“You should be far more concerned with your current trajectory than with your current results.”
Have you ever experienced one of those moments when you catch yourself, slam on the brakes, and decide to steer your life in a completely different direction? It’s something many of us grapple with for various reasons. However, stepping out of the comfort zone of the tried-and-tested norm can be a daunting challenge. Whether it’s finding the motivation to kick that next big change into gear or practical guides on how and where to begin, join us at What We Reading as we explore some of our favourite books for starting over! These books combine optimism and hope to make the process of starting afresh and reinventing oneself seem less daunting, making them perfect reads for inspiring life changes.
Atlas Of The Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection And The Language Of Human Experience – Brené Brown
Kicking off our list of the best books for starting over is Brené Brown’s 2022 Goodreads Award-winning Atlas of the Heart. In it, Brown guides readers through eighty-seven of the experiences and emotions that define what it means to be human. Utilising over twenty years of extensive research, it is a self-help book designed to show what it means to be courageous in our own lives and how being able to label an experience grants us understanding, choice and meaning.
Brown’s skills as a storyteller map the actionable skills and framework for meaningful connection. The language and tools provided in Atlas of the Heart enable readers to unlock a new outlook that embraces new choices, second chances, and healthier connections with others by showcasing vulnerabilities.
From Strength To Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, And Deep Purpose In The Second Half Of Life – Arthur C. Brooks
Author happiness columnist at The Atlantic, Arthur Brooks provides a guide to rediscovering purpose, meaning and fulfilment as we age in From Strength to Strength. Having hit the peak of his career at the age of fifty, Brooks embarked on a journey of self-discovery to unearth how he could swap out a future of disappointment of waning abilities as he aged into one of new possibilities.
What followed was a seven-year-long series of interviews and findings utilising everything from social science, philosophy, biography, theology, and Eastern wisdom. One of the best books for a fresh start in our later years, Brooks demonstrates how realigning our priorities and habits can help enlighten and showcase how true life is within all of our reach.
Bewildered – Laura Waters
A winner for Best Travel Book by the Australian Society of Travel Writers, Bewildered is an empowering book about starting over by Laura Waters. Prompted by the implosion of a toxic relationship and a crippling bout of anxiety, this travel memoir chronicles Waters’ decision to trek 3,000 kilometres from the top of New Zealand’s north to its frosty southern final point.
Armed with maps, compasses and her resilience, this five-month-long adventure where Waters was not only forced to battle the treacherous terrain but also her inner demons. However, as the kilometres ticked down, nature would do its work and reward her with a total transformation. As well as being a stunning travel book about New Zealand and its rugged scenery, Bewildered is a book that explores the power of positive relationships and emotional well-being in our lives.
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way To Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones – James Clear
A Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Best Fiction and a New York Times bestseller, James Clear’s Atomic Habits is one of the best books on habits and reshaping how readers view progress and success.
One of the world’s most respected experts on habit formation, Clear breaks down why we form bad habits in our lives, and offers a practical series of strategies designed to help readers master small behaviour changes that lead to remarkable results. Clear is renowned for his ability to condense incredibly complex subjects into simple, easy-to-follow behaviours that can be applied to daily work and life. From finding overcoming a lack of willpower, designing environments to better inspire success to getting back on the saddle when they fall off, Atomic Habits is one of the best books for starting over.
Homecoming: Overcome Fear And Trauma To Reclaim Your Whole, Authentic Self – Thema Bryant
Thema Bryant provides a guide to shedding the fears and insecurities holding you back from an authentic life in her 2022 book, Homecoming. Survival mode is the process of taking on more responsibilities and demands in the aftermath of stress, disappointment or trauma. It keeps people busy, but not healed.
Having survived assault, racism and evacuation from the Liberian Civil War, Bryant utilises her own experiences with her skills as a clinical psychologist to show readers how to identify disconnection from self, and how they can begin the process of healing. Through a series of clinical practices and spiritual approaches, Homecoming is the ultimate book on starting over forging a more expansive life driven by empowerment, positive relationships and a more profound sense of purpose.
Taking The Leap: Freeing Ourselves From Old Habits And Fears – Pema Chödrön
Bestselling author Pema Chödrön leans on the Buddhist concept of shenpa to enlighten readers on how certain habits ‘hook’ our brains into states of anger, blame and loss of self-worth. Thankfully, like Atomic Habits, Chödrön teaches readers how recognising these patterns instantly loosens the power they have, paving the way for a healthier, more fulfilling life.
Delivered with her trademark friendly and encouraging style, this book on starting over explains how natural intelligence, natural warmth, and natural openness can be used to heal one’s self and others. Taking the Leap gives readers the inspiration and the tools required to bring about a positive transformation and a new way of living.
Beginners: The Joy And Transformative Power Of Lifelong Learning – Tom Vanderbilt
Inspired by his daughter’s insatiable need to try seemingly everything, Vanderbilt chronicles his year of learning five new things—chess, singing, surfing, drawing, and juggling. From experiencing losses in chess matches against eight-year-olds to belting out Spice Girl classics, Beginners is brimming with dozens of hilarious adventures.
The book also includes interviews with experts discussing the fascinating and rewarding psychology of being an adult beginner.
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
