me understand land stewardship in a way that I wasn’t able to grasp. The author connects nature and science so well that nature’s magic doesnt get lost in the scientific rigour. It also doesn’t shame the reader for their past or background, and was thoughtful and optimistic. The audio book is also read by the author which is great.