Books & More

Lifelong learning is a core characteristic of healthy longevity. There’s always something new to explore or understand more deeply. Being interested keeps us interesting. Our curiosity connects us with the world; it can give us other perspectives that open us to new conversations, experiences and possibilities that enrich us as we journey forward.

This is a living document (by no means comprehensive). Please share what you are curious about and the books, videos, articles, podcast, and conversations you’re finding inspiring in your life, so we can keep the list growing.

HEALTHY LIVING

How can I incorporate healthier practices in my life?

  • Younger Next Year [Chris Crowley & Henry S. Lodge]

  • Undo It: How Simple Lifestyle Changes Can Reverse Most Chronic Diseases [Dean Onrush, MD]

  • What's Your Body Telling You? [Steve Sisgold]

  • Ageless Aging: A Woman’s Guide to Increasing Healthspan, Brainspan, and Lifespan [ Maddy Dychtwald]

What can I learn for my own healthy longevity from the Blue Zones?

  • The Blue Zones Secrets for Living Longer [Dan Buettner]

  • The 100 Year Life: Living and Working in the Age of Longevity [Lynda Gratton & Andrew Scott]

  • Successful Aging: A Neuroscientist Explores the Power & Potential of Our Lives [Daniel J. Levitin]

How can I be more connected to nature?

  • The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot [Robert MacFarlane]

MID-LIFE DESIGN & TRANSITION

How can I design a retirement that suits me best?

  • Rethinking Retirement: A Guide for Making Choices [Mary Morency and Jeannette Lalonde]

  • Couple’s Retirement Puzzle [Robert Taylor and Dorian Mintzer]

  • HBR Guide to Designing Your Retirement [Harvard Business Review]

  • Becoming a Life Change Artist: 7 Creative Skills to Reinvent Yourself [Fred Mandell PhD & Kathleen Jordan PhD]

How will I live more aligned with my values and gifts?

  • The Search: Finding Meaningful Work in a Post-Career World [Bruce Feiler]

  • The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50 [Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot]

  • The Power of Character Strengths [Ryan M. Niemiec]

  • Be Your Future Self [Dr. Benjamin Hardy]

How can I use the 3 steps of a transition to more effectively manage change?

  • Life is in the Transitions: Mastering Change at Any Age [Bruce Feiler]

  • Release: Create a Clutter Free and Soul Driven Life [Peggy Fitzsimmons]

How will I embrace a “beginner’s mind”?

  • Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know [Adam Grant]

  • Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway [Susan Jeffers, PhD]

Am I living in the best place for me at this time in my life?

  • Right Place, Right Time: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing a Home for the Second Half of Life [Ryan Frederick]

MEANINGFUL WORK & CONTRIBUTION

How can I effectively make a career shift that aligns with my values?

  • Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life [Bill Burnett, Dave Evans]

  • From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life [Arthur C. Brooks]

  • The Purpose Xchange: Reshaping Midlife Around Purpose [Deb Gale, Jonathan Collie, Julie Randell-Khan]

  • Start Something That Matters [Blake Mycoskie]

  • The Encore Career Handbook: How to Make a Living and a Difference in the Second Half of Life [Marci Alboher]

How could taking a break help me to move forward?

  • Soulbatical: A Corporate Rebel’s Guide to Finding Your Best Life [Shelley Paxton]

How can I be a better leader?

  • The Art of Possibility [Rosamund Stone Zander & Benjamin Zander]

  • Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder [Chip Conley]

What is a good mentor?

  • Mentoring: The Tao of Giving and Receiving Wisdom [Chunglian Al Huang, Jerry Lynch]

How can I be a good caregiver for others and myself?

  • Now What? Managing the Emotional Journey of Long Term Care for Families [Deborah Bakti]

  • Caregiving in the Comfort of Home: A Complete Guide for Caregivers [Maria M. Meyer, Paula Derr, RN]

  • The Anatomy of Grief [Dorothy P. Holinger]

MINDFUL & PURPOSE-FULL LIVING

How can I shift my mindset to create moments that matter?

  • The Inner Work of Age: Shifting from Role to Soul [Connie Zweig]

  • Learning to Love Midlife: 12 Reasons Why Life Gets Better with Age [Chip Conley]

  • Mindset: The New Psychology of Success [Carol S Dweck, PhD]

  • The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experience Have Extraordinary Impact  [Chip Heath, and Dan Heath]

  • Savoring [Fred B. Bryant & Joseph Veroff]

  • Positive Intelligence [Shirzad Chamine]

  • The Source: Open Your Mind, Change Your Life [Dr. Tara Swart]

  • Breaking the Age Code: How Your Beliefs About Aging Determine How Long & Well You Live [Becca Levy, PhD]

How can rituals help me in my life?

  • Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life [Dacher Keltner]

  • The Power of Ritual: Turning Everyday Activities into Soulful Practices [Casper per Kuile]

  • The Wild Edge of Sorrow: Rituals of Renewal and the Sacred Work of Grief [Francis Weller]

  • The Artists Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity [Julia Cameron]

  • Art of the Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer [Steven Kotler]

  • Atomic Habits: The Science of Making Positive Changes that Stick [Wendy Wood]

  • Hello, Goodbye: 75 Rituals for Times of Loss, Celebration & Change [Day Schildkret]

How can I leave a legacy?

  • How to Live Forever: The Enduring Power of Connecting the Generations [Marc Freedman]

  • How Will You Measure Your Life? [Clayton M. Christensen]

How can I live my life with more purpose and intention?

  • HBR Guide to Crafting Your Purpose [Harvard Business Review]

  • Living a Committed Life: Finding Freedom and Fulfillment in a Purpose Larger than Yourself [Lynne Twist]

  • Designing Transformative Experiences [Brad McLain]

  • What Retirees Want: A Holistic View Of Life’s Third Age [Ken Dychtwald & Robert Morison]

  • Creating Your Best Life [Caroline Adams Miller]

  • The Lion Tracker’s Guide to Life [Boyd Varty]

  • The Happiness Curve: Why Life Gets Better After 50 [Jonathan Rauch]

  • Finding Your Own Northstar [Martha Beck]

  • Be Your Future Self Now [Dr. Benjamin Hardy]

  • You Only Die Once: How To Make It To The End With No Regrets [Jodi Wellman]

  • Character Strengths, VIA Character Strengths Assessment, https://viacharacter.org/

  • Personal Values, Personal Values Assessment, https://personalvalues.es/

PLAYTIME

Where will I include creativity in my life?

  • The Creative Act: A Way of Being [Rick Rubin]

  • The Artists Way [Julia Cameron]

  • Play: How It Shapes The Brain, Opens the Imagination and Invigorates the Soul [Stuart Brown & Christopher Vaughan]

How can I expand my travel repertoire to share my gifts & keep learning?

  • Wellness Travel: Esalan, Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Canyon Ranch, Rancho La Puerta

  • Experiential Learning Travel: Road Scholar, Smithsonian Journeys

  • Ecotourism: Ecosystem Restoration Camps, GVI Planet

  • Adventure Travel: Backroads, ElderTreks, Walking the World, World Expeditions

  • Working & Volunteer Travel: Go Overseas, Workaway, WWOOF

What can I learn from becoming a beginner?

  • Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Learning [Tom Vanderbilt]

RICH RELATIONSHIPS

How will I build a deeper sense of belonging in community?

  • A Call to Connection: Rediscovering the Transformative Power of Relationships [Casper ter Kuile, et.al.]

  • The Blue Zones of Happiness [Dan Buettner]

  • The Art and Science of Connection [Kasley Killam]

How will I practice the art of making and keeping friends?

  • Friends: Understanding the Power of Our Most Important Relationships [Robin Dunbar]

How can a caregiver take care of themselves too?

  • The Conscious Caregiver: A Mindful Approach to Caring for Your Loved One Without Losing Yourself [Linda Abbit]

  • Passage in Caregiving: Turning Chaos into Confidence [Gail Sheehy]

How will I navigate life as a solo ager?

  • Essential Retirement Planning for Solo Agers [Sara Zeff Geber, PhD]