5 good reads for October

A book focusing on managing ambiguity and another investigating how danger makes us safe are two of the reads recommended for this month.

HCHannah Connorton hannah.connorton@nationaljeweler.com

New York--A book focusing on managing ambiguity and another investigating how danger makes us safe are two of the reads on this month’s list of new releases from Goodreads.

“Humans of New York Stories” by Brandon Stanton and Ted Koppel’s “Lights Out” and are two of the books highlighted in this month’s book suggestions.In Nonsense: The Power of Not Knowing, author Jamie Holmes discusses that it’s how people deal with what they don’t understand that can be the essential skill when it comes to managing their career, relationships and daily lives, in an attempt to show the “hidden upside” of confusion.

Another read, Lights Out, looks into the possibility of a major cyberattack on America’s power grid and potential ways to prepare.

The following list includes more on these two, as well as three other new, potentially good reads for the month of October. The final pick comes recommended by a National Jeweler editor.

1. Nonsense: The Power of Not Knowing
Jamie Holmes

Being confused is unpleasant, so people grasp for meaning and stability, and work to resolve contradictions quickly. In Nonsense, Holmes attests that what matters most in business and personal matters is not IQ, willpower or confidence in what we know, but how we deal with what we don’t understand. This book is 336 pages.

2. The Hero Within: Six Archetypes We Live By
Carol S. Pearson

Pearson combines literature, anthropology and psychology to define the six heroic archetypes she sees in everyone, and shows how individuals can reach their fullest potential by achieving a balance between work, family and themselves. This book is 338 pages.

3. Lights Out: A Cyberattack, a Nation Unprepared, Surviving the Aftermath
Ted Koppel

Jewelers, and brick-and-mortar retailers in general, are continuously told they need to have an Internet presence to reach an increasingly digital audience of consumers. In Lights Out, Koppel reveals that a major cyberattack on America’s power grid is not only possible but likely and evaluates potential ways to prepare. This book is 288 pages.

4. Foolproof: Why Safety Can Be Dangerous and How Danger Makes Us Safe
Greg Ip

Humans have been successful at making life safer, which in turn enables us to take bigger risks. In Foolproof, Ip presents a macro-theory of human nature and disaster that explains how we can keep ourselves safe in an increasingly dangerous world. In an industry where valuable

Banner will be right here …

materials and large sums of money are part of everyday life, this book is a good read for jewelers. It is 336 pages.

5. Editor’s Pick: Humans of New York Stories
Brandon Stanton
Selected by: Senior Editor Hannah Connorton

If you haven’t already been introduced to Humans of New York, well, you’re welcome. What first began as a blog is now a book that features snapshots of New Yorkers accompanied by deep, moving and interesting interviews--not so much the “Who are you and what do you do?” but the “What’s a moment in your life when everything changed?” In addition to the book, I’d also highly recommend following the Instagram account @humansofny, where Stanton not only interviews New Yorkers but people from around the world, currently focusing on the refugees attempting to make their way to Europe. This book is for everyone. It is 432 pages.

Hannah Connorton