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My bookcase

#00001 - The Timeless Way of Building - Christopher Alexander rating: 10/10 opinion: Architectural design patterns, but describing why and explaining the intentions behind each pattern in great detail. A very good book for those contemplating their own living space in a broader context.

#00002 - The Well-Tempered City - Jonathan F.P. Rose rating: 9/10 opinion: The city's fabric described in an interesting way, why and how it should be. Both from an urban and architectural perspective.

#00003 - The Art of Simplicity - Dominique Loreau rating: 10/10 opinion: A book from Dominique Loreau's series, each describing very specific guidelines on how to live (in various aspects) that strongly resonate with my approach, hence I have read and own the entire series.

#00004 - The Art of Simplicity - Dominique Loreau rating: 10/10 opinion: Part of the series. Describes how to simplify and improve your life.

#00005 - The Art of Order - Dominique Loreau rating: 10/10 opinion: Part of the series. Describes the process of organizing, similar to Marie Kondo but with pragmatism and well-thought-out advice.

#00006 - The Art of Planning - Dominique Loreau rating: 9/10 opinion: Part of the series. Describes the planning process in a minimalist and tidy style.

#00007 - The Art of Cleaning - Dominique Loreau rating: 9/10 opinion: Part of the series. Focuses on cleaning, both literally and metaphorically.

#00008 - The Art of Minimalism in Everyday Life - Dominique Loreau rating: 9/10 opinion: Part of the series. Describes the approach to minimalism in practical and metaphorical terms.

#00009 - A Sand County Almanac - Aldo Leopold rating: 8/10 opinion: Philosophy of life and the use of "land." Somewhat complex, but it connects many concepts - worth exploring.

#00010 - Being Happy in Alaska - Rafael Santandreu rating: 10/10 opinion: I call it the psychology of relativity, describing that it's our perception that counts and our attitude, and that it can be relativized (like the happiness in Alaska in the title). The book is rich in examples, making it an enjoyable read.

#00011 - Rafael Santandreu's Happiness Glasses rating: 10/10 opinion: Another book by Rafael Santandreu, excellently describing important aspects of reality and the relativization of happiness.

#00012 - The Natural Navigator - Tristan Gooley rating: 8/10 opinion: A very specific but very good book describing practically how to observe nature in terms of signs it provides, water, terrain, sky.

#00013 - If You Want to Write - Brenda Ueland rating: 8/10 opinion: A motivating book on why one should write and why it is related to various subtleties and limitations.

#00014 - The Art of Simple Living - Shunmyo Masuno rating: 9/10 opinion: Simple yet substantial advice on how to grasp the simple life. It's best read alongside many other books; by itself, it's just a simple guide.

#00015 - The Four Agreements - Don Miguel Ruiz rating: 8/10 opinion: A short read on how to make agreements with yourself, how to communicate effectively, somewhat wrapped in mysticism, but it's actually good psychology of autosuggestion.

#00016 - The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari - Robin S. Sharma rating: 9/10 opinion: A well-described parable and methods for achieving inner peace.

#00017 - A Monk's Guide to a Clean House and Mind - Shoukei Matsumoto rating: 10/10 opinion: A small booklet on how a monk deals with maintaining cleanliness in the house and mind. Taken literally, it doesn't make sense, but as an inspiration to see a slightly different world and change yourself, it's very good.

#00018 - A Monk's Journey - BJörn Natthiko Lindeblad rating: 9/10 opinion: Autobiography with many references to various concepts and thoughts, leaving more questions than answers. Superbly written.

#00019 - The Art of Disappearing - Ajahn Brahm rating: 9/10 opinion: A well-known and liked monk, who, in a short book, without the dogmas of Buddhism (contrary to the title), and other dogmatic burdens, talks about how to disappear - in the sense of calming down, not burdening yourself and others.

#00020 - A New Earth - Eckhart Tolle rating: 8/10 opinion: A high-caliber author, a guru of mindfulness, worth reading any of his books. This one describes many aspects of the environment and reality and connects to many other aspects.

#00021 - Search Inside Yourself - Chade-Meng Tan rating: 10/10 opinion: Written by a Google employee, a smiling Buddhist monk, it directly explains why we should do certain things (read which) to achieve success and happiness. It approaches this in a scientific and non-dogmatic way, making it a pleasant read.

#00022 - Ikigai Training - Hector Garcia, Francesc Miralles rating: 8/10 opinion: A supplement to the book Ikigai by the same authors, it covers all the important elements discussed by many personal development experts. Worth it as a bible of things worth knowing.

#00023 - The Mindfulness Solution - Ronald D. Siegel rating: 10/10 opinion: A very important book, practically describing mindfulness with exercises, mindfulness elements, meditation, body scanning. A very good author with many references in the bibliography.

#00024 - The Path - Michael Puett rating: 9/10 opinion: A great journey through various Far Eastern concepts with practical references and thoughts.

#00025 - Offline - Mark Boyle rating: 10/10 opinion: A year-long experiment without money, electricity, the internet. Notes from a man that surprise at every step with subtleties, consequences, and reflections.

#00026 - Hamlet's BlackBerry - William Powers rating: 8/10 opinion: Philosophical reflections on our approach to technology.

#00027 - Man's Search for Meaning - Viktor E. Frankl rating: 10/10 opinion: Positive philosophy, how not to lose meaning even in a Nazi concentration camp and how not to lose it in normal life.

#00028 - The Art of Stillness - Pico Iyer rating: 8/10 opinion: A short booklet but instructive about the journey inside, realizing that we are only consciousness.

#00029 - Silence and Peace - Natalia Sosin-Krosnowska rating: 8/10 opinion: A great book to read when itching for life outside the city, concerning ideals and practical expectations, both budgetary and regular.

#00030 - Weekend Language - Andy Craig, Dave Yewman rating: 8/10 opinion: (Business) A short booklet that somewhat explains itself by the title, but inside are practical tips.

#00031 - What Got You Here Won't Get You There - Marshall Goldsmith rating: 9/10 opinion: (Business) Describes effectively how to overcome the development barrier created by our (business, but not only) ego. Practical tips and topics for reflection.

#00032 - The Kaizen Way - Robert Maurer rating: 10/10 opinion: (Business) A short book describing what Kaizen philosophy is, why it works - in a context you can grasp and start using practically.

#00033 - The $100 Startup - Chris Guillebeau rating: 8/10 opinion: (Business) A book by one of the founders of startups, which describes how to approach startups on a low budget without frustration.

#00034 - Start-Up Without Money - Mike Michalowicz rating: 8/10 opinion: (Business) Another book on the low-budget approach but also describing various interesting aspects.

#00035 - The Organized Mind - Daniel J. Levitin rating: 8/10 opinion: Setting up your brain to think and analyze data in non-trivial and sometimes complicated systems. Quite a decent read, with a few tools to pick up.

#00036 - Full Catastrophe Living - Jon Kabat-Zinn rating: 10/10 opinion: A substantial book based on years of experience and practice, explaining how to change your mental and physical suffering (referred to as a catastrophe). Very clear, offering exercises, timelines. Highly cited and recommended by other authors, probably a university professor. The only downside is the overly aggressive CD advertising.

#00037 - Essentialism - Greg McKeown rating: 10/10 opinion: A book proving why it's worth being an essentialist (and somewhat a minimalist). Describes various interesting philosophies with examples, inspiringly, and clearly.

#00038 - IKIGAI: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life - Hector Garcia, Francesc Miralles rating: 10/10 opinion: A slim book that clearly explains why Ikigai works, how it affects, and how to apply it independently. Highly recommended by many authors.

#00040 - Alone Together - Sherry Turkle rating: 9/10 opinion: A sad but good book describing how recent technological discoveries and their practical implementation in business solutions lead to various psycho-physical and social changes. A strong read. The author is often quoted and recommended by other authors; she is probably a university professor.

#00041 - Rafael Santandreu - Everything Is Easier Than You Think rating: 10/10 opinion: Rafael shows the dimension of positive psychology (or that's what I call it), i.e., relativizing, showing that it's our opinion or cognitive bias. The book itself formats thinking very well. Highly recommended.

#00042 - Steven C. Hayes - Liberated Mind rating: 10/10 opinion: A very good book based on the ACT methodology. In short, it provides about 20-30 methods, exercises, evidence on how to properly relativize your approach. It also includes strong and interesting definitions like cognitive fusion, embedding your views in your character, and another definition - cognitive frames - which shows how the mind works. A very good and very strong book, nicely based on research, not charlatanism.

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