Someone once asked Yang Lan: After a girl has been in school for so long and has read so many books, in the end, she still has to go back to an ordinary city, work an ordinary job, marry a wife, do laundry and cook, and teach her husband and children, why bother.
Yang Lan replied: We insist on it, even if we end up falling into tediousness and washing away the lead, the same work, but with a different state of mind, the same family, but with a different mood, the same offspring, but with different qualities.
Sanmao also once said: When a woman reads more, her appearance will naturally change.
I consider myself lucky to have always had a little hobby, reading and writing.
In 2023, I read a total of 55 books and read 247 hours.
I almost didn't buy many paper books this year, I read through WeChat, and I bought members to read, which saved a lot compared to buying paper books.
In the past, even if you read a book, you will soon forget it. Now every time I finish reading a book, I ask myself to write a book review, and another 1,000-word reading note on Xiaohongshu.
In addition, because some books I forgot to check the mark that I had finished reading for the first time, the month of reading completion was wrong, please forgive me. The few books that I read very little are because I read paper books.
January:
1, Junichiro Tanizaki "Fine Snow"
2, Zhou Xun "A Xun"
3. Porridge Zoro "Time Management for Success"
4, Jin Shenghua "Talking Heart: Ten Years with Lin Qingxia"
5. Marbel Katz, "The Simplest Way: The Practice of Zero Limits"
6, Yan Geling "Heavenly Bath"
"Fine Snow" is a work by Japanese writer Junichiro Tanizaki. Because it is a must-read book for professional courses, it took me 20 hours to read it with strong interest. The four sisters in the book have their own personalities, but my favorite is the protagonist Yukiko, a traditional Japanese woman, shy and shy, although not as shocking as the new women, she is gentle, modest, hardworking, tenacious, dedicated, and at the same time has no shortage of opinions.
"A Xun" is a collection of essays by CCTV host Zhu Xun, Zhou Xun, who has been hip-hopping in front of the screen, has so many hard experiences, doing odd jobs while studying and working in Japan, cleaning toilets, and physical pain.
Regarding "Time Management for Success", if the whole book is condensed into one sentence, it is: the essence of time management is to get things done. I agree with this sentence of Mr. Zuoluo. Time management is not about cramming time from morning to night, but how to get something done.
February:
1. Spenser "Writing is the best self-investment"
2. Rouge Well of Dragon Slayer, "Writing Brain Science: A Guide to Efficient Writing for Dragon Slayer"
3. Christian Grüning's "Speed Reading"
4. Jane Austen, "Sense and Sensibility"
I signed up for a writing class this month, so I arranged to read all writing books.
Regarding writing, Spenser said that if you don't ask yourself what you want to write and what you can write, chasing readers, market trends, and hot spots, the more you write, the more painful it becomes, and the readers will feel unreal.
I agree with this point of view very much, I have written opinion essays, character drafts, film reviews, and book reviews, and finally I feel that I should combine my passion, take root in reading, and write book reviews, instead of chasing hot spots.
March:
1, Zhang Defen "Live a New Self"
2, Zhao Nam-joo "Kim Ji-young born in 82"
3. Eric Jorgensen's "Navarre Treasure"
4, Zhao Han "Interpretation: Fearless Truth"
"Kim Ji-young Born in '82" impressed me deeply. The heroine graduates from college and returns to her family from the workplace after giving birth.
She often speaks as someone else without knowing it: for example, when the whole family goes back to her mother-in-law's house for the New Year or the Mid-Autumn Festival, she tells her father-in-law as her mother that it is important that only your family is reunited?
I said to my husband in my mother's voice: You stay in Busan for several days every year during the holidays, but when you get to my house, your ass is not hot and you are in a hurry to leave, so you have to stay a little longer this time.
I believe that Kim Ji-young is really sick, but these words are a portrayal of the accumulation of real voices from the bottom of my heart for a long time. Whether in China or Japan, women are always asked to give priority to their in-laws after marriage, which I think is unfair to the current social structure. Whether it is the in-law's family or the mother's family, the parents should be equal. The times are evolving, and concepts must continue to evolve.
April:
1. History of Innantun "Speed Reading"
2, John Williams "Stoner"
3, Mortimer J. Adler, Charles Van Doren, "How to Read a Book"
4. Yataro Matsuura "Beyond Expectations: Yataro Matsuura's Life Management Principles"
5, Shigeaki Hinohara "Live Well: I Live Like This to Be 105 Years Old"
6, Mai Jia "Reading is going home"
I've read a lot of books on how to read, but I don't think I've learned it. I remember that Mr. Fan Deng said that the so-called reading method is actually to read word by word, without any tricks, and I deeply agree.
You don't have to expect to memorize everything when you read a book, if you can impress yourself with one point, it's worth it.
"Live Well: I Live to 105 Years Old Like This" is the work of Japanese writer Mr. Shigeaki Hinohara at the age of 105. You don't need to be reasonable, just listen obediently. He is like our own grandparents, telling the story.
May:
1, Zhang Ailing "Legend"
2, Zhang Ailing "Rumors"
3, Zhang Ailing "Resentful Girl"
4, Zhang Ailing "Red Rose and White Rose"
5, Zhang Ailing "Half Life"
6, Liu Chuan'e "The Biography of Zhang Ailing"
This month is my dissertation season, and the topic of my dissertation is Eileen Chang's literary research, so I read Eileen Chang's works. I have to say that Zhang Ailing is really a talented woman, and the story of every work makes me intoxicated, and I have to read it in one go.
She is very good at writing characters, regardless of men and women, human nature is vividly portrayed in her pen.
This month's intensive study also allowed me to achieve a good grade in my dissertation, and I successfully got the opportunity to defend my dissertation next year.
June:
1, Feng Tang "Feng Tang's Mental Method of Success"
2, Junichi Watanabe "Dull Sensibility"
3, Gatso "Everything is the best arrangement"
4, Lingyi "Life Silent Mode"
5, Liu Ruoying "I dare to be lonely in your arms"
As for the need for people to have a certain degree of insensitivity and I think I would agree with this idea to some extent. After all, it's not a bad thing to have a big heart.
However, the author writes about a woman in "Insensitive Force" when her husband has an affair, saying that if the woman's sense of smell is not so sensitive, his family will not be able to live in harmony and peace.
Blunt sensitivity is divided into things, and it is not necessary to maintain blunt sensitivity in the face of such a big thing. The score of this book on WeChat Reading was only 18.7, but it was pushed very well at the time.
July:
1. Judith Locke's "Moderate Parenting: Raising Independent and Confident Children"
2, William Dresiewicz "Excellent Sheep"
3, Hermann Hesse "Siddhartha"
4, unprecepted "38°C Love"
"Excellent Sheep" is because I listened to a lecture by the principal of the school, and ordered a physical book on the spot.
The author, who has spent 24 years in the Ivy League schools, believes that under the elite education system, most of the students produced today are smart, talented, and motivated, but at the same time they are full of anxiety, timidity, and uncertainty about the future, and an extreme lack of curiosity and a sense of purpose.
August:
1、莉丝·默里《风雨哈佛路》
2, Yang Jin Ram "The Coming of the Age of Mother Earth"
3. Clayton Christensen "How Do You Measure Your Life"
4, Huashan "Huashan Explains the Analects"
The first thing that attracted "Wind and Rain Harvard Road" was the cover of the book, the author's bright smile.
Although born in the slums and with drug parents, Liz still loves them dearly. She grew up in a life of drugs, garbage picking, and hunger, until she was 15 years old, when her mother died, and she decided not to continue this life and go back to school.
After a long and hard study Xi, Liz was admitted to Harvard.
While waiting for the Harvard admission results, she said: This letter from Harvard, no matter what is written in it, will not break my current life. No matter what happens here and what will happen in the future, my life will never be controlled by external conditions.
"The Coming of the Age of Mother Earth" is also a book that has touched me a lot, such as being aware of the present moment, eating while eating, driving while driving, single-mindedness, and full attention. For this reason, I have been practicing Xi for a long time, and I have found that the whole person is calm and joyful, and there will be a steady stream of inspiration.
There are also forbidden words. In the author's hometown, one week in June every year, women leave their homes and go to the temple to practice the forbidden language.
Be aware when you speak, keep thinking, and your words will be more powerful and wiser.
September:
1, Han Jiang "Vegetarian"
2, Zheng Yuhuang "Reading Changes Destiny"
3, Rhonda Byrne "The Secret"
4, Cai Zhizhong, Li Hong "My life is up to me"
"My Life Is Up to Me" is also a book that touched me very much, the biography of Taiwanese cartoonist Tsai Zhizhong, Tsai Zhizhong is not only a painter, he has many different labels, such as closing the company and retreating for ten years to study physics, study Buddhism, and is also a bridge expert.
The results are outstanding, but his highest education is in the second year of junior high school.
As long as it is something he wants to do, he always does his best regardless of time and cost.
The book inspired me to focus on everything you do, and success is just a natural thing.
October:
1, Xu Zhuoyun "Go In, Settle Yourself"
2, Chen Xueli "It's No Big Deal: Be Your Self Not Dominated by Emotions"
3. Victor Frankl "Living the Meaning of Life"
4、萧丽红《千江有水千江月》
This month's favorite book is "A Thousand Rivers Have Water and a Thousand Rivers and Moons", a second-hand book bought from catching more fish.
A long time ago, I heard from a university teacher that this book had a great impact on her, so I kept writing it down and finally bought it.
What touched me the most was the magnificence and fun of Taiwanese folk customs, as well as the purest feelings between people. In a big family, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law respect and love each other, and always think about others.
Among them, the hazy love between the female protagonist Zhenguan and the male protagonist Daxin is beautiful and regrettable.
I like the last sentence in the book: All the pain that Daxin has given her, Zhenguan is on the moonlit night road down the mountain from the temple, returning it to the sky, the earth, and the gods and Buddhas.
Although love is gone, there are still many beautiful things that can be worth in life!
November:
1, Stephen Covey "The Seven Xi of Highly Effective People"
2, Li Xiaoyi "Freedom"
3. John Stryleky "The Cafe at the End of the World"
4, Nine Sides "Upward Growth"
"The Seven Xi of Highly Effective People" is the second time to brush this book. After reading each chapter, I wrote a note and posted it on Xiaohongshu.
"Cafe at the End of the World" was read in a school library with a child's exam.
The reason why the narrator in the book is confused is because he has not found the meaning of life.
If you find the meaning of existence, you will know what to do.
"The people, activities, and things in my life that want to drain my attention, energy, and time, but have nothing to do with the meaning of my life, are the reverse waves rushing to the shore. And the people, activities, and things that can help me achieve the meaning of life are the positive waves that rush to the sea. ”
December:
1, Li Zhu "Between the Hill and the Hill"
2. Classical "Tear Down the Walls in Thinking"
3, Kazuo Inamori "Living Law"
4. Lucy Maud Mongomali "Anne of Green Gables"
"Anne of Green Gables" is the last book I finished reading in 2023, and when I saw the end, I cried several times. It's not just Anne who has good feelings in the book, but Matthew and Marilla, who adopted her, and Gilbert, who gave up his position as a teacher to Anne.
These selfless people are always amiable and lovable, and people are admirable.
So what really touches people, I have always felt that it is the beauty, kindness, sincerity, and selfless dedication of people.
These are the most precious and priceless qualities that can never be measured in money.
"Between the Hill and the Hill" starts from the dual perspectives of mother and daughter, and writes about the estrangement between the two generations through the form of dialogue monologue, but at the moment when the daughter also becomes a mother, all the estrangement becomes understanding.
With the help of her mother, the daughter also grows up to be like her mother, protecting her children, and more importantly, being herself again and controlling her own destiny.
In 2023, I will no longer simply read books as I did in the past, but will begin to pay attention to the output of reading.
After reading a book, I will ask myself to complete a book review and send notes to Xiaohongshu at the same time.
I did find that when I output, I have a more thorough understanding of the content of the book, and the link to the book is more in-depth.
At the end of the article, I remembered what Musk said:
It was books that first enriched me as an adult, and then my parents.
Musk has loved reading since he was a child and loves books. I can read 60 books a month, and I read nearly 10 hours a day when I was a teenager, and I have a wide range of fields, such as science fiction, programming, philosophy, physics, engineering, and artificial intelligence.
A lot of reading has built the background of Musk's life. He is not only a successful businessman, but also an entrepreneur with ideals and feelings, and has always believed that what he does is to set off for the progress of mankind.
In "Reading on the Island", Su Tong jokingly compares fish and pork to classic literature and youth literature. Respect youth literature, but encourage reading of classics.
Reading romance novels such as Qiong Yao may call people to walk 5 meters forward, and if you read classic writers such as Tolstoy, readers may move forward 50 meters or more.
If there is one book I want to read in 2024, I hope to read more classics.
In the new year, reading is still a very important little thing. May we all see heaven and earth, sentient beings, and ourselves in reading.
In 2024, look forward to a better version of yourself together!